California Ag Network

Category: Ag Economics

  • India’s Market Opens up to US Pork Imports

    The North American Meat Institute (Meat Institute) welcomed India’s decision to allow imports of U.S. pork and pork products into the country and thanked the Biden Administration for working to secure increased access for high-quality U.S. meat products to this growing and strategically important export market.

    “U.S. pork producers, processors and packers are going to benefit from the expanded market access that this agreement will bring,” said Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts. “The Meat Institute is grateful to USDA and USTR for their years of hard work to achieve this outcome.”

    This decision, announced yesterday by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, marks the first time India will allow U.S. pork into the country. The development comes after decades of negotiations between the two countries and the successful revitalization of the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum held in New Delhi last November.

    In 2020, the United States was the world’s third-largest pork producer and second-largest exporter, with global sales of pork and pork products valued at $7.7 billion.

    About the North American Meat Institute: The North American Meat Institute is a leading voice for the meat and poultry industry. The Meat Institute’s members process the vast majority of U.S. beef, pork, lamb, and poultry, as well as manufactures the equipment and ingredients needed to produce safe, high quality meat and poultry products.

  • New Research Findings: The Heart Loves Blueberries

    A new study published in Clinical Nutrition and supported by the US Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) found that the equivalent of one cup of fresh blueberries, consumed as 26 g of freeze-dried blueberries, may reduce the acute cardiometabolic burden of energy-dense meals. Or, simply put: The new research further supports that blueberries may benefit heart health.

    As part of USHBC’s programming engaging health professionals, the study findings will be leveraged to promote blueberries as part of a healthy diet, continuing to boost  blueberries’ health halo to drive demand.

    “This is the first study of its kind conducted in an at-risk population, adults with metabolic syndrome, a condition affecting nearly 40% of Americans and one in four adults in the UK,” said Aedin Cassidy, Ph.D., chair of nutrition and preventive medicine, and director of the Interdisciplinary Research Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University, Belfast, and the study’s lead investigator.

    Learn more about the study here. For more information on how USHBC is working with health professionals, and to access resources to leverage with your own health influencers or audiences, visit healthprofessionals.blueberry.org.

  • Carbon Sequestration’s Impact on Blueberries

    At the US Highbush Blueberry Council’s (USHBC) Innovate 2021 Conference, Markus Kleber, professor of soil system science at Oregon State University, hosted a “Carbon Sequestration Lunch.” The session provided an overview of carbon sequestration and detailed the potential benefits to blueberry growers and farmers everywhere. Kleber explained that, as carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere increases, CO2 molecules absorb part of the energy from solar radiation, causing more warming in the atmosphere. This, of course, could have significant impacts on blueberry production across the globe. Despite improvements in reducing emissions, there is still a 0.6% annual increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally.
    “Humans are intervening in the carbon cycle, and industrial agriculture has driven down the carbon in the soil,” Kleber shared. “When you lose half your soil carbon, you’re bound to see reductions in plant productivity…When we talk about carbon sequestration we are referring to the transfer and storage of atmospheric carbon to other pools, such as soil or plant biomass.”
    Best management practices can restore at least some of this carbon, and soil carbon sequestration can be a significant GHG removal practice. Despite various challenges, there’s strong public interest in finding carbon sequestration solutions. Growers should recognize and take advantage of this interest, both through marketing and farming practices. Increasing soil carbon can be beneficial for overall soil health.
    As part of the 2021-25 strategic plan, USHBC will review global sustainability considerations of relevance to the entire blueberry supply chain and develop an overall approach for how to build these considerations into USHBC’s programs and industry practices.
    Click here to view a replay of the Carbon Sequestration Lunch.

  • Water in 2021: Looking Back on a Year of Extremes

    In California, 2021 was a year that climate change hit home. The increasingly frequent, warmer droughts that climate scientists have been predicting have arrived. Although this past December brought some welcome storms, California remains in the grips of an historic, fast-moving drought that has followed close on the heels of the last one. The non-partisan PPIC Water Policy Center tackled the thorny issues of this moment—as we often do—by providing data and analysis to inform tough conversations about managing drought today and into the future.

    In May, for example, we hosted a virtual event, “Is California Ready for Drought?,” which examined how to avoid the worst outcomes. We forecast where drinking water wells were likely to go dry this year and next, in an effort to help communities better plan for the future. And then we looked at solutions, releasing an updated fact sheet about groundwater recharge, one of the best hedges against drought.

