Dairy cull cows marketed through U.S. slaughter plants in January lowest since 2010.

Fourteen states including Texas, Idaho, New York and South Dakota boosted milk production a combined 306 million pounds in January.

As supplemental fat costs remain high and at times product consistency comes into question, dairies and their nutritionists' interest in high-oleic soybeans has been soaring.

The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its Agricultural Prices report Jan. 31, 2025, which includes feed costs used to calculate the December 2024 Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program margins and indemnity payments. December’s margin came in at $13.38 per hundredweight (cwt), concluding a year of mostly confident margins for dairy producers.

Ten states including California, Arizona, New Mexico and Oregon reduced milk production a combined 317 million pounds in December.

The new year is taking shape with risk management policies offering enrollment for 2025 as the 2018 Farm Bill was granted a one-year extension, as well as the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) referendum passing with the new rule to take effect June 1.