Feb. 5 2024
After a dozen weeks of testimony and cross-examination spread over six months, the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) public hearing concluded on Tuesday, January 30
Dec. 20 2023
A recent analysis of some of the proposed changes to the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) system was conducted to quantitatively assess what these changes would mean to U.S. milk prices
Aug. 14 2023
We will witness a piece of history when the hearing to amend pricing in the 11 Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMO) begins this month
Aug. 10 2023
A baker’s dozen of counties produced one-fourth of the nation’s federal order milk that was marketed last year. Those are the same 13 counties that led this list in 2021 as well
Sept. 22 2022
Every dairy farmer knows that raising a calf to maturity takes great care, with an appreciation of the challenge and a goal of doing what’s best rather than what’s easy
July 4 2022
While not imminent, some dairy industry specialists have asked the question, “What would milk marketing look like without federal order pricing?”
June 16 2022
Secretary Vilsack wants consensus; the dairy industry will have a chance to create consensus.The American Farm Bureau Federation is planning a gathering for farmers and industry leaders to discuss changes...
June 13 2022
The amount of U.S. milk moving through the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) system fell to a six-year low in 2021 at 61%
March 31 2022
“We haven’t had many major changes to the federal orders since 2000,” shared Jim Mulhern with those attending the 24th annual meeting of Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) on March 23
May 13 2021
Since the genesis of Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) pricing, the balance between pricing in the various milk classes has caused discussion and at times even distress among dairy farmers
May 10 2021
Depooling…the dirty word blamed for last year’s painful negative Producer Price Differentials (PPDs) and wild price swings. Many ideas may exist for reform, but which might actually work?
May 10 2021
In the 19 years prior to 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, the monthly difference between Class III and Class IV prices had exceeded $5 per hundredweight (cwt.) on only six occasions
May 6 2021
As we have seen before, the intricacies of the Federal Milk Marketing Order system mean that any changes to the orders will result in multifaceted consequences
May 6 2021
Throughout the decades of milk pricing by Federal Milk Marketing Orders, dairy farmers, processors, and even consumers have questioned the importance of the orders
April 15 2021
If a proposed amendment to the federal milk marketing system advances to a final decision by USDA, the revised order is then voted on by the dairy farmers who would be affected by the change
April 12 2021
The discussion on the purpose and framework of FMMOs is at the heart of the issue with negative PPDs
March 8 2021
“If you look at the federal order pools back in the 1950s, it was about two-thirds to fluid milk and the other one-third being manufacturing,” University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Mark Stephenson...
Nov. 25 2020
The fundamental question bouncing around the minds of many dairy operators throughout 2020 is probably the one posed in the title of this article
Nov. 23 2020
If you asked a group of dairy farmers from across the country to define the function of the Federal Milk Marketing Orders, you might get a wide range of answers
Nov. 23 2020
Determining the value of milk, which is known as price discovery, is one of the intrinsic capabilities of the federal order system