Times are tough for many U.S. dairy farmers. USDEC’s ambitious plan to increase exports provides farmers a dose of realistic optimism for the future.
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Milk prices are so suppressed some U.S. dairy farmers are tightening their belts until no notches remain.
“I tell my city friends, ‘You don’t know what we are going through,’” says Randy Roecker, a dairy farmer in Loganville, Wisconsin. “It’s tough. We’re trying to cut costs here, cut there, but there’s only so much we can cut.”
To see higher prices, dairy farmers like Roecker want more demand generated for the abundant milk their cows supply.
U.S. dairy exports have increased 604 percent since 1995 but the U.S. Dairy Export Council believes we are just getting started. That’s why we have set new, quantifiable goals for an industry-wide initiative we are calling “The Next 5%.”
If this initiative succeeds, farmers, processors and the entire dairy industry will prosper. A rising tide of exports will lift all boats.
We are mindful that the dairy checkoff program makes this global initiative possible.
“USDEC staff is grateful for the generous funding we receive from U.S. dairy farmers through Dairy Management Inc. and the state and regional checkoff organizations,” says USDEC President and CEO Tom Vilsack. “We are confident that working together we can reach The Next 5%.”
Because our farmer-funders are asking so many good questions, we decided to bundle answers in a printable three-page report (PDF) with charts and graphs that illustrate the challenges and opportunities.
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