The National Milk Producers Federation has posted a slide presentation on YouTube to help dairy farmers understand the new federal dairy safety net, known as the Margin Protection Program (MPP), as part of its ongoing effort to educate farmers about the new program.

There are links to the narrated presentation on both the NMPF website and the Future for Dairy websiteserving as NMPF’s information hub for the new MPP program, which was launched by the USDA Sept. 2.

The 21-minute, 34-slide presentation walks the viewer through the details of the program, including who is eligible, how to sign up, and what the fees and payments might look like under various scenarios. Also covered are the basic concept of the program, what it replaces and how it compares to the previous dairy safety net.

This narrated presentation is a video file to accompany a more basic, slides-only version (PDF, 1.3 MB) already available online.

“Dairy farmers are now making their decisions on participation in the new program,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern, who narrates the slide presentation. “Along with other tools NMPF has developed, this presentation should help them make the best choices for their individual circumstances.”

Meanwhile, dairy producers attending this week’s World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin, can find out what they need to know about the new dairy safety net at a special, 90-minute briefing set for Thursday morning, Oct. 2.

Sponsored by NMPF, the briefing will feature Mulhern along with noted University of Missouri dairy economist Scott Brown. It will start at 8:30 a.m. in Mendota Room No. 4, at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison.

NMPF has produced a five-page written summary (PDF, 800 KB) of the new program and an online calculator to help farmers select their coverage levels.

The new dairy safety net was included in the 2014 farm bill. It allows producers to protect their margin – the difference between milk prices and feed costs – rather than supporting milk prices.

Producers have until Nov. 28 to sign up for the program for the remainder of 2014, all of 2015, or both. PD

—From National Milk Producers Federation news release

Learn more about the Margin Protection Program by reading these related articles: "Online tools help farmers determine margin insurance options" and "Details of new margin protection insurance program released."