Agency: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
Action: Notification of Final Rule effective April 24, 2025
Why it matters: USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) issued a final rule, authorized by the Relief Act of 2025, to reauthorize the Dairy Forward Pricing Program (DFPP) to allow handlers to enter into new contracts until Sept. 30, 2025, with a deadline subject to a Sept. 30, 2028, expiration date. The DFPP allows milk handlers to pay producers or cooperative associations of producers a negotiated price for producer milk. Participation in the DFPP is voluntary for dairy farmers, dairy farmer cooperatives, and handlers.