Dairy Defined

What, exactly, is an ultra-processed food? Proposals about, and FDA may be weighing in. But figuring out what a definition should and shouldn’t cover is a difficult task, said Chad Galer, vice president of product innovation and food safety for Dairy Management, Inc. “I think it's a risk that it might be a bit oversimplified,” said Galer, who worked for 16 years at Kraft Foods before joining...

The greater the variety of milk in schools, including whole, lower-fat and flavored varieties, the greater the benefits to students, dairy farmers are telling lawmakers as they meet them on Capitol Hill. “I think it's awesome that students and kids have a choice. Giving them more choices just gets more milk out there for them, and the benefits that it has, and the flavor that it has that kids...

Stewardship is a deeply engrained value among dairy farmers that’s also good for economic success, NMPF’s Nicole Ayache says in the latest Dairy Defined Podcast. Ayache, who leads the National Dairy FARM (Farmers Assuring Responsible Management) Programs’ Environmental Stewardship initiative, notes how sound management of resources and a focus on efficiency has boosted dairy productivity and botto...

The United States is negotiating bilateral trade agreements at a frenetic pace across the globe. Dairy’s key to success has been a proactive approach that gets the fundamentals of industry needs right, said Shawna Morris, an executive vice president with NMPF and the U.S. Dairy Export Council, in a Dairy Defined Podcast released today.  “On the whole, a lot of good stuff coming down the pipe,” sai...

Low milk prices are a grim reality for dairy producers in the near term, with growing trade and federal action serving as remedies to get farmers through tough times, NMPF economists said in a Dairy Defined Podcast. “There really is no quick fix to get back into balance,” said Will Loux, Senior Vice President for Global Economic Affairs and the head of the joint economics team for NMPF and the U.S...

New Dietary Guidelines for Americans are encouraging to dairy in ways that are consistent with the latest science and consumer needs for high-quality, affordable nutrition, NMPF Director of Regulatory Affairs Miquela Hanselman said in a Dairy Defined Podcast. “We turned out pretty well in the guidelines,” Hanselman said in the podcast released today. “We hit the three servings. Dairy is a distinct...

History may not rhyme, but it echoes, and for all the challenges dairy has faced, a few key areas have continued to resurface throughout Chris Galen’s nearly three decades in dairy. “A lot of what I had worked on at the start of my career, and also now in the last few years of my career at National Milk, has been on milk pricing, in particular federal milk marketing order reforms,” said Galen, NMP...

NMPF elected Indiana dairy farmer Brian Rexing as its 15th chairman at its annual meeting last week, succeeding Randy Mooney of Rogersville, MO, who had served in the position for the past 17 years. This week’s Dairy Defined Podcast is taken from their remarks at the meeting in Arlington, TX, with Mooney reflecting on his tenure and dairy’s future and Rexing outlining his hope for the years to com...

Dairy’s future is bright, and it’s brightest when the industry is united toward common goals, the chairmen of the International Dairy Foods Association and the National Milk Producers Federation said.   “$11 billion or so in projects are happening or about to happen that will significantly grow the industry capacity throughout the country,” said Daragh Maccabee, CEO of Idaho Milk Products and Chai...

Life as an influencer means entering free-wheeling debate with perspectives from all sides. But to advance better nutrition with ample servings of dairy, it’s necessary to do, says social media personality Lauren Twigge.  Twigge, a registered dietician and nutritionist with a degree in animal science, offers “Nutrition at Its Roots,” an online and social media platform she uses to advance the mess...

A massive tax and spending bill is now law – but with half a year left, Congress now can turn its attention to getting whole milk back in schools, NMPF’s Paul Bleiberg said in a Dairy Defined podcast.  “One item I'll single out first that we're hopeful to get done really in the next couple months here is the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act,” Bleiberg, NMPF’s executive vice president for...

The regulatory climate in Washington is shifting in unprecedented ways, requiring quick responses and an eye for opportunities, said NMPF regulation experts in a Dairy Defined podcast released today.  The pace of evolution is “Intense, insane,” said Clay Detlefsen, NMPF’s Senior Vice President for Regulatory and Environmental Affairs. “It changes daily. It's full of unknowns, and it's mo...

