Sam Jones-Ellard (202) 617-7212Samuel.jones@ams.usda.gov
WASHINGTON, December 23, 2011 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced a final rule that amends the National Dairy Promotion and Research Order.
The final rule adopts the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board’s proposal and therefore representation in Region 1 is increased from one member to two members; Region 2 representation is decreased from eight members to seven members; Region 3 is decreased from four members to two members; Region 8 and Region 10 are combined to create a new Region 10 with two members, and is comprised of Alabama, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia; Region 8 is now comprised of Idaho with two members; Region 12 and 13 are combined to create a new Region 12 and is comprised of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont, with three members.
The Dairy Order provides that the board shall review the geographic distribution of milk production throughout the United States and, if warranted, shall recommend to the Secretary a reapportionment of the regions and/or modification of the number of members from the regions in order to better reflect the geographic distribution of milk production volume in the United States.
The board was established under the Dairy Production Stabilization Act of 1983, as amended, to develop and administer a coordinated program of promotion, research, and nutrition education. The 38-member board is authorized to design programs to strengthen the dairy industry’s position in domestic and foreign markets. The program is financed by a mandatory 15-cent per hundredweight assessment on all milk marketed commercially and a 7.5-cent per hundredweight assessment, or equivalent thereof, on milk and dairy products imported into the United States.
Copies of the final rule may be obtained from USDA, AMS, Dairy Programs, Room 2958-S, Washington, DC 202250-0233, USA from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. The final rule is also available on www.regulations.gov and the AMS website at www.ams.usda.gov/dairy.
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