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NMPF Statement on Califf FDA Confirmation
Statement from NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern on the confirmation of Dr. Robert Califf as FDA Commissioner:
“We congratulate Dr. Robert Califf on his confirmation as FDA Commissioner. We are cheering for his success at a particularly challenging time, given the persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the urgent need to address the opioids crisis and other public health issues. We are heartened that, in addition to these concerns, he has also cited addressing the proliferation of plant-based products mislabeled as dairy a ‘priority’ issue under his leadership.
“Nutritional confusion over the products is real, with meaningful public health implications, and the Biden Administration has promised guidance by mid-year. We look forward to working with Dr. Califf as he resolves this long-standing, and growing, concern.”
NMPF’s Galen on the Need for DMC Signup
Chris Galen, NMPF’s senior vice president for member services and strategic initiatives, talks with the National Association of Farm Broadcasters about the recent extension in signup and why all dairy producers benefit from the program. USDA last week announced an extension of signup for the program until March 25.
“Climate-smart” Farming is Efficient Farming, Medeiros Says
“Climate-smart” is becoming an agriculture buzzword. USDA last week unveiled $1 billion in pilot projects for lower-carbon farming practices. And just days earlier in Congress, a House Agriculture subcommittee heard testimony from livestock producers on how they’re working toward sustainability solutions. Melvin Medeiros — a Laton, CA dairy farmer, member of NMPF’s Executive Committee and Chairman of Dairy Farmers of America (DFA)’s Western Area Council — represented dairy producers.
Medeiros, who is profiled in the latest Farmer Focus from NMPF and the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program, takes a wide range of approaches to sustainability. Tweaks to farming practices, new technologies, effective use of data-driven management – all add up to a bright future for climate-smart dairies, said Medeiros.
“Trying to envision what a dairy farm could look like in 2050, and where technology is going today, and the speed it’s going at — every tractor on the farm, every piece of machinery could be run by electricity. We’ll be supplying that energy either through solar, or methane, and dairy farms could be a net exporter of energy. That’s where I see it going, and that’s a positive thing.”
For more of the Medeiros story and profiles of innovative dairy-farm families, visit NMPF’s Sharing Our Story page.
NMPF’s Bjerga on WOTUS Efforts
NMPF Senior Vice President of Communications Alan Bjerga discusses NMPF’s leadership in ensuring dairy voices are heard in proposed revision to Waters of the U.S. regulations on RFD-Radio, hosted by the Illinois Farm Bureau. NMPF submitted comments to EPA on Monday along with the American Farm Bureau Federation and other organizations expressing concern with the pace of Biden Administration revisions, asking for clear regulatory language and policies that respect legal precedent and the Clean Water Act.
NMPF and USDEC Applaud Record U.S. Dairy Exports in 2021
On behalf of U.S. dairy producers and manufacturers, the National Milk Producers Federation and the U.S. Dairy Export Council lauded the industry’s decades of work that’s led to a record year for U.S. dairy exports after the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced record sales of $7.75 billion in 2021, accounting for over 17% of U.S. milk production.
“The record demand for U.S. milk overseas in 2021 is a testament to the hard work and dedication of U.S. dairy farmers and the entire industry to making sure our high-quality, nutritious products feed the world as well as Americans,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation. “As we’ve said many times, exports represent the next frontier for U.S. dairy – it’s gratifying to see decades of effort bear fruit and only makes us more excited about the future successes ahead.”
“Outstanding results like last year’s record-setting $7.75 billion in U.S. dairy exports don’t happen overnight. They’re the result of a lot of hard work by our industry to build demand for U.S. dairy products around the world and harness the opportunities that past trade deals – from U.S. free trade agreements to the World Trade Organization’s Uruguay Round – have made available,” said Krysta Harden, president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council. “We look forward to continuing to build on this success further and to ensure we have the right trade and export supply chain policy tools to support that growth.”
Exports may have reached even higher levels had U.S. exporters not been battered by supply chain challenges that drove up costs and complexity of delivering dairy products to foreign customers. The U.S. dairy industry will need proactive trade policies that remove barriers to trade and ensure that U.S. dairy farmers and manufacturers are equipped to compete on a level playing field, the organizations added.
NMPF Statement on USDA’s Extension of 2022 DMC Signup
Statement from NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern on USDA’s Extension of 2022 DMC Signup:
“Dairy farmers thank USDA and Secretary Vilsack for extending signup for this year’s Dairy Margin Coverage Program in order to maximize producer signup for this important program. DMC offers cost-effective margin protection for small and medium-sized producers and inexpensive catastrophic coverage for larger dairies. It provides critical protection against unforeseen market disruptions – and if the past two years have shown anything, it’s that unforeseen market disruptions can happen. We urge all producers to sign up for DMC protection, part of a suite of NMPF-supported, federally backed risk-management that also includes the Dairy-RP and LGM-Dairy programs.”
For more information on DMC and NMPF’s support for effective risk management, visit NMPF’s website here.
