During opening day of World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., U.S. Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue told farmers they have nothing to be ashamed of and they should tell their story to anyone who will listen.

“It’s up to every one of us to speak up,” he said. “We do the best job of growing food in the world and nobody knows. You have a great story to tell — tell it loud and proudly.”

Perdue answered questions Oct. 1 from about 200 farmers and dairy industry representatives. “I came to listen more than talk,” he said to a round of applause from the audience that morning.

Paul Adams, an organic dairy farmer from western Wisconsin, asked Perdue, “Why is USDA allowing mega organic dairies to flood the market?

“There has been a lot of organic milk from these mega dairies, can we get by without following the same rules I have to follow,” Adams asked.

Perdue invited Adams to point out the different rules he must follow compared to the mega organic dairies, and Perdue promised he will look into it.

“I have already done that once, but I will do it again,” Adams said.

Trade deal with China

Jeff Lyon, general manager of FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative, headquartered in Madison, asked what the likelihood is of getting the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement signed and getting a trade deal with China.

“Trade is the No. 1 issue I hear as I travel around the country,” Perdue said. “Isn’t it a blessing that we produce so much food we have to rely on foreign markets to sell our products to.”

Perdue said he is confident House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will bring USMCA to the floor for a vote possibly before the end of the year.

“I think if the speaker put this on the floor now, I think it will pass both the House and the Senate,” Perdue said. “I think she will do that so we can get that done. There’s been some distractions the past few days,” he noted, without specifically mentioning the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump initiated last week by Pelosi.

“China is a different deal,” he said. “Does anyone know what China will do? I don’t know when we will get something done there.”

Future of dairy

Joe Bragger, a Buffalo County, Wis., dairy farmer noted that between 16% and 18% of U.S. dairy products were sold to foreign countries between 2016 and 2019, U.S. dairy farmers had low milk prices, and hundreds of Wisconsin dairy farmers have gone out of business in 2018 and 2019 as a result.

“What are you doing to prevent another five-year downturn like we’ve just experienced?” Bragger asked.

Perdue thanked Bragger for his question and said that milk prices “are moving forward. NASS thinks milk prices will be better in 2020 than they were in 2019.”

Perdue also said he hopes all of the dairy farmers in the room signed up for the Dairy Margin Program. “Sustainability is a buzzword in farming,” he said. “The best way for farmers to be sustainable is for them to be profitable.”

The ag secretary told another Wisconsin dairy farmer — who thanked him for moving up the harvest date of hay from Nov. 1 to Sept. 1 due to prevented planting — that he was considering making that Sept. 1 harvest date permanent.

“We hope we never have another wet spring and massive number of prevented plant acres like we did this year again,” Perdue said.

Meat alternatives

Ag journalist Pete Hardin questioned whether the ag secretary supports lab-cultured meats and meat alternatives.

“I’ve had an Impossible Burger, and I don’t go to that fast-food restaurant anymore,” Perdue said. “We can’t deny technology. Our primary role is to ensure the safety and health of the consumer. Consumers will make the choice,” he said, noting that people who are eating meat alternatives probably aren’t eating beef.