Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) has accepted 17 requests for export assistance from Dairy Farmers of America, Michigan Milk Producers Association, Northwest Dairy Association (Darigold) and Tillamook County Creamery Association to sell 3.646 million pounds (1,654 metric tons) of Cheddar cheese, and 661,387 pounds (300 metric tons) of whole milk powder to customers in Asia, Europe, North Africa, Central and South America and Oceania. The product will be delivered July 2014 through January 2015.

Year-to-date, CWT has assisted member cooperatives in selling 78.024 million pounds of cheese, 48.767 million pounds of butter and 16.067 million pounds of whole milk powder to 41 countries on six continents. These sales are the equivalent of 1.965 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.