News

Cheese industry leader supports milk order phase out

The President of the Wisconsin’s Cheesemakers Association would like to see all of the federal milk marketing orders phased out.  John Umhoefer tells Brownfield most farmers, including those in Wisconsin, would continue to make more without a federally-set minimum price.  “In Wisconsin, you see premiums among the cheesemakers that have us floating always above the federal order price, so if you remove the federal order price, I think Wisconsin stays about where it is.”

California dairy farmers were approved for their own federal milk market order by the USDA in February, but Umhoefer says that might not improve California’s prices.  “I don’t see where that unexpected, that magic money is where this is how much money the processor had to pay them in the past and suddenly a federal order will come in and they’re going to get a price boost.  I don’t see it.  I think that the price boost isn’t there.  You can’t suddenly add more value to milk because you imposed a layer of government bureaucracy over the system.”

Umhoefer says producers would likely use more risk management tools under a free market system, including contracted milk and feed prices.

Add Comment

Your email address will not be published.


 

Stay Up to Date

Subscribe for our newsletter today and receive relevant news straight to your inbox!