As printed in our May 25, 2018 issue . . .
ON JUNE 1, THE SIGN-UP PERIOD WILL CLOSE for the new Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy). Due to February legislation, this year’s coverage will be retroactive to January 1, 2018. To enroll, set up a meeting at a local Farm Service Agency (FSA) office.
TWO TIERS OF MPP-DAIRY PREMIUMS EXIST. A $5 coverage option on up to 5 million pounds of annual milk production is available for the $100 sign-up fee. Additional protection may be purchased in 50-cent increments up to an $8 margin at a total cost of 14.2 cents per cwt.
BUY UP COVERAGE IS AVAILABLE on as little as 25 percent of production history, up to a maximum of 90 percent. It can be purchased in 5 percent increments. Higher premium costs exist after 5 million pounds.
MARGINS FOR FEBRUARY AND MARCH MILK fell to $6.88 and $6.76, respectively, for MPP-Dairy. Calculations indicate that payouts for those months will more than cover the premiums for the entire year on the first 5 million pounds of annual milk production.
MORE INSURANCE OPTIONS will be available in the coming months as USDA approved the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Dairy Revenue Protection (Dairy-RP) insurance product for revenue protection.
DAIRY-RP WILL BE AVAILABLE late this summer. It will provide two insurance options: milk futures prices or milk component values. It will function similar to crop revenue protection insurance policies.
CLASS III MILK FUTURES CLIMBED 80 CENTS from early April to mid-May trading. June to December contracts averaged $16.40 on the CME with September and October being the top months near $16.70.
U.S. DAIRY EXPORTS NETTED $473 MILLION in March, the highest monthly value since April 2015. On a value basis, those sales also set a March record. Overall, exports were 17 percent of U.S. milk production.
ARLA FOODS SHED 11 PATRONS in northeast Wisconsin. It will continue to procure milk from 24 farms. In the past year, Grasslands quit buying milk from 75 farms, while Dean Foods dropped 100 operations.
IN RESPONSE TO LOST MILK MARKETS, a group of dairy farmers formed the Appalachian Dairy Farmers Cooperative (ADFC) and will partner with Piedmont Milk Sales LLC to market their milk.
HEIFER PRICES FELL TO A SEVEN-YEAR LOW at $1,360 per head. That price was off $160 in the past 90 days, down $280 since last April. Springing heifer values peaked at $2,120 per head in October 2014.
A FEDERAL MILK MARKETING ORDER will be coming to California, based on projections from reliable sources. Indications suggest that the three major co-ops voted for it on behalf of their members
In your next issue!
A SCARY NEW STRAIN OF SALMONELLA.
Calves infected with Salmonella Heidelberg can be healthy one feeding and dead by the next.
LEAVE ASH IN THE FIELD.
The hay rake you use — and how you use it — impacts the ash content in alfalfa.
ROBOTS CHANGE FEEDING STRATEGIES.
Herds milked with automated milking systems pose the opportunity for a variety of feeding styles.
