Through its work in the Consortium for Common Food Names (CCFN), NMPF has continued to support extensive efforts to preserve market access for U.S. cheeses in several Latin American countries.

Products facing potential restrictions include parmesan, feta, mozzarella, provolone, romano, brie, camembert, fontina, gorgonzola, emmental, and pecorino. Countries where restrictions are developing include Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru.

In addition, limits on use of these and additional products are expected to be proposed in Singapore, a hub for shipments throughout Asia. Members concerned about this issue and interested in getting additional information can contact Shawna Morris at smorris@nmpf.org.

There are less than two weeks left to register for NMPF’s annual meeting at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix November 11 – 13. The meeting is held jointly with the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board and the United Dairy Industry Association.

Individual and group registrations, along with hotel reservations, can be made conveniently online at www.dairyevents.com. Or they can be mailed or faxed in. But all registrations plus payments must be submitted no later than Thursday, October 17.

With a theme of “Changing. Innovating. Growing,” the meeting offers two core days of programming, plus opportunities to network with producers and industry leaders from across the country. There also will be touring and shopping opportunities in one of the nation’s fastest-growing and most dynamic cities. Producers, cooperative staff, suppliers, trade press, and all others from the dairy sector are encouraged to attend.

Topping the program is a Tuesday afternoon speech by Peter Sheahan, CEO of ChangeLabs™, and an internationally-known business thinker. The author of six books, Sheahan has worked with some of the world’s leading brands, including Google, News Corporation and Harley Davidson.

Former NFL head coach and current ESPN analyst Herman Edwards speaks at the opening lunch on Tuesday while Nashville recording artist James Wesley entertains at the banquet Wednesday night. Visit the NMPF website for more information.

My career started 40 years ago in the state of New Jersey’s public health department. My first job out of graduate school involved inspecting restaurants, processing plants and warehouses, where the quality and safety of food products sometimes was compromised by both sins of omission and sins of commission, allowing that food to become tainted.

Now, as my professional career nears its end, I find it disheartening that one of the greatest public health measures of all time continues to be under assault. I’m speaking of efforts to roll back the requirement that milk sold within states be properly pasteurized. The joint effort between states and the Food and Drug Administration to ensure that milk sold interstate be pasteurized is part of the bedrock of our national food safety system. But the effort to encourage individual states to take a different path, by permitting in-state sales of raw milk, is deeply concerning to me as a former public health officer and as a national dairy industry representative, because these efforts are wrong-headed and the trend is going the wrong direction.

That’s why the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) has been so vocal, as various states – including, several years ago, my home state of New Jersey – have considered, and in some cases approved, laws liberalizing the sales of raw milk. Last month, NMPF joined with the International Dairy Foods Association, and a robust coalition of state farm, food and health organizations, to challenge a pending state senate bill in Wisconsin that would expand the availability of raw milk in America’s Dairyland. Anyone who professes a concern about providing consumers with quality dairy products – and safety is part and parcel of the idea of “quality” – should be joining us in expressing opposition to this kind of initiative.

The potential perils of raw milk are manifest, and I shouldn’t have to belabor that point. There’s hardly a month that goes by when raw milk isn’t implicated in the headlines as causing some type of illness. Beyond mere anecdotes, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported in 2012 that between 1993 and 2006, unpasteurized dairy products resulted in 73 known outbreaks – causing 1,571 cases of foodborne illness, 202 hospitalizations, and two deaths. Even more damning, the CDC also concluded that unpasteurized milk was 150 times more likely to cause food‐borne illness outbreaks than pasteurized milk, and such outbreaks had a hospitalization rate 13 times higher than those involving pasteurized dairy products.

Supporters of the Wisconsin state bill assert that most major dairy states, including California, already allow some form of raw milk marketing (the equivalent of my kids once saying “but all my friends are doing it!”). Yet, the CDC has reported nearly 75% of raw milk‐associated outbreaks have occurred in states where sale of raw milk was legal. Legalizing a product doesn’t make it any safer, especially since we know that raw milk is inherently dangerous, whether it’s obtained from small farms or large, from cow‐share programs, or even from licensed raw milk vendors. As a public health officer in New Jersey, I often found it was easier to rectify the visible sources of foodborne contamination, as opposed to finding pathogens that couldn’t be seen. That’s why there are no assurances that milk from certified or inspected raw milk farms would be any safer.

The other argument made by proponents is that consenting individuals should have the right to choose what they ingest. That argument may work for tobacco or alcohol, but an honest assessment of the issue has to account for the risks to children. Kids frequently are the ones given raw milk; they can’t fully comprehend the hazards involved, and therefore aren’t in a position to consent to those risks. This is not just a legal point, but an ethical matter as well.

