Editor’s note: With lots of news affecting dairy farmers this week, Progressive Dairyman provides a second installment of Weekly Digest. 2018 MPP-Dairy premium balance deadline extended Livestock haulers could receive another ELD extension Senate rejects effort to block FDA food label standard enforcement July Class III, IV prices fall California 4a, 4b prices decline

As you’re working to improve cow comfort on your dairy, keep in mind what’s comfortable for you is not always comfortable for your cows. Dairy cows experience mild levels of heat stress when the temperature index is as low as 72ºF (see Table 1).

Adverse milk income margins continue to apply downward pressure on prices paid for dairy replacement cows.

Almost every dairy producer has questioned whether it makes sense to hire a custom harvester or complete harvest themselves. Some have done in-depth analyses of the two strategies by considering different financial variables, such as cost of ownership, labor, depreciation, interest, repairs and how their balance sheet would be affected. However, all of that is often thrown out the window in favor of one very tangible and a few intangible considerations.

June 2018’s Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy) margin calculations ended a four-month string below $7 per hundredweight (cwt), but dairy producers who purchased coverage at the $7.50 and $8 per cwt margin levels will receive indemnity payments for a fifth consecutive month.

Digest Highlights 2018 Farm Bill: See you in September NMPF tells FDA to enforce dairy standards of identity House recesses with no vote on AG & Legal Workforce Act Pennsylvania producer survey reveals expansion is a low priority Dairy farm, wholesale and retail price forecast DFA invests in MOPRO Greek yogurt Land O'Lakes Inc. names Ford president and CEO PMMB to consider co-op milk procurement costs MMPA donating 150 gallons of milk per day in 2018

No doubt that you’ve read numerous articles on footbath management, but few tell you the common mistakes that impact the success of your footbath program.

Dairy farmers thinking about investing in automated milking technology can position themselves for the best chances of loan approval by understanding what it is their lenders need from them.

The list of the 2018 Rabobank “Global Dairy Top 20” companies didn’t change much from a year ago, despite some major mergers and acquisitions. With about $24 billion in 2017 sales, Nestlé remained the largest dairy company in the world.

For larger dairy producers who didn’t enroll in the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy), the Livestock Gross Margin-Dairy (LGM-Dairy) program may be worth looking into as a risk management option for the latter half of 2018, according to Alan Zepp, risk management program manager at Pennsylvania's Center for Dairy Excellence (CDE).