Deadline Extended: Sign Up Now for USDA’s Dairy Margin Coverage Program
NMPF Commends USDA Leadership on Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities
From NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern:
“We applaud Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and his team at USDA for working to fashion the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative in a way that will provide significant opportunities for U.S. dairy producers of all sizes to build on their proactive sustainability work. This new initiative will support voluntary, producer-led efforts to increase on-farm adoption of climate smart agricultural technologies and practices. Such efforts are essential to help U.S. dairy farmers fulfill their environmental stewardship goals to become greenhouse gas neutral or better by 2050 and improve water quality while optimizing water use.
“NMPF looks forward to working with USDA to make this program a success —and a springboard for additional achievements.”
Progress on Ports Problems
Bottlenecks at U.S. ports and their impact on agricultural exports took center stage at the National Press Club last week, with a webinar sponsored by the National Milk Producers Federation, the U.S. Dairy Export Council, and Agri-Pulse. This week’s podcast features Krysta Harden, president and CEO of USDEC, moderating a panel from the webinar featuring USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack; John Porcari, the Biden Administration’s Supply Chain Ports Envoy; Reps. John Garamendi (D-CA) and Dusty Johnson (R-SD), co-sponsor of a House of Representatives ports bill.
Vilsack at the panel announced a new initiative adding access for U.S. agricultural exports at the Port of Oakland. Vilsack also noted the importance of the public understanding that ports backlogs don’t only affect shipments of consumer goods.
“We hope to be able to make sure that people understand this isn’t just an import issue, it’s also an export issue,” Vilsack said at the event. “And the Department of Agriculture wants to be part of the solution.”
The full podcast is here. You can find and subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and Amazon Music under the podcast name “Dairy Defined.” A transcript is also available below. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file below. Please attribute information to NMPF.
NMPF Statement on Continued Allowance of Low-Fat Flavored Milk in Schools
From NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern:
“Ensuring kids have access to the nutrients they need to grow and thrive is a top priority for dairy. We thank USDA for the rule’s provision that maintains schools’ ability to serve low-fat, 1% flavored milk. One percent flavored milk is not only fully consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, it is also a nutrient-dense, low-fat healthy option kids will choose to drink. I would also like to thank Representatives Joe Courtney and G.T. Thompson for their long-time leadership on this issue. We look forward to continuing to work with them, USDA, and others to help ensure everyone has access to nutritious food.”
NMPF and USDEC Statement on Senate Introduction of Ocean Shipping Reform Act
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) today commended lawmakers for introducing bipartisan Senate legislation to address the shipping challenges the dairy industry and other U.S. agricultural sectors are facing. The legislation, should it become law, would help alleviate delays and disruptions at U.S. ports that have been a critical part of the export supply chain challenges plaguing U.S. exporters.
Sponsored by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Thune (R-SD), the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (S. 3580) is the Senate response to the House version (HR 4996) passed by a wide bipartisan vote (364 – 60) in December. Senators Baldwin (D-WI), Hoeven (R-ND), Stabenow (D-MI), Marshall (R-KS), Peters (D-MI), Moran (R-KS), Blumenthal (D-CT), Young (R-IN), Kelly (D-AZ), Blackburn (R-TN), Booker (D-NH), and Ernst (R-IA) also joined as original cosponsors of the bill.
“The supply chain challenges that have beset American exporters pose significant difficulties for U.S. dairy producers, causing over $1.3 billion in export losses for our sector during the first three quarters of 2021,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “We greatly appreciate the leadership of Sens. Klobuchar and Thune to introduce legislation that will encourage many of the ocean carriers to stop unfair practices. We are committed to working with the Senators and their colleagues in Congress as legislation moves forward to ensure that a final law delivers the changes our exporters most urgently need to see.”
“This Senate bill takes strong strides to address many of the challenges dairy exporters have faced, including securing export vessel bookings and combatting unfair detention and demurrage charges, vital issues to ensure our products reach their intended destinations,” said Krysta Harden, president and CEO of USDEC. “When we can’t export our products, we not only jeopardize our foreign customer relationships and markets, but we also lose value-added opportunities that create jobs and investment in the United States. We look forward to continuing to work with Senators Klobuchar and Thune, and others in Congress, to address outstanding concerns and provide for the strongest possible reforms.”
USDEC and NMPF will continue to work with the Senate to strengthen the measure further as it advances through Congress.
USDEC and NMPF, in collaboration with their member Supply Chain Working Group, have leveraged a multi-pronged approach with Congress and the administration from early 2021 to address the supply chain disruptions plaguing the dairy industry, including unprecedented fees, container availability, and lack of transparency. Foreign-owned ocean carriers’ practices have been a sizable component of those problems. The organizations have provided input into the legislative text and worked closely with the sponsors of this bill to advance Congressional efforts to update the Shipping Act to encourage more reasonable and equitable access to the export shipping supply chain.
Beyond legislation, NMPF and USDEC also continue to work with Congress and the administration to identify additional measures to ease the congestion – including calling for further expanding port hours of operation, increased data transparency, and investments in key supply chain infrastructure.
