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1 HAPPY NEW YEAR! Northeast Dairy Farmers Cooperatives Agri-Mark, Inc. Dairy Farmers of America Northeast Council St. Albans Cooperative Creamery Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc. NDFC NEWSLETTER Bob Gray, Editor Contact Bob and Mike Here: Phone: , FAX: Spring Training Starts In 6 Weeks! Partial Federal Government Shutdown Continues Where Does This Leave USDA? What Are The Issues Ahead For Agriculture in 2019? 19 Good Reasons To Keep Milk In Your Diet Collin Peterson s Plans For House Ag Committee 2019 In the January 4 th, 2019 Edition: Immigration: The Year-End Good And Bad Recalling The Pedro Pan Children USDA Invests $501 Million in Healthcare Infrastructure And Rural Communities Comparing The Ages Of The 115 th and 116 th Congresses New House Rules MARCELLUS SHALE UPDATE Spring Training Starts In 6 weeks! By the middle of February, we will be into spring training. So, it is time for a little baseball chatter. A few stories from baseball s most famous characters will help move things along. I like this one about Earl Weaver, the Hall of Fame manager for the Baltimore Orioles. We all know he didn t get along with umpires and got ejected 91 times during his managerial career. But as you will recall from our baseball quiz, Bobby Cox, former manager of the Atlanta Braves holds the record for most career ejections. Earl started his quarrels with the umpires when he managed in the minor leagues. Two umps he disliked the most were Ron Luciano and Marty Springstead. In his first meeting with Ron Luciano in the minor leagues in a four-game series, Earl was ejected in the third inning of the first game and in the second inning of the second game, in the first inning of the third game and was thrown out before the fourth game even started. Their relationship went downhill from there. Partial Government Shutdown Continues On the first day of the new 116 th Congress there was no progress made in re-opening the federal agencies that includes USDA, Interior, HUD, Commerce, State, Treasury, Justice, EPA, Transportation and Homeland Security. The House passed a spending bill that would appropriate monies for the rest of the fiscal year (2019) for all of the federal agencies listed above, except the Department of Homeland Security. Funding for DHS would be extended through a Continuing Resolution until February 8th. DHS is where the funding for the Wall between the U.S. and Mexico would be included if a deal could be reached between the President and Congressional Democrats. The President stated he would veto the spending bill mentioned above that was passed by the House last night by a vote of 241 to 190. The Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, has said he has no plans to take the House bill up for consideration. The President and Congressional leaders plan to meet again today.

2 Where Does This Leave USDA? Unfortunately, most USDA employees are furloughed. Agencies such as FSA and NRCS have had some carry over funds available at the state and county level to keep their offices at least partially open but those funds will quickly dry up. This means, of course, that the important professional services these offices provide to farmers will not be available in the near future until the offices re-open. It will also mean that it will slow down the process of getting the rules written on the various provisions in the 2018 Farm Bill, such as the Dairy Margin Coverage Program. And USDA employees do not get paid until the stand-off is over. Let s hope this is resolved soon! Collin Peterson s Plans For House Ag Committee 2019 By Bob Gray Subcommittee Chairs will be empowered to do a lot of the work at their level as opposed to the top down style of the Committee in the 115th Congress. Much of the work in 2019 will focus on oversight of implementation of the 2018 farm bill. Other focuses will be on the condition of the farm economy and the impacts of trade negotiations and tariffs on rural America. Full Committee: State of farm economy with Secretary Perdue Trade hearing with USDA and USTR Implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard & impact on rural economy Broadband delivery in rural America (potential joint with E&C) Potential for mission area hearings with Under Secretaries and agency heads General Farm Commodities & Risk Management: Review of Trump Administration s trade remedy program Interaction between conservation practices & crop insurance (with CF Subcommittee) Realignment of the FPAC mission area & integration of agency information, programs & staff (including field level staffing) Status of crop insurance and disaster programs Data gathering and analysis/use of data in farm programs (with BHR Subcommittee) Commodity Exchanges, Rural Development & Credit: CFTC reauthorization (lapsed in 2013) Review of credit conditions and availability in rural America Broadband (see above) Access to USDA-Rural Development programs and technical assistance for small communities Conservation, Energy and Forestry: Effectiveness of working lands conservation programs to help address changing climate conditions

