Please support fair prices for dairy farmers in the Farm Bill!

email advocacy

Dear [Your Elected Official],

I urge you to take action in the Farm Bill to implement fair prices for family-scale dairy farmers to address the ongoing U.S. dairy crisis. 
 For years, the prices paid to U.S. dairy farmers are regularly below their costs of production. Volatile, low prices mean that family dairy farmers cannot pay their bills, contribute to their local economies, invest in sustainable practices, pay workers a fair wage, or transition their farms to the next generation. Federal dairy insurance and other payments have made little difference for most farmers, instead amounting to taxpayer subsidies for the large dairy processors who benefit from low milk prices.
 Aided by federal policy decisions, milk production has moved to industrial-scale operations, whose large-scale production contributes to driving prices down. Industrial operations have lower production costs, but include enormously expensive externalities in the form of widespread water pollution, depressed rural communities, lower property values, worker rights abuses, and more. Overproduction and low prices have also led to an over-reliance on export markets to dispose of excess milk volume. Existing dairy policies acknowledge these problems, but have not fundamentally addressed them.
 Dairy farmers cannot afford to wait for reform. Each year, the US loses an average of 7% of its dairy farms - the 2022 USDA Census shows that there are only 24,000 active dairy farms left. The U.S. dairy sector needs immediate systemic reform to support fair prices for family-scale producers, address corporate consolidation, and reduce dependence on export markets.
 Please consider introducing the National Family Farm Coalition’s Milk from Family Dairies Act (https://nffc.net/what-we-do/dairy/) which will ensure dairy farmers a fair price for their product while protecting costs for consumers and revitalizing rural areas.
 Core components of the Milk from Family Dairies Act include:
<ul>
<li>Price floors, based on scale of operation, that allow family-scale dairy farmers to cover their costs of operation;</li>
<li>Production management mechanisms to re-balance U.S. dairy supply with demand, focused on scaling down the industrial-scale mega-dairies that contribute most to overproduction;</li>
<li>Managed imports and exports to prevent undercutting farmer incomes and workers' rights in the U.S. and limit dependence on foreign markets;</li>
<li>Measures to restore competition to the sector;</li>
<li>Investment and incentives to rebuild regional dairy infrastructure.</li>
</ul>
It is time for a change in the dairy industry. Please support farmer- and worker-centered systemic reform of U.S dairy policy in the Farm Bill by introducing the Milk from Family Dairies Act.

Thank you,

[Your Name]

[Your City & State]

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Summary

For years, average milk prices for farmers have been well below what it costs for them to run their dairies, making it difficult for small and mid-sized dairy farmers to make ends meet. Current pricing policies incentivize increasing production to make up for low milk prices. To survive in dairy, farmers either have to pay to scale up their farms, or get out of the business. Dairy farms are going out of business by the thousands every year. Between the 1970's to 2021, the US lost 90% of dairy farms - there are now less than 30,000 dairy farms left in the US.  It doesn't have to be this way. Federal policy is the key to addressing the dairy crisis and low milk prices. A supply management program would control how much milk is produced nationwide, stabilize prices for farmers, and ensure that consumer demand is met despite seasonal fluctuation. To achieve these goals, NFFC is proposing the Milk from Family Dairies Act that will would ensure dairy farmers a fair price for their product while protecting costs for consumers and revitalizing rural areas.  Learn more about the Act here: https://nffc.net/what-we-do/dairy/ and ask your legislators to support dairy farmers by introducing the Milk from Family Dairies Act in the Farm Bill!

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