U.S. Department of Agriculture issues recommended decision proposing amendments to all eleven Federal milk marketing orders

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today issued a Recommended Decision on its website proposing to amend the uniform pricing formulas applicable in all 11 Federal milk marketing orders (FMMOs). The Recommended Decision follows a 49-day national hearing held from August 23, 2023, to January 30, 2024, in Carmel, Indiana, where USDA heard testimony and received evidence on 21 proposals from the dairy industry. The Recommended Decision puts forth a package of amendments to update formulas and factors based on the evidentiary record of the proceeding. More specifically, this decision recommends the following: 1) Milk Composition Factors: Update the factors to 3.3 percent true protein, 6.0 percent other solids, and 9.3 percent nonfat solids. 2) Surveyed Commodity Products: Remove 500-pound barrel cheddar cheese prices from the Dairy Product Mandatory Reporting Program survey and rely solely on the 40-pound block cheddar cheese price to determine the monthly average cheese price ...