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After reviewing a number of economic benchmarks including cull rates and cull cow prices, Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) announced last week that it will conduct a herd retirement. Bids will be accepted until Friday, June 25. Bid forms can be downloaded here:www.cwt.coop/action/action_herd.html.

“It is our belief that a herd retirement at this time will add to the positive momentum already building and should result in speeding up the milk price recovery already in progress,” said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF, which manages CWT.

This is the tenth herd retirement since CWT began operations in the summer of 2003. The most recent was conducted in the fall of 2009. As was the case in 2009’s herd retirement rounds, CWT has no set target for the volume of milk or the number of cows to be removed in this herd retirement.

“With beef prices very strong, and replacement cow and springer prices still relatively low, CWT has determined that it will consider bids up to, but not to exceed, $3.75 per hundredweight,” noted Mr. Kozak. “However, there is no guarantee that a producer who bids at the maximum level will be selected.”

Producers must still bid on a per hundredweight basis, and CWT will continue to review and accept bids beginning from the lowest bids received, moving up toward the maximum level. Farmers whose bids are accepted are paid by CWT for their milk production, and they also retain the beef value of the cows they send to processing.

Meanwhile, CWT’s export assistance program has been aggressive in the past three months since it was reactivated. The program has helped export nearly 16,000 metric tons of cheese to 17 countries.