New Campaign Reaches Audience

News EditorDairy Checkoff, Health, Nutrition

The Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP) has created new advertising targeting Hispanic mothers. The campaign will encourage the Hispanic audience to make good beverage choices, like low-fat milk, for their families.

The campaign was created to communicate to Hispanics the importance of drinking 3 glasses of low-fat milk a day. The commercials emphasize that low- fat milk is equal in nutritional value to whole milk and has been shown to help kids grow healthy, strong, and in shape as well as provide nine essential vitamins and minerals including calcium, protein, potassium, phosphorous, and vitamins A, B12, and D.

Cargill to Have New CEO

News EditorAgribusiness, Industry News

cargilllogoThe agribusiness company Cargill said Tuesday that its chief executive, Warren R. Staley, would retire June 1 after reaching 65, the company’s retirement age for executives.

Mr. Staley will be succeeded by Gregory R. Page, 55, who has been Cargill’s president and chief operating officer since 2000. Mr. Page joined Cargill in 1974 as a trainee. He worked in the company’s United States animal nutrition business before transferring to Singapore in 1985 to run the animal nutrition operations in Asia. He returned to the United States in 1992. He began running Cargill’s North American and Australian beef and pork operations in 1995. Mr. Staley became Cargill president in 1998, chief in 1999 and chairman in 2000. He has worked at Cargill since 1969.

MILC Continues

News EditorGovernment, Industry News, Milk, Price

This is good news, for now. What do you think of the President’s plan?

Dairy farmers faced with falling milk prices would continue to get federal aid as part of a 2008 budget proposal announced Monday by President Bush. However, the president’s longer-term plan calls for reductions in the federal subsidy, which kicks in when milk prices fall below $16.94 per hundredweight for fluid milk.

The White House is asking Congress to continue the Milk Income Loss Contract subsides, called MILC, for fiscal year 2008 at the current rate. When milk prices drop, farmers are paid 34 percent of the difference between the base price of $16.94 per hundredweight and the market price in Boston.

However, the administration announced last week that its plan for a massive new five-year farm bill would begin to reduce the dairy subsidy beginning in fiscal year 2009. Instead of receiving 34 percent of the difference between the base price and the market price, farmers would get 31 percent in 2009, 28 percent in 2010, 25 percent in 2011 and 22 percent in 2012. The president’s plan also would reduce the amount of milk production eligible for the subsidy.

The program’s cost to taxpayers varies from year to year depending on fluctuations in milk prices. However, the overall cost of the subsidy from its beginning in 2002 through the end of this year is estimated at about $3 billion.

CWT Announces Herd Retirement

News EditorDairy Group, Industry News

logo_cwt.gifCooperatives Working Together (CWT) announced today that it has initiated a fourth herd retirement effort with bids being accepted from today until Saturday, March 3rd, and with cow removals to start in six weeks.

Detailed bid information can be found at www.cwt.coop, including a bid application, a calculator to help estimate a farmer’s bid, and answers to frequently-asked questions. All bids must be postmarked by Saturday, March 3rd, in order to be considered. All dairy producers submitting bids to sell their herds must be members of CWT, either through their membership in a fully participating cooperative, or as an independent member of CWT.

Bids will be reviewed in early March, with field auditors then proceeding after March 19th to visit each accepted farm to begin the cow removal process.

”All of the economic indicators and benchmarks that we monitor in order to guide CWT’s decisions show that now is the appropriate time for us to initiate this herd retirement program,” said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF, which manages CWT.

CWT is not targeting how many pounds of milk, cows, or herds will be removed by this fourth retirement round. The final tally will be determined by the quality and quantity of the bids, Kozak said.

In this round, any producer who had his bid accepted in any of the previous three rounds is not eligible to participate again. Also, those producers who have a financial interest in more than one dairy farming operation must include all their cows in their bid. A dairyman cannot place a bid for just one of his herds, if he has an interest in multiple operations.

All About Vanilla

News EditorHealth, Milk

Students in the Perkins school district in Ohio will now add vanilla to their milk choices. If you haven’t tried this particular flavor, give it a shot – it will perk up your February!

