“Congress made important improvements to the dairy safety net earlier this year, but as we have said repeatedly, there is more that must be done in the upcoming Farm Bill. That need is particularly urgent given the ongoing economic distress facing America’s dairy farmers.
“As the House developed its Farm Bill, we have worked closely with the leaders of the Agriculture Committee, including Chairman Mike Conaway, Ranking Member Collin Peterson, Vice Chairman Glenn Thompson and others to make further improvements to the Margin Protection Program and enhance farmers’ ability to use the Livestock Gross Margin program and other risk management tools.
“The bill introduced today includes several changes we have advocated for, particularly in improving coverage levels and providing greater coverage flexibility for dairy producers. It also includes important language on price risk management, which NMPF has worked on closely alongside the International Dairy Foods Association. As the Farm Bill moves forward, we will continue to work with our allies in Congress on a bipartisan, bicameral basis to further strengthen the dairy safety net for producers of all sizes.”
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.
