166 



STATEMENT OF THE 

 NATIONAL MILK PRODUCERS FEDERATION 



before the 



COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE 

 U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 



ECONOMIC OUTLOOK FOR AGRICULTURE: DAIRY 



The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), the national farm commodity 

 organization which represents dairy farmers and the dairy cooperative marketing 

 associations they own and operate throughout the United States, offers the following 

 economic outlook for dairy for the information of the Committee. 



Overview 



The dairy industry in the United States is the nation's second largest agricultural 

 commodity industry, measured by the value of marketings at the farm level. In 1991, 

 U.S. milk producers received $18.1 billion from sales of raw milk, representing 10.8 

 percent of the $167.3 billion in receipts from sales of all commodities in the U.S. 

 Only cattle and calves, with 1991 receipts at $39.6 billion, ranked higher. In 1990, 

 cash receipts from milk sales in the U.S. totalled $20.2 billion, which represented 11.8 

 percent of total commodity receipts. 



The U.S. dairy industry is also geographically extensive. In 1991, farm receipts from 

 milk sales amounted to $200 million or more in fully half of all states, $100 million or 

 more in more than two-thirds of the states, $10 million or more in 48 states, and $2.5 

 million or more in all 50 states. 



Milk production in the U.S. has been growing slowly in recent years, more or less 

 commensurately with the growth in commercial demand for milk and dairy products. 

 Dairy farmers produced a total of 148.3 billion pounds of milk in calendar year 1990, 

 148.5 billion pounds in 1991, and 152.0 billion pounds in 1992. At this time, NMPF 

 projects 1993 production to be 154.6 billion pounds. 



Milk prices in the U.S. have become more variable in recent years as a result of 

 substantial reductions in the rate of price support for milk that took place during the 

 period 1985-90. Average prices received by all dairy farmers in the U.S. for all milk 

 sold to plants and dealers reached a high of $13.74 per hundred pounds 

 (hundredweight, or cwt.) of milk in calendar year 1990, then fell to a relative low of 



The \ iiion il Milk Pnulw its IVdi-rallou i- .1 farm i'ommiii1il\ org /.allot! markctlns of milk NMI'F's contribution to this polio is aimed al Improvina thr 



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