A coalition of more than 50 state and national dairy organizations have sent a letter to members of the House Agriculture Committee urging them to include the Dairy Security Act in the farm bill when they begin mark up next week. The letter states the need for “a financially-sound risk management program to help farmers better manage margin volatility.”

The groups further ask the Committee members to reject the Dairy Freedom Act put forth by Congressmen Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and David Scott (D-GA) “because it would weaken the safety net for farmers in order to benefit dairy processors.” The Dairy Freedom Act does not contain the market stabilization component the DSA does. The groups contend the supply management provision would send a clear signal to farmers when production needs to be reduced resulting in a faster rebound in low-market situations.

Supporters of the Dairy Security Act argue the production controls would be detrimental to the dairy industry in that producers and processors would be reluctant to grow and expand for fear they may be called upon to cut milk output at some point. They also say that would make us an unreliable supplier on the world market.

The Senate Ag Committee is scheduled to mark up their farm bill on Tuesday but there are no indications the alternative Dairy Freedom Act will be introduced in that committee.