In this Issue:

• Headlines
• Producers Reminded of the Importance of Biosecurity
• Funeral Arrangements for Former GMP Executive Director Bill Moore
• UGA DairyFax Newsletter
• March Dairy Market Report
• Reminder: GA RFSI Grant Deadline is March 29
• Reminder x2: LAS Permit Renewal Due March 29
• Reminder x3: DMC Enrollment Open until April 29
• Legislative Tracker
• Upcoming Events

Headlines

articles and press releases of interest this week

• America Has a Farming Crisis
• USDA Finalizes “Product of USA” Rule
• More Plants But Fewer Cows Are In Our Future
• The Most Important Ag Invention of the Past 200 Years
• Progressive Dairy: 2024 State of Dairy
• Federal Health Leaders Evaluate Protections for Workers Against Extreme Heat 
• Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act Become Campaign Issue in PA
• Georgia Cattlemen’s Convention a Success

Dairy Producers Reminded to Consider Biosecurity on Farm

As most GMP members are aware, Georgia Dept. of Agriculture, GMP, UGA, and Georgia Cattlemen's Association are all tracking the developing situation in Texas. The Texas Animal Health Commission issued a statement over the weekend describing the animal health situation affecting an unspecified number of dairy herds the state. From the release:

"Clinical signs include decreased herd level milk production; acute sudden drop in production with some severely impacted cows experiencing thicker, concentrated, colostrum like milk; decrease in feed consumption with simultaneous drop in rumen motility; abnormal tacky or loose feces, and some fever. Impacted herds have reported older cows in mid-lactation may be more likely to be severely impacted than younger cows and fresh cows or heifers. Dry cows and heifers do not appear to be affected. In addition, some herds have reported pneumonia and clinical mastitis cases as secondary sequelae.”

Additional reports from the National Milk Producers Federation stress that this appears to be impacting a small percentage of cows within a herd and that in nearly all cases the condition does not appear to be fatal. Furthermore, there are no confirmed reports of the issue spreading outside of the region into other parts of the country. As GMP receives official updates, we'll pass those along to our members.

In the meantime, this is a great opportunity for producers in Georgia to consider the biosecurity measures they employ on their farms. The Georgia Department of Agriculture has created a one-pager on basic biosecurity for Georgia farmers (link below). Additionally, producers are encouraged to review the biosecurity measures recommended via the FARM Program (link below).

As with any new or emerging animal health issue, we encourage our producers to follow these basic steps:

1. Know who is coming on farm
2. Limit access to animals to essential employees only
3. Create spaces to separate new animals arriving on farm or existing hospital pens to limit interaction with rest of herd
4. If you notice unusual or persistent illness in your herd, call your veterinarian and then call GDA. You can call the State Veterinarian's office at 404-656-3667 or email animalhealth@agr.georgia.gov

Resources for Producers:

• GDA Biosecurity Flyer
• TAHC Release
• Dairy FARM Program Biosecurity Manual

Funeral Arrangements for Former GMP Executive Director Bill Moore

Longtime Georgia Milk Producers, Inc. Executive Director Bill Moore passed away on March 16, 2024 at the age of 83. A private interment will be held on Friday, March 22 with a memorial service on Saturday, March 23 at noon at Pennington Methodist Church (1160 Broughton Road, Newborn, GA 30056). Funeral arrangements will be handled by McCommons Funeral Home, Greensboro, GA.

You can read Bill’s obituary and view arrangements here.

UGA DairyFax - Winter 2024 Edition

The University of Georgia’s DairyFax Winter 2024 issue is out now. UGA will start posting the quarterly DairyFax newsletter to its Extension website. 

Visit site.extension.uga.edua/dairy/dairyfax-newsletter/ to read the latest issue and check out the new webpage.



March Dairy Market Report from DMI-NMPF

From this month's Dairy Market Report from National Milk Producers Federation and Dairy Management Inc.:



"Sluggish U.S. milk production is showing up in other key dairy industry statistics, including scant milk solids production growth, flat to declining production of major dairy products and a general drawdown of product inventories. The modest level of stock drawdowns and stagnant milk and dairy product prices indicates that the market is currently broadly balanced, with lower milk production, flat milk solids production and growth in overall domestic use, offset by continued weakness in exports, resulting in flat growth in total use.

Stronger total demand and/or further reductions in milk production will be needed to bring higher milk prices faster."

Click here to read the full report with figures on milk production, trade, and dairy product inventories.

