The Militant (logo)  

Vol. 74/No. 27      July 19, 2010

 
Dairy farmers hold protests
to demand price guarantees
 
BY RACHELE FRUIT  
Dairy farmers in a number of states carried out protests on July 4 to highlight the dire situation many face.

Robin and David Fitch, among the initiators of the actions, milk 150 cows on 400 acres in New York State. They told AOLNews that they’ve lost more than $100,000 in the past year and unless Congress sets a milk price floor of $18 per hundredweight (about $1.55 a gallon) they’ll lose the farm that’s been in their family for five generations.

According to Robin Fitch, New York dairy farmers are getting a little more than $16 per hundredweight. She said there were protest activities in at least 15 to 20 states.

Woody Wittenberg of Cement City, Michigan, dumped out 1,300 gallons of raw milk as part of the protest. He lost a significant part of his income in 2009, and when the prices dropped, he had an additional $471,000 debt he could not pay.

Wittenberg said that in Michigan, dairy farmers are getting $13.38 per hundredweight. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the total cost of production in May for Michigan was $21.84 per hundredweight.

Rachele Fruit is the SWP candidate for Georgia Agriculture Commissioner.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home