Q&A with Jerry Kozak Q. How would you address producers who say, “Do we really need supply management in your plan?” A. “First of all, it’s not a supply management program. We have a market management program that we’ve designed, and it’s called the Dairy Market Stabilization Program. We’ve designed a package of items that would cover the broad spectrum of dairy policy.

“In order to be successful in Washington, D.C., you’re going to have to put together a package of proposals.

"We’ve put together something everybody can probably dislike a little bit, but in order to get consensus and get the best possible outcome for our producer community, we’ve got dairy market stabilization and margin protection, elimination of the price support program and a folding in of the MILC program to help pay for a substantial portion of the margin protection program. And we’ve got federal order reform.

"So it’s a comprehensive package. No, it can’t get passed without all these elements.”

NMPF launches website for its reform plan

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) recently launched its Foundation for the Future website at www.FutureForDairy.com . The website provides dairy producers and industry stakeholders with interactive tools and resources, including a margin protection calculator, that NMPF hopes will educate them about the dairy policy reforms and programs it proposes.

FutureForDairy.com features a news and resources section with the latest dairy policy articles and downloadable materials about Foundation for the Future, including the complete plan narrative and frequently asked questions (FAQs). The FAQs section offers a library of common questions and allows visitors to submit questions to be answered by policy experts.

Especially valuable for dairy producers, the margin protection calculator will help them determine an appropriate coverage level for the supplemental margin insurance under the program’s Dairy Producer Margin Protection Program. Producers can input their annual milk production, and select the percentage of base milk production that the program will cover, along with the added coverage level they prefer, generating scenarios of how the Dairy Producer Margin Protection Program will benefit their individual operations.

“We’re excited to introduce FutureForDairy.com to members of the dairy industry, as we feel it offers more details about Foundation for the Future and helps people with some of the concepts they might not have previously understood. The margin protection calculator especially helps dairy producers visualize the impact the Dairy Producer Margin Protection Program will have on their individual operations in terms of coverage options,” says Jerry Kozak, NMPF President and CEO. PD

The screen capture at left illustrates how much a premium would cost for supplemental marginal insurance above basic coverage for the average California dairy.

Base coverage is voluntary and would be equal to $4 per hundredweight on 90 percent of a dairyman's highest annual milk production during the last three years.

Base coverage is intended to address catastrophic losses such as what occurred in 2009.