Mexico and Canada may have little to ask for when it comes to ag trade barriers with the United States, but they could seek further dairy access. Former chief agriculture trade negotiator, Darci Vetter, told Politico since both Mexico and Canada have long wanted U.S. Food and Drug Administration recognition to sell Grade A dairy products like fresh yogurt and …
American Dairy Industry Wants True Free-Trade with Canada
The fourth round of negotiations to redo the North American Free Trade Agreement take place next week in Washington. Jim Mulhern, CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, says negotiators are planning to put forth proposals on dairy policy and other market access issues U.S. farmers have getting their product into Canada. Milk Business Dot Com says the Milk Producers …
National Beef Quality Audit Shows Continued Progress
The U.S. beef industry, of which dairy cows comprise a significant portion, continues to improve the quality of its management practices, according to the 2016 National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA) commissioned by the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program. BQA and the National Dairy FARM Program shared the results at a news conference at the 51st World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisc. …
Dairy Industry Organizations Support Legislation Creating New Agriculture Guest Worker Program
A coalition of dozens of dairy farm organizations, led by the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), is supporting new congressional legislation that would help address one of the most challenging issues affecting America’s milk producers: obtaining a dependable, legal workforce. A founding member of the Agriculture Workforce Coalition, NMPF was joined by 57 dairy cooperatives and state dairy farmer associations …
Dairy Industry Cautions Japan to Respect Current Trade Relationships
Japan’s agriculture officials must respect current market access between Japan and its trading partners, including the United States, when reviewing a list of geographical indications (GIs) proposed by the European Union (EU), or else risk disrupting one of the world’s largest consumer marketplaces, the U.S. dairy industry urged. In a letter to the Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, leaders …
NMPF Urges Government-Take Action Against Misleading Labeling of “Blue Magic” Milk
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) urged federal and state food regulators to take enforcement action against imitation dairy product “Blue Magic Cashew Milk” for continuing to ignore federal standards of identity for dairy products. In a letter sent today to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the California Department of Food and Agriculture, NMPF said that use of …
UF Expert Helps Ensure “Grain Train” Gets Through
As Hurricane Irma barreled toward Florida in early September, she threatened to starve thousands of dairy cows by delaying the grain train – two dozen freight cars of feed commodities bound for the Lake Okeechobee area. The crisis was resolved by a team that included a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) expert and representatives of …
U.S. Yet to Propose NAFTA Dairy Fix
The United States has yet to propose changes to the dairy issue between the U.S. and Canada as part of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) renegotiation. And, Canada’s lead NAFTA negotiator doesn’t expect the United States to make demands for the dairy sector during the current set of talks that conclude Wednesday in Canada, according to the Toronto …
Dairy Producers Can Opt Out of MPP Coverage
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) wants to remind dairy producers you can enroll for 2018 coverage in the Margin Protection Program (MPP-Dairy). But there is something new this year, in that you can opt out of the program. In order to opt out, a producer should not sign up during the annual registration period. By opting out, a producer would …
Milk Processing Expansion Needed
A report by CoBank shows U.S. milk production growth is outpacing processing capacity growth, leaving dairy processors struggling to keep pace. Every year, U.S. dairy farmers produce three billion more pounds of milk than the year before. CoBank says that those increase challenge processers, who will need an estimated 27 billion pounds more of U.S. milk processing capacity over the …