NORWICH – Farmers across Upstate New York are standing in solidarity against a federally regulated milk pricing system they argue isn’t fair, especially for small farms.
Dairy farmers and supporters of the dairy industry rallied at the Classic Car Museum in Norwich on Tuesday. Despite existing federal safety net programs designed to help small dairy farms stay afloat, many local farmers say it simply isn’t enough to keep pace with increasing costs of production.
Tuesday’s meeting was organized by the Progressive Agricultural Organization, a Pennsylvania-based lobbyist group advocating for governmental help for dairy farmers. The organization is affiliated with the National Family Farm Coalition of Washington DC.
The cost of operating a dairy farm currently exceeds the minimum price of milk, and that sends a clear message, said Arden Tewksbury, manager of the Progressive Agriculture Organization: Dairy farmers are losing.
“You shouldn’t allow a small amount of surplus milk to destroy the prices of the 95 percent of the milk that’s being produced,” Tewksbury said. “If we don’t do anything, if these prices stay here this year or next year, there will be so many dairy farmers that go out of business that you won’t be able to count them.”
According to the Progressive Agricultural Organization, the average New York dairy farm produces 2.7 million pounds of milk annually, but the average farmer is losing $30,500 more per year compared to 2009.
Milk prices have fallen by nearly 30 percent over the last two years. Prices have dropped 25 cents just since Feb. 1, Tewksbury said. Those prices are expected to drop even further by the end of the year – as much as 40 percent.
