Coalition of Farmers Take Part in Dairy Together Fly-In to Washington D.C.

Thursday, July 28th, 2022 -- 8:07 AM

(Wisconsin Ag Connection) A coalition of farmers from across the country were in the nation's capital this month advocating for dairy policy.

According to the Wisconsin Ag Connection, during the Dairy Together Fly-In to Washington, D.C., producers representing key dairy states and farm groups expressed their support for the Dairy Revitalization Plan, which calls for coordinated milk production growth among all dairy producers to stabilize and improve prices.

Supporters say unlike quota, which is often viewed as overly restrictive, growth management offers a series of incentives to intentionally align milk production growth with demand.

The farmer-led plan was developed through a committee process involving members of the Wisconsin Farmers Union and Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, convened by the University of Wisconsin Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems.

Its impacts were analyzed in a 2021 study, 'Analyses of Proposed Alternative Growth Management Programs for the US Dairy Industry,' by University of Wisconsin agricultural economists Charles Nicholson and Mark Stephenson.

The group cites research showing that had growth management been implemented in the 2014 Farm Bill, it would have increased the market milk price by an average of $1.41 per hundredweight between 2014 and 2021; plus paid dividends of $0.72/cwt for farmers choosing not to expand over program allowable amounts.

The plan also reduced the degree of variation in prices by 50 percent. Wisconsin participants during the fly-in included Paul Adams, Eleva; Patty Edelburg, Scandinavia; Danielle Endvick, Holcombe; Jack Herricks, Cashton; Tina and Duane Hinchley, Cambridge; Sarah Lloyd, Wisconsin Dells; Michelle Ramirez-White, Madison; Karyn Schauf, Barron; and Darin Von Ruden, Westby.

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