That’s because nearly two‐thirds of all outbreaks associated with raw milk or raw milk products involve children. In 2011, five children in California were infected with E. coli O157:H7 after drinking raw milk; three required hospitalization with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a serious condition that may lead to kidney failure. In Wisconsin, at a school event in 2011, 16 people consuming donated raw milk, including several fourth grade students, later suffered from diarrhea, nausea and vomiting from Campylobacter infections.

Supporting the sales of raw milk – or even turning a blind eye to it – would be the easier path for the national dairy industry, but it’s not the right one. And all of us, regardless of where we are in our careers, ultimately end up regretting the times when we chose the easy path, not the right one.

From Jim Mulhern, Chief Operating Officer, NMPF:

“Now that the House has passed its nutrition policy portion of the farm bill, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) urges House leaders to quickly appoint conferees who should, with their counterparts in the Senate, finish work on a new farm bill and get it passed into law. It’s harvest time outside of Washington; it needs to be on Capitol Hill as well.

For the nation’s dairy farmers, it is critical for agriculture leaders in the House and Senate to include in the 2013 farm bill the provisions of the Dairy Security Act, which has already been approved this year by both the House and Senate Agriculture committees.

The Dairy Security Act will provide dairy farmers with a cost-effective safety net, while protecting consumers and taxpayers at the same time. Dairy producers have been waiting two years to know the details of the federal dairy safety net. They need this information to make business decisions. Along with the rest of American agriculture, milk producers nationwide urge lawmakers to take this critical last step in the evolution of a better farm program.”

 

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies.

From Jim Mulhern, Chief Operating Officer, NMPF:

“It is disheartening that lawmakers in America’s Dairyland are even considering legislation that would damage public health by liberalizing the sale of raw milk to consumers.

“There is no evidence that raw milk provides any health benefits different from the numerous nutritional benefits of pasteurized milk. However, there is extensive evidence that raw milk can contain deadly pathogens that otherwise would be destroyed by pasteurization. Seldom has the science behind public health policy been so clearly one-sided. It is simply irresponsible to confuse wishful thinking and the placebo effect, with clear clinical research demonstrating that illness-causing bacteria can be, and are being found in raw farm milk. And these pathogenic bacteria can be found on any dairy farm, regardless of its cleanliness or the good intentions of its owner.

“We are reiterating our concerns to lawmakers at today’s hearing in La Crosse because Wisconsin must remain a leader in providing high quality, safe dairy products for consumers. Deregulation of raw milk in Wisconsin would be bad for the nation’s dairy industry and, far worse, it would be tragic for public health.

“State legislators, and Governor Walker, need to keep in mind that if this measure passes, those most vulnerable to dangerous pathogens – children – are the ones who will suffer the most. The benefits of consuming raw milk are illusory, but the painful costs of illness and death are very real.”

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies.

Animated Figure to Promote Real Dairy Products with Fans of All Ages

Arlington, VA – As part of the ongoing effort to revitalize and build awareness of the dairy industry’s iconic REAL® Seal, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) is inviting the public to help choose the name that will be given to a cartoon character modeled after the logo. The character greets those who go to www.realseal.com and will be used in other applications in the future.

“We’re excited to use this character to help kids, parents, and dairy fans of all ages learn about real dairy products and foods made with real American dairy products, when they’re browsing the grocery store aisles and eating in restaurants,” said NMPF Chief Operating Officer Jim Mulhern. “Giving people the chance to vote for the name we’ll use is democracy in action.”

Throughout the summer, NMPF used the REAL Seal website and Facebook page to gather submissions for the naming contest. More than 110 individual suggestions were entered. After a review process, the three most fitting candidates were selected. They are:

• Dairyus – Submitted by Kathryn in Clermont, IA (honorable mentions to Ed in Tipton, IA, and Joe in Washington, DC, for alternate spellings).
• Milkdrop – Submitted separately by Roger in Franklin, KY, and Cecelia in Amelia, VA.
• Roscow – Submitted by Gavin in Fairfax, VA (honorable mention to Sara in East Syracuse, NY, for an alternate spelling).

To choose among these three finalists, voters can visit www.realseal.com to select a favorite. The campaign is also being promoted at the Seal’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/REALSealDairy. The online voting link will be open through Tuesday, Nov. 5th, which is Election Day 2013. Only one vote per computer will be allowed. The result will be announced November 13th at the NMPF annual meeting in Phoenix.

 

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s 30 cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies.

ARLINGTON, VA – For the second time in three years, organizations representing the nation’s dairy farmers and dairy companies jointly urged state lawmakers in Wisconsin to reject efforts allowing raw milk sales directly to consumers in the nation’s second-largest dairy state.