Since the start of the school year, Perkins students already have consumed just more than 143,000 half-pint cartons of moo juice. School officials are using the two-week Milk Mania campaign to urge students to drink even more for their good health. The program coincides with Perkins schools adding new vanilla flavored milk from Toft’s Dairy to the school cafeterias, said Linda Miller, food service director for the district.

“They’re excited about it and I think it’s kind of fun,” Miller said. “Winter gets a little cold and dreary. This might perk it up a little bit.”

With regular, chocolate, strawberry and vanilla milk available, students also will get to vote on their favorite flavor. Furry Elementary School students also will have a milk mustache contest. Now plans include giveaways with items ranging from bookmarks and pencils to four bicycles available for the grade schools.

“Funny how vanilla milk can generate so much,” she said.

Super Cheese

News EditorCheese

Cheese was the big seller in Mississippi for the Super Bowl games, I’m sure this was the case all across the country! I know at the party I went to, we had a three different types of cheese to enjoy while we watched the game.

Local grocers stocked up on all kinds of snacks in preparation for Sunday’s Super Bowl game. Cheese products like Rotel and Velveeta were the biggest sellers. Chips, drinks, pizzas and other goodies came in second place to the mighty cheese products.

“We have a display of Rotel, and one of Velveeta,” said Palmer’s co-owner Jason Palmer. “I ordered four or five times what I usually order to make the displays.” He said he usually keeps 10 cases of cheese dip in stock, but for the Super Bowl, he keeps 20 cases in stock.

Super Dairy Bowl

Chuck ZimmermanAudio, Dairy Checkoff, Promotion

Super BowlIt’s Super Bowl time and the dairy industry is ready for it.

Regardless of whether the Colts or the Bears win Super Bowl 41 in Miami, dairy producers have already scored big thanks to another successful year teaming up with the National Football League to increase milk, cheese and yogurt sales. Brian Baxter has more in this report.

Download and listen to Brian’s report here: Dairy Checkoff Super Bowl News (2 min. MP3 File)

Starbuck Switch

News EditorHealth, Industry News, Milk

Starbucks is in the news again, this time the company has announced a switch from whole milk to 2-percent in four test markets. The coffee company sites health trends as the reason for the switch.

“We have been monitoring customers’ trends,” said Michelle Gass, senior vice president of global products for Starbucks. “Two percent milk is the No. 1 milk purchase in America. That is what people are buying and what they want.”

The testing began this week at more than 300 company-owned stores in Oregon; Orange County, Calif.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and London, Ontario. More than half — 172 — of the test stores are in Oregon. A switch to 2 percent milk from whole milk will lower the number of calories by 30 in tall (small size) and grande (medium size) lattes, the company said.

Gass said Starbucks could start using 2 percent milk in other markets, possibly including Seattle, based on the test results. “We will test this as long as it takes to get a real understanding if this is a win with our customers,” she said.

Dole Vending Machines

News EditorMilk, Nutrition

In my humble opinion, this move by Dole Food Company is a positive for the dairy industry. Notice that milk is included as a healthy food product. This is great!

Dole Food Company, a leading fresh fruit, vegetable and flower company, is launching a pilot program with US organizations that will put vending machines selling healthy food products into schools.

The US-based company said that the vending machines will supply Dole fruit and its branded Fruit Bowls, as well as cafeteria-prepared salads, sandwich wraps and milk. Dole claims this move gives school children greater access to healthy and nutritious foods. Dole said that the pilot vending machines will be placed in 15 schools across four states, including Colorado and Texas, in February. Dole hopes to expand the vending machine program to more schools in 2007.

Secretary Johanns at Cattle Convention

Chuck ZimmermanAudio, Government

Mike JohannsU. S. Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Johanns was on hand here in Nashville today at the Cattle Industry Convention.

He’s been on the road since announcing the administration farm bill proposal. I was able to obtain a copy of his speech this morning if you would like to listen.

I was in the media room posting onto Beef Board Meeting.com so I’m afraid I can’t summarize what he had to say.

Download and listen to Sec. Johanns here: Mike Johanns Speech (32 min. MP3 File)

After Johann’s speech he conducted a press conference and was asked about dairy in the administration’s farm bill proposal. Here’s what he had to say: Mike Johanns Dairy Comment (2 min. MP3 File)