3 Effectiveness of wetland easements & USDA maintenance Review of farm bill energy programs Evaluation of current Forest Service management tools & workforce challenges Nutrition, Oversight & Department Operations: Review of SNAP E&T pilots Review of Trump Administration s rulemaking on SNAP waivers Review of Trump Administration remakes of USDA organizational structure Review of the status of USDA Civil Rights situation for customers & employees Review of the statutes of USDA outreach & intergovernmental efforts Biotechnology, Horticulture, and Research: Review of commodity check-off programs Status of NIFA/ERS move & realignment Biodefense preparedness (with LFA Subcommittee) FSMA implementation Review of National Ag Statistics Service data gathering and effectiveness Livestock and Foreign Agriculture: Review of food aid response to humanitarian crises overseas Review of trade promotion activities & Trump Administration trade remedy package Review of animal health issues What Are The Issues Ahead For Agriculture in 2019? Implementation of the 2018 Farm Bill - - ALL Titles Dairy Margin Coverage Program (DMC) Implementation: Ø Rules have yet to be written Ø Sign up could begin in early spring Ø DMC payments will be retroactive to January 1 st Completion of Agriculture Immigration Reform? Ø This is huge - - of the highest priority and clearly the most iffy! Completion of the Waters of the U.S. Rule rewrite Rules on Genetically Engineered Food Products Ø Implementation date January 1, 2020 Ø Extended implementation date (small food manufacturers) January 1, 2021 Ø Voluntary compliance date - - ends on December 31, 2021 Ø Mandatory compliance date January 1, 2022 SNAP work rule waivers as promulgated by USDA Food and Drug Administration Decision (possibly) on labeling plant based beverages with the word milk Ratification of the U.S. Mexican Canadian Act? Ø We will see if this free trade deal gets ratified Progress on trade talks with China, Japan and European Union

4 19 Good Reasons To Keep Milk In Your Diet What a nice way to start out the New Year! I received this courtesy of Diane Bothfeld, Director of Administrative Services and Dairy Policy with the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets. The count starts with: 1. Milk contains nine essential nutrients, which include calcium, Vitamin D, Vitamin A, riboflavin, phosphorus, Vitamin B12, protein, potassium, niacin. 2. One serving of milk has 8 grams of power-packed protein. In comparison, one would have to drink one serving of soy milk (7 g. protein) PLUS one serving of almond milk (1 g. protein) to equal milk. 3. According to Milk Life, nearly half of Americans get their vitamin D from milk. One 8 oz. serving contains 30% of your daily recommended amount of vitamin D. 4. Milk is made up of only three ingredients Milk, Vitamin D and A. Plant-based milks can contain 10 or more added ingredients! Read on! 5. Zip! Zero! Nada! Milk contains zero added sugars and only 12 grams of natural sugar (lactose.) 6. Vitamin A, an essential nutrient found in milk, helps support a healthy immune system. 7. Dairy milk can help save you moolah! The average American household spends about 10 percent of their budget on food nearly $80 a week for groceries, according to Milk Life. If consumers purchased milk each week, they would spend an estimated $628 annually. This is much lower compared to the $1,222 that would be spent on purchasing almond milk. In comparison, Dairy milk would save consumers nearly $600 each year. 8. Cultured dairy foods like yogurt contain probiotics which provide a wide array of health benefits. Probiotics in the diet can enhance the good bacteria in the gut, improve health and reduce the risk of certain diseases, as reported by the Dairy Council of California. 9. Rich in high-quality protein, milk helps support lean muscle growth. 10. Studies have shown that dairy fat found in whole milk and cheese can help reduce the risk of type two diabetes. 11. Nearly one-third of American suffer from high blood pressure. According to Dairy Good and the National Dairy Council, consumption of dairy products is linked to a lower risk of high blood pressure. 12. Healthy nutrition and eating habits help keep our teeth strong and white. Dairy foods have a specific role to play in dental health as they contain a unique combination of special anti-decay nutrients such as calcium, phosphorus and the protein, casein, as reported by Legendairy. 13. According to Medical News Today, vitamin D, a nutrient found in milk, helps play a role in cell growth regulation and cancer protection. 14. Research has shown that drinking milk every day has been linked to reduce the progression of osteoarthritis, a disease that several effects our mobility and joint health. 15. This decline of skeletal muscle tissue and function or strength with age is called sarcopenia, which is linked with increased risk of falls and can contribute to poor health. Drinking protein rich milk and exercising regularly can help slow age-related muscle loss Eating low-fat yogurt has been shown to reduce chronic inflammation and also improve gut integrity. 17. About one in three adults has metabolic syndrome, a set of risk factors that increase the risk of stroke and heart disease. Research suggest that dairy foods can help lower these risk factors. 18. Just got done with a workout? Drink chocolate milk! It s a great source of electrolytes, including calcium, potassium, sodium, and magnesium to help replenish what's lost in sweat. 19. We re all guilty of over indulging during the holidays but snacking on protein filled snacks is actually recommended by nutritionists! The high-quality protein found in milk, cheese and yogurt keeps us feeling fuller longer, which can assist with weight loss.

5 The Heathen Chronicle By Willow and Mia Gray We re back!! Willow and Mia have made New Year s resolutions. This is dangerous for any human but for a Beagle, it is insane! Just listen! Mia: Well, I know what I have resolved to do this year! W How about you? Willow: Oh, that s just great! I m going to do something fun you can t. Mia: (Snicker) Lose weight? Willow: No!!! I m going to learn how to Samba, and shake it, shake it, baby! If you ve got it, shake it and I ve got it! Nanny nanny boo-boo! Immigration: The Year-End Good And Bad By Maggie McHugh In spite of everything that runs against immigration in general, there were some late 2018 victories. Two distinct court decisions were handed down on December 19 th. A federal judge in Washington, D.C. decided contrary to an administration effort to stop victims of domestic violence or gangs from receiving asylum. Basically, the court found in favor of the credible fear interview stage. All asylum applicants are screened on this subject at the border. Under the judge s order, this border interview cannot be stopped. However, the administration s policy on this subject can be used in affirmative asylum interviews or even in immigration court proceedings. The second judicial action of the same day occurred in San Francisco. This federal judge turned down the administration s policy of banning asylum for anyone who entered the country between official ports of entry; that is, walking or rafting across the border. On Friday of the same week, the Supreme Court denied an administration request to put the San Francisco rejection on hold. And, of course, there were challenges the very same week. The administration announced that asylum seekers arriving at the southern border would be returned to Mexico for the duration of their immigration court proceedings in the U.S. No details were released but Mexico has since indicated that this puts that country in a kind of a bind regarding what to do with the seekers in the interim. At the end of the week, the President announced that he would shut down the government over a bipartisan plan to fund the government into February without providing any additional funding for a border wall. Recalling The Pedro Pan Children By Maggie McHugh Back in the early Sixties after Fidel Castro dislodged Fulgencio Batista from leadership in Cuba, the new regime immediately turned the society into a Communist satellite. The most basic method in this effort was to indoctrinate children. All of the traditional schools were shut down, including private and parochial schools. The Castro Ministry of Education replaced them with indoctrination classes and promoted a policy stating the teacher has an unavoidable obligation to transmit revolutionary thinking to students. Children were taught how to bear arms and sing anti-american songs. Boys especially had to practice military drills. It was obvious what the true nature of Castro s education was. Cuban parents experienced credible fear and immediately started to withdraw their children from indoctrination classes, even at the expense of their own safety and freedom. This was. in the mind of the regime, anti-castro sentiment. The Castro government separated children from families seeking to leave Cuba. The children could go but the parents had to stay.

6 Ninety miles away in southern Florida the Catholic Welfare Bureau made an agreement with the U.S. State Department to start a program that airlifted 14,000 unaccompanied Cuban children to either foster homes or temporary camps in various places in the U.S. This effort was dubbed La Operacion Pedro Pan (Peter Pan). Specifically, a pastor in Miami, Father Bryan Walsh, was allowed by the State Department to sign visa waivers for children up to the age of 16. The visas were accepted by the Castro government resulting in a wave of visas around the island. With the help of the Bureau and the State Department, two flights a day of Pan Am airliners left Havana for Miami from 1960 to For the most part, the unaccompanied children were generally deprived by Cuban security guards of any luggage their families had provided, leaving the children with only what was in their pockets or purses. This pretty much deprived the children of whatever mementos they had of their parents, an emotional injury atop emotional disaster. Over the years in the U.S., some of the children were eventually reunited with their families. Some were not. Most never ever returned to Cuba. The Northeast region definitely played a part in taking in the children. Northeast receptor states listed in the archives were Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Maryland. The majority of these children did well in their new home. Among the children air lifted from Havana was a young boy, Mel Martinez, who eventually became a U.S. Senator from Florida. Nowadays, thousands of Cubans are still coming to the U.S., focusing on new opportunities. USDA Invests $501 Million In Healthcare Infrastructure And Rural Communities USDA is investing $501 million in 60 projects to help improve health care infrastructure and services in rural communities nationwide. Per Anne Hazlett, assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development, creating strong and healthy communities is foundational to increasing prosperity in rural America. Under the leadership of Secretary Sonny Perdue, USDA is committed to partnering with rural leaders to improve quality of life and economic development through modern and accessible health care. USDA will offer these loan opportunities to residential and commercial projects in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming. Comparing The Ages Of The 115 th And 116 th Congresses It appears that the last Congress was the oldest in history with the average age of 58.5 as of the day it convened. As we proceed into the 116 th Congress and we re still compiling comprehensive age data for it, but it includes a historic number of minorities, women, and young people. The 2018 midterm election quintupled the number of millennials, who will hold House seats. Finally, the 116 th Congress will have one hundred new House members; sixty-three of those are Democrats, who will have a majority, with one seat in North Carolina remaining vacant amid allegations of election fraud. Eight new members will be sworn into the Senate, where Republicans will expand their majority from to New House Rules On Monday evening the House Democrats released a new rules package with changes including: allowing Congress to suspend the debt limit by passing a budget (the so-called Gephardt Rule); a 72-hour rule to allow members of Congress time to review bills before a vote; a 'consensus calendar' to quickly legislate when there is bipartisan support; and a bipartisan Select Committee to modernize Congress. Finally, the new rules ban members of Congress and employees from sitting on corporate boards.

7 MARCELLUS SHALE UPDATE U.S. Continues to Break Oil Production Records: Per the Energy Information Administration (EIA), U.S. drillers pumped a record million barrels of crude oil per day in October, an increase of 79,000 bpd from September. Gross natural gas production in the contiguous 48 states also climbed to a record 96.7 billion cubic feet per day in October.