    But we didn’t just look at the human impacts of the drought, we also examined the severe costs to wildlife and the environment. Our researchers, with 2021-22 CalTrout Ecosystem Fellow Sarah Null and other partners, wrote about the challenges facing reservoir operators, who are struggling to manage water effectively for both people and the environment. And we released Advancing Ecosystem Restoration with Smarter Permitting, a report examining how the state could speed ecosystem restoration efforts to meet the biodiversity crisis head-on.

    The state experienced yet another year of record-breaking fires, driven by decades of fire suppression and fuel build-up, made worse by higher temperatures and the lack of rainfall. We evaluated current forest stewardship efforts and brought together a panel of experts to discuss both what’s possible and what’s needed to better protect the state from catastrophic wildfire. We followed that event with a four-part blog series that laid out how to build capacity for long-term forest stewardship. And we interviewed one of the state’s premier experts on forest fires: UC Berkeley’s inimitable Scott Stevens.

    As California confronts its many water and headwater forest challenges, it faces yet another controversial question: how to pay for needed changes. We released fact sheets about water affordability and paying for California’s water system, two increasingly urgent issues. We championed the importance of ensuring access to safe drinking water, including for California’s tribes. And we released Groundwater and Urban Growth in the San Joaquin Valley, a report that looks at how to ensure a smooth transition for the valley’s groundwater-dependent cities and suburbs as the region adapts to less groundwater pumping under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA).

    We also took the conversation around California’s water system in new directions. Improving California’s Water Market looked at how both water trading and formal programs to store water underground could help water users manage scarcity; the report also laid out practical ways for local, state, and federal agencies to make the process easier. And we explored top priorities for California’s water, recommending a swifter transition to groundwater sustainability and other urgent actions.

    California faces serious challenges around water—and the ground is shifting beneath our feet. As the panelists at our fall policy conference on responding to the changing climate noted, it’s time to think big and look for effective, equitable solutions. And apparently, many of you agreed: we saw between 1,200-1,500 registrants for each day of our three-day virtual conference. We gathered a stellar group of panelists that included Karla Nemeth, director of the California Department of Water Resources; Tim Ramirez of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board; Rosemary Menard of the City of Santa Cruz; Don Cameron of Terranova Ranch; and Adel Hagekhalil of the Metropolitan Water District. They spoke about what’s keeping water managers up at night, whether it’s making our infrastructure climate-ready, paying for a resilient water system, or embracing transformative change.

    We know that changes are coming in water, and we need to prepare. We also know that PPIC must remain a non-partisan, trusted source of information for difficult debates about our water future. This year, we will take on some vexing problems, including how to store water for the environment, how to prepare better for drought, and how to manage land transitions as irrigated cropland declines in our warming, drying climate.

    All this work relies upon you, our ever-expanding family of agency staff, community and environmental groups, growers, researchers, water managers, and others. We appreciate your help, your engagement with our work, and your willingness to listen to our analyses and ideas. We couldn’t do this without you.

    Finally, look to our weekly blog to keep you up to date on pressing issues in water and watershed health. Who knows—if this winter continues to be wet, we may get to write about too much water for a change! — By Ellen Hanak, Public Policy Institute of California

  • Partnership Sales Growth, Gen Z Focus Among 2021 Dairy Highlights

    Checkoff foodservice partners continued to grow sales of U.S. dairy foods and more domestic dairy headed into the international marketplace. There also were increased efforts to connect with the valued Gen Z consumer and dairy’s sustainability journey reached new levels.

    These and other results are some of Dairy Management Inc.’s top checkoff highlights from 2021.

    Despite a year with continued COVID-19 challenges, the dairy checkoff delivered on its mission to drive sales and trust, said president and CEO Barbara O’Brien, who succeeded Tom Gallagher in October.

    “We not only adapted to the pandemic’s realities, we used it as an opportunity to become even more consumer-centric and more efficient and collaborative,” O’Brien said. “We were more determined to address the challenges facing dairy head on, and we found new growth opportunities across the dairy category.

    “Through it all, we were able to showcase farmers being an essential part of the U.S. food system. It was a year where the dairy checkoff made every drop count.”

    O’Brien pointed to the continued success of the checkoff’s foodservice partnerships with globally recognized companies Domino’s, Taco Bell and McDonald’s. She said overall dairy sales at these chains grew anywhere from 3 percent to 6 percent this year.