Reminder: Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Grant Deadline is March 29

The Georgia Department of Agriculture is partnering with USDA to provide producers and processors with the opportunity to boost “middle supply chain” infrastructure throughout several commodity sectors. GDA will award roughly $7.1 million to projects that can begin October 1, 2024 and must conclude by February 28, 2027. The program will support projects that significantly enhance the capacity for local and regional food products, focusing on infrastructure improvement and equipment upgrades.

There are two funding opportunities available in this grant:

1. Simplified Equipment-Only Grants : This grant provides up to $100,000 for equipment to enhance the food supply chain’s efficiency. Eligible equipment includes machinery and tools that aid in processing, aggregation, and distribution activities, directly benefiting multiple Georgia producers.
2. Infrastructure Grants : This grant applies to projects between $100,000 and $300,000 and requires a 50 percent funding match by the applicant (with the potential for a reduced match for certain applicants). 

GMP encourages any Georgia dairy producers, processors, or milk handlers to explore opportunities to invest in much-needed equipment and infrastructure through this grant opportunity. 

Visit the GDA RFSI webpage for more information on the application process, FAQs, and a webinar recording presented by GDA.

Tools for Producers:

RFSI Request For Applications

GDA RFSI Webinar



Georgia Dairies with LAS Permits Must Reapply for CAFO Permit Before March 29

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division and Georgia Department of Agriculture are reminding Georgia dairy farmers with LAS-Large and LAS-Medium permits that permit holders must reapply for CAFO permit coverage before the end of the month. Georgia EPD recently renewed the general permits for medium and large CAFOs under the LAS permit. That new permit will take effect on April 1, 2024. At that time, all existing/current LAS permits will be void. 

To renew your LAS-Large or LAS-Medium permit before April 1 and ensure your farm does not have a lapse in coverage, producers should log in to the Georgia EPD Online System (GEOS) and submit their renewal request. EPD and GDA encourage producers to log on before March 29 to ensure that EPD can assist with any technical questions you may have. Producers and facilities that fail to renew permits on time will experience a lapse in coverage and their farm operations could risk not being covered under the CAFO program.

• You can access GEOS HERE.



DMC Signup Open Until April 29

FSA has revised DMC regulations to extend coverage for calendar year 2024, which is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2024, and to provide an adjustment to the production history for dairy operations with less than 5 million pounds of production. In previous years, smaller dairy operations could establish a supplemental production history and receive Supplemental Dairy Margin Coverage. For 2024, dairy producers can establish one adjusted base production history through DMC for each participating dairy operation to better reflect the operation’s current production.

For 2024 DMC enrollment, dairy operations that established supplemental production history through Supplemental Dairy Margin Coverage for coverage years 2021 through 2023, will combine the supplemental production history with established production history for one adjusted base production history.

For dairy operations enrolled in 2023 DMC under a multi-year lock-in contract, lock-in eligibility will be extended until Dec. 31, 2024. In addition, dairy operations enrolled in multi-year lock-in contracts are eligible for the discounted DMC premium rate during the 2024 coverage year. To confirm 2024 DMC lock-in coverage or opt out in favor of an annual contract for 2024, dairy operations having lock-in contracts must enroll during the 2024 DMC enrollment period. 

DMC offers different levels of coverage, even an option that is free to producers, minus a $100 administrative fee. The administrative fee is waived for dairy producers who are considered limited resource, beginning, socially disadvantaged or a military veteran. To determine the appropriate level of DMC coverage for a specific dairy operation, producers can use the online dairy decision tool. 

USDA also offers other risk management tools for dairy producers, including the Dairy Revenue Protection (DRP) plan that protects against a decline in milk revenue (yield and price) and the Livestock Gross Margin (LGM) plan, which provides protection against the loss of the market value of milk minus the feed costs. Both DRP and LGM livestock insurance policies are offered through the Risk Management Agency. Producers should contact their local crop insurance agent for more information.

GMP Classifieds

2024 Legislative Tracker

Today marks Legislative Day 37 out of 40 for the Georgia General Assembly. Tomorrow will mark Day 38. The legislature will stand adjourned until Tuesday and Thursday of next week when they will tackle the final two days of this legislative session. As with most students doing their homework or writing a book report, the General Assembly churns out most of its work in the final hours of each legislative session. We anticipate most of the measures still pending approval to be caught up in the flurry of activity that will come over the next week.