In a letter sent Tuesday to Wisconsin state senators, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) said that the risks inherent in raw dairy products are not worth any purported benefits to either consumers or producers of unpasteurized milk products. The two associations urged lawmakers to reject Wisconsin State Senate bill 236, which would allow the state‐wide direct sale of raw milk. The measure is the subject of a hearing today in Madison.

“Consumption of raw milk has been opposed by every major health organization in the United States, including the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The link between raw milk and foodborne illness has been well‐documented in the scientific literature, with evidence spanning nearly 100 years. Raw milk is a key vehicle in the transmission of human pathogens, including E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella,” the organizations wrote.

Federal law prohibits the interstate sale of raw milk, but allows states individual discretion to regulate raw milk sales within their borders. Several states in recent years have considered legislation expanding the sales of raw milk, even as the product has been repeatedly linked to serious illnesses from coast to coast. At a school event in Wisconsin in 2011, 16 individuals, including fourth-grade students and adults, drank raw milk donated by a parent and later suffered from diarrhea, abdominal cramping, nausea, and vomiting from Campylobacter infections.

IDFA and NMPF wrote that “it is the responsibility of Wisconsin’s leaders to make decisions to protect the health of the public, most especially those who are minors and are unable to make fully informed decisions that could have profound consequences for the rest of their lives.”

The two dairy groups mentioned in the letter that “the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has reported that nearly 75% of raw milk‐associated outbreaks have occurred in states where sale of raw milk was legal. Legalizing the state‐wide sale of raw milk in Wisconsin increases the risk to public health, opening up the state’s consumers to the inevitable consequence of falling victim to a foodborne illness. No matter how carefully it is produced, raw milk is inherently dangerous. Americans have become ill after consuming raw milk obtained from farms of varying sizes, from cow‐share programs, and from licensed, permitted, or certified raw milk producers.”

“Nationally, our dairy industry benefits from a very high degree of consumer confidence – confidence built in large part due to the excellent food safety record of milk and dairy products. In fact, current statistics estimate only 1‐2% of reported foodborne outbreaks are attributed to dairy products. However, of those, over 70% have been attributed to raw milk and inappropriately‐aged raw milk cheeses. A single case of illness – even one caused by a well-intentioned dairy farmer – that is attributed to raw milk or raw dairy products in Wisconsin would likely have an adverse effect on consumer confidence in and consumption of all healthful, nutrient‐rich dairy foods like milk, yogurt, and cheese.”

“While choice is an important value, it should not pre‐empt consumers’ well‐being. Legalizing the state‐wide sale of raw milk is an unnecessary risk to consumer safety. Therefore, we strongly urge you to oppose Senate Bill 236,” the letter said.

The two organizations made a similar plea against liberalizing raw milk sales in 2010, when former Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle was presented with a bill that he ultimately vetoed.

 

The National Milk Producers Federation, based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s 30 cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies.

 

The International Dairy Foods Association, Washington, DC, represents the nation’s dairy manufacturing and marketing industries and their suppliers, with a membership of 550 companies representing a $125-billion a year industry. IDFA is composed of three constituent organizations: the Milk Industry Foundation (MIF), the National Cheese Institute (NCI) and the International Ice Cream Association (IICA). IDFA’s 220 dairy processing members run more than 600 plant operations, and range from large multi-national organizations to single-plant companies. Together they represent more than 85% of the milk, cultured products, cheese and frozen desserts produced and marketed in the United States. IDFA can be found online at www.idfa.org.

In a situation reminiscent of last year, Congress returns to Washington this week with a limited amount of time to deal with the farm bill before several current programs expire.

In 2012, the election season limited the amount of time Congress could deal with a new farm bill, and ultimately, a new measure wasn’t passed. This year, in addition to farm policy, lawmakers must also deal with the expiration of the fiscal year funding authority after Sept. 30th, extend the debt ceiling, and consider authorizing military action in Syria. These contentious items are expected to dominate action on Capitol Hill in September.

For those in agriculture hoping for action on the farm bill, the focus remains on the House, which passed a flawed, farm-programs-only measure in July as part of a two-step process. House leaders have talked recently in generalities about taking up the nutrition-policy-only title soon after reconvening on Monday. If that nutrition bill passes, the House presumably would name agriculture committee conferees to meet and hash out a final farm bill with counterparts from the Senate.

But the nutrition bill the House will consider is expected to cut $40 billion from food stamps, ten times the size of the reduction contained in the Senate farm bill. The extent of that reduction will not attract much, if any, support from House Democrats, and it will be a difficult figure to reconcile with the Senate’s version, once both measures reach the House-Senate conference committee process. If the two congressional chambers fail to agree on a farm bill that can be signed by President Obama by September 30, yet another extension of current programs is one potential outcome.

