The Senate approved a bill establishing a national labeling system for foods produced with technology. With 2017 enrollment underway, the National Milk Producers Federation introduced new Margin Protection Program for Dairy decision tools. The Animal Agriculture Alliance identified industry improvements related to animal care and antibiotic use. This and other U.S. dairy policy news can be found here.
Senate approves national GMO labeling bill
Members of the U.S. Senate approved a bill to establish a national labeling system for foods produced using biotechnology.
The legislation was approved late Thursday, July 7, on a 63-30 vote. The bill, negotiated by Sens. Pat Roberts (R-Kansas) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan) of the Senate Agriculture Committee, preempts Vermont’s state genetically modified organism (GMO) labeling law that took effect July 1. Instead, it establishes national guidelines for how companies disclose the presence of ingredients and foods made with biotechnology.
The head of the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) thanked Senate leaders for advancing the bill to the House of Representatives.
“We are now a major step closer to ending the confusion that has already arisen because of the Vermont law,” said NMPF president and chief executive officer Jim Mulhern. “With final passage by the Senate, approval by the House, and with President Obama’s signature, we can establish a national framework to provide information to consumers without stigmatizing agricultural biotechnology and complicating how companies market foods in interstate commerce.”
Mulhern noted that nearly 3,000 products have been pulled from Vermont supermarket shelves in the past week, as a result of companies making decisions not to sell certain products there, now that the state’s mandatory labeling law is in effect.
“The understandable decision by companies to avoid the Vermont market because of the new state law hurts consumers and is evidence that an issue of this importance must be resolved at the federal level, not on a state-by-state basis,” Mulhern said.
Leaders of more than 1,000 companies, business groups and trade organizations, including NMPF and the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), had sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) and Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) urging quick action.
“The issue of biotech labeling is one of the most significant issues that the agriculture and food industry has faced in recent years,” the groups said in the letter. “The U.S. agriculture and food industry creates over 17 million jobs, representing nearly 1 in 10 jobs. This very system – which produces the most abundant, highest-quality and the most affordable food supply in the world – will be threatened with large economic costs without a national uniform solution to the biotech labeling issue.”
House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (R-Texas) said he would review the text of the Senate bill, which differs from a previous House bill. The House voted overwhelmingly a year ago to establish a voluntary nationwide labeling program.
NMPF adds Margin Protection Program for Dairy enrollment tools
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) updated its website with new materials to assist dairy producers considering enrollment in the Margin Protection Program (MPP) for 2017.
The enrollment period for calendar year 2017 opened July 1 and closes September 30, 2016. Farmers already participating in the program can change their coverage level during this three-month enrollment window.
MPP for Dairy provides financial assistance to participating dairy producers when the margin – the difference between the price of milk and feed costs – falls below a coverage level selected by the producer. Dairy farmers can insure their farms on a sliding scale between $4 and $8 per hundredweight, deciding both how much of their production history to cover and the level of margin to protect.
NMPF offers the following materials on the Future for Dairy Resources page:
• Overview of the Margin Protection Program
• A link to the MPP online calculator
• How to use the MPP online calculator
• Informative PowerPoint presentation on MPP
• Frequently Asked Questions
• MPP Margin Spreadsheet of Milk and Feed Prices, 2007-2015
Those dairy farms that have already signed up for the MPP will remain in the program through 2018, as long as they pay the $100 administrative fee each year. Producers have the option of selecting a different coverage level during open enrollment each year. Those enrolled in the MPP as of the start of 2015 will receive a 1.3 percent increase in their production history for 2017, reflecting the overall national increase in the nation’s milk supply since last year.
According to the USDA, 54 percent of America’s 43,000 dairy farms are enrolled in the MPP, representing 80 percent of the nation’s milk supply.
USDA also has its own website for further information on MPP-Dairy.
Share positive story about animal agriculture with new report
The Animal Agriculture Alliance (AAA) released its 2016 Advances in Animal Agriculture report, highlighting animal agriculture’s advances in animal care, antibiotic use, food safety and sustainability. According to AAA, this report helps set the record straight by sharing the positive, factual story of animal agriculture today.
“The animal agriculture industry collaborates, funds research and evolves to meet the highest animal care and food safety standards while feeding a growing population,” said Kay Johnson Smith, Alliance president and CEO. “Our Advances in Animal Agriculture report is an essential resource in communicating that message to key stakeholders including consumers, the media and partners throughout the supply chain.”
Dairy highlights from the report and related infographic indicate more than 94 percent of the U.S. milk supply comes from dairy producers enrolled in the National Dairy FARM program.
“The animal agriculture industry is committed to continuous improvement – and maintains that commitment of its own accord and in spite of groups who use fear and misinformation to confuse the public about livestock and poultry production,” said Johnson-Smith.
USDA announces foreign food aid grants
USDA’s fiscal year 2016 investment in two international food assistance programs will benefit more than 6.1 million vulnerable people worldwide, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) administrator Phil Karsting said.
USDA will provide financial and technical support and U.S. commodities to food-insecure communities in Africa, Asia and Central America through the Food for Progress Program and McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition (McGovern-Dole) Program in fiscal year 2016.
USDA is committing $160 million to fund eight projects under the Food for Progress program to help local farmers, cooperatives and others improve agricultural production, food processing, food safety and quality and marketing and distribution.
Through the McGovern-Dole Program, USDA is committing $195.5 million to support nine projects aimed at reducing hunger, boosting school enrollment and improving literacy through school feeding programs and related activities. The 2016 USDA commitment includes both direct financial support and the donation of U.S.-produced commodities to be used in school meals. PD
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