As U.S. dairy farmers and their cooperatives continue to weather the unique storm of the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Milk Producers Federation today thanked the U.S. House of Representatives for supporting critical measures for dairy farmers and their industry partners in its HEROES Act slated for a vote later this week.

Dairy farmers continue to work around the clock to ensure a steady, healthy, and nutritious supply of milk. However, farmers have endured significant losses as the unprecedented collapse of foodservice markets has wiped out substantial dairy product demand. Dairy’s fortunes have been especially grim given milk’s perishability, and farmers of all sizes have suffered from these major losses.

NMPF appreciates that the HEROES Act includes multiple provisions to provide additional direct relief to dairy farmers based on the losses they face this year. The bill also includes NMPF-advocated provisions to strengthen opportunities for milk and dairy product donations to help farmers and consumers. Finally, the package provides important nutrition assistance to the millions of American families and households who are facing food insecurity during this difficult time.

“The dairy industry continues to grapple with difficulty and uncertainty on a scale we have not seen in our lifetimes. Dairy farmers are resilient and will continue to push through this challenge, but the help provided in the HEROES Act will make that burden less overwhelming. We thank the many members of Congress who have given voice to dairy’s urgent needs,” said NMPF president and CEO Jim Mulhern.

NMPF looks forward to continuing to work with Congress and the Trump Administration to provide important relief to all dairy farmers as this process continues.

The economic and health risks of coronavirus have many dairy producers on edge – but staying focused on the task at hand and remembering the value that dairy farming provides can help carry farmers through, says Emily Yeiser-Stepp, vice president at the National Milk Producers Federation and director of National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management, a.k.a. the FARM Program, in a new NMPF podcast.

“The noise that does exist in moments of crisis, like what we’re experiencing within the pandemic, does tend to heighten our stress and anxiety levels naturally,” said Yeiser-Stepp, author of a recent Hoard’s Dairyman article on helpful FARM resources and the value of establishing best-practice farm procedures.  “By defaulting to what we know, we inherently regain some control” over managing a crisis, she said. And that helps farms “stay focused on the task at hand to producing nature’s most nearly perfect product, milk.”

To listen to the full podcast, click here. You can also find this and other NMPFs podcasts on Apple Podcasts, Spotify,  SoundCloud and Google Play. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file. Please attribute information to NMPF.

 

As the European Union (EU) is poised to begin government-financed intervention purchases of skim milk powder (SMP) and butter, dairy farmers and processors in key dairy-producing countries around the world are calling on the EU to avoid the market-distorting practices that have significantly harmed them and the broader global dairy market in the past.

A coalition of dairy organizations from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay and the United States joined together in urging the EU not to repeat the inventory-building and extended market-price suppression it engaged in just a few short years ago.

Exporting large quantities of government-purchased SMP and butter at below-market rates onto the world market will prolong the deeply challenging environment under which dairy sectors are operating worldwide. The EU intervention program would artificially distort prices for an extended period and displace commercial competition just as the world begins to recover from the immediate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The groups instead urge the EU to adopt measures that further spur consumption within the EU and encourage its producers to implement appropriate production practices to survive during this difficult time.

A coalition representing dairy industries from around the world issued the following joint statement:

“The European Commission must avoid dumping government-purchased SMP and butter on the world market and implementing policies that undermine global dairy markets under the guise of protecting its farmers. The EU’s market-distorting practices are harmful enough during normal operations. If used in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has dramatically eroded dairy prices, they would be disastrous to the world dairy market by prolonging the current crushing economic conditions. Global buyers of SMP and butter will have little incentive to bid up prices as long as the EU Government holds significant quantities in Intervention.

“It’s critical that the EU act now to put a long-term plan into place regarding how to handle its government-incentivized stockpiling given that the EU has a demonstrated history of dumping intervention purchases in a way that disrupts the world dairy market. The EU intervened in 2016-17 and held the equivalent of 16 percent of the global SMP market in government storage. It subsequently released the product on the world market over the next two years, unfairly undercutting international prices and harming the global dairy industry.”

“Farmers and dairy processors in our countries and many others around the globe are already in the fight of their lives, working hard every day to help keep the world well-nourished through this crisis. We are all dealing with great enough challenges already in our own markets. If the EU does not commit to avoid distorting global markets by dumping their excess intervention stocks onto the world market just as dairy sectors begin to recover, the more farmers and processors outside the EU could be forced to close their doors. We encourage the EU to implement policies that support greater utilization of dairy products with the goal to increase consumption, particularly with the consumers impacted most by the covid-19 outbreak.”