    Some partnership highlights from 2021 include:

    • Checkoff scientists at Taco Bell’s headquarters helped the chain launch the Mtn Dew Baja Blast Colada Freeze, which features a dairy-based creamer. The team also helped Taco Bell relaunch the Quesalupa, which uses seven times more cheese than the chain’s regular taco.
    • Domino’s met consumers’ needs with new cheesy marinara and five-cheese dips paired with parmesan or garlic twists.
    • McDonald’s featured McFlurries in consumer promotions that grew additional dairy sales.

    International sales growth

    The partnership model that has worked so well domestically found more footing internationally. Selling more dairy into foreign markets is important to U.S. dairy farmers as 1 of every 6 tankers of milk heads into the international marketplace. Also, 96 percent of the world’s population lives outside the U.S. and people are adopting a Western diet and have a taste for American cuisine, including cheese.

    In June, DMI entered a partnership with Alamar Foods Company, which owns 455 Domino’s stores in the MENAP (Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan) region. DMI’s partnership will focus on about 300 locations in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a goal of increasing U.S. cheese sales.

    For Pizza Hut, the focus in Asia-Pacific was driving value promotions in support of takeout and delivery across key markets in the region, including Japan, Korea and Indonesia. To date, U.S. cheese growth across Asia-Pacific has more than doubled since the on-set of the partnership. Also, Domino’s Japan launched two menu items featuring U.S. cheese – the Jumbo Pizza and the Pizza Rice Bowl. This innovation combines a familiar Japanese dish with the toppings of pizza. Since the beginning of the DMI/Domino’s Japan partnership in 2019, U.S. cheese volume at the chain has doubled.

    Further growth of U.S. dairy sales internationally is being achieved through the checkoff-founded U.S. Dairy Export Council. Through October, total U.S. dairy exports were up 11 percent from the same period a year earlier and remain on a record pace. Export value was up 17 percent to $6.48 billion for the same period, also a record pace.

    Enhanced Gen Z, sustainability efforts

    Checkoff teams nationally and locally continued work to reach Gen Z consumers (ages 10 to 23), who constitute 20 percent of the population. They have about $100 billion in purchasing power, which doesn’t account for the influence they have on their parents when it comes to products brought into the home.

    This is why the checkoff launched a wave of the Undeniably Dairy campaign in October to create deeper connections between Gen Z and dairy and give them new reasons to choose it over other products. “Reset Yourself with Dairy” is a youth-centric initiative that is using various media channels and marketing strategies, including gaming, social media influencers and digital content, as well as retail and college campus promotions, to engage with Gen Z.

    And U.S. dairy’s sustainability efforts received a boost of momentum in many ways. First, checkoff-led efforts helped finalize 5-year, up to $10 million agreements with Nestlé and Starbucks to support research, on-farm pilots and efforts to increase voluntary adoption of environmental practices and technologies across all farms through the U.S. Dairy Net Zero Initiative (NZI).

    Additional NZI funding – a $10 million grant from the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR) – will allow for the Dairy Soil & Water Regeneration project to perform feed production research over the next six years. Also announced was the Greener Cattle Initiative, a research program developed with FFAR and five partners to provide $5 million over five years to support research on enteric methane mitigation from cattle.

    More 2021 checkoff highlights

    • The farmer-founded Fuel Up to Play 60 program was repositioned in a fresh way to help students and educators navigate the new school year. Fuel Up to Play 60 unveiled an easy-to-navigate website (www.FuelUpToPlay60.com), educator dashboard and an enhanced student app that allows teachers and parents to learn about the program and access resources focused on dairy nutrition and dairy farmers’ care for the environment.
    • National Dairy Council conducted various dairy-focused educational outreach efforts, which included farmers, with key thought leaders heading into September’s United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS). The event convened international stakeholders from across the food system with the goal of making food production and consumption more sustainable and will serve as a call to action to achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
    • National and local checkoff teams, along with dairy companies and other organizations, helped move 664 million pounds of dairy into Feeding America’s network of 200 food banks during its recent fiscal year (July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021). This is an increase of 195 million pounds from the previous year for the checkoff partner, which seeks to distribute more than 900 million pounds of dairy annually by 2025.
    • E-commerce milk sales grew 24 percent and cheese sales by 16 percent (through October versus previous year), fueled by the checkoff’s partnership activities with Amazon and Kroger.
    • Fluid milk partners Darigold, Kroger and Shamrock Rocking Protein launched or expanded value-added products this year with checkoff support.

    More checkoff highlights and strategies are available at www.usdairy.com/for-farmers

    About Dairy Management Inc.

