Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) payments were triggered again in April as the difference between the national all milk price and the national average feed cost (margin) was below several of the producer-selected margin triggers.
The national margin for April was $6.94 per hundredweight (cwt), triggering DMC payments for those that elected Tier 1 margin coverage levels from $7 per cwt to $9.50 per cwt, and for those with Tier 2 margin coverage levels from $7 per cwt to $8 per cwt.
The payments range from $0.06 per cwt for those with $7 margin coverage to $2.56 for those with $9.50 per cwt margin coverage.
As of May 17, USDA said that an estimated $344 million had been paid out to dairy producers opting for the DMC program. Payments have been triggered for January-April this year.
