2024 Dairy Margin Coverage Enrollment Opens This Week for U.S. Dairy Producers
Source: The DairyNews
Beginning next Wednesday, U.S. dairy producers can enroll in the 2024 Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC), a vital safety net program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The DMC program provides support to offset disparities between milk and feed prices, acting as a risk management tool for producers. The enrollment period for the 2024 DMC coverage runs from Feb. 28, 2024, to April 29, 2024.
Notably, the USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) has introduced revisions to DMC regulations, allowing eligible dairy operations a one-time adjustment to established production history. This adjustment involves combining previously set supplemental production history with DMC production history for dairy operations participating in Supplemental Dairy Margin Coverage in prior years. The DMC program has received authorization through calendar year 2024, with regulatory changes prompted by the 2018 Farm Bill extension.
Zach Ducheneaux, FSA Administrator, emphasized the importance of the DMC program, stating, "Dairy Margin Coverage is proven to be a program to reduce risk for our dairy producers." Ducheneaux urged producers to take advantage of this risk management tool, pointing to the $1.2 billion in DMC payments issued to producers in 2023.
DMC is a voluntary risk management program offering protection when the margin between the all-milk price and the average feed price falls below a selected dollar amount. In 2023, payments triggered in 11 months, demonstrating its effectiveness in mitigating financial impacts on dairy operations.
The 2024 DMC coverage comes with revised regulations extending coverage for the entire calendar year and adjustments to production history for smaller dairy operations. Dairy producers can establish one adjusted base production history through DMC for each participating operation, providing a more accurate reflection of the current production.
Additionally, dairy operations enrolled in the 2023 DMC under a multi-year lock-in contract will see lock-in eligibility extended until Dec. 31, 2024. Producers with lock-in contracts are eligible for discounted DMC premium rates during the 2024 coverage year. The DMC program offers various coverage levels, including a free option (minus a $100 administrative fee), with fee waivers for limited resource, beginning, socially disadvantaged, or military veteran producers. Producers can utilize the online dairy decision tool to determine the appropriate level of DMC coverage for their specific operations. To determine the appropriate level of DMC coverage for a specific dairy operation, producers can use the online dairy decision tool.
Zach Ducheneaux, FSA Administrator, emphasized the importance of the DMC program, stating, "Dairy Margin Coverage is proven to be a program to reduce risk for our dairy producers." Ducheneaux urged producers to take advantage of this risk management tool, pointing to the $1.2 billion in DMC payments issued to producers in 2023.
DMC is a voluntary risk management program offering protection when the margin between the all-milk price and the average feed price falls below a selected dollar amount. In 2023, payments triggered in 11 months, demonstrating its effectiveness in mitigating financial impacts on dairy operations.
The 2024 DMC coverage comes with revised regulations extending coverage for the entire calendar year and adjustments to production history for smaller dairy operations. Dairy producers can establish one adjusted base production history through DMC for each participating operation, providing a more accurate reflection of the current production.
Additionally, dairy operations enrolled in the 2023 DMC under a multi-year lock-in contract will see lock-in eligibility extended until Dec. 31, 2024. Producers with lock-in contracts are eligible for discounted DMC premium rates during the 2024 coverage year. The DMC program offers various coverage levels, including a free option (minus a $100 administrative fee), with fee waivers for limited resource, beginning, socially disadvantaged, or military veteran producers. Producers can utilize the online dairy decision tool to determine the appropriate level of DMC coverage for their specific operations. To determine the appropriate level of DMC coverage for a specific dairy operation, producers can use the online dairy decision tool.
