California Dairies Inc., Visalia, Calif., said yesterday that the findings of a five-month long study it commissioned (along with Dairy Farmers of America and Land O Lakes) indicate that a properly written federal milk marketing order for California would provide a regulatory structure that would potentially result in higher farm gate prices, which would benefit California dairy farm families.

The three cooperatives, representing approximately 80% of the milk produced in California, collectively funded the comprehensive modeling study to examine the issues and benefits of replacing the California state milk marketing order with a federal milk marketing order.

The study was conducted by Mark Stephenson, University of Wisconsin-Madison and Chuck Nicholson of Penn State University. After a thorough review of the study results including possible consequences and opportunities, it was agreed upon by the three cooperatives to continue working toward a change in the regulatory structure.

Staff from the three cooperatives will begin to draft federal order language to initiate the process. CDI, DFA, and LOL also will be holding a series of explanatory sessions for its members to share the results and receive input on how best to move forward on possible implementation.

See this page on the USDA's website to learn more about the federal milk marketing order system.