Georgia Milk Producers Weekly Enews |
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From Progressive Dairy Editor Dave Natzke
The USDA has released some details of a $350 million Pandemic Market Volatility Assistance Program, providing targeted financial assistance to U.S. dairy producers. Progressive Dairy will provide additional details as they become available.
Here's what we do know. The program will provide payments to dairy farmers who received lower prices for milk due to market abnormalities caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The assistance is part of a larger package that also includes retroactive and permanent adjustments to feed cost calculations under the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program.
he program assists family dairy farmers “battered by the pandemic, trade issues and unpredictable weather,” said U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “This targeted assistance is the first step in USDA’s comprehensive approach that will total over 2 billion dollars to help the dairy industry recover from the pandemic and be more resilient to future challenges for generations to come.”
Under the Pandemic Market Volatility Assistance Program, payments will reimburse qualified dairy farmers for 80% of the revenue difference per month for milk marketed during July through December 2020. Payments will be based on annual production of up to 5 million pounds of milk marketed and on fluid milk sales during the period.
The payment rate will vary by region based on the actual losses on pooled milk related to price volatility. Due to Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) depooling and other market disruptions, not all producers were impacted equally by negative producer price differentials (PPDs) within each order. Additionally, changes to the Class I milk pricing formula had a greater overall negative impact on uniform prices paid to producers within FMMOs with heavy Class I utilization rates. Read more here>>>
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Additional Work Lies Ahead to Remedy Relief Shortfall for DMC Program
By Karen Bohnert, Dairy Herd Management
The details outlined that will utilize $350 million in pandemic assistance to dairy farmers who received a lower value for their products due to market abnormalities caused by the pandemic was released by USDA Thursday. The assistance is part of the Pandemic Market Volatility Assistance Program, and the same day, USDA also announced permanent improvements to the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) safety net program.
Payments under the Pandemic Market Volatility Assistance Program will reimburse qualified dairy farmers for 80% of the revenue difference per month based on an annual production of up to 5 million pounds of milk marketed and on fluid milk sales from July through December 2020.
Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) states that the recent announcement by the USDA is an initial step in the effort that will help many producers. “It unfortunately falls significantly short of meeting the needs of dairy farmers nationwide. The arbitrary low limits on covered milk production volume mean many family dairy farmers will only receive a portion of the losses they incurred on their production last year. These losses were felt deeply by producers of all sizes, in all regions of the country, embodying a disaster in the truest sense of the word. Disaster aid should not include limits that prevent thousands of dairy farmers from being meaningfully compensated for unintended, extraordinary losses,” he says. Read more here>>>
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U.S. milk production update
From DFA Today
According to the USDA Milk Production report for July, U.S. milk production reached 19.1 billion pounds, up 384 million pounds (2%) from the prior year.
The U.S. dairy herd size was reported at 9.5 million head, up 128,000 cows (1.4%) from the prior year but down 3,000 cows (0.03%) from the prior month. July milk production per cow was reported at 2,015 pounds, an increase of 14 pounds (0.7%) from the prior year.
U.S. milk production year to date for 2021 reached 134.1 billion pounds, up 3.1 billion pounds (2.8%*) from the same time frame in 2020.
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Refrigerator Performance Critical to Drug Storage
By Jim Dickrell, Dairy Herd Management
If your old kitchen refrigerator had trouble keeping your beer cold, it’s certainly not adequate to store thousands of dollars of cattle vaccines and pharmaceuticals.
“The monetary investment that is stored in the farm refrigerator often far outweighs the quality and reliability of that refrigerator,” says Emmanuel Rollin, a veterinary and clinical assistant professor in Dairy Production Medicine at the University of Georgia.
“The risk of having a refrigerator failure is not just the cost to replace the products inside, but also in the increase in disease cost if there are unidentified issues associated with storage,” he says.
Hand-me-down refrigerators, especially if doors do not seal well or if they have old or dirty cooling systems, often cannot maintain proper temperatures or recover quickly once the door is opened, he says.
