Monthly dairy cull cow market trends downward in early 2024.

As predicted, milk prices recovered some in April with Class III at $15.57 per hundredweight (cwt) during the last full week of the month and futures jumping more than $1 for May and June. Unpredictability is still expected in the marketplace, and producers are encouraged to enroll in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) safety net program.

The USDA revised the February 2024 milk production estimate slightly lower. With the revisions, both U.S. and major state U.S. production were down about 0.1% from USDA’s preliminary estimates a month earlier.

In response to the threat posed by highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1, the USDA has announced proactive measures aimed at safeguarding the nation's livestock industry. The actions of mandated testing and reporting are designed to curb the spread of the disease.

As we begin this week with Earth Day, much of the news in our Weekly Digest highlights conservation and planet-friendly efforts being made within the dairy industry.

Here is a summary of the latest news affecting the financial health of U.S. dairy operations.

Here’s Progressive Dairy’s monthly review of March 2024 FMMO data to provide some additional transparency to your milk check.

North Carolina and South Dakota were added to the list of states where highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has been detected in dairy cattle, with the USDA confirming one case in each state.

The USDA’s World Ag Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report offers forecasts for dairy, beef and feedstuffs. 

In finalized updates to the foods prescribed to WIC participants announced on Tuesday by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, cuts were made to the amount of dairy products participants can receive through the program.