|
For Immediate Release
April 18, 2011
Back
Brubaker Legislation Would Ensure Dairy Farmers Receive Existing Premiums
HARRISBURG – Sen. Mike Brubaker (R-36) introduced legislation today that
would ensure dairy farmers receive their fair share of existing milk premiums
paid by consumers.
Under Pennsylvania's Milk Marketing Law, consumers pay a 27-cent over-order
premium for each gallon of milk sold in Pennsylvania. The premium is intended to
be paid to dairy farmers, but a large portion of this premium is not reaching
its intended recipient. Former Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Dennis
Wolff estimated in December that between $15 million and $25 million in premiums
paid by consumers in 2009 did not reach dairy farmers.
"The Milk Marketing Law clearly intends to distribute these premiums to
producers, but the state lacks a fair and equitable system to properly
distribute this money to dairy farmers," Brubaker said. "The entire dairy
industry has struggled through historically low prices for their product in
recent years, so it has never been more important to ensure that dairy farmers
receive these premiums."
Senate Bill 993 would require all over-order premiums to be deposited
directly in a new Producer Settlement Fund and distributed to all qualified
dairy producers based on the total volume of milk they produce. Under current
policy, only 15 to 20 percent of milk produced in Pennsylvania qualifies for the
over-order premium.
The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau and the Pennsylvania State Grange have expressed
support for Brubaker's legislation.
"This legislation would provide a higher level of accountability of producer
premiums paid by consumers, greater opportunity for producers to receive
premiums from milk that has crossed state lines and a market-wide pool to more
equitably distribute premiums among dairy producers," said Pennsylvania Farm
Bureau Director of State Governmental Relations Joel Rotz.
The legislation would also expand the Milk Marketing Board from three members
to five. SB 993 was referred to the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs
Committee for consideration.
CONTACT:
Kristin Crawford
(717) 787-4420 | 
