Statement from Agriculture Secretary Roger Allbee Regarding USDA’s Announcement to Distribute $290
Contacts:
Kelly Loftus, Agency of Agriculture, (802) 828-3829
Thursday, December 17, 2009
“USDA’s announcement this morning of the implementation of the new Dairy Economic Loss Assistance Payment (DELAP) program is welcome news to our dairy farmers in Vermont who have been under considerable financial strain facing the lowest prices for milk in decades while costs of production continue to increase.”
“These payments are coming at a very critical time for the dairy industry, and for farmers in Vermont. Senator Sanders, Senator Leahy, and Congressman Welch have worked hard to address the dairy crisis, as well as our Northeast Governors including Governor Douglas and my counterparts in the Northeast departments of agriculture, and we all recognize that fundamental changes are needed in federal law so that there will not be another pricing slump like this one for the industry. Our dairy farmers and our working landscape are much too important to Vermont to have this happen again.”
We are very grateful for this needed assistance; we understand it is not the end solution and that much work needs to be done on many levels to ensure a less volatile milk pricing system so that our Vermont dairy farmers can rely on a more stable market and remain financially viable.”
Kelly Loftus
Public Information Officer
Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets
116 State Street • Montpelier, VT 05620 • www.vermontagriculture.com
Telephone: 802.828.3829 • Fax: 802.828.2361 • .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