The groups issuing the statement include:

Argentina

Sociedad Rural Argentina (SRA)

Centro de la Industria Lechera Argentina (CIL)

 

Brazil

Sindicato da Indústria de Laticínios e Produtos Derivados no Estado São Paulo (SINDLEITE)

 

Central America

Federación Centroamericana de Productores Lácteos (FECALAC)

 

Chile

Federación de Productores de Leche (FEDELECHE)

 

Costa Rica

Cámara Nacional de Productores de Leche de Costa Rica (CNPL)

 

Ecuador

Centro de la Industria Láctea del Ecuador (CIL)

Asociación de Ganaderos (AGSO)

 

Guatemala

Cámara de Productores de Leche (CPL)

 

Mexico

Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Leche, A.C. (AMLAC)

Cámara Nacional de Industriales de la Leche de México (CANILEC)

Confederación Nacional de Organizaciones Ganaderas (CNOG)

 

Paraguay

Cámara Paraguaya de Industriales Lácteos (CAPAINLAC)

 

United States

International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA)

National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF)

U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC)

 

Uruguay

Cámara de la Industria Láctea del Uruguay (CILU)

 

The National Milk Producers Federation commended Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for pledging to buy $317 million in dairy products as part of its Farmers to Families Food Box Program, an amount that is expected to rise in the months ahead. The products will start being distributed “within days,” according to the USDA’s announcement.

“Innovative solutions are demanded in these unprecedented times, and I applaud USDA for its actions to provide nutritious dairy products to families in need,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF, the largest U.S. dairy-farmer group.

The purchases are part of $1.2 billion in contracts for agricultural products that support American producers and communities in need through CARES Act funding generously provided by Congress.  A full list of approved suppliers will be posted on the Farmers to Families Food Box Program website at 5 p.m. Eastern Time today.

 

The National Milk Producers Federation expressed appreciation to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for including $120 million of cheese and butter among $470 million in Section 32 food purchases it announced today. The purchases are scheduled to occur in the next two months and are in addition to purchases previously announced in the CARES Act funding.

“These Section 32 purchases will help both Americans who need high-quality nutritious food as well as U.S. dairy farmers who are experiencing unprecedented losses from the COVID-19 national emergency,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF, the largest U.S. dairy-farmer organization.  “The purchases will provide important and needed support to the dairy supply chain. We look forward to learning more details and to continue working with USDA on possible additional purchases.”

The U.S. Small Business Administration began accepting new Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and EIDL Advance applications today at 12:00 PM EDT on a limited basis only, to provide relief to dairy farms and other U.S. agricultural businesses. The application is available here.

The Small Business Administration is encouraging all eligible agricultural businesses with 500 or fewer employees wishing to apply to begin preparing their business financial information needed for their application. During this application window, only agricultural business applications will be accepted due to limitations in funding availability and the unprecedented submission of applications already received.

For more information or to apply, please visit this link.

The National Milk Producers Federation has numerous EIDL resources available on its coronavirus website page, www.nmpf.org/coronavirus. Among them:

• COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loans Overview (NMPF)
• SBA Disaster Assistance in Response to the Coronavirus (SBA)
• CARES Act and SBA Loan Update Webinar (KCOE in partnership with NMPF)

Lags in timing for milk payments have kept many dairy farmers from feeling the worst effects of the coronavirus crisis’s effects on their revenues – but that will soon change, said Leroy Plagerman, a dairy farmer in Whatcom County, in the northwest corner of Washington. One of the biggest challenges dairies face is “just the challenge of the uncertainty, and not knowing how long this is going to last, and where we end up on the other side,” said Plagerman, who also is a director of the Northwest Dairy Association, a.k.a. Darigold, in an NMPF podcast.

Still, sound finances – and faith – will help carry his family through the crisis, he said. “We know that there’s a God that’s sovereign and in control of all things, and he uses everything for His purpose,” he said. “It will work out the way it’s supposed to work out.”

To listen to the full podcast, click here. You can also find this and other NMPFs podcasts on Apple Podcasts, Spotify,  SoundCloud and Google Play. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file below. Please attribute information to NMPF.

Dairy producers were aided in  their rush to participate in two Small Business Administration (SBA) loan programs by NMPF resources that helped guide them through an intense crunch for signups.

With additional funding, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and  Coronavirus-specific Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) both reopened early the week of April 27. NMPF provided an updated coronavirus webpage tailored to meet producers’ questions and needs, assisting them in gaining necessary government relief at a time of unprecedented demand.

Most agricultural producers, including dairy farmers, had not been able to access SBA loans before the pandemic. When passing the CARES Act on March 27, Congress created PPP and expanded eligibility for EIDLs specific to COVID-19, allowing access to both PPP and COVID-19 EIDLs for agriculture and other types of businesses and organizations typically excluded from SBA programs.

Participation in the first round of assistance, which was exhausted in early April, posed immense challenges for dairy producers and American agriculture due to how the programs were rolled out. The Small Business Administration did not interpret the CARES Act to allow farmers to access EIDLs, and producers across the U.S. were put at a deep disadvantage when trying to apply for PPP loans because of how SBA implemented the program.

NMPF joined other key stakeholder organizations in leading the charge to get farmers equitable access to the small business support, working with members of Congress from both parties and Administration officials to bring the reality of PPP and EIDLs in-line with congressional intent in the CARES Act.

Due to this determined collaborative work, a second bill signed April 23 provided additional funding for PPP and COVID-19 EIDLs and changed how the programs are administered moving forward. Congress explicitly stated in the measure that agricultural producers with 500 or fewer employees can access EIDLs and set aside $60 billion of the newly allocated PPP funds for smaller lending institutions, including community banks and credit unions.