    Dairy Management Inc.™ (DMI) is funded by America’s 31,000 dairy farmers, as well as dairy importers. Created to help increase sales and demand for dairy products, DMI and its related organizations work to increase demand for dairy through research, education and innovation, and to maintain confidence in dairy foods, farms and businesses. DMI manages National Dairy Council and the American Dairy Association, and founded the U.S. Dairy Export Council, and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy.

  • California Beef Council Announces New Producer Relations Manager

    The California Beef Council (CBC), the marketing order representing California’s cattle ranchers and beef producers, has hired Makenzie Neves as Manager of Producer Education and Engagement. This position coordinates producer education, engagement, and communication efforts for the CBC.

    A California native, Neves grew up on a dairy in the Central Valley. She is a graduate of California State University, Sacramento, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in communication studies, public relations and minored in global engagement and leadership. Neves recently graduated from Texas Tech University with her master’s degree in agricultural communications.

    “As a third-generation agriculturalist, I’m thrilled to join the California Beef Council,” Neves said. “I grew up admiring these producers, and I’m looking forward to working with them and continuing strong relationships between the CBC and California’s beef producers.” Neves also plans to find new, innovative ways to reach more producers.

    “We are excited to add Makenzie to our staff as our point-person for producer education and engagement. Her background in the dairy industry will add a new dimension to the position as we move forward into 2022,” said Bill Dale, Executive Director of the CBC.

    For more information, contact Makenzie Neves or visit CalBeef.org.

    About the California Beef Council

    The California Beef Council (CBC) was established in 1954 to serve as the promotion, research, and education arm of the California beef industry, and is mandated by the California Food and Agricultural Code. The CBC’s mission is to position the California beef industry for sustained beef demand growth through promotion, research and education. For more information, visit www.calbeef.org.

    About the Beef Checkoff

    The Beef Checkoff Program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States may retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval.

  • The California Walnut Board and Commission Begin Search for New CEO

    The California Walnut Board (CWB) and California Walnut Commission (CWC) is searching for a new CEO/Executive Director as Michelle Connelly, who currently holds the position, has resigned. Connelly’s last day will be February 11, 2022.

    “We are grateful for Michelle’s years of service to our industry. During her nearly 18 years with the CWB and CWC, Michelle led a strong team of professionals that proudly serve our walnut industry and achieved numerous milestones and successes,” said Bill Tos, Chair of the CWB Executive Committee and Bill Carriere, Chair, of the CWC Executive Committee.

    In a letter to Board and Commission, the chairmen highlighted several accomplishments during Connelly’s tenure, including:

    Michelle Connelly

    · Modernization of the Marketing Order to deliver more for the Walnut industry while eliminating outdated provisions.
    · Creation of sustainability work to demonstrate the industry’s good environmental stewardship practices and to support the industry in answering consumer and regulatory expectations.
    · An overall marketing program return on investment of 14:1, eclipsing the 6:1 benchmark ROI for similar commodity programs.
    · Expansion of industry communications to further engage with growers/processors, including 2021’s inaugural walnut conference collaboration.
    · Increased advocacy efforts to raise walnuts visibility among lawmakers to support walnut growers’ and handlers’ ability to produce, process and trade.
    · Creation of a strategic roadmap to market for growth domestically and internationally.

    “It has been a privilege, honor and pleasure to serve the growers and handlers of the California walnut industry. I am beyond proud of what this team has accomplished, and I am confident in the industry’s sustained success,” said Connelly.

    In sharing the news, the chairmen reiterated the efforts of the California Walnut Board and California Walnut Commission are critically important to the success of the industry.

    “The CWB leads the way in helping to increase the understanding of walnuts benefits, expand walnut usage occasions, solve for production and post-harvest challenges, and identify new opportunities for growth and prosperity for California walnut growers and handlers,” said Tos.  “The California Walnut Commission plays a vital role in global market expansion and consumption, conducting nutrition research to address public health issues, and advocating for walnut growers and handlers to lawmakers,” added Carriere.

    A search committee has been formed that will identify a firm to assist with the search process in the coming weeks.

    About the California Walnut Board

    The California Walnut Board (CWB) was established in 1948 to represent the walnut growers and handlers of California. The CWB is funded by mandatory assessments of the handlers. The CWB is governed by a Federal Walnut Marketing Order. The CWB promotes usage of walnuts in the United States through publicity and educational programs. The CWB also provides funding for walnut production, food safety and post-harvest research.

