1-3 Ian Dairy Exports

 US exports of dairy is looking good for 2011. I’m DS

OK. New Year’s here and my guess is that the New Year’s resolution from every dairyman in Idaho was increase sales…please. I know Executive Director of the Idaho Dairymen's Association, Bob Naerebout not only made that resolution but probably added a prayer. Well his prayer may have recently been answered by Jerry Bange, Chairman of the World Agricultural Outlook Board: “We increased our estimates of exports for the 2010 year by 450 million pounds and we’re seeing very strong exports at the moment of cheese and fluid milk believe it or not. Fluid milk going mainly to Mexico. There’s a pent up demand out there for butter because the price of butter has dropped. With the price drop we see additional exports.” However Bange does warn that even though dairy farmers are looking at over $16 per hundredweight of milk…which is good, they are also looking at higher feed prices so it becomes a net return issue. “They’re gonna look at the $16.30 in the context of anticipating paying higher feed prices through the year.” That removes some enthusiasm.