Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) has always had the responsibility of bringing the long-term needs of the consumer into a near-term focus to benefit U.S. dairy. We have a 25-year history of doing this:

We began 2020 with a clear plan to talk about dairy’s role in nourishing families here and around the world, and how dairy farmers and the broader industry accomplish this while being true leaders of environmental stewardship.

Unity – it may be the most important concept for dairy farmers today. I’ve seen farmers come together for each other in times of crisis, usually because of weather, fire or personal catastrophes, and it’s always inspiring.

It goes without saying how much your national and local checkoff staffs care about dairy farmers. We understand how difficult this year has been for you, and there is nothing harder than watching families we know exit the industry.

For farmers and other members of the dairy community, the current environment is challenging. From unpredictability facing our global markets and competition from non-dairy beverages to seasonal weather conditions and surplus dairy products and ingredients, there’s a lot of uncertainty facing U.S. dairy.

When your dairy checkoff changed its basic strategy from simply doing generic advertising and promotions to working with partners that handle your milk, very few people probably realized what a huge impact on sales it would mean.

A recent Progressive Dairyman article on fluid milk sales contains several important points that all dairymen should understand. Click here to read Kaczor's article "Fluid milk sales head for 25-year low: Is anyone watching?" in the October 12th issue of Progressive Dairyman. I’d like to add several thoughts to the conversation. Milk sales analysis usually includes a statement to the effect that other beverages have “stolen our share” of stomach. The reality is, no one stole our share of stomach – we, as an industry, gave it away. Experience shows, again and again, if we give consumers what they want, where and how they want it, milk sales will increase.