    About the California Walnut Commission

    The California Walnut Commission, established in 1987, is funded by mandatory assessments of the growers. The CWC represents over 4,800 growers and approximately 90 handlers (processors) of California walnuts in export market development activities and conducts health research. The CWC is an agency of the State of California that works in concurrence with the Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA).

  • Government Intervention in Markets Will Not Help Consumers or Producers

    The North American Meat Institute, the nation’s trade association for meat and poultry packers and processors of all sizes, released the following statement regarding the “The Biden-Harris Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain.”

    “For the third time in six months, President Joe Biden and his Administration announced the same plans to spend $1 billion to fund government intervention in the market in an attempt to increase prices livestock producers receive while blaming inflation on private industry,” said Julie Anna Potts, President and CEO of the North American Meat Institute. “The Biden Administration continues to ignore the number one challenge to meat and poultry production: labor shortages. This tired approach is not surprising because they have refused to engage with the packing and processing sector they attack, going so far as to hold a roundtable on meat packing without a single beef or pork packer present.

    “Press conferences and using taxpayer dollars to establish government-sponsored packing and processing plants will not do anything to address the lack of labor at meat and poultry plants and spiking inflation across the economy,” said Potts. “The Administration wants the American people to believe that the meat and poultry industry is unique and not experiencing the same problems causing inflation across the economy, like increased input costs, increased energy costs, labor shortages and transportation challenges. Consumers know better.”

    “As economists predicted, producers are seeing higher prices for their cattle because packers have processed the backlog of animals in the system.”

    The Biden Administration has claimed industry structure is keeping down prices cattle producers receive for their animals, conveniently ignoring the fact the beef industry has changed little for almost 30 years.  Prices reflect supply and demand in a healthy market.

    On December 26, 2021, Larry Summers, Secretary of the Treasury for President Clinton, the Director of the National Economic Council for President Obama and Charles W. Eliot Professor and President Emeritus at Harvard University took to Twitter agreeing with leading agricultural economists highly critical of the Biden Administration’s analysis. He tweeted:

    “The emerging claim that antitrust can combat inflation reflects ‘science denial’. There are many areas like transitory inflation where serious economists differ. Antitrust as an anti-inflation strategy is not one of them.”

    Summers also said on Twitter, “Monopoly may lead to high prices but there is no reason to expect it to lead to rising prices unless it is increasing. There is no basis whatsoever thinking that monopoly power has increased during the past year in which inflation has greatly accelerated.

    “Rising demand, with capacity and labor constraints, are fully sufficient to account for what we observe in meat packing — Administration claims notwithstanding,” tweeted Summers.

    “Breaking up meatpacking would in the short run lead to reduced supply which would further increases prices. In general, when government goes to war with industries it discourages investment and subsequent capacity.”

    The chart below shows that since 1994, profit margins have varied between all sectors of the fed cattle market with no one sector benefiting consistently at the expense of another.

    And, according to USDA Data, fed cattle prices are rising on their own, without government intervention. Fourth quarter 2021 fed cattle prices are the highest in five years (even as wholesale beef prices have followed seasonal demand and decreased steadily since Labor Day, the end of the traditional annual high demand period).

    The “new” announcement raises several questions that need to be answered, including:

    • How much extra packing plant capacity does the administration think is needed? 
    • How high should cattle prices be right now? 
    • How long will the government sponsored processors receive government money? 
    • How much will the government sponsored processors be required to pay employees? 
    • There are many small and medium sized packers in the market today that have never received government support – how will they be affected by the influx of government-sponsored competition? 
    • When will these new plants come on-line? 2024-2025?  What impact will that have now?
    • Where are the target areas these plants are needed?
    • Will the new plants have sufficient labor?

    About North American Meat Institute
    The North American Meat Institute is a leading voice for the meat and poultry industry. The Meat Institute’s members process the vast majority of U.S. beef, pork, lamb, and poultry, as well as manufactures the equipment and ingredients needed to produce safe, high quality meat and poultry products.

  • Farmer Veterans are Celebrated as a New Grant Funding Cycle Opens

    As the clock ticked toward midnight and 2021 was in our rearview mirror, the team at Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC) took a moment to reflect on their proudest moments of last year.

    One of those moments was the farm equipment FVC awarded to 138 farmer veterans through their Fellowship Fund small grant program. They proudly thought about the 2021 class of awardees.  The stories and impact the program had on this very diverse collection of members is inspiring.  Executive Director Jeanette Lombardo states “As FVC starts this next round of funding, the stories of 2021 are a wonderful reminder of the importance of our mission. These stories drive our efforts everyday as we seek new funding and create programs to help our Farmer Veterans throughout the country.”

    Now in its 11th year, the     Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund has granted over $3.5 million in support of 800+ military veterans pursuing careers in agriculture. As one of FVC’s core programs, it helps beginning farmers and ranchers with what’s often their greatest hurdle – access to start-up capital.

    Last year that came in the form of hot ticket items like greenhouses and grow tents, walk-in coolers and cold storage units, milking systems, water filtrations, and honey extractors. Some of the more unique requests included a mushroom substrate steamer and a copper still. With the arrival of spring, 138 deserving members of the nationwide nonprofit organization welcomed the     thrilling news that their equipment request had been granted and would soon be delivered to their farm. Many have already found improved efficiency in their business as a result. “It was taking me four hours to fill up my 1,100-gallon leg tank and now with my Generac pump I can fill the tank in about 15 minutes,” says David Volkman, an Army veteran who served for nearly three decades before starting Ohio Valley Hops.

    Now with the calendar turned to 2022, FVC excitedly welcomes the arrival of their next funding cycle.

    “Our sights are set high for 2022: we anticipate raising $500,000 to give out to this year’s class of Fellows,” beams Rachel Petitt, the program director. “We recognize this is a lofty goal, but we are really close so it definitely feels achievable.”

    The application opened Jan 3rd and remains available through February 14th.
    To apply visit:     https://farmvetco.org/fvfellowship.

    Funding for the 2022 cycle is made possible by Wounded Warriors Project, Kubota, Tractor Supply Company, Homestead Implements, Tarter Farm and Ranch Equipment, Vital Farms, Sugar Bottom Farm, Barreras Family Farm and Northwest Farm Credit Services.

    About Farmer Veteran Coalition

    The mission of Farmer Veteran Coalition is mobilizing veterans to feed America. Established in 2008, its in-house programs include the Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund small grant program, the nationally recognized Homegrown By Heroes label for veteran-grown products, and national and regional conferences. As the nation’s largest nonprofit assisting veterans and active duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces embark on careers in agriculture, FVC has been successful in getting millions of dollars of USDA funds appropriated for farmer veteran and the groups that support them. Learn more at: www.farmvetco.org or follow on Facebook or Instagram at @FarmerVeteranCoalition and Twitter at @FarmVetCo.

    To sponsor equipment for the Fellowship Fund, contact Rachel Petitt at     rachel@farmvetco.org. To donate to support farmer veterans directly, visit www.farmvetco.orgor text GIVE and the dollar amount to 270-838-3276 (270-VET-FARM).

  • Real California Milk Kicks Off 2022 With Smoothie Retail Campaign

    The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) announced the launch of a consumer promotion focused on starting off the New Year with health and wellness in mind. The “Renew, Reset, Restore” campaign communicates the message that high quality, sustainably sourced California dairy products are a delicious and effective way to help achieve lifestyle goals in the new year. The featured promotional menu includes innovative smoothie and smoothie bowl recipes made with Real California milk, yogurt, and cottage cheese.

    The month-long promotion, which runs through January 30, will be supported with a rebate offer on California dairy products through the Checkout 51 platform. Integrated digital media will include geotargeted email blasts, banner ads and in-line recipe pairings throughout Chicory’s recipe network, sponsored social media posts, targeted display banner ads, Instacart SEO, retailer shopper marketing, and food influencer partnerships.

    “Dairy foods are high in powerful proteins, making them a great option to help with reaching health and wellness goals. These proteins fuel the body by providing a unique combination of nutrients only found in real dairy,” said Katelyn Harmon, Director of Business Development, U.S. Retail for the CMAB. “These recipes are designed to be delicious, packed with nutrients and as easy to make, whether they are enjoyed at home or on the go.”

    California is the nation’s leading milk producer and produces more butter, ice cream and nonfat dry milk than any other state. California is the second-largest producer of cheese and yogurt. California milk and dairy foods can be identified by the Real California Milk seal, which certifies they are made with milk from the state’s dairy farm families.

    About Real California Milk/California Milk Advisory Board

    The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB), an instrumentality of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, is funded by the state’s dairy farm families who lead the nation in sustainable dairy farming practices. With a vision to nourish the world with the wholesome goodness of Real California Milk, the CMAB’s programs focus on increasing demand for California’s sustainable dairy products in the state, across the U.S. and around the world through advertising, public relations, research, and retail and foodservice promotional programs. For more information and to connect with the CMAB, visitRealCaliforniaMilk.com, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.