Editor's note: Market commentary from Mark Stephenson, director of dairy policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and Bob Cropp, dairy economics professor emeritus, has been added. May 2018 U.S. milk production posted another small year-over-year increase, but cow numbers reversed course, moving higher again, according to the USDA’s monthly Milk Production report, released June 19. At 19.1 billion pounds, May U.S. milk production was up just 0.8 percent from a year earlier. USDA also revised April 2018 production downward slightly. The April revision represented a decrease of 18 million pounds, or 0.1 percent from last month's preliminary production estimate.

RaboResearch, a division of Rabobank, recently released an extensive report, “Dare Not to Dairy: What the Rise of Dairy-Free Means for Dairy … and How the Industry Can Respond.” Progressive Dairyman Editor Dave Natzke reached out to RaboResearch and the report’s lead author, senior analyst for dairy Tom Bailey, to dive deeper into the research and its implications.

Digest Highlights • April fluid milk sales stable • National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board appointees named • Video: 650 million reasons for U.S. dairy's long-term investment in Southeast Asia • China retaliation to hit dairy • Zoetis, Holstein Association USA partner to publish Dairy Wellness Profit Index high-ranking female lists • New blood test reveals mastitis susceptibility

Daryl and Brenda Sternweis of D&B Sternweis Farms in Marshfield, Wisconsin, are co-hosting Wisconsin Farm Technology Days with their neighbors and long-time friends, the Heiman family.

A Virginia cooperative is showing their love for dairy farmers during June Dairy Month by continuing their Cheese Ministry.

When it comes to robotic milking systems, the more complex your barn design, the more complex the accompanying manure system can be. You have to consider how your manure system fits with cow flow, robot placement, resting spaces, feedbunks and more.

In the midst of increasingly heated discussions about trade, some Wisconsin farmers and others are questioning the U.S. approach. “Our current approach to trade is not serving farmers well,” says Darin Von Ruden, president of Wisconsin Farmers Union. “With over 20 percent of U.S. agricultural output headed for international markets, farmers have become vulnerable to factors over which they have no control, such as exchange rates or trade wars with other countries.”

The U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee approved its 2018 Farm Bill proposal, so far a less contentious version than the House proposal defeated on the House floor in May. For the most part, dairy provisions of the Senate version of the 2018 Farm Bill are similar to those contained in the House version, but there are differences. Those include the premium structure and the flexibility (or lack of flexibility) to make changes in annual coverage selections under a revised and renamed Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy).

Digest Highlights: U.S. ag secretary grants another extension for MPP-Dairy enrollment, and he’s headed to Canada to discuss ag issues Mexico’s tariffs could have bigger impact this time Dairy replacement exports feel the heat Wisconsin producers eligible for USDA loans to cover snowstorm losses

The USDA’s June World Ag Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report reduced 2018 and 2019 milk production projections and brightened the outlook for prices somewhat. Nonetheless, average prices for both years are expected to be below averages received by dairy farmers in 2017.