Contacts:
Kelly Loftus, Agency of Agriculture, (802) 828-3829

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Harrisburg, PA - Food safety and security and a more profitable marketplace for dairy producers were the overarching themes at the Dairy Policy Forum held June 1, in Albany, N.Y. The event was hosted by the Northeast Dairy Leadership Team, with support from the Departments of Agriculture in Pennsylvania, New York and Vermont.

The Forum brought together key policy analysts from the Council of Northeast Farmer Cooperatives, National Milk Producers Federation, the International Dairy Foods Association and the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives. Representatives from the Pennsylvania, New York and Vermont Farm Bureaus also participated in the discussion. Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Dennis Wolff, Vermont Secretary of Agriculture Roger Allbee and New York Department of Agriculture Deputy Commissioner Jerry Cosgrove wrapped up the discussion and identified the key issues addressed during the forum.

Based on the discussion, the leadership team identified 10 key points of policy agreement to support:

1. Some form of counter-cyclical payment program should be made available for dairy producers/farmers
1. Payment programs should include a national feed cost index to adjust payments in consideration of the rising cost of feed
2. Should payment caps be considered, NEDLT would recommend any cap should be defined in dollars, not in pounds of milk
2. A permanent forward price contracting mechanism for milk that contains appropriate and reasonable producer safeguards
3. Conservation programs that benefit dairy producers
4. Conservation programs that are linked to nutrient management
5. Programs that encourage beginning farmers and young people to consider careers in dairy (e.g. federal student loan forgiveness) and other credit title programs that can assist beginning and young farmers
6. A study of the Federal Milk Marketing Orders with regard to:
1. Class I and II advance pricing (utilizing more current information closer to the announcement of class III & IV)
2. Evaluating a two class system
7. The development of scalable farm-based energy production systems and programs that support research and development in this area
8. Enhanced and improved dairy commodity transaction reporting and auditing
9. Expanded programs to encourage and facilitate investment in dairy processing facilities (e.g. processing equipment loan guarantees)
10. Requiring more timely decisions from Federal Milk Marketing Order hearings