Grundy Reporter

In celebration of National Dairy month, the Illinois Milk Producers Association (IMPA) teamed up with dairy farmers and organizations across the state to donate more than 2,000 half gallons of milk and nearly 400 half-gallon lactose-free milk containers to food banks in the central and eastern parts of the state.

“What we are hoping to do is bring a little more awareness to milk consumption, the value, the contribution and just the overall health that dairy brings to our communities,” said IMPA Executive Director Tasha Bunting in a June 7 Brownfield News report. “This is a way to help bring those communities that maybe are a little more food insecure the products that they are needing.”

The Brownfield News report stated that this was part of helping with food insecurity in Illinois. The donation is an ongoing endeavor, according to Bunting, who said the IMPA is working with groups statewide to form a Dairy Donation Group. This includes working with the Illinois Pork Producers Association, using the Illinois Pork Power donation program as a model in formulating the initiative. They have also received contributions from the Illinois Corn Growers Association and the Illinois Soybean Association.

“We worked with Prairie Farms, who’s been very generous in helping us secure product and work on getting us the tools that we need to be able to hopefully build upon it for the future and growing a program for more distribution and donation,” Bunting added in the Brownfield News report.

The International Dairy Foods Association notes that National Dairy Month began in 1937, as National Milk Month as a way to encourage people to drink milk and stabilize the demand for dairy when production led to a surplus of milk available to the public. The National Dairy Council turned the observance into a tradition that highlights the work of dairy farmers across the country.

State Rep. Jackie Haas (R-Kankakee) took to social media to mark National Dairy Month. She wrote on Facebook: “This month we celebrate all things dairy in Illinois, like milk, cheese, ice cream, yogurt and more! What’s your favorite dairy-based treat? #DairyMonth”

Haas included a link to a Farm Progress report highlighting how people are observing Dairy Month in Illinois. She also listed facts about dairy including that Illinois cows produce 200 million gallons of milk each year. There are 411 dairy farms, 84,000 cows milked, 27 processing plants and 20,656 jobs in dairy production and food processing. Cows produce 2,400 gallons of milk each year and $248 million in total dairy products has been exported. The fact sheet also noted that 95% of dairy farms are family owned and operated.

On June 1, Awake Illinois shared a piece of milk-related trivia on Twitter saying: "#June is National #Dairy Month. Did you now Illinois is home to more than 780 dairy farms?”

In a June 22 news release, Haas discussed a USDA report, which notes that as of June 11, less than half of the fields in the state have enough moisture to grow corn and soybeans planted this year. Only 27% of fields have adequate topsoil moisture, she said, which could have an effect on the farmers who raise crops to feed dairy animals and others. While Illinois farmers are expressing concerns about the crop conditions, she said if heavy rainfall comes it could bring improvements.