Progressive Dairy provides monthly online updates of important dates and reports affecting risk management decisions.

The Appalachian Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) represents the northern tier of the Southeast, covering portions of Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia, all of North Carolina and South Carolina, and inching into Georgia, Indiana and West Virginia.

The USDA’s monthly World Ag Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report reflects the uncertainty of agricultural markets due to Russia’s military action in Ukraine. It also forecasts a year-over-year decline in U.S. milk production.

The jump to an eight-year high in milk prices outpaced increasing feed costs, meaning there will be no Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program indemnity payments at any level for January milk marketings.

There seems to be an uptick in complaining about Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMOs), with a fair amount of calling for “reform” of the FMMO system. I have read some of this commentary, as maybe you have, and would like to respond to it.

Agriculture is increasingly facing more environmental pressure from regulators, activist groups and private citizens. As an environmental consulting firm, Dragun Corporation has worked with agriculture for more than 30 years, helping address complex issues including nitrates in groundwater, PFAS contamination, groundwater supply and more.

With a USDA extension giving dairy producers several more weeks to enroll in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) and Supplemental DMC programs, many producers are being urged to reevaluate their initial decisions not to sign up for the federally subsidized safety net program in 2022.

The Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) advanced Class I base price hit another eight-year high in March, but the change in the Class I mover formula implemented in 2019 reduced what might have been an even higher price paid to producers.