To the Editor:
(May 2013) Pro-Ag is cooperating with the National Family Farm Coalition in submitting a letter to all members of the U.S. Senate and House Ag Committees urging the committees not to report out a farm bill until a sincere, realistic pricing formula is developed to determine the value of raw milk down on the farm.
Pro-Ag and more than 30 other organizations that comprise the Coalition are one more time denouncing any margin insurance program for dairy farmers, whether it is developed by the National Milk Producers Federation or by Congressman Goodlatte and Congressman David Scott.
No matter how good the intentions are of the two Congressmen, their bill would not raise the prices to dairy farmers. Actually, I’m very concerned about the information issued by the two, as they appear to be more concerned about the cost to milk processors than they are regarding the financial plight of the majority of dairy farmers.
I just can’t understand why so many organizations are so enthusiastic about federally funded margin insurance programs for dairy farmers, when it’s very obvious that the majority of dairy farmers don’t want the insurance programs.
It’s also obvious that the majority of dairy farmers want a cost-of-production pricing formula.
One of the things I like about Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s proposal is that she wants to mandate that the USDA conduct federal milk marketing hearings to determine a new method of determining the value of raw milk out on the farm.
Arden Tewksbury, Manager, Progressive Agriculture Organization, Meshoppen, Pa