The following are pieces of legislation of potential interest to GMP members and E-News readers:

• HB 848 – Reps. Taylor, Lumsden, Collins, Hitchens, and Dunahoo
• A bill to authorize the enforcement of excess vehicle weight violations through an automated vehicle weight detection system.
• Status - Failed to Crossover
• HB 908 – Reps. Ridley, J., Ridley, J., Jasperse, Fleming, and Persinger
• A bill to require food service establishments to disclose if food products contain cell-cultured meat and/or plant-based meat alternatives.
• Status – Failed to Crossover
• HB 922 – Reps. Vances, Tarvin, Lunsden, Collins, and Hitchens
• A bill to constitute the entrance upon another’s property without consent of the owner as an offense of criminal trespass.
• Status – Failed to Crossover
• HB 981 - Reps. Burchett, C. Cannon, Dickey, Meeks, Rhodes
• A bill to exempt agricultural structures from permitting fees by local or municipal governments.
• Status - Failed to Crossover
• SR 470 - Sens. Hickman, Goodman, Watson, Anderson, and Gooch
• A resolution creating the Senate Study Committee on the Preservation of Georgia’s Farmlands; and for other purposes.
• Status - Passed Senate 2/15/24
• HB 1015 - Reps. McDonald, Blackmon, Jones, Hong, Wade and others
• A bill to lower the state income tax rate for 2024 to 5.39% and reduce the income tax rate by 0.1% annually until the maximum tax rate is 4.99%.
• Status: House Passed on 2/8/24. Scheduled to be voted on in Senate today (3/20/24)
• SB 420 – Senators Anavitarte, Goodman, Beach, Cowsert, and Gooch
• A bill to prohibit certain foreign entities from purchasing agricultural land.
• Status: Passed Senate on 2/29/24. Passed House Judiciary Committee on 3/19/24
• SB 436 – Senators Watson, Goodman, Anderson, Walker, Ginn, and others
• A bill to give operators of farm vehicles the right of way on a state or local roadway when it is unsafe for the farm vehicle to pull off the far-right-hand side of the road.
• Status: Passed House on 3/11/24. Senate must agree to House version or both chambers must pass conference committee bill 
• HB 1052 – Reps. Cannon, Dickey, Huddleston, McCollum, and Meeks
• A bill to allow corporations to qualify for CUVA if the land they are leasing is used for agriculture or timber purposes and if the corporation ownership includes at least one US citizen
• Status: Passed Senate Finance Committee on 3/11/24
• HB 1093 – Reps. Clark, Pirkle, Blackmon, Corbett, and Bonner
• A bill to prohibit certain foreign companies or individuals from purchasing agricultural land
• Status: Failed to Crossover
• HB 1099 – Reps. Huddleston, Burchett, Cannon, Camp, and Rhodes
• A bill to constitute a charge of criminal trespass against individuals who enter the land of another person that has been marked with purple paint marks on either trees or posts on said property.
• Status: Passed House on 2/29/24. Assigned to Senate Judiciary Committee
• HB 1169 – Reps. Townsend, Smith, DeLoach, Vance, and Reeves
• A bill to allow the Environmental Protection Division to deny permit applications if the applicant has violated environmental laws or regulations
• Status: Failed to Crossover
• HB 1172 – Reps. Burchett, Rhodes, Leverett, Smith, and Williams
• A bill to limit the public’s right of navigable streams to only using water as highways and for hunting and fishing. The public is not permitted to trespass upon privately owned beds
• Status: Passed House on 2/27/24. Passed Senate Judiciary on 3/18/24
• SB 429 - Sens. Dolezal, Gooch, Kennedy, Robertson, Anavitarte, and others
• A bill to provide for the submission of small business impact analyses on legislation, rules, and regulations for bills introduced during sessions of the General Assembly. 
• Status: Passed Senate on 2/26/2024. Assigned to House Budget and Fiscal Oversight Committee
• HB 827 - Reps. Smith, Dickey, Pirkle, Leverett, Hagan, Huddleston
• A bill to increase the penalties for livestock theft
• Status: Passed House on 2/27/24. Passed Senate on 3/18/24
• HB 1223 - Reps. Leverett, Petrea, Prince, Jackson, and Adesanya
• A bill to prohibit the application of soil amendments on a site under existing consent order with the Environmental Protection Division.
• Status: Passed House on 2/29/2024. Passed Senate Ag Committee 3/12/24
• HB 1274 - Reps. Huddleston, Ridley, Dickey, Pirkle, Thomas, Cameron
• A bill updating the veterinary student loan forgiveness program to expand eligibility and increasing annual payments to participating veterinarians serving rural counties.
• Status: Passed House on 2/29/2024. Passed Senate Higher Education Committee on 3/13/24



Until Next Time,

Bryce Trotter