03/20/07 USDA sees stronger milk prices

Washington Ag March 20, 2007 U.S. milk production is being forecast to drop during this first quarter of 2007 and USDA Outlook Board Chairman Jerry Bange says that decrease along with strong international demand for powdered dry milk and whey protein are giving strength to the milk price forecast. Bange: "For milk products we are looking at a Class III price of $14.40. That is up 85 cents. Class IV price of $13.30 up 45 cents and the all-milk price at $15.35, up 65 cents from our previous forecast and up 19% compared to the previous year." Of course dairy producers are facing substantially higher feed costs too. Meanwhile, Cooperatives Working Together has announced its next herd retirement effort will remove more than one billion pounds of milk, or six-tenths of the nation's dairy supply. CWT says it has tentatively accepted 343 bids from 39 states representing 54-thousand cows. Those cows, including over 20-thousand in the Western region must be sent to slaughter after an on-farm audit is conducted. Cooperatives Working Together is being funded by dairy cooperatives and individual dairy farmers, who are contributing 10 cents per hundredweight assessment on their milk production through December 2007. I'm Bob Hoff.