Rollin recommends using wireless recording high-low thermometers to monitor the refrigerator and its contents. Maintaining a log of temperatures will show cooling performance.
“Once you know the current temperature of the refrigerator, you can then dial in the settings to match the recommendations on the product label,” Rollin says. Most vaccines have a recommended storage temperature range of 35° to 45°F. Read more here>>>
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UGA ADS 2021 Awards Newsletter
By Dr. Francis Fluharty, Department Head
This edition highlights student, staff and faculty award recipients for 2021. Congratulations to you all and thank you for all that you do to promote, support and groiw the GA dairy industry!
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A growth slowdown for retail refrigerated milk
By Kathie Canning, Dairy Foods
When we last reported on sales within the U.S. refrigerated retail milk category back in our February issue, the situation was quite rosy. Dollar sales had risen significantly during the 52-week reporting period, and unit sales growth was solid, too. Of course, that growth surge reflected a time during which COVID-19 restrictions forced many people to work and learn — as well as eat and drink — from home.
As folks started to trickle back to offices and schools, refrigerated milk’s growth at retail saw a slowdown. Data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI show that the overall refrigerated milk category (which includes both milk and milk alternatives) posted only a 1.8% increase in dollar sales (reaching $16,583.2 million) during the 52 weeks ending July 11, 2021. Unit sales actually fell 2.1% to 5,501.7 million. Read more here>>>
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Dairy markets capped by limited upside and downside
BY Michael McCully, Hoard's Dairyman
For the last two months, dairy markets have been in the summer price doldrums, bogged down by heavy milk supplies and strong dairy product inventories. Higher feed costs and lower margins, which have prevailed throughout most of the year, have not had a noticeable impact on dairy cow numbers until recent weeks. With the U.S. dairy herd at the highest point since September 1994, a strong foundation remains in place for more milk growth into 2022. What does this mean for milk prices?
Global prices are declining and domestic inventories are ample, so U.S. dairy product and milk prices are forecast to remain rangebound near current levels. With more milk than the domestic market can absorb, U.S. dairy product prices need to be below European and New Zealand prices to be competitive in the export market. This effectively limits the upside to U.S. prices.
A four-year margin low
Projected dairy farm margins for this year are the lowest they have been since 2018, which is expected to result in a slowdown in milk growth in the second half of the year. Margins are forecast to recover modestly in 2022 but remain below average.
In the near term, dairy farms have mitigated some portion of the higher feed costs this year, which has delayed the milk supply response. Grain prices have been very volatile since spring and will remain so until the size of this year’s crop is known in the next few months. The western Corn Belt has suffered under drought conditions, while the eastern Corn Belt has enjoyed adequate to ample rainfall so far this summer. High prices cure high prices, and the first signs of grain demand dropping off have appeared over the last month. Barring a surprise reduction in the crop size, the high prices have likely have been set for the year. However, even if those values hold at current levels, prices are expected to remain well above historical averages well into 2022. Read more here>>>
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From Amy Throndsen for Progressive Dairy
f you need a pick-me-up or reminder of why you do what you do, give Gena Perry a call. She’ll be able to shed a light on agriculture’s big picture by providing perspective on a local and global scale infused with positive energy and boots-on-the ground experience to back up her intellect.
Gena Perry grew up in a small urban area in Georgia and had no connection to production agriculture. Her mom’s parents had some beef cattle and a small garden; however, her mom was the assistant principal at a more rural country high school, which had an active 4-H and FFA. In seventh grade, Perry transferred to that school where she wanted to get involved in an extracurricular activity. She tried out for the basketball team, and said, “If I don’t make the basketball team, I’ll show a dairy heifer.”
Luckily for agriculture, Perry didn’t make the basketball team, and joining 4-H was her introduction to an industry that she has dedicated herself to learning about, being involved in and promoting. “If it wasn’t for 4-H, FFA and ag education, who knows what I would be doing,” Perry said. “I love being a non-traditional ag-vocate. I understand it from both sides, but I know what’s it’s like to be on the outside."
