U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin says new federal match requirements could kill a program meant to support dairy farmers and processors.
Baldwin, D-Madison, is asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reverse course on a new rule that would require the four federally funded Dairy Business Innovation Initiative Centers – including one in Wisconsin – provide a 25% match to their federal funding.
The centers disburse grants to help small- and medium-sized dairy businesses expand their product line and diversify their revenue streams; Baldwin introduced legislation creating the program that passed as part of the 2018 farm bill.
“The centers do not have the capital available to meet this new matching requirement, putting the future of the program at risk,” Baldwin wrote in the letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins. “Congress has consistently supported the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives on a bipartisan basis and has provided funding for the program without requiring centers to provide a cash match.”
The program has awarded over $100 million in grants to over 900 businesses since its inception.
The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association and the Wisconsin Dairy Products Association have also signed onto a separate letter with 26 other dairy providers opposing the cost-sharing requirement.
That letter notes that the four Dairy Business Innovation Initiative Centers are housed as part of state institutions, and in one case an industry-university partnership, and neither have the financial resources to match the federal funds nor directly benefit from the awarded funds.
The dairy providers say the grants are “particularly important” in today’s dairy economy.
“Farmers and processors are managing volatile markets, elevated production and energy costs, transportation expenses, workforce challenges, infrastructure and capital needs, and significant domestic and international competition,” the letter reads.
Read Baldwin’s letter and the letter cosigned by the Wisconsin dairy groups.
