Western United Dairymen’s petition for emergency price relief and changes to 4b pricing formula was denied by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). The CDFA gave the following reasons for its denial:
Temporary Increase on All Classes of Milk. As the secretary stated in her letter to industry dated July 20, 2012, she is committed to finding long-term solutions to the problems facing our dairy families. You acknowledge yourself in the petition, “a fifty cent temporary increase will not make dairy margins positive again.” Current fluctuating feed costs and milk prices combined with the short period of time since our last decision makes it premature to convene a hearing at this time.- Dry Whey Credit. The Food and Agricultural Code does not provide for the implementation of the dry whey credit you have proposed.
- Replacing of Whey Factor Sliding Scale. This issue was considered during the recent milk price hearing and rejected. In the very brief period between the issuance of CDFA’s previous decision and your petition, circumstances have not altered to the extent that requires reconsideration. PD
—From CDFA Notice