The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act has a 60 percent chance of becoming law this year, with congressional momentum building along with consensus that whole milk in schools is the best option for schoolkids, Sen. Peter Welch, D-VT, said in a Dairy Defined podcast released today. “This is one of those things where, if we get it on the floor, and get the cooperation of leadership, we get the votes,”...

Dairy farmers have boosted biosecurity and researchers have learned much about the H5N1 bird flu virus in dairy cattle one year after its introduction, top NMPF experts said in a Dairy Defined podcast. Still, the hope is that the virus may leave the dairy herd completely,  “We’re still learning things about the virus and how it's being transmitted from farm to farm, and we still need some ans...

Jessica Shelly is the Director of Student Dining Services for Cincinnati Public Schools in Cincinnati, Ohio. She's responsible for overseeing the service of more than 60,000 meals a day in the lunchroom operations at 65 schools. And in 2023, her school system tried something different: It offered its students lactose-free milk. The hugely successful pilot project has now been adopted district...

You don’t have to be part of the dairy sector to see how important whole milk is for children, best-selling author Nina Teicholz, Ph. D., said in the latest Dairy Defined Podcast. That’s because nutrition science makes a compelling case for full-fat milk, underscoring the importance of getting whole milk back in schools, the goal of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, she said.  Children who drin...

With a Republican “trifecta” of House, Senate and White House control, 2025 will be an active year in Washington, NMPF Executive Vice President for Government Affairs Paul Bleiberg said in a Dairy Defined Podcast released today.  “Everybody should just buckle up. It's going to be a busy 2025,” said Bleiberg, who leads NMPF’s lobbying efforts.  The trifecta “means a certain ability to move you...

After nearly four decades as an economist at NMPF, Dr. Peter Vitaliano is retiring at the end of the year. He predicts a bright future for the industry.   “The U.S. dairy industry produces a huge variety of great products, for which consumption is continuing to grow,” Vitaliano said in a Dairy Defined Podcast. “It has very progressive farms and farmers, and great leadership amongst our organizatio...

FARM Environmental Stewardship Version 3 is out – and it's a step forward for dairy farmers both as stewards and as business managers, according to NMPF Chief Sustainability Officer Nicole Ayache, who oversaw development of the initiative through the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program, in a Dairy Defined Podcast released today.  With new, updating modeling,...

Dairy farmers are remaining resilient as they manage their way through H5N1 in dairy cattle and respond to natural disasters that have devastated farms, NMPF Chairman Randy Mooney said in remarks at the organization’s annual meeting. “Farming is hard. I said that. We all know that. But when you get hit with weather events like hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, droughts, the list goes on and on, unexp...

With the dietary guidelines for American Scientific Advisory Committee reviewing the science for the upcoming 2025 guidelines, better nutrition for diverse American communities is getting a lot of attention. Dr. Priscilla Mpasi, a Philadelphia physician and board member of the National Medical Association, said dairy’s essential to support in the dietary recommendations the guidelines make, given...

The federal government is seeking comments related to the next iteration of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans as it reviews the science behind healthy eating, with a plan expected next year. Dairy has always had a central role in proper nutrition, and newer science reinforces that. That doesn’t mean the process is easy, two experts said in a Dairy Defined podcast released today.  “One of the bi...

USDA’s plan for modernizing the Federal Milk Marketing Order system aligns well with the principles outlined in NMPF’s own proposals, NMPF economists Peter Vitaliano and Stephen Cain said in a Dairy Defined Podcast released today. Still, analysis is ongoing, and NMPF will be suggesting improvements during a public comment period that lasts through mid-September.  “It's important that we have...

With FDA’s review complete, Elanco’s Bovaer is getting ready for the U.S. marketplace. But the methane-reducing feed additive’s success will be as much about economic as environmental sustainability, said Katie Cook, Elanco's Vice President of Livestock Sustainability and Farm Animal Marketing, in a Dairy Defined podcast released today.  “The biggest thing, and the thing that's most impo...

Dairy farmers are descending on Washington next week, as NMPF's Young Cooperators lead the organization’s annual fly-in. Hannah and Matthew Lansing, this year’s chairs for the YC Program, say policy engagement is critical to dairy’s future.  “There are so many things that affect us, but they don't affect us in a way that we see every day,” said Matthew Lansing, who along with his wife an...