Digest highlights

Natzke dave
Dave Natzke
Editor / Progressive Dairy

NMPF urges the USDA to reject several FMMO proposals from hearing

The next critical step in the USDA’s “action plan” on proposed amendments to pricing provisions in the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) system is approaching. The plan, announced in early June, indicated that if the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) moves forward with a formal hearing process, a hearing notice will be published in the Federal Register by late July, with a tentative hearing date set for Aug. 23.

In the most recent development, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) sent an email letter to USDA-AMS Administrator Bruce Summers and Deputy Administrator Dana Coale, seeking to eliminate some submitted proposals from hearing consideration.

Of the proposals submitted, five were outside the scope of the USDA’s request for a hearing to consider national pricing issues because they were either regionally directed, did not address FMMO pricing provisions or sought to change definitions of how the FMMO system functions, according to NMPF. Specifically, NMPF cited proposals were submitted by Lamers Dairy, the Milk Innovation Group (MIG), Edge Cooperative, the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) and National All-Jersey.

A full list of modified proposals is posted on the FMMO Petitions website.

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Additionally, 14 proposals were not within USDA regulatory authority under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act, NMPF’s letter stated. That list included proposals submitted by Edge, AFBF, Cedar Grove Cheese and the Dairy Pricing Association.

NMPF’s letter also asked the USDA to reject two requests to not hold a hearing at all, citing an urgent need to update the FMMO pricing provisions.

Penn State Law Center to host FMMO modernization webinar

Penn State Law’s Center for Agricultural and Shale Law will discuss FMMO modernization developments in the latest installment of its Quarterly Dairy Legal Webinar series. The session is set for July 18, noon-1 p.m. (Eastern time).

The webinar topic will be the establishment of and administrative process and procedure for amending FMMOs. The webinar will look at the statutory authorization behind the FMMO system, compare administration to other marketing orders adopted by producers under federal law and provide some background on prior reform effort proposals. 

Each quarter’s free one-hour Dairy Legal Webinar covers the legal and regulatory developments in the U.S. dairy industry. Advance registration is required.

Global dairy product prices declined in June

The average global cost of dairy products declined in June, according to the latest United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) food price index. 

The FAO dairy price index includes global average prices for butter, cheese, skim milk (SMP) and whole milk powders (WMP). The June 2023 index decreased about 0.8% from May and was about 22.2% lower than June 2022.

The decline was again led by lower international cheese prices, reflecting ample export supplies, while retail sales were somewhat subdued. Meanwhile, whole milk powder prices fell slightly on lower import purchases by North Asian buyers and increased supplies, especially from New Zealand. By contrast, world butter prices rose, driven by active demand for spot supplies, mainly from the Middle East, and increased internal retail sales in Western Europe. Skim milk prices increased slightly on higher import purchases to meet short-term needs amid concerns over supplies in the months ahead during the seasonally declining production phase in Western Europe.

The FAO food price index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of five food commodities – cereal, vegetable oil, dairy, meat and sugar. The overall June index was down 1.4% from May and 23.4% from June 2022, with steady meat prices countered by lower prices across other categories.

ICYMI (In case you missed it)

  • The USDA is accepting Discrimination Financial Assistance Program (DFAP) applications for eligible farmers who experienced discrimination in USDA farm lending programs prior to January 2021. The application process will be open through Oct. 31, 2023. 
  • Vermont organic dairy farmers are eligible to apply for funds through the Vermont Organic Dairy Relief Program. This $6.9 million in grant funding is designed to mitigate extreme market challenges in 2022, including high feed and input costs. The application period closes on Oct. 20, 2023.
  • New York’s Dairy Advancement Program (DAP) provides funds to eligible small to midsize dairy cattle farm operators for development or update of the farm’s comprehensive nutrient management plan (CNMP).
  • The USDA has launched a new data visualization tool for beef and dairy producers seeking cattle auction data. The Livestock Auction Dashboard provides price summaries for several categories of cattle, including dairy replacements, from selected auction markets. Filters can be applied to allow users to see information from different markets and commodities throughout different time frames.
  • Teamsters Local 662 members at New Dairy Select Milk, DePere, Wisconsin, have gone on strike over a dispute regarding health care coverage. The company produces sour cream for Taco Bell, Wendy’s, Hello Fresh and other brands.
  • Maine’s PFAS Fund Advisory Committee unanimously approved a plan to address contamination on farms. A $70 million fund covers fiscal years 2024-28 and will provide financial assistance to support commercial farms while they investigate and then implement recovery strategies, connect farmers with technical experts to develop a new business plans and pay costs associated with obtaining loans. In some instances, the PFAS fund will be used to purchase PFAS-impacted property. Finally, the PFAS fund will support access to health care for impacted commercial farm families, farm workers and people whose residential drinking water wells were contaminated by PFAS because of the land application of biosolids from wastewater treatment plant.