USDA says:BEND OVER PLEASE

[FLIPPER]

I was raised on a dairy farm, and these types of actions have always struck a nerve with me

NMPF says USDA decision will reduce prices in 2003

The decision by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reduce the level of the dairy price support program will cost dairy farmers approximately $870 million in 2003, at a time when farm-level milk prices are already the lowest since the 1970s, according to the National Milk Producers Federation.
Last Friday, the USDA announced that it is reducing the purchase price level for nonfat dry milk, from 90 cents per pound to 80 cents. In so doing, USDA also raised the purchase price for butter, from 85 cents per pound to $1.05. But the net effect of this price support “tilt” will be a loss of 54 cents per hundredweight for U.S. dairy farmers.
“Dairy farmers are drowning in a sea of low prices, and instead of providing them a helping hand, the USDA has just tossed them an anvil,” said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF. “The USDA's own projections show that net cash income for dairy farmers in 2002 will be down 50% - and now, incredibly, they've decided to make the situation even worse.”


*LINK*

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-19-2003 07:14: Message edited by: FLIPPER ]</font>

 

[ELKCHSR]

This will only cause more dairy farmers to go under which will make less of them producing milk and dairy products will be going up substancially fairly soon...!!!

 

[Muledeer4me]

So Flipper what you are saying is that we need to keep on helpping the dairy farmer?
Is this connected in anyway to what some might call welfare ? Should we be helpping people in are own country to stay in business?
What do you say to the peta-suporters that tell us milk isnt good for us anyway so whats the big deal.
Im sure those dairy farmers can find other work, Hey maybe they can come up with some type of recreation based program that uses soy milk .
I think making those cows stand around waiting to be milked is nothing more then sexual abuse of cows being forced on them by walfare farmers and should be banned.
Im sorry that you were forced to watch such things as a kid but thats not my problem now ,Come to my house for your punishment

I even found a link to prove its true.
Biased you say ? Well, bend over boy more punishment for you. LOL


http://peta.org/mc/facts/fsveg8.html

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-19-2003 09:49: Message edited by: Muledeer4me ]</font>

 

[1_pointer]

Economic natural selection? Maybe by lowering the price they'll be able to lower the supply enough that the price will have to go back up. Then those that can whether the storm will have a more feasible venture? Yeah, it sucks and I'm trying to see any logic in this decision.

This is one of the reason that intensive research is going on how to reduce the costs of dairying by going back to pasture based systems in certain parts of the country.

 

[Muledeer4me]

I found this at cowsarecool.com.
"The leather industry uses massive amounts of energy. The Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology states, "On the basis of quantity of energy consumed per unit of product produced, the leather-manufacturing industry would be categorized with the aluminum, paper, steel, cement, and petroleum-manufacturing industries as a gross consumer of energy."

Additionally, to raise the animals whose skin eventually becomes leather, trees are cleared to create pastureland, vast quantities of water are used, and feedlot and dairy farm runoff create a major source of water pollution. Huge amounts of fossil fuels are consumed in livestock production. (By contrast, plastic wearables account for only a fraction of 1 percent of the petroleum used in the U.S.)"
And for the book lovers this would go great next to the one on (the real truth about grazing) LOL

http://petacatalog.com/peta/product.asp?dept%5Fid=8&pf%5Fid=bk209

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-19-2003 10:04: Message edited by: Muledeer4me ]</font>

 

[FLIPPER]

Well Deb....all I can say to that is...

So we switch to Soy milk, Soy meat....so what do we do with all the cows???

Who's going to fund the feeding of them...being as we don't need their product anymore???

So what are all these cows to do since they are out of a job??? Maybe this.....

 

[BigHornyRam]

Pointer,

My dad was a ag extension agent in Wisconsin before he retired. His focus was mostly on rotational grazing dairy farming. He has a lot of ideas on how to farm, but has never milked a cow in his life, and certainly would never invest any of his retirement funds in the dairy industry. Talk is cheap.

I visited a S W Wisconsin dairy about a year ago. Text book rotational grazing dairy of 1000 cows. Rolling hillsides used to be corn ground but is now lush pasture. The owners break even cost of production is about $9.50 / 100 weight. He will survive when many others go under.

Cont.

 

[BigHornyRam]

This Dairy Farmer produces a lot of product. Employs a number of people. Is a big economic contributor to the community. Outstanding steward of the land.

What is the problem? The pinheads at the DNR cannot be pleased. Good is not good enough. Animal rights activist are actively trying to distroy the dairy industry in Wisconsin, "The Dairy State". Taxes are out of control in Wisconsin. This farmer has had enough. He is moving his operation to another state.

You can bet that food costs will soar in the years to come. Will you have enough money to feed your family in the years to come?

Paul

 

[FLIPPER]

Let me break this down into dollars that I know for a fact. This is what has happened to the guys that are leasing our farm.

They were getting $18.00 per hundred lbs, now they are getting on an average of $11.80 per hundred lbs.