“NMPF is extremely pleased that Congress makes it clear in this bill that farmers with 500 or fewer employees should be able to access COVID-19 EIDLs, removing a significant obstacle that has prevented small business support from reaching America’s farmers,” NMPF president and CEO Jim Mulhern said. “On the PPP side, we are hopeful that the measure’s provisions aimed at ensuring small lenders – including community banks and credit unions – have adequate access to PPP funds will make it easier for dairy producers and others in rural areas to apply for support.”

Mulhern thanked NMPF’s champions in Congress and their staff for their work securing these changes to the SBA programs in the legislation, but noted some obstacles still remain, including challenges family farms and other sole proprietors face in SBA’s application process. “NMPF will continue efforts to address remaining problems so farmers are better enabled to fulfill their critical role in helping our nation throughout this pandemic.”

The FARM Team has worked throughout the coronavirus outbreak to assist NMPF in its response to COVID-19, stepping up its virtual outreach to show customers and consumers that the dairy industry is taking the very best care of cows and the environment, producing safe, wholesome milk and adhering to the highest standards of workforce development.

April saw stepped-up outreach, with FARM working with industry partners to provide e-learning opportunities to FARM Program stakeholders.  Some of the outreach that we have done includes:

• Podcast: Emily Yeiser-Stepp discusses how dairy-farm stewardship is adapting to coronavirus
• Podcast: Jamie Jonker discusses safety of U.S. milk and details dairy precautions
• Podcast: Zoetis and FARM on Bovine Coronavirus and COVID19
• FARM Webinars with: FARM Program Participants (100+ attendees), Alltech (60+ attendees), Dairy Welfare Council (300+ attendees), American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) (75+ attendees being noted as one of the highest attended webinars to date), Dairy Calf and Heifer Association Virtual Conference (170+ attendees)
• FARM Workforce Development Task Force meeting to review Labor Survey results
  • Public report and communications pieces will be forthcoming by the end of Q2
• Calf and Heifer Working Group meeting that identified key components allowing staff to move forward with program development
• Pursuit of ISO re-certification and PAACO certification
• Ongoing dialogue with brands and retailers

These efforts will continue for the foreseeable future and we will provide you with updates on new opportunities as they become available.

FARM also has completed its FARM ES Version 2.0 User Guide, treatment record templates, and is nearing completion of the designed Animal Care Manual and an Animal Care Participant Handbook.

As America’s dairy farmers struggle in these unprecedented times, the Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) export assistance program is helping maintain and develop markets for U.S. milk. Member cooperatives have captured sales contracts that will move overseas the equivalent of 445.7 million pounds of milk in 2020.

In April, CWT members secured 116 contracts to sell 7.2 million pounds of American-type cheese, 3.2 million pounds of butter, 2 million pounds of anhydrous milkfat (AMF), 8.7 million pounds of whole milk powder (WMP), and 599,657 pounds of cream cheese. These products are going to customers in Asia, Central and South America, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and Oceania. They will be shipped April through October 2019.

These sales bring the total 2020 CWT-assisted dairy product exports to 16.1 million pounds of cheese, 4.3 million pounds of butter, 2 million pounds of anhydrous milkfat, 17.7 million pounds of whole milk powder, and 2.4 million pounds of cream cheese.

2020 is a challenging year for dairy farmers and their cooperatives. Doing whatever is necessary to strengthen milk prices is a must. Dairy exports will be key for both dairy farmers and dairy cooperatives in the year ahead.  CWT provides a means to move domestic dairy products to overseas markets by helping to overcome certain disadvantages such as the domestic/global price gap, shipping costs and tariffs.

The amounts of dairy products and related milk volumes reflect current contracts for delivery, not completed export volumes. CWT will pay export assistance to the bidders only when export and delivery of the product is verified by the submission of the required documentation.

All cooperatives and dairy farmers are encouraged to add their support to this important program. Membership forms are available at http://www.cwt.coop/membership.

NMPF’s coronavirus website expanded and evolved with the crisis itself, with documents addressing milk dumping and herd-culling while launching a regular toolkit update to keep members apprised of resources. At the same time, the site served as a way to thank farmers for the hard work they did, with a new video featuring an NMPF board member showing how dairy has remained resilient in hard times.

The Coronavirus Dairy Toolbox, planned as a biweekly update, launched April 22 with links to recent NMPF podcasts and new documents to aid the dairy community in digest form for easy-to-access member information. NMPF also launched a new drive for subscriptions to publications, including this newsletter, its monthly Dairy Market Report, its Dairy Defined thought leadership series, its quarterly Regulatory Register, and other offerings, with an online signup for anyone who would like to subscribe to NMPF publications.

Highlighting outreach in April was NMPF’s publication of a video featuring board member Nic Schoenberger thanking dairy farmers for the work every day they are doing to serve consumers and their country during the coronavirus crisis. The video was seen more than 100,000 times and shared more than 2,000 times in its first day, providing perspective on dairy’s inspiring response to the crisis.