Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) has accepted 17 requests for export assistance from Dairy Farmers of America, Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative Association, Northwest Dairy Association (Darigold) and Tillamook County Creamery Association.
These cooperatives have contracts to sell 2.974 million pounds (1,349 metric tons) of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese and 859,803 pounds (390 metric tons) of butter to customers in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa. The product has been contracted for delivery in the period from February through May 2018.
CWT-assisted member cooperative 2018 export sales total 12.688 million pounds of American-type cheeses, and 1.590 pounds of butter (82% milkfat) to 11 countries on three continents. These sales are the equivalent of 152.871 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis.
Assisting CWT members through the Export Assistance program in the long term helps member cooperatives gain and maintain market share, thus expanding the demand for U.S. dairy products and the U.S. farm milk that produces them. This, in turn, positively affects all U.S. dairy farmers by strengthening and maintaining the value of dairy products that directly impact their milk price.
The amounts of dairy products and related milk volumes reflect current contracts for delivery, not completed export volumes. CWT will pay export assistance to the bidders only when export and delivery of the product is verified by the submission of the required documentation.
