Comments on: What can be done for dairy? http://brownfieldagnews.com/2009/07/14/what-can-be-done-for-dairy/ Tue, 22 May 2012 14:42:20 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: FarmPolicy.com » Blog Archives » Climate Bill (Senate Hearing); Dairy Sector Issues (House Hearing); CFTC Issues; and Peanuts http://brownfieldagnews.com/2009/07/14/what-can-be-done-for-dairy/comment-page-1/#comment-19081 FarmPolicy.com » Blog Archives » Climate Bill (Senate Hearing); Dairy Sector Issues (House Hearing); CFTC Issues; and Peanuts Mon, 21 Mar 2011 06:32:10 +0000 http://brownfieldagnews.com/?p=5005#comment-19081 [...] Bob Meyer reported yesterday at Brownfield that, “Pennsylvania dairy farmer Tom Wakefield, a member of the board of directors of the National Milk Producers Federation told the group, ‘Dairy farmers across the country are facing ‘an unprecedented financial catastrophe,’ and Congress needs to work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to work on measures to help farmers survive the situation.’ Wakefield says the U.S. dairy industry was building up to meet growing export business and that export market disappeared when the world economy crashed. Wakefield reiterated National Milk’s call for a temporary increase in the government purchase prices for cheese and nonfat dry milk and thanked USDA for fully implementing the Dairy Export Incentive Program again this fiscal year. [...] [...] Bob Meyer reported yesterday at Brownfield that, “Pennsylvania dairy farmer Tom Wakefield, a member of the board of directors of the National Milk Producers Federation told the group, ‘Dairy farmers across the country are facing ‘an unprecedented financial catastrophe,’ and Congress needs to work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to work on measures to help farmers survive the situation.’ Wakefield says the U.S. dairy industry was building up to meet growing export business and that export market disappeared when the world economy crashed. Wakefield reiterated National Milk’s call for a temporary increase in the government purchase prices for cheese and nonfat dry milk and thanked USDA for fully implementing the Dairy Export Incentive Program again this fiscal year. [...]

]]> By: Janet Leber http://brownfieldagnews.com/2009/07/14/what-can-be-done-for-dairy/comment-page-1/#comment-133 Janet Leber Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:39:56 +0000 http://brownfieldagnews.com/?p=5005#comment-133 The answer is so simple. Put the milk price At $18.00 and pay we farmers fair for our product. I agree for the government not to import foreign MPC for use in our American food. Who knows what you're really getting. We have our own, so why PAY for someone elses? It would help the economy so much to pay us a fair price for our milk. If a farmer makes money, he will spend money. He might look into replaceing old worn out equipment and/or fix the broken stuff if he has money. He might update the milk house or worn out milking equipment, buy more bedding, extra products for cattle, fix realestate, even purchase some etc., IF he had been paid a fair price for his milk! Stimulate the economy? Start at the bottom and work your way up. An honest pay for an honest job done!! As it stands, what few we dairy farmers there are left have to spend every cent that there is NOT to try to hang on. If there is no American milk supply for our american milk products to be made, will then our ice cream and yogert also say, "Made in x-country"? I sure hope not. Pay is fairly, keep Amercian farmers before it's too late. we are on the endangered list, shall be be the next ones extinct? The answer is so simple. Put the milk price At $18.00 and pay we farmers fair for our product. I agree for the government not to import foreign MPC for use in our American food. Who knows what you’re really getting. We have our own, so why PAY for someone elses? It would help the economy so much to pay us a fair price for our milk. If a farmer makes money, he will spend money. He might look into replaceing old worn out equipment and/or fix the broken stuff if he has money. He might update the milk house or worn out milking equipment, buy more bedding, extra products for cattle, fix realestate, even purchase some etc., IF he had been paid a fair price for his milk! Stimulate the economy? Start at the bottom and work your way up. An honest pay for an honest job done!! As it stands, what few we dairy farmers there are left have to spend every cent that there is NOT to try to hang on. If there is no American milk supply for our american milk products to be made, will then our ice cream and yogert also say, “Made in x-country”? I sure hope not. Pay is fairly, keep Amercian farmers before it’s too late. we are on the endangered list, shall be be the next ones extinct?

]]> By: Gary Erickson http://brownfieldagnews.com/2009/07/14/what-can-be-done-for-dairy/comment-page-1/#comment-124 Gary Erickson Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:20:52 +0000 http://brownfieldagnews.com/?p=5005#comment-124 Ask enough dairy farmers and you can get the right idea vs some government round table group who tries to guess their way out of things they do not know. Ask enough dairy farmers and you can get the right idea vs some government round table group who tries to guess their way out of things they do not know.

]]> By: Jared Smith http://brownfieldagnews.com/2009/07/14/what-can-be-done-for-dairy/comment-page-1/#comment-121 Jared Smith Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:41:55 +0000 http://brownfieldagnews.com/?p=5005#comment-121 As a dairy producer, I have to disagree with the stance of both of these groups. The dairy industry is in hard financial times, but there are things that can be done without the gov't increasing support prices or giving larger MILC payments. They just need to enforce the laws that are in place for milk quality (SCC limit) and MPC imports for food use. There is 1%-2% of the milk going into the food supply that is over 750,000 cell/mL. This would eliminate the so called supply that is out there. There would be no over supply if the processors would not break the law by importing MPCs for use in the food supply. These MPCs are not labeled as dairy products but get used in food. No quality standards are in place on these products, but I as a dairy producer have to meet certain regulation in order to ship my milk out the door. This is unfair to the dairy producers that work HARD to put a quality product on the market. The USDA has been pushed by the processors and imports to allow inferior products to make it into the food supply in place of milk produced here in the US. I do not mind fair trade, but we don't seem to get to play by those rules. WE don't need the gov't to spend more money and get their fingers deeper into our industry. We just need the USDA to stand up and do their job by enforcing the laws that are already on the books. I think there should be higher incentives for producing higher quality milk. It would reward the farmers that work on producing a high quality product. It would give the processors better yields and longer shelf life for their products. The consuming public would be getting a better product on their dinner plates. As a dairy producer, I have to disagree with the stance of both of these groups. The dairy industry is in hard financial times, but there are things that can be done without the gov’t increasing support prices or giving larger MILC payments. They just need to enforce the laws that are in place for milk quality (SCC limit) and MPC imports for food use. There is 1%-2% of the milk going into the food supply that is over 750,000 cell/mL. This would eliminate the so called supply that is out there.

There would be no over supply if the processors would not break the law by importing MPCs for use in the food supply. These MPCs are not labeled as dairy products but get used in food. No quality standards are in place on these products, but I as a dairy producer have to meet certain regulation in order to ship my milk out the door. This is unfair to the dairy producers that work HARD to put a quality product on the market. The USDA has been pushed by the processors and imports to allow inferior products to make it into the food supply in place of milk produced here in the US. I do not mind fair trade, but we don’t seem to get to play by those rules.

WE don’t need the gov’t to spend more money and get their fingers deeper into our industry. We just need the USDA to stand up and do their job by enforcing the laws that are already on the books. I think there should be higher incentives for producing higher quality milk. It would reward the farmers that work on producing a high quality product. It would give the processors better yields and longer shelf life for their products. The consuming public would be getting a better product on their dinner plates.

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