National Milk Producers Federation chairman: House dairy provision puts taxpayers on the hook
November 13, 2013 | 06:23 PM
The dairy amendment sponsored by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., that the House adopted would keep high levels of milk production and put the taxpayers on the hook for making payments to farmers, National Milk Producers Federation Chairman Randy Mooney said today in a speech at a National Milk meeting in Phoenix, Ariz.
Noting that under previous high support levels, the Agriculture Department had spent billions of dollars a year buying surplus milk, Mooney said, “And even as I speak today we are in the dangerous position of repeating history because certain people in Congress are forgetting the lessons of the past.”
“The House has adopted a farm bill that creates margin insurance, without the means to signal producers to trim production when margins are poor,” he said. “The insurance payouts will insulate farmers from those market signals. That means the milk will keep coming and coming. It’ll be cheap milk for processors, with taxpayers on the hook to keep the insurance money flowing.
“And mark my words: if this approach were adopted, it would be the first, and last time, that a farm bill features this type of program. It’s not built on sound financial footing.”
Mooney, who is also the chairman of Dairy Farmers of America, a major cooperative, continued, “In addition, it is high time we all face the facts: the days of asking Congress to provide financial support without taking some responsibility ourselves — those days are over. We are trying to lead by example. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for a hand. And we are willing to do our part to make sure taxpayers aren’t on the hook for an open-ended, costly new program. That’s why we are fighting hard to enact the Dairy Security Act.”
The International Dairy Foods Association, which represents dairy processors, has opposed the provision that dairy farmers call market stabilization and the processors call supply management on the grounds that it would constrain supplies and make growth through exports more difficult.
Noting that under previous high support levels, the Agriculture Department had spent billions of dollars a year buying surplus milk, Mooney said, “And even as I speak today we are in the dangerous position of repeating history because certain people in Congress are forgetting the lessons of the past.”
“The House has adopted a farm bill that creates margin insurance, without the means to signal producers to trim production when margins are poor,” he said. “The insurance payouts will insulate farmers from those market signals. That means the milk will keep coming and coming. It’ll be cheap milk for processors, with taxpayers on the hook to keep the insurance money flowing.
“And mark my words: if this approach were adopted, it would be the first, and last time, that a farm bill features this type of program. It’s not built on sound financial footing.”
Mooney, who is also the chairman of Dairy Farmers of America, a major cooperative, continued, “In addition, it is high time we all face the facts: the days of asking Congress to provide financial support without taking some responsibility ourselves — those days are over. We are trying to lead by example. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for a hand. And we are willing to do our part to make sure taxpayers aren’t on the hook for an open-ended, costly new program. That’s why we are fighting hard to enact the Dairy Security Act.”
The International Dairy Foods Association, which represents dairy processors, has opposed the provision that dairy farmers call market stabilization and the processors call supply management on the grounds that it would constrain supplies and make growth through exports more difficult.
