(March 30, 2012)  The March Federal order benchmark milk price dropped another 34 cents, to $15.72 per hundredweight, the fourth month in a row of decline, $3.68below March 2011, and equates to about $1.35 per gallon. That brought the 2012 average to $16.28, down from $16.63 at this time a year ago, and compares to $13.85 in 2010 and $10.18 in 2009.

Looking ahead, Class III futures settled Thursday as follows; April, $15.62; May, $15.29; June, $15.52; with a peak of $16.73 in September.

The March Class IV price is $15.35, down 57 cents from February and $4.06 below a year ago. California’s comparable prices are scheduled to be announced April 2.

The four-week, NASS-surveyed cheese price averaged $1.5248 per pound, down 1.6 cents from February. Butter averaged $1.4347, down 3.7 cents. Nonfat dry milk averaged $1.3310, down 4.8 cents, and dry whey averaged 61.07 cents, down 2.9 cents.

Courtesy the Mielke market Weekly

(March 30, 2012) Butter prices received for 25 kilogram and 68 pound boxes meeting United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Grade AA standards averaged $1.45 per

pound for the week ending March 24, 2012. The United States (US) price per pound increased 0.9 cent from the previous week.

Cheddar Cheese prices received for US 40 pound blocks averaged $1.51 per pound for the week ending March 24, 2012. The price per pound increased 1.8 cents from the previous week. The price for US 500 pound barrels adjusted to 38 percent moisture averaged $1.55 per pound, up 4.9 cents from the previous week.

Dry Whey prices received for bag, tote, and tanker sales meeting USDA Extra Grade standards averaged 61.1 cents per pound for the week ending March 24, 2012. The US price per pound increased 0.5 cent from the previous week.

Nonfat Dry Milk prices received for bag, tote, and tanker sales meeting USDA Extra Grade or United States Public Health Service (USPHS) Grade A standards averaged $1.30 per pound for the week ending March 24, 2012. The US price per pound decreased 2.2 cents from the previous week.

(March 30, 2012) For those of us involved in the dairy industry for a number of years, we know that what’s old can become “news” again. Dairy Profit Weekly editor Dave Natzke updated DairyLine listeners on a couple of long-standing issues that have resurfaced recently.

“While I was in Kansas City last week for the Dairy Farmers of America annual meeting, Tom Gallagher, head of Dairy Management Inc., the nation’s dairy promotion organization, addressed a worrisome, long-term trend for dairy farmers – that of declining U.S. fluid milk sales.

Gallagher called the trend dismal, noting that fluid milk sales for the previous year were down 3.9%, and that both per capita and fluid milk total volume sales were down. Part of the problem, he said, is that the direct relationship between retail milk prices and consumer sales has been proven over four decades, and that retail fluid milk prices are up 11% compared to a year ago.

Also hampering sales, Gallagher said, is that fluid milk in gallon jugs has been treated as a “commodity” by producers, processors and consumers alike, with little product and marketing innovation. To stop and reverse the trend, Gallagher outlined a number of efforts to increases fluid milk sales.

Turning our attention to food labels, the U.S. Trade Representative office is appealing a 2011 World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling over U.S. implementation of a mandatory U.S. country-of-origin labeling (COOL) requirement. The rule, first approved in 2002 and initiated in 2009, required country-of-origin labels on most meats and fresh produce sold in the U.S., and legislative proposals have sought to include dairy products under the rule. However, WTO sided with Mexico and Canada last year, challenging the rule’s validity under global trade agreements. A WTO decision on the appeal is expected to take months.

In the past couple of weeks I’ve talked to a number of farmers in the southern part of the Corn Belt already starting fieldwork for the 2012 growing season. Two big government reports, to be released later (today/Friday), will give us an idea on how the year’s feed prospects and prices are shaping up for dairy farmers. You can find summaries of these reports in this week’s DairyProfit Weekly.”

Ray Nebel, Senior Reproductive Management Specialist at Select Sires, has a “top ten” list for semen handling in this edition of A Reproductive Moment. 

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(March 29,2012) The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) will now manage the licensing and use of the REAL® Seal , one of the most iconic and recognizable product integrity logos used in the food industry, NMPF announced today. Listen to Chris Galen’s comments here from Thursday’s DairyLine:

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Effective March 15, 2012, the management of the REAL® Seal program was transferred from the United Dairy Industry Association to NMPF. This change was the result of an agreement between the two organizations that the transfer was the best opportunity to place a renewed emphasis on highlighting the importance and value of American-made dairy foods.

“The REAL® Seal was created more than 30 years ago to help consumers distinguish between real and artificial cheeses, as the pizza category was really taking off,” said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF. “Today, a generation later, we still see a need to differentiate American-made dairy products from imports, and real dairy foods from those made with soy or rice or even hemp. Our management of this labeling program will benefit consumers, as well as the farmers who have a direct stake in how their milk is marketed.”

One of NMPF’s primary missions “is protecting the integrity and overall value of U.S. dairy products. NMPF has expertise in food labeling requirements and the regulatory process affecting dairy product standards,” Kozak noted. “With NMPF’s link to dairy producers and its dedication to protecting dairy product integrity, NMPF will be able to provide valuable insight that will allow for growth of the program,” he said.

While the program will not undergo any immediate changes, Kozak said the process has begun to determine how to make the REAL® Seal an even more effective marketing tool for dairy product manufacturers, dairy product processors, food processors and food service providers.

“Consumers continue to express an interest in food quality and integrity, through the choices they make at grocery stores and restaurants,” Kozak said. “Labeling is an integral part of creating and maintaining a dialogue with them.”

As a result of this change in management, “the program will now strive to educate new generations of dairy consumers about the significance of the REAL® Seal, revitalizing the brand and talking to them about the good taste, nutritional value, and wholesomeness associated with dairy foods and dairy food ingredients made from milk produced in the United States,” he said

Extension Dairy Specialist at the University of Illinois, Dr. Mike Hutjens held a workshop on Feeding Strategies at the PDPW 20th conference. 

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Dr. Larry Hawkins with Bayer Animal Health explains how to help with respiratory problems in heifer calves.

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Bayer Animal Health 3/19/2012

Dr. Larry Hawkins with Bayer Animal Health explains how to help with respiratory problems in heifer calves.

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For the lastest updates from Washington, tune in every Thursday for the National Milk Report with Chris Galen, NMPF Sr. Vice President of Communications

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(March 22, 2012) This week’s Reproductive Moment, Dr. Ray Nebel of Select Sires examines pieces in the conception rate puzzle.

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