Regulatory Register - Winter 2024

REGULATORY REGISTER

Sustainability & the Environment

NMPF Takes Stand Against Emissions Reporting for Manure under EPCRA

NMPF filed comments and joined with other agriculture groups in coalition comments to EPA’s Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking weighing in on the reporting of air emissions from manure under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) on Feb. 13.

Both sets of comments assert that Congress, the emergency response community, animal agriculture groups and the Coast Guard think that reporting air emissions from manure under a statute designed to address serious, life-threatening chemical spills is ill-advised and unnecessary. NMPF also said reporting would invade farmers’ privacy and put them at risk of being targeted by activists groups such as the Animal Liberation Front, which has been labeled a terrorist organization by the FBI.

Air emissions reporting under EPCRA has been an ongoing battle. NMPF and other agriculture groups were able to quash the notion that ammonia and hydrogen sulfide from manure were reportable under EPCRA and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act through a legislative fix in 2018 and a regulatory fix in 2019.

In January 2021, the Biden Administration issued an Executive Order instructing EPA to review and rethink its regulations from the last 4 years. As a result, the agency decided to reconsider the 2019 EPCRA rule exemption and requested that the D.C. District Court, where

legal action was ongoing, to send the rule back to EPA for review without nullifying it so the rule would remain in effect while undergoing review.

The agency’s plan to revoke the exemption it granted in 2019 was abandoned after pushback from NMPF and other agriculture groups. NMPF is cautiously optimistic that the common-sense exemption will be retained.

Ag Groups Oppose Proposed Rodenticide Policