Dairy farmers across the nation who are enrolled in the Milk Income Loss Contract program will receive their payments from the U.S. Department of Agriculture beginning Feb. 5 for September 2012 marketings.
USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator Juan Garcia says the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended the Farm Bill, or Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008, which provides for a continuation of the MILC program through Sept. 30.
According to the USDA, MILC payments are triggered when the Boston Class I milk price drops below $16.94 per hundredweight after adjustment for the cost of dairy feed rations.
The USDA calculates the MILC payments each month using up-to-date milk prices and feed costs. The payment for September 2012 is about 59 cents per hundredweight. October is about two cents per hundredweight. There is no payment rate for November 2012.
All dairy farmers’ MILC contracts were automatically extended through Sept. 30 when the extension of the Farm Bill was approved, but before the October MILC payment will be issued by the USDA, dairy farmers must complete an Average Adjusted Gross Income form for 2013.
The form is available online at www.fsa.usda.gov/ccc933.
For more information on MILC payments, visit www.fsa.usda.gov.