Voting delegates at the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (NCIMS), held April 24-29, 2015, in Portland, Oregon, rejected a proposal to reduce the somatic cell count limit in the U.S. from 750,000 cells per ml to 400,000 cells per ml.

The proposal was submitted by the International Dairy Foods Association.

Although the regulatory limit in the U.S. will remain at 750,000 cells per ml, milk products that are exported to the European Union must meet the EU SCC requirement of 400,000 cells per ml. Since milk and dairy products for export can't be easily segregated, essentially all farms in the U.S. still need to meet a 400,000 standard.

NCIMS meets every other year to consider proposed changes in the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO) and allied documents that establish the conditions under which Grade A milk is produced, inspected, hauled and processed in the U.S. For more information, visit the NCIMS website. PD

—Excerpts from the April 30, 2015, National Mastitis Council newsletter