Lawmakers
in Washington are hearing from representatives of the dairy
industry about what they hope will be in the next federal Farm Bill, which is
likely to be debated this summer. More than two dozen dairy organizations are
pushing for the inclusion of a supply management policy called the Dairy
Security Act.
The Vermont Senate’s Agriculture Committee
has set a hearing for this week on what may be tough times coming for dairy
farmers on the prices they get for their milk.
Vermont dairy farmers benefited from rising milk prices last
year, but there was continued fallout from the record low prices of 2009. Farmers are hoping the coming year won’t see a return
to the recent boom and bust cycle in milk prices.
A Vermont judge has granted final approval to a settlement that
would require dairy processor Dean Foods Co. to pay more than 9,000 Northeast
farmers and their attorneys $30 million to settle antitrust allegations.
Vermont dairy farmers are
using fans, sprinkler systems that spray mist and good old-fashioned shade to
keep their cows from overheating. The Agency of Agriculture says that
when cows get too hot, they don’t eat as much, and then they don’t produce as much milk.
The wet, cold spring has left many farmers playing catch up when it comes to planting spring crops. For the state’s dairy farmers, that means they’re waiting to plant corn to feed their cows.
The
Vermont attorney general’s office is evaluating the fairness
of a proposed anti-trust settlement between Northeast dairy farmers and the
nation’s largest milk producer. Lawyers
for the state have asked the federal court to open up records in the case so
lawmakers and the public can learn more about the complex litigation.
Attorneys representing some Northeast dairy
farmers in an antitrust lawsuit against a dairy cooperative and its marketing
affiliate say the cooperative is misleading dairy farmers about the merits of
the case.
Vermont dairy farmers may have gotten an early holiday gift
this week. A
tentative settlement has been reached in an anti-trust lawsuit between farmers
across the Northeast and the dairy-processing company that controls most of the
region’s milk.