Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) has accepted 13 requests for export assistance from Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative Association, Inc., Michigan Milk Producers Association and Northwest Dairy Association (Darigold). These member cooperatives have contracts to sell 989,876 pounds (449 metric tons) of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses and 1.102 million pounds (500 metric tons) of butter to customers in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa. The product has been contracted for delivery in the period from January through April 2017.
So far this year, CWT has assisted member cooperatives who have contracts to sell 4.421 million pounds of American-type cheeses, and 1.323 million pounds of butter (82% milkfat) to 10 countries on three continents. The sales are the equivalent of 70.572 million 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. This, in turn, positively affects all U.S. dairy farmers by strengthening and maintaining the value of dairy products that directly impact their milk price.
The amounts of dairy products and related milk volumes reflect current contracts for delivery, not completed export volumes. CWT will pay export assistance to the bidders only when export and delivery of the product is verified by the submission of the required documentation
The Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) Export Assistance program is funded by voluntary contributions from dairy cooperatives and individual dairy farmers. The money raised by their investment is being used to strengthen and stabilize the dairy farmers’ milk prices and margins. For more information about CWT, visit www.cwt.coop.
