Had "the talk" today :-( (Turner, Washington: home, subsidized)

[cebdark]

I'm sorry to hear of your friends problems. It's hard to hear that anyone would feel so utterly despondent as to take their own lives.

It serves as a reminder that in good times and more so in the bad, that we have to pay attention to the signs that stress may be taking its toll on our loved ones.

[flycessna]

It's looks as though we have some contradicting view points but at least we can agree that its government involvement.. I think anyways..??

So let me ask this... what is the push behind this... is it a broken system or is there more sinister method to the madness.. ex. are they trying to push out small mom and pop dairy farmers? are they trying to outsource the whole dairy industry (not sure how that would work)? why is this happening? it seems to me the system in place is cutting its own throats..

back where I grew up in Mass we used to have the milk man.. I hear he is still around but fairly expensive.. Even in hard times though I still see value in spending a few extra dollars to support my local economy and keep my money local.. just and FYI

[exit82]

wow- i don't know how I didn't hear of this tragedy before- I just googled some articles on it- how heartbreaking

[BrokenTap]

The government does set the price...in fact it is set a year in advance since they are the largest consumer of milk in the united states (school lunch program).

Some concessions have been made like stopping the flow of milk in from Canada which was driving down the price of milk. They are hugely subsidized making it hard for Maine dairy farmer to compete.

The best way to explain this is by asking a simple question: would you work twice a day, 365 days a year, watching prices for fuel, grain and every other needed item on a farm soar, while you make the same pay per gallon as you made in the 1970's? After 40 years, a pay raise would be nice!

It is insane, dairy farmers produce the perfect food (milk) and what a much better world this would be if we drank more milk and a lot less soda...

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by BrokenTap

The government does set the price...in fact it is set a year in advance since they are the largest consumer of milk in the united states (school lunch program).

Some concessions have been made like stopping the flow of milk in from Canada which was driving down the price of milk. They are hugely subsidized making it hard for Maine dairy farmer to compete.

The best way to explain this is by asking a simple question: would you work twice a day, 365 days a year, watching prices for fuel, grain and every other needed item on a farm soar, while you make the same pay per gallon as you made in the 1970's? After 40 years, a pay raise would be nice!

It is insane, dairy farmers produce the perfect food (milk) and what a much better world this would be if we drank more milk and a lot less soda...

good point broken,

what is the out of state milk brand?? hood ?

i've toured garelick and oakhurst production plants(years ago)-very interesting!
i believe they are the top brands for promoting maine dairy farmers
(and houlton farms up north)

awareness between brands would help consumers make a better MAINE purchase decision
also, knowing the private labels would help- is hannaford milk oakhurst or hood? or garelick?
same as shaws and wallyworld

i believe shurfine private label
milk is oakhurst (in central southern maine, and garelick in central northern maine)

if thier are Maine choices that support maine farmers (over out of state choices) i believe more maine milk would be consumed
(i believe cumberland farms sells for state minimum, and it may not be maine milk?????

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by mainebrokerman

if thier are Maine choices that support maine farmers (over out of state choices) i believe more maine milk would be consumed
(i believe cumberland farms sells for state minimum, and it may not be maine milk?????

MOO Milk started distributing last week. It's in my fridge!

[starwalker]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

MOO Milk started distributing last week. It's in my fridge!

I am looking forward to picking some up when I get to town on Tues... that is if Hannifords has any! and if they are out, I'll be sure to let them know I was looking for it.

[maine4.us]

I grew up in an agricultural area of Tennessee. This post brought back many childhood memories. Almost 100% of the local dairy farms are gone. Most of the farmers took jobs, when they could find them, and now have basically subsistence farms. Small farms cannot compete (price wise) with the large conglomerates. The small organic farms seem to be doing better than most. It's not just the farmers, its everyone who is stressed right now. American workers, no matter how productive they are, cannot compete with foreign made goods whose production is heavily subsidized by their governments. Perhaps it is time to turn America's economic engine homeward to our own economic woes. How about tax credits for farms here, and some taxes on imported food? Yes, some of the people will scream, we don't want to start a trade war. Aren't we in an economic war right now?

I work in the education field, and people would not believe the numbers of people whose job has simply disappeared. Some of these workers have didn't have a high school diploma when the took the job. Now they need one. Worksource in Florida won't even consider retraining (budget cuts) unless the person can pass a functional literacy test.

Back on the thread, Farmers are especially hard hit, but then so is everyone. If you have friends and relatives who have lost their jobs, and have few prospects, have the "talk" with them too. Our son is in this category. He trained to be a carpenter, he went to school for 4 years at night. Now with the housing/construction industry in the tank, he has no real choice, but to try and hang in there, or face retraining. The big question is retrain for what? We talk to him all the time and do what we can to be there for him now.

GREAT THREAD! Spend the extra pennies to keep your neighbors and other Americans at work!

Keep everyone in your prayers who is unemployed, or simply not making it economically, especially if it isn't their OWN fault!

[K-Luv]

Originally Posted by BrokenTap

The government does set the price...in fact it is set a year in advance since they are the largest consumer of milk in the united states (school lunch program).

I wrote a lengthy response, but this article sums things up nicely:

The Madness of American Milk Prices | Chris Edwards | Cato Institute: Daily Commentary


The only real solution is to buy local. I don't know why people in Maine need to drink milk that comes from California or Wisconsin or even Vermont, or why someone in Montana should by an avocado from Mexico. Another thing would be for smaller dairy farms to co-op so, as a whole, they could realistically compete with the larger dairy operations.


And, by the way, US agriculture is highly subsidized as well. In fact, that is how most farmers make their money.

[Submariner]

There are many small dairies that sell directly to the consumer as well as at Farmers Markets through-out Maine.

I have heard good things about 'MOO' as well.