A potential hefty jump in the price for a gallon milk is not on the horizon, at least not anytime soon, dairy officials say.
“I don’t see much change; prices may even go down a little bit,” said Maury Cox, executive director of the Kentucky Dairy Development Council.
The average gallon of milk costs about $3, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. But there had been a fear of prices as high as $7 per gallon because of issues related to farm bill that was tied into the “fiscal cliff” in Washington. Without an extension of the 2008 farm bill or a new bill, that price could have doubled, Cox said.
But the fix is simply a bandage. “They’re just kicking the can down the road until the end of August,” he said.
And while consumers may be breathing a sigh of relief, dairymen like the owners of Kalmey Dairy Farm in Shelbyville, Ky., believe farmers desperately need milk prices to go up at least $1 a gallon to pay off loans and purchase new equipment.
For the full story, visit The (Shelbyville, Ky.) Sentinel-News.