Here is the killer.....the milk processor takes 1 gallon of dairy milk and makes 6 gallons of milk for retail. A gallon of milk weighs 8.6 lbs, so the processors are getting 69.78 gallons per hundred lbs, and only paying the farmer for 11.63 gallons of whole dairy milk. They put it in the retail store for $3.12 per gallon. That comes to $217.67 per hundred for the processor. This is just for the milk, this does not count the butter fat they are getting from the milk that they are making other consumer products with....for even more of a profit.

Well I didn't have a calculator....

but thanks

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-20-2003 06:29: Message edited by: FLIPPER ]</font>

 

[MEATHEAD]

Flipper you ain't doing your math right it would be $217.67 per hundred

 

[1_pointer]

I can only comment on the research that I've been privy to with regards to dairy operations. Pasture based, rotational grazing seems to work for the guys in upstate NY where the research is being conducted. I agree that many of the animal rights groups are VERY misguided.

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> You can bet that food costs will soar in the years to come. Will you have enough money to feed your family in the years to come? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yes. My major goal for pursuing my education is to not pigeon-hole myself so that I can't be flexible. Plus, my wife works in health-care (RN, soon to be a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner), so I feel our employment prospects are good.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-19-2003 21:21: Message edited by: 1_pointer ]</font>

 

[1_pointer]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> Talk is cheap <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I'm new to the game, but one of my biggest frustrastions is the bottleneck in the conveyance of info/knowledge from the researcher, whether that be at the Univ., ARC, NRCS, or whatever to the managers on the site. I applaud your dad's effort, as I don't know that I couldn't handle being an extension specialist.

 

[FLIPPER]

You know those numbers, don't you MEATHEAD

 

[Muledeer4me]

"Yes. My major goal for pursuing my education is to not pigeon-hole myself so that I can't be flexible. Plus, my wife works in health-care (RN, soon to be a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner), so I feel our employment prospects are good."


Very good thing to do and be thinking about.
But the other think to keep in mind ,is that many others have done the same thing and they are still out of work and having a hard time feeding there family's.
Dont you think at the time these other men and women were making the choice to go into dairy farming or ranching that they also had there and there famiyls best intrest in mind.
Im sure they never dreamed how far some of these org. would go to pigeon-- hole them,and make it look like they are out to destroy it all.

 

[BigHornyRam]

Pointer,

My point is, is that it is easy to read about how things should be done in a text book. Things can be a little differnt when you are in the trenches actually doing the work. Milk prices for the farmer today are lower than they were in the 70's when I worked on one in high school. We need to show a little compassion to the people working to put food on our table. These people are working hard just trying to make it. It would work better to give them support, not beat them over the head with a stick.

Arrogant POS's like Marvel, Wuerthner, and other animal rights nuts need to be put in their place. Any support of these types shows your true colors.

Paul

 

[dgibson]

Flipper, not to be arguing, but just asking...what is the processor's cost on their production? They get $217 per hundredweight, but how much does it cost to process that hundred? There's a lot they do to the one gallon of dairy in order to get six gallons of milk, and I'm curious to know how much of that money is profit.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 01-20-2003 11:26: Message edited by: dgibson ]</font>

 

[1_pointer]

I've never condemned anyone who tries to make a living off the land. My problem lies with those that do so and damage public lands. I don't agree with Marvels tactics, but I do like the fact that he's causing people to take notice of some problems. I feel/know grazing can be GREAT for ecosystems, if its done properly.

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> Things can be a little differnt when you are in the trenches actually doing the work. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I agree wholeheartedly, that's why I'm looking for jobs that deal with on the ground management so I can have the experience. But, on the otherside of the same coin, 'book learning' can give you information that may take a lifetime to learn through experience. They both have their positives and negatives.

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> But the other think to keep in mind ,is that many others have done the same thing and they are still out of work and having a hard time feeding there family's.
Dont you think at the time these other men and women were making the choice to go into dairy farming or ranching that they also had there and there famiyls best intrest in mind.
Im sure they never dreamed how far some of these org. would go to pigeon-- hole them,and make it look like they are out to destroy it all. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Deb- I never said they weren't looking out for their families. I guess I'm still to young and idealistic, but I feel that even now we can achieve most anything we want if we're willing to do the work and pay the price. The catch is that now you may have to take a longer/different route to reach that dream. Say I want to be a rancher, what's stopping me? Money? I could always get into a profession that would make me the money I'd need (ie a lawyer, doctor, etc.). If I don't realize my dreams, it's because I didn't pay the price it took.

 

[FLIPPER]

I do not know Darren? I probably can find out being as half the people that I know that hunt works for the biggest Processor in East TN.

But the farmer is trying to scrape by on $1.80-$2.30 per hundred profit. The dairy cost per profit to operate is 50 times higher than the Processor.

 

[Nut]

Flipper doesnt the dairy farmer operate his whole operation on private land?

 

[FLIPPER]

Yes they do here Nut....why?