Help on the way for dairy farmers? (Updated)

I found an e-mail in my inbox this morning from the grassroots dairy farmers’ group, United States Dairy Farmers (this is the group that demonstrated in Iowa in June). It says Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is telling lawmakers he’s going to raise the support price for dairy farmers. It’s attributed to Arden Tewksbury of the Progressive Agriculture Organization:

I have been notified by Senator Specter’s staff that US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack met today with about 15 US Senators. The Secretary announced that he was going to raise the support price on manufactured dairy products. However, although he did not say how much he was going to raise the support price, he indicated he wanted to have an answer before the August 7 recess. Some anticipate he might announce the amount of the increase this week.

At its rally in Iowa, USDF called for Vilsack to raise the price support immediately to $18/hundredweight. That’s what the farmers say they need to “cash flow” (actually make some money to pay their bills rather than lose money). Stay tuned.

UPDATE: Governor Paterson’s out with a statement praising Vilsack, so it appears to be true. Reports say Vilsack’s still negotiating with Office of Management and Budget over how much the price support will increase. From the Gov’s statement:

The slowed economy coupled with an antiquated pricing system at the federal level has left the dairy industry in shambles. Our dairy farmers are struggling to keep their farms open as the price of milk continues to plunge and costs continue to rise. Currently, the average New York dairy farmer is losing $.50 for every gallon of milk produced, which equates to roughly $18,000 a month for a 100-cow farm. Our farmers cannot continue with prices at these levels and therefore, I hope Secretary Vilsack is able to negotiate a swift and effective price with the Office of Management and Budget that will help our farmers across the nation, particularly those in Upstate New York.