January 2023 average “mailbox” prices averaged about 82 cents per hundredweight (cwt) less than announced average “all-milk” prices for the same month.

NMPF will pursue two other components of its FMMO proposal outside of the federal order hearing process.

The March 2023 announced U.S. average milk price fell 50 cents from February to $21.10 per cwt, the lowest since November 2021.

Monthly dairy cull cow marketing hit a 36-year high in March, topping 300,000 head for just the third month since the whole-herd buyout program.

Class IV milk represented about 17% of the total milk pooled in all FMMOs in March, the highest volume and percentage since last May.

Compared to last month, the USDA raised the U.S. milk production estimate for 2023 slightly, but also raised Class III and all-milk price forecasts.

Factoring into dairy feed costs, 2023 dry hay acreage is expected to rebound slightly from last year’s 115-year low.

The National Milk Producers Federation is expected to submit its own FMMO hearing request to the USDA later in April.

The February 2023 indemnity payments continue what looks to be a lengthy trend, with monthly margins projected to be below $9 for all months until October.

Central to IDFA and WCMA petitions are make allowances, incorporated into FMMO milk pricing formulas two decades ago.