UDAF To Distribute Powdered Milk To
Utah Livestock Producers In Drought Hit Areas

Ten Counties Qualify For Program

Utah Commissioner of Agriculture and Food, Cary G. Peterson announced that qualifying livestock owners in Utah will again be eligible for surplus USDA non-fat dry milk (NDM) in areas hardest hit by continuing drought.

"I am happy to announce that the USDA is again extending a valuable feed supplement program to ranchers suffering through another year of drought," said Commissioner Peterson. "Many Utah ranchers are taking advantage of this program that offers needed nutrition for their herds," he added.

Owners of the following livestock, located in the 10 qualifying counties, are eligible for the program: foundation herds of beef cattle, sheep, goats and bison. Owners of such herds are encouraged to contact their local USDA Farm Service Agency office to confirm their eligibility.

Ten of Utah's 29 counties qualify for the program. Those counties are: Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Garfield, Iron, Kane, Rich, San Juan, Summit, and Washington.

An estimated six million pounds of non-fat dry milk will be distributed through area feed dealers who will be contacted to determine whether they wish to participate in the program. The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) will also contact qualifying livestock owners in the 10 eligible counties to alert them to the program.

The Non-fat dry milk made available will be based upon 75 percent of the size of foundation livestock herds of beef cattle, sheep, goats, and bison in such counties. A 30-day supply of NDM will be calculated at the rate of two pounds of NDM per eligible bovine and bison per day, and one-half pound of NDM per sheep and goat per day.

The U.S. Drought Monitor is used to determine which counties are eligible to ensure the initiative is targeted to producers in greatest need. To be eligible, counties must have been designated either "extreme" or "exceptional" drought areas during the past six months.

To date, USDA has provided almost 400 million pounds of nonfat dry milk in 10 states and 85 counties to supplement the feed for 2.3 million head of beef cattle, sheep, goats and bison.

The non-fat dry milk initiative is in addition to emergency grazing that the USDA announced June 24 on Conservation Reserve Program Acres to provide relief for farmers and ranchers in qualifying areas.

Approximately 95 counties in nine states currently meet the initial eligibility criteria for the NDM program. The states with eligible counties are: Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

The current program specifies that:

• USDA will denature the NDM before shipment to the feed dealers to prevent human consumption.
• The NDM will be sold to feed dealers under restricted use provisions for $275.00 per 41,500 pounds, which represents a typical semi-truck load.
• Feed dealers shall permit inspection of inventory and related records to ensure compliance with 2004 NDM Livestock Feed Assistance Initiative provisions.
• The NDM shall not be used as feed for dairy cattle, veal, poultry, swine, or fish.
• The exportation of the NDM outside of the U.S. is prohibited.