Another is that those programs that expire at the end of this month – including the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program – will be left in limbo until a decision is made about whether to try for a new bill, or extend the current one – as was the case in the fall of 2012. Given where dairy prices are, no MILC payments are expected in the remaining four months of this year.

Other farm programs, including the dairy product price support program, are authorized through December 31. If either a new farm bill isn’t in place by then, or current programs aren’t extended yet again, the provisions of the Agricultural Acts of 1938 and 1949 will take effect, potentially resulting in much higher price support levels for a variety of commodities, including milk.

Dairy farmers should continue to urge lawmakers to pass a farm bill, including the dairy policy reforms endorsed by the Senate in June. The House gutted those reforms in July by approving margin insurance without a stabilization program to keep supplies from building up and prices from plummeting. Farmers can use NMPF’s Dairy GREAT system to send an email.

The month of August was another solid month for the Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) Export Assistance program. Assistance was provided to member cooperatives on cheese totaling 10.820 million pounds and on butter (82% fat content) totaling 5.932 million pounds.

These sales bring the year-to-date total sales to 86.5 million pounds of cheese and 67.2 million pounds of butter. On a milkfat basis, that is the equivalent of 2.312 billion pounds of milk.

Exports of U.S. dairy products are up significantly this year and CWT has been a major contributor to the increase. Through June, CWT-assisted product shipments are 51% of total butter exports, 72% of total American cheese, and 18% of total cheese.

USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) said last month that with the start of a new fiscal year on October 1, it will resume the quarterly milk production producer surveys it suspended earlier this year due to budget cuts.

Back in April, NASS suspended its monthly milk production report because of the federal budget sequester. After NMPF protested the lack of government data, NASS agreed to continue providing a monthly production estimate, albeit produced without the use of farmer surveys to help verify milk output trends. Since April, the USDA has used data from federal milk marketing orders, dairy checkoff data, state departments of agriculture, and other administrative sources.

The producer survey program will resume with a late September mailing to dairy producers, and the release of resulting data on October 21. With the quarterly surveys, the dairy cow and milk per cow statistics will once again be available.

NMPF continues to create awareness of dairy products – and the REAL Seal itself – through its new social media campaign connecting a new generation of consumers with products that use the Seal.

To date, NMPF has made a significant initial investment to underwrite a variety of promotional activities, including a new website, a new Facebook page, blogger outreach, and a new animated character. This brief video highlights activities already underway, and those planned for the future.

Until last fall, the REAL® Seal website – www.realseal.com – was targeted only at companies using the REAL® Seal to help them learn what they needed to do to qualify for the program. Today, the website is focused on consumers of dairy products and foods with dairy as a significant ingredient. The REAL® Difference for Consumers section tells consumers how to differentiate REAL® dairy products and foods made with REAL® dairy ingredients from imitators. Another subsection provides nutrition information comparing the natural goodness of REAL® dairy products, to the fabricated nutrition of imitators.

In addition, a buyer’s guide will soon be added to the website. All companies using the REAL® Seal will receive a free basic listing, and the opportunity to expand their presence in the Buying Guide. Consumers interested in buying REAL® dairy products, or foods made with REAL® dairy ingredients, will be able to do so by using this Guide.

The REAL® Seal Facebook page — www.facebook.com/REALSealDairy — is reaching consumers, and more importantly, engaging them in why they should buy REAL® dairy products, and foods made with REAL® dairy ingredients. Since the Facebook page was launched in June, it has received nearly 60,000 “Likes.” This is the result, in part, of a paid advertising campaign initially funded by NMPF. The Facebook campaign has also benefited from the strong click-through rate, meaning consumers are continuing on to the REAL® Seal Facebook page rather than simply clicking “Like” on the REAL® Seal ad in their news feeds.

The program user fees being collected will go toward continuing these and other campaign elements, strengthening the connection between consumers and REAL® Seal users’ products. Future program elements will include a national blogger network, a Pinterest presence, email-driven direct marketing, and mobile apps.

NMPF has joined with the Consortium for Common Food Names (CCFN) and several other cooperatives, proprietary companies, and organizations to send a strong message to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) regarding the need for an improved approach to tackling the problem of escalating efforts by the European Union (EU) to monopolize the use of many common food names. For instance, in several U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) partners, the EU is on the brink of successfully restricting use of cheeses widely made in the U.S. such as parmesan, gorgonzola, and several others. NMPF and the letter’s other signatories stressed the importance of tackling this issue not solely as an Intellectual Property topic, but also as a de facto barrier to market access.

Through its membership in CCFN, NMPF has been actively supporting efforts to oppose these naming restrictions not only in our export markets, but also here at home. The launch of U.S.-EU FTA talks threatens to impose these name product limitations on our own domestic market, a concern of even greater proportion than the sizable export challenges we currently face.