Even though she had no idea what it meant to “show” a cow, this would not be the only time Perry would find herself thrown into an opportunity she would go on to not only figure out, but excel at. Showing that heifer was the first time Perry was around animals that weren’t dogs. She may have gotten knocked down while halter breaking the animal, but she got back up again to take on the challenge of learning new things, being outside and being with the animals. Read more here>>>
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The social media star promoting women’s fitness with dairy products
From Jaclyn Krymowski, Dairgold
Consuming dairy products supports a healthy workout regime for women, despite misleading information that pervades the fitness world.
So says Emily Shaw, a 26-year-old self-described “Pennsylvania dairy girl” who has turned her passion for dairy and fitness into a coaching business — Dairy Girl Fitness (DGF) — and a growing social media following.
Shaw has nearly 23,000 Instagram followers and a 1,500-member private Facebook group. She also runs a coaching business with two assistant coaches and 30 clients, helping health-minded women incorporate dairy products into their fitness programming.
In her experience, fitness culture is often dominated by well-publicized athletes who have opted for vegan diets — like James Wilks, a retired professional martial artist.
“If someone wants to be the best athlete,” he said in an interview with Great Vegan Athletes, “they need to fuel their body with the best diet available and that is a…plant-based diet.” Read more here>>>
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Other Stories to Check Out This Week >>> |
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TO ADVERTISE: EMAIL AD AND CONTACT INFORMATION TO FARRAH NEWBERRY at gamilkproducers@gmail.com
Looking for calves for 200 head calf barn with auto feeders in Arcadia
FL: Please call Brian 863-444-0060
Delaval meters, Germania entrance and exit gates with tailboards and indexing tail, Muller plate cooler, receiving jar, filter housing and lowline stainless pipeline. Serious inquiries call 864-617-5911, Iris Barham
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Expanding or looking for top quality herd replacement?
Available at all times:
Fresh two and three year old's and total herds; Also springing heifers and heifers of all ages. Service age bulls with top genetics available all year round. All different breeds and crossbreds also available. Last two loads of fresh two and three year olds Holsteins went on the trucks averaging 115 lbs and 112 lbs! One load to TN and the other to Wisconsin.
Contact:
Les McCracken
608-214-6484. Cell
608-879-2653. Fax
Seeking fulltime farm worker at heifer replacement farm in Eatonton, GA. If interested, please contact Mike Rainey at 706-473-0730.
Seeking Beef and dairy crossed bullcalves/heifers bottled or weaned. Please contact Victoria Rowland at 404-922-0938 or 423-946-5869
Will Raise Heifers for GA Dairy Farms: Hello we are located in Southern Illinois and have an abundance of pasture and cheap feed available looking to contract with a dairy to grow heifers for them, out location offers mild climate and we are just 558 miles from Montezuma Ga. Please contact 817-528-6645 very reasonable daily rates.
For Sale- DeLaval 84 Vacuum Pump on Stand, Oil Reclaimer, 10 HP- 3 Phase Electric Motor. New Bearings, New Oil Seal, New Belts. $2000
For sale - Please contact Archie Felder for more information at 803-682-3426:
- Dairy Tech Bay Pasturizer - $4,000
- Tidenberg Hydraulic Hoof Table (like new) - $5,000
- Claas Silage Choppers - 960 1875 cutterhead hours, 4WD, 600 orbis, HD300 PU - $180,000
- Koomin John Deere Corn Header adapter for Claus Silage Chopper Used - $6,000
WANTED: Peter's Cattle Co. will buy any dairy, beef, and cross, bottle or weaned, bulls, heifers or free martins. Pick up weekly 7 days a week. Chris- 470-255-8515
Bull Calves WANTED: Competitive pricing with 6 day a week pickup. Brandon Mason Cattle Company 912-632-4490
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