Industry News

We’ve either seen it with our own eyes or caught the images flooding social media: The cattle markets collapsing and barren grocery store meat cases without a package of ground beef in sight.

Digest Highlights

• USDA adding $120 million to ‘Section 32’ dairy purchases
• Class III and IV futures prices improve
• Global Dairy Trade index lower
• Pennsylvania dairy campaign urges consumers to buy local
• USDA offers new, 30-year regional CRP pilot program
• Progressive Dairy COVID-19 resources

There’s no disputing the dairy farmer income destruction as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is, however, some good news emerging for producers and the dairy supply chain, according to presenters on a Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin The Dairy Signal podcast, May 5.

U.S. milk quality – measured in terms of somatic cell counts (SCC) – improved again in 2019, according to the annual summary of Dairy Herd Improvement (DHI) test-day results.

Editor's note: This article has been updated from the original to include additional comments.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) concluded its investigation into proposed acquisitions of bankrupt Dean Foods’ facilities by Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) and Prairie Farms Dairy, ordering three of 44 plants purchased by DFA must be divested to satisfy antitrust obligations.

Digest Highlights

• Quarterly dairy replacement cow prices slide a little
• USDA buying dairy products
• USDA funding Dairy Business Innovation initiatives
• Progressive Dairy COVID-19 resources