Schumer: farmers can sign up for dairy risk-management program

The dairy risk-management program, which is part of the Agricultural Act of 2014, is open for sign-ups.

That’s according to U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.), who made the announcement in a news release today.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 is more commonly known as the Farm Bill. The dairy risk-management program is also known as the dairy margin-protection program, Schumer’s office said.

Schumer urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to implement the program, which replaces and “improves” the USDA’s previous milk-income loss contract (MILC) program, his office said in the release.

The new program allows dairy farmers to recoup some of the cost of low milk prices and high costs of production.

Milk prices described as “volatile,” combined with the high costs of feed for cows, “negatively impacted” many Upstate New York dairy farmers in recent years, the senator said.

The MILC program did not “adequately” assist farmers when the cost of milk plummeted and the old program did not “sufficiently” compensate farmers for the high cost of feed, Schumer contended.

The new program, however, will “more accurately” factor in the price of feed and its impact on farmers’ profit margins.

Upstate farmers can sign up to protect themselves from sudden market changes in milk prices and feed costs, his office said.

 “This new risk management program is one of the main reasons I pushed my colleagues in Congress to pass the Farm Bill, and I urge dairy farmers across the state to sign up,” Schumer said in the news release.

The margin-protection program, which replaces the milk-income loss contract program, provides participating dairy producers the flexibility to select coverage levels “best suited” for their operation, according to Schumer’s office.

Enrollment started Tuesday and continues through Nov. 28 for 2014 and 2015. Producers have the option of selecting a different coverage level during open enrollment each year, Schumer’s office said.

New York’s dairy industry generates more than $2.5 billion in revenue annually, the senator said.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

PHOTO COURTESY: www.dec.ny.gov