National Milk Producers Federation
‘Time to consider improvements’ in milk marketing system, say farm groups
The first update to the federal milk marketing system in nearly a quarter-century "should improve price discovery, improve the clarity of the program, continue to support timely payments to producers and reduce price incentives to de-pool milk," said a dozen U.S. farm groups on Monday. The groups said they believed the USDA would call a hearing in 2023 to address price formulas used in the marketing system.
Dairy farmers may have to get big to survive, says Perdue
At FDA meeting, controversy over lab-grown meat
The Food and Drug Administration held a public meeting Thursday on the safety and labeling of alternative “meat” proteins produced with animal cell culture technology. In a packed room, FDA employees, industry stakeholders, and scientists discussed current trends in the controversial sector, which some imagine could reshape how Americans consume meat. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
NAFTA’s brewing milk war
As NAFTA renegotiations get underway, dairy is shaping up as major sticking point between Canada and the United States. After Canada’s foreign affairs minister insisted on Monday that Canada will defend its tightly controlled approach to its dairy industry, the president of the National Milk Producers Federation accused her of trying to have it both ways on free trade.
Looking at Canada, U.S. dairy groups will work on NAFTA update
In joint comments to the U.S. trade representative’s office, two U.S. dairy groups said they will work with the Trump administration to modernize the North American Free Trade Agreement in hopes of gaining wider access to the Canadian market.
Is non-dairy milk about to be mainstream?
Market research company Mintel says sales of non-dairy milk grew 9 percent in 2015, while dairy milk sales fell 7 percent, the food industry news site Food Dive says. "The non-dairy segment started out as an alternative category catering to those with food allergies but it has since evolved beyond a trend."
No-GMO pledge is ‘marketing puffery,’ farm groups tell Dannon
Six U.S. farm groups challenged Dannon USA's pledge to switch to non-GMO ingredients in its yogurt as "the exact opposite of the sustainable agriculture you claim to the seeking." The chairman of the National Milk Producers Federation, Randy Mooney, said, "This is just marketing puffery, not any true innovation that improves the actual product offered to consumers."
Dairy farmers ask $100–$150 million in USDA cheese-buying
To bolster milk prices and help keep dairy farmers in business, the USDA should buy up to 90 million pounds of cheese and donate it to food banks, says the National Milk Producers Federation.
Dairy farmers say Trump immigration plan would leave them short of workers
The proposal by businessman Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican candidate for president, "to deport undocumented immigrants and wall off the southern U.S. border has created an unexpected bastion of resistance: Dairy farmers," says Bloomberg. "Farmers say they can't get enough relatives or local workers, even with pay starting at $11 an hour or more."
Dairy farmers keep the milk flowing as prices fall
Good times or bad, milk production seems to go only one direction in the United States — up, which it is doing for the third year in a row despite a tumble in market prices. Economist Scott Brown says if the industry is unable to cut output, the only solution to excess milk supplies will be larger domestic and export demand.
Dairy farmers rely less on federal program
The 2014 farm law created a new, insurance-style support program for dairy farmers, based on the difference between milk prices and the cost of feed for milk cows, a so-called margin protection program.
Dairy group decides to support TPP and oppose U.S.-EU pact
The National Milk Producers Federation board voted to support the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact "containing features that will help America's dairy farmers in the future."
U.S. groups detail benefits, or lack of them, in 12-nation TPP
The newly concluded Trans-Pacific Partnership will remove sales barriers from nations that buy $63 billion worth of U.S. farm exports, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Almost as soon as accord was announced in Atlanta, completing five years of negotiations, U.S. farm groups focused on its benefits - or lack of them - for Americans.
New dairy support program is ready for sign-up
The government announced a new approach to supporting dairy farmers, with enrollment to begin on Tuesday and conclude on Nov 28.