Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) has accepted 21 requests for export assistance from Dairy Farmers of America, Foremost Farms, Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Association, Michigan Milk Producers Association, Northwest Dairy Association (Darigold), Upstate-O-AT-KA and Tillamook County Creamery Association to sell 1.551 million pounds of Cheddar and Gouda cheeses, 3.306 million pounds of 82% butter and 1.482 million pounds of whole milk powder to customers in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, South America and the South Pacific. The product will be delivered May through October 2014.

Year-to-date, CWT has assisted member cooperatives in selling 53.085 million pounds of cheese, 45.953 million pounds of butter and 10.337 million pounds of whole milk powder to 37 countries on six continents. These sales are the equivalent of 1.591 billion pounds of milk on a milkfat basis.

Assisting CWT members through the Export Assistance program, in the long-term, helps member cooperatives gain and maintain market share, thus expanding the demand for U.S. dairy products and the U.S. farm milk that produces them in the rapidly growing world dairy markets. This, in turn, positively impacts U.S. dairy farmers by strengthening and maintaining the value of dairy products that directly impact their milk price.

CWT will pay export assistance to the bidders only when delivery of the product is verified by the submission of the required documentation.