Senator Murray Announces $100 Million in Pandemic Relief for Dairy Farmers, Additional Aid for Organic Dairy Farmers 

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Senator Murray: “Dairy farmers play a major role in Washington state’s economy, and I am really glad this final round of aid is getting out the door and helping more farmers than ever.”

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) announced $100 million in assistance for dairy farmers across Washington state and the country. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Pandemic Market Volatility Assistance Program (PMVAP), which Senator Murray was a leader in establishing in December 2020 to provide $350 million in pandemic assistance to dairy farmers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Senator Murray secured language in the end-of-year spending package Congress passed last month directing USDA to review the cap and consider more wholesome reimbursement for producers. Senator Murray also announced the establishment of the Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Program (ODMAP) to aid organic dairy farmers across the country. 

“Dairy farmers were hit exceptionally hard in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is why I fought hard to deliver relief through this program and most recently secured language directing USDA to look into improving eligibility,” said Senator Murray. “Dairy farmers play a major role in Washington state’s economy, and I am really glad this final round of aid is getting out the door and helping more farmers than ever. Between this assistance and the new program to better support smaller organic operations, we are helping dairy farmers across Washington state and the country get back on their feet.”

PMVAP was created in December 2020 when Congress passed the Fiscal Year 2021 spending package and included aid to reimburse dairy farmers for losses caused by the pandemic and an unintended consequence of a milk pricing change in the 2018 Farm Bill. To date, the program has reimbursed qualified dairy farmers for 80% of their losses of fluid milk sales from July to December 2020, up to 5 million pounds. This latest announcement will better assist mid-size dairy farmers who will now be able to get reimbursements for up to 9 million pounds over that same time period. That change is expected to help Washington state producers cover losses in fluid milk sales for hundreds of millions of pounds of milk.

The newly formed ODMAP will help smaller organic dairy farms that have faced a unique set of challenges and higher costs over the past several years that have been compounded by the ongoing pandemic and drought conditions across the country. Further details on ODMAP will be posted in a Notice of Funds Availability later this year.

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