Thank you for the assistance you’ve provided to the nation’s dairy farmers by providing funds for the purchase and donation of milk and dairy products to food banks and other relief organizations. The economic health of so many of our rural communities relies on a sound farming sector. The CARES Act hasn’t made anybody whole but it has helped many farm families avoid catastrophe.
The nation’s dairy farmers are reeling from the drop in milk prices due to shifts in demand for milk and dairy foods related to the nation’s efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
Western States Dairy Producers Association, Inc. (WSDPA) writes today in strong support of the United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) and urges its thoughtful consideration and prompt approval and to urge the resolution of the current trade impasse with China.
As you are aware, 2017 and 2018 were challenging years for dairy farmers across the United States. Congress recognized that existing federal safety net programs did little to mitigate the economic harm and responded by including DMC as part of the 2018 Farm Bill. It is imperative that USDA implement DMC as quickly as possible to provide much needed assistance.
We greatly appreciate the recognition by USDA that the trade was the US is engaged in is having very real and negative consequences for the dairy industry and dairy farmers.
The farm economy is in need of attention. We are in the fourth year of a greater than 50% decline in farm incomes. This tears at the fabric of rural America and the infrastructure that is critical for meeting the needs of a growing world population.
Western States Dairy Producers Association supports immigration reform that solves the two most pressing labor issues that dairy farmers face – adjusting the status of current workers on dairy farms and creating a flexible agricultural visa program for future labor needs. We feel strongly that for any immigration legislation to succeed, it must include provisions for both of these classes of workers.
The Western States Dairy Producers Association (Western States) strongly supports your proposal to repeal the 2015 Waters of the
U.S. rule (WOTUS).
Western States was established to represent the views of dairy farmer trade associations based in the western United States
The U.S. exports approximately 15% of farm milk production. The equivalent of about one day’s milk production a week is marketed offshore.
U.S. dairy exports grew from less than a billion dollars in value a year to over $5 billion a year in just the last two decades. Due mainly to lower U.S. farm milk prices, U.S. dairy export sales totaled $4.7 billion in 2016.