Milk production is increasing faster than demand is recovering, making 2021 a challenging year for dairy farmers, said Peter Vitaliano, NMPF’s chief economist, in an NMPF podcast. 

“On balance, things are improving a little bit” in dairy demand, “but they're still falling short of the milk production rate of increase,” Vitaliano said. Still, bright spots remain for the medium- and longer-term dairy outlook. Demand for U.S. dairy exports is at record levels, and demand for dairy away from home should increase as the COVID-19 pandemic fades, he said. 

Governing in 2021 is difficult, with a narrowly divided Congress and a new administration facing significant challenges, said Paul Bleiberg, NMPF’s senior vice president for government relations, in an NMPF podcast. Still, policy progress for dairy is possible, especially given the sector’s reputation for bipartisan cooperation, he said. 

Newly released federal dietary guidelines will benefit dairy, even as work remains to be done, said Miquela Hanselman, NMPF’s regulatory affairs manager.

“Dairy is in a good place,” Hanselman said. “Three servings of low-fat and non-fat dairy are continued to be recommended in the healthy U.S. and vegetarian diets, and dairy remained its own group. In addition, dairy was recognized as a source of under-consumed nutrients, which are also known as nutrients of public health concern.”

Hanselman also discusses the need to incorporate up-to-date research on dairy in fats in the next round of guidelines and talks about their impact on encouraging the next generation of milk-drinkers. 

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts is leaving Congress after 40 years in January. The only person to lead both the House and Senate agriculture committees takes with him a wealth of wisdom in agriculture policy – but also holds optimism for agriculture’s ability to get things done in an environment of difficult challenges.

“I would just say that I am very confident that the people who will be taking my place, they have a lot of experience,” Roberts said. “They're good folks. I think the same attempt, at least, with regards to making it bipartisan, will continue.”

Roberts, who first came to Washington as a congressional staffer a half-century ago, also reflects on the two farm bills he led -- 1996’s Freedom to Farm law and the 2018 bill -- as well as one area where he wished he could have done more: his leadership of the Senate Intelligence Committee during the Iraq War. He also said he doesn’t consider his career to be over – without revealing plans, he said that when it comes to farm policy, “I intend to have my finger in the pie somewhere.”

Forecasts for prices and politics both make signup for the Dairy Margin Coverage Program a compelling risk-management choice for 2021, National Milk Producers Federation Senior Vice President for Member Services & Strategic Initiatives Chris Galen says.

“Congress is still trying to pass another stimulus bill to help all walks of life in our society and our economy and hopefully agriculture will be part of that, but right now there aren't any serious negotiations. Who knows if that can will be kicked into 2021?” Galen said. “What we do know is that the DMC program is forecast to make payments in the first part of 2021. So you've got to go with what you know.”

James Weber is learning as he goes along – but the coronavirus pandemic, disrupted international markets, shifting technology and turbulent political debates make life as a beginning dairy farmer challenging, as Weber, explains.

The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted lives transformed everything from schooling and shopping habits to … cheese contests. It’s not something most people think about, but in a time of social distancing and curtailed travel, how exactly does one gather, sample, compare and celebrate world-class cheeses, virtually? 

The extreme disruptions and financial upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have created real struggles for dairy producers – and the industry has responded by rising to an unprecedented occasion, said Randy Mooney, chairman of the National Milk Producers Federation, to delegates at the organization’s first-ever virtual annual meeting. 

On National Farmer’s Day, dairy farmer Suzanne Vold is highlighting dairy’s commitments to the environment and a net-zero future, noting that her colleagues are already effective stewards and are committed to doing more.