Milk Prices Expected to Hit Record Highs

Associated Press ^ | Fri Apr 23,11:04 PM ET | By IRA DREYFUSS, Associated Press Writer

[7.62 x 51mm]

WASHINGTON - Consumers are likely to see milk prices rise, probably to record levels, because the Agriculture Department is raising the minimum price paid to farmers to a record high, dairy experts say.

The department announced Friday it is raising the new minimum price for farmers to $1.69 per gallon, a 50-cent increase. The previous record was $1.40 per gallon in February 1999.

[7.62 x 51mm]

Locally, here in the York County (PA) area, a gallon of milk is $3.09; heard on the news this morning, on the way into work, that a $.58 hike will take it to almost $3.70/ gal. Yikes!

[AlbertWang]

OK, now let us kill off the horrid "Milk 'Stash" advertisements. These never sold a single quart of milk, but cost the Dairy farmers millions.

High milk prices are due to a wide number of factors, including several bad years for the dairy trade, a problem in the BSE factory, high beef prices (lots of cows have gone to burger), and no more heifers coming in from Canada.

[ml/nj]

almost $3.70/ gal. Yikes!

The headline here should really be Government Prints More Money.

When I was a teenager (early 60s), the daily New York Times was a nickel and a quart of milk was a quarter, five times as much. Today's copy of the Times is a dollar so if milk had risen proportionally a quart would now be five dollars. And you complain about paying less than four for a gallon!

ML/NJ

[mtbopfuyn]

But what about the children?

[M0sby]

"Let them eat cake!".

[M0sby]

Thanks for the article.
At the present time, our local 7-11 stores sells 2% milk for $1.99/gallon. I wonder if even 7-11 can keep up that loss leader?

[Bronco_Buster_FweetHyagh]

Classic example of political special interests, kickbacks, and abuse of the constitution.

[TheExperiment_Is_Over]

Why is the government in the milk biz anyway?

[John H K]

Why is the government in the milk biz anyway?

Because we have socialist farm policies.

[Poundstone]

Big deal. Milk is still cheaper than "designer" bottled water.

[kellynla]

and if the truth be known, the feds have tons of powdered milk warehoused...

The plain label milk in So Cal is 2 gallons of non-fat for four dollars...cheaper than what we're paying for gas...now if I could just figure out a way to get the Jeep to run on milk...LOL

ohhh for the all the 7.62's I fired in my time...fugedaboutit!

[Types_with_Fist]

because the Agriculture Department is raising the minimum price paid to farmers to a record high

I'm not real good at economics and stuff but, if farmers are getting subsidized more, why are the farmers raising prices? Seems to me that, with more money to float their enterprises, they could keep prices the same or even drop them.

[Voter#537]

Of all the rotten luck
I am putting the finishing touches on a car than runs on milk
It runs in the family
My grandad started 1UP
It failed so he tried 2UP
My dad took over and tried 3, 4, 5 & 6UP
I joind the Army.

[ChadGore]

It's all about Milk. (c)liberal_drivel
Big Milk. (c)liberal_drivel
Haliburton Stole The Milk. (c)liberal_drivel
Military Milk Complex. (c)liberal_drivel
No Blood For Milk (c)liberal_drivel

See how silly these comodity arguments are ?

[sergeantdave]

Forget milk.

My favorite beer just got jacked up to $10.49 a gallon. Now that's a crisis. Beer is nothing more than reconstituted water that makes your head hurt if you imbibe a wee too much. You shouldn't have to pay so much for colored water with bubbles. How about a congressional investigation.

[manic4organic]

It's President Bush' fault! /sarcasm off

By the way, I buy organic milk. It's already about $4.00 per gallon, but I pay more for no hormones for the kids. My teenager has enough to start with.

[q_an_a]

nice post. in 1970 a movie cost 2.00 and a loaf of bread was 24 cents. if they prices stayed the same a movie would be close to 15.00 a gallon of gas and a laof of bread have remained constant in their 30 year pricing.

[chainsaw]

Milk Prices Expected to Hit Record Highs

It must be OPEC's fault. Which makes it Bush's fault.

[John W]

Furthermore-what does a gallon of milk cost in Europe?Shouldn't we be paying that much?
/sarcasm

[DManA]

These idiots are killing the industry. Milk consumption is plummeting. The market is screaming "LOWER PRICES" but these jerks can't hear.

[traumer]

Don't Buy It !!
Switch to other alternatives. Let the SUPPLY and DEMAND set the price....

[Blue_Ridge_Mtn_Geek]

Yawn. We are still drinking the powdered milk we stashed in 1998 to cover Y2K contingencies. This may run out in 2 or 3 years, at which time I will start to care about latest govt price policies (I suspect that powdered milk will still provide the best deal).

Similarly for shampoo, soap, various other commodities that store well. About the only insurance premiums I ever paid that were recoverable even though the hazard they were spent to avoid did not materialze. And now we are located where we can watch the "war on terrorism" with minimal worry that we will be "on the scene" for some ObL atrocity. If the IslamoNazis show up, all of my neighbors and I are armed to the teeth, and we'll have some fun granting them their death wish.

[Thinkin' Gal]

[Rightly Biased]

BTTT;PING
Respectivly

[dighton]

Gååt møøsenmjólk?

[ClearBlueSky]

It's about time people started complaining about the price of milk. Here in New Orleans the average price is $3.79 a gallon, nothing below $3.10. In fact, I was shocked last week to see Super Wal-Mart( which is generally much cheaper than the supermarkets)charging $4.69- $4.89 a gallon!!
Appalling, because we all know that far more than half of that price is the packaging and distribution.
Whenever I hear people scream that gasoline is up to $1.60 a gallon, I wonder if they would like a milk-powered car.

[RonHolzwarth]

Well, here is a fact, right from an EX-farmer's son: Farming is NOT a profitable enterprise. Only at certain times of shortages, and resulting very high food prices, has farming been what you would consider "high profit".

Most smaller farms are simply being sold off to larger corporations who can afford more land and the much more expensive equipment that is used to eliminate the "farm hands" that used to be used.

The farm subsidies that we have now are the result of a very long standing U.S. government policy that has two main goals:

1) The United States is to be self sufficient in its food supply.

2) The price of food is to be low.

However, I think we could ditch the tobacco subsidies, but I am told (by the son of a tobacco farmer) that if you work a tobacco farm full time, using family help, you are lucky to clear $10,000 a year. Not even minimum wage.

[RonHolzwarth]

Huh?

You said: "$3.79 a gallon, nothing below $3.10. Super Wal-Mart charging $4.69- $4.89 a gallon!!
Appalling, because we all know that 'FAR MORE THAN HALF' of that price is the packaging and distribution."

I would tend to agree with you more if you said instead:

"far more than four fifths" !!!

[Thinkin' Gal]

Gååt møøsenmjólk?

INNIHALD:
Mysa.

Mysa verður til við skyrgerð. Í skyri eins og öðrum sýrðum mjólkurvörum eru mjólkursýrugerlar. Auk þess einkenna gersveppir þessa séríslensku mjólkuafurð og gefa henni sérstakt bragð og áferð. Gerlaflóra mysu, bragð og gæði, samsvarar algerlega skyrinu sem hún er síuð frá. Mjókursýrugerlarnir kljúfa mjólkursykur og mynda mjólkursýru. Þess vegna getur mysa orðið eldsúr. Öldum saman var sýra svaladrykkur Íslendinga og gerði þjóðinni kleift að verja kjöt- og fiskmeti skemmdum

[RonHolzwarth]

About my comments above: I grew up in a farming community, and have many relatives still trying to make a living farming, because it is the only life they know. It is NOT an easy life.

And, I'm kinda hurting too, it was painful to see all of my Grandparent's farm and ranch land sold off. Because it was simply not an option to keep it in the family.

On my Dad's side, part of it was the original homestead, from 1880 or so.

On my Mom's side, it was purchased in the 1920's and 1930's. I was told that some of those land payments during the depression were kinda tough to make.

So that's all a touchy subject with me.

[aculeus]

Some people will be pleased.

[nmh]

Hey, has FR poster, ole Willie Green seen this? He should be excited in seeing how well government micro management works! Or maybe this would be euphoric news for him.

[7.62 x 51mm]

Bottled water here is $2.19/gal; still a good bit less than milk. Anyone who drinks bottled water is nuts, as there's no ecoli-coliform standards that they have to meet, as with municipal water regs. And anti-freeze is only $2.29/gal. Gas is now $1.83/gal. The new tax isn't going to stop me from having something to dunk my Fig Newtons in, darnit!

[7.62 x 51mm]

I've never seen organic milk in the stores around here (southcentral Penna). I love the un-homogenized milk with 2" of cream at the top, and frequent the one farm store which sells direct from their own dairy.

[7.62 x 51mm]

I've heard the same thing, RH, and as a farmer/nursery owner-operator myself, I manage to keep 18 people employed and make a very comfortable living. Many of the farms here in southcentral Penna are being sold off for housing or commercial development. Sad to see it.

[Caleb1411]