Dairy farmers get boost

    WASHINGTON D.C. – Maine’s dairy farmers will reap significant benefits from this year’s Farm Bill passed by the Senate last Friday.  The bill included provisions to extend the two federal programs that support milk prices (the dairy price support program (DPSP) and the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program) for five years, add $500 million to those programs and, for the first time, increase the payment rate (from 34 percent to 45 percent) of the price shortfall and the payment limit.   
    “With the amount of dairy farms in Maine decreasing, it was essential for us to identify new ways to foster an environment in which existing dairy farms could thrive and succeed,” said Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine).  “These provisions will result in a more robust dairy program and will greatly assist our dairy producers if faced with an economic downturn.”
    The Maine Dairy Industry Association has reported that the number of dairy farms based in Maine has been steadily decreasing with roughly 350 dairy farms left in Maine compared to the 5,100 dairy farms that once operated when the industry was at its peak in the 1940s. 
    Snowe added, “Dairy farms are at the core of economic activity throughout many of Maine’s rural areas and it is critical that they continue to flourish and are able to fully provide all of Maine citizens with local and fresh milk and dairy products,” she continued.