March Class I base price to offer reprieve for producers The Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) advanced Class I base price will offer some reprieve to producers’ milk checks come March, rising 77 cents from the month prior to reach $15.47 per hundredweight (cwt). While the higher price is welcomed, prices have not been this low since March 2021, and this year’s Class I base price is $5.55 per cwt lower than March 2025. Class I zone differentials are added to the base price

USDA is helping create an additional outlet for milk, cheese and butter by purchasing millions of dollars’ worth of dairy products for food banks and federal nutrition programs. In a recent announcement, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins shared USDA’s plans to purchase up to $263 million in agricultural products through the department’s Section 32 authority under the Agriculture Act of 1935. Of that total, nearly $148 million is earmarked specifically for dairy pro

Historically high beef prices continue to play heavily in the dairy market. For the eighth consecutive year, heifer inventories at the beginning as of January 1 were lower than they were the year before. And that will continue to incentivize dairy producers to breed for the beef market while keeping more older cows in the milk herd, according to Sarina Sharp, analyst with the Daily Dairy Report. According to USDA’s recent Cattle report, as of January 1, the national milk herd