Dear Neighbor,
Had a good time meeting with local ag folks who made the trip to St. Paul to participate in Dairy Day at the Capitol on Wednesday. It was a great opportunity to spread our dairy message and remind people how important the industry is to Minnesota's economy.
Thanks to Agriculture Policy chair Jeanne Poppe for allowing me to take the stage, so to speak, during a Wednesday committee meeting. It provided me an opportunity to deliver an overview of the dairy industry and to share some anecdotes pertaining to our area.
Stearns is the top dairy-producing county in the state and the ag industry in general is a key driver in our local economy. Agriculture is one of the sectors which helped us stay afloat during the recession and dairy production was up 4 percent last year.
I was doing some research on the dairy industry and found there are more cows in Stearns County ( about 69,000 head) than residents in our district (around 40,000). A recent report indicates the average dairy farm spends $367,000 per year in input costs, including everything from feed to machinery and parts. With today's higher input costs, that figure is most likely quite a bit higher.
Dairy processing plants are substantial job sources in Greater Minnesota, including Melrose Dairy Protein and Kraft Foods Dairy Plant in Albany. This company has produced the ubiquitous cheese powder for macaroni and cheese since 1966.
On a related note, the Dept. of Agriculture received 325 applications for a livestock investment grant program. They hope to fund 80 to 100 of the grants to assist in meeting a big demand for operational improvements.
We continue fleshing out the details of Gov. Dayton's budget proposal as we await next month's updated economic forecast. One thing recently came to light: It was initially reported the governor proposes $225 million in cuts. Actually, that number is lower because $58 million of the "cuts" are just changes in accounting. The governor's budget proposal is at least $16 in new taxes for each $1 in cuts.
Thanks for all the input I have been receiving on the issues this session. Local feedback really helps me continue doing my best to represent citizens in our area, so keep those emails coming!
Sincerely,
Paul