No difference seen in regular, organic, and BST-free milks

Despite claims and/or inferences by those who market them, yet another scientific study has concluded that the only difference between BST-free or organic milk versus “regular” milk is their cost.

Writing in the May issue of the Journal of Dairy Science, Cornell University researchers said, “Results established that there were no meaningful differences that would affect public health, and all milks were similar in nutritional quality and wholesomeness.”

The researchers noted that consumers are becoming increasingly health conscious and food product choices have expanded, and choices in the dairy case include fluid milk labeled according to production management practices. Such labeling may be misunderstood and perceived by consumers to reflect differences in the quality or nutritional content of milk.

The study was a logistically daunting one: Buy samples of conventionally produced milk with no specialty labeling, milk labeled BST-free, and milk labeled organic; then analyze the fatty acid (FA) composition of all samples in a lab. A total of 292 samples were collected from stores in all 48 contiguous states.

“Without exception, the magnitudes of the differences in milk FA composition among milk label types were minor and of no physiological importance when considering public health or dietary recommendations,” concluded the researchers.

Tougher organic milk and meat rules

The organic milk and meat world will change significantly on June 17, when stricter new regulations defining it go into effect. The new standards were announced by USDA earlier this month after several years of study and discussion requested by organic producer groups, food companies, and consumer organizations.

At the heart of the new rules is a precise definition of how much time cattle producing organic milk or meat must spend on pasture: at least four months each year, although they need not be consecutive. Another precise stipulation that figures to be more difficult to measure is that at least 30 percent of their feed intake must come from grazing. Previously, the only stipulation was that cows needed have access to pasture.

The new rules come at a time when adverse effects of recession in the general economy are taking a bite out of organic product sales. For several years, proponents boasted about the huge annual percentage growth in organic sales and dairy numbers but did not mention the actual totals involved. According to a USDA analysis released February 25 that detailed a slowdown in organic growth, the number of organic milk cows in 2005 was 86,000 (just under 1 percent) and organic milk’s total U.S. fluid market share in 2008 was just 3 percent.

The analysis said the recession is having a major impact on organic dairies in ways besides just a slowdown in retail sales. Organic production costs are estimated to be $4.78 per hundredweight higher than conventional dairies. In addition, average organic herd size is about 50 percent smaller and production per cow is about 30 percent less, both of which limit production efficiency and scales of economy. A lengthy and costly conversion period is also required for existing conventional dairies to be certified for organic production.

Stonyfield and CROPP enter new partnership to sustain organic dairy farming

CROPP, the nation’s largest organic milk cooperative recently announced that it has entered a new partnership with Stonyfield Organic. CROPP is best-known to the dairy industry for its Organic Valley brand of dairy products. For more than 11 years, CROPP has supplied milk for all of Stonyfield’s dairy products with the exception of fluid milk. However, in this new partnership, CROPP will manage the organic milk supply for Stonyfield fluid milk products and invite the farmers producing that milk into the cooperative. HP Hood, the previous supplier, will continue to process the milk. CROPP will also license the Stonyfield fluid milk brand and oversee its sales and retail distribution.

The goal of the new partnership, according to Stonyfield Organic, is to further sustain organic family farming and preserve consumer choice. "This broader partnership with Stonyfield keeps organic farmers organic, keeps organic land organic, helps keep toxins out of our bodies and our earth, and gives retailers and consumers a much-needed alternative," said George Siemon, CEO of CROPP Cooperative. CROPP Cooperative currently includes 1,333 members from across the country who produce a variety of organic foods, including dairy, meats, eggs, and produce.

Organic dairy farms feeling pressure

Rock-bottom milk prices and high costs are hurting dairy farms of all types and sizes across the nation. The financial blow to organic dairy operations may be especially severe, according to a recent USDA analysis.

The May 19, 2009, Livestock, Dairy, & Poultry Outlook focused on the three states with the highest number of organic farms, according to Census Bureau figures . . . Wisconsin (433), New York (301), and Vermont (182). The report estimates that organic dairy farms have operating costs that are $5 to $7 per hundredweight higher than conventional farms. The March 2009 USDA monthly cost figures for conventional farms in Wisconsin, New York, and Vermont were $21.54, $26.55, and $24.94, respectively. In April, the average organic pay price in the Northeast was thought to average $27.43, according to the Northeast Organic Dairy Farmers Association.

Therefore, the New York and Vermont organic operations were losing about $4 and $5 per hundredweight, respectively. Wisconsin organic dairy farms were thought to be losing $3 per hundredweight. These numbers are based on USDA’s total cost of producing milk.

Softening demand for organic dairy products has compounded the problem. The contracts of 10 of Maine’s 65 organic dairies were not renewed this spring, according to the New York Times. Sales of reduced-fat organic milk in February were 15 percent lower than a year earlier, according to USDA data.