By Jenny Mills, NEAFA President
There are many reasons to celebrate June is Dairy Month! I am excited to celebrate the producers and suppliers of those farms that work tirelessly to put food on our plates and take care of the land, animals and employees 24/7 even in some of the warmest June temperatures we have experienced recently. In addition, I am celebrating the collaboration we have in agriculture. There are several articles in this issue highlighting the legislative wrap-ups and June Dairy Month celebration that NEAFA participated in with the Northeast Dairy Producers Association, New York Farm Bureau, Upstate Niagara Cooperative at Oakfield Corners Dairy in Batavia. Attendees included New York Agriculture Commissioner Ball, Deputy Commissioner Howard and Policy Advisor Giuliano. Thank you to Dr. Charlie Elrod for representing NEAFA at this roundtable event, please check out Charlie’s article in this newsletter.
Collaboration with our legislative partners has been critical to getting our priorities and voices heard. Thank you to our collaborators in Vermont – the Vermont Dairy Producers Alliance. The neonic bill was one of the hot topics in Vermont, many thanks to all of you who reached out to state legislators. The bill passed the legislature and was vetoed by Governor Scott, only to be overridden by the legislature in late June. Thank you to Shouldice and Associates for their professional efforts. Collaboration will continue with VDPA to increase our voice in Vermont.
In New York, a huge thank you to Hinman Straub and Associates for not just representing NEAFA’s interests in the halls of Albany, but also for working together with several other firms representing our collaborators to align on messaging and updates on many active bills in New York. During our visits to key legislators in May, we shared NEAFA’s point of view on a couple of bills we were against. Two of those bills did not pass both houses, including:
TEMP Act: This proposal would have established a protection policy for employees against high heat levels in certain workplaces. This bill did not get two house approval, though legislation that placed more proscriptive restrictions on heat conditions in schools did.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): This bill would assign responsibility for recycling and waste reduction to producers.
Although these did not pass the legislature, we can expect them to return in the next session.
In addition to these two bills we opposed, several bills passed the legislature and will be on the Governor’s desk for signing. Check out the NY legislative update article for more specifics. Continuing our collaboration with industry partners around key policy issues, including transportation, will be critical in the months ahead.
I hope to see you all this summer – mark your calendars for the NEAFA Golf for Good Works Tournament on August 19 (reception) and 20 (golf tournament). We will again be at the gorgeous Turning Stone course in Verona, NY. A great day for a great cause – helping our youth in agriculture!
Raise a glass of milk and celebrate June Dairy Month! We have accomplished several key initiatives and are working on continued collaboration. Thank you for your input on key issues and continuing to supply and support our many producers throughout the Northeast!