MilkLine Newsletter

In 2021, dairy product exports totaled 17.3 percent of U.S. total milk solids production, a record for the U.S. dairy industry. Coupled with imports at 3.2 percent of U.S. total milk solids production and you have the largest positive trade balance ever for dairy. For just over 20 years we have seen a significant increase […]

As I prepared my president’s address for the 2022 Annual Meeting, it occurred to me that it had been two full years since our members had gathered for this annual event. Two years might not seem like much time depending on your perspective, but when looking back, those two years were FULL. Full of uncertainty,

A year ago, we were asked by a dairy publication for our response to the question, “In a word, what’s the mood as 2021 gets under way?” Our response was “Uncertainty.” To answer this same question a year later, we would still include ‘uncertain’ along with ‘optimism’ and ‘concern.’As we move into 2022, farmers are

Turning the page on the calendar to a new year is refreshing and invigorating. It is a new year filled with ample opportunities to improve what we do and how we do it. It’s a chance to learn more about ourselves and to support others in achieving their goals.With a brand-new year ahead of us,

The holidays are fast-approaching, and as my wife, Judy and I look forward to celebrating the upcoming holiday, we’re reminded of how our family traditions have changed through the years, and how so much has also stayed the same.

As 2021 comes to a close and farmers are wrapping up harvest, I am reminded of FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative’s accomplishments and the challenges that made the year memorable in a number of ways. This annual report provides a glimpse at many of those accomplishments and the issues we will need to address on your behalf.One

I don’t have the time. There’s hay to make. I need to change the oil in the tractor. As farmers, we are good at coming up with reasons why we can’t do something. It’s easy to use our occupation as a crutch to say no. There are times when it’s healthy to say no or

Leadership Opportunities Await “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” -Thomas Edison Dairy farmers are no strangers to hard work. In fact, most people in the general population think of us hard workers, working long days in all sorts of weather, caring for our animals and

It was just over a year ago that Katie Ledecky did an unfathomable thing: balancing a glass of chocolate milk on top of her head while swimming the length of a pool – without spilling a single drop.Her feat became a viral video, at the time when the Olympics would have been taking place in

While you have been busy planting and now harvesting hay, your FarmFirst staff and our partners in Washington D.C. have also been busy working on your behalf on several legislative and regulatory issues. Below is a brief summary of just a few of the issues we’re working on.Federal Order Reform – Earlier this spring federal