Dairy producers from Pennsylvania, New York and Vermont came together in Albany, N.Y. on June 1st, to discuss dairy industry issues. Hosted by the Northeast Dairy Leadership team, which was established by the afore mentioned states to establish a vision and promote profitability for the region’s dairy industry, the event brought together key leaders and producers.
The Forum brought together key policy analysts from the 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 Albee 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
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
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