US senator to close milk import loophole

US senator Charles Schumer has introduced a legislation to close a loophole that allowed tariff-free importation of foreign milk protein concentrate (MPC), at a time when New York dairy farmers are facing significant losses.

 

Food producers have increased their use of imported MPC in the last decade as it is not subject to the same tariff requirements as other imported dairy products. This has undermined the US market for domestic powdered dry milk, said Schumer.

 

Worsening the situation is that some European countries are adding small amounts of MPC to products including dry milk as a means of avoiding paying tariffs, Schumer said.

 

New York dairy farmers are getting less than half the price for their milk than they were a year ago, and are struggling despite government price supports as the cost of feed and fuel have remained high, said Schumer.

 

Bad weather this year has also negatively impacted farmers, he said.

 

 

He said New York's 5,900 dairy farmers are not only losing out on their share of a market worth US$109 million over the past four years, they are also suffering from poor milk prices partly because of the tariff-free MPC.

 

In January, it cost 27 cents to produce a quart of milk but farmers only got 14 cents, and now farmers got only 12 cents, Schumer said.

 

Schumer plans to meet with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to emphasise the crisis being faced by the dairy farmers, and will continue to push for an increase in prices through the Dairy Product Price Support Programme.

 

Schumer is also seeking support from senators of other dairy states and Vilsack to increase farmers'reimbursement rate under the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) Programme from 34 percent to 45 percent when the price falls below the targeted price of US$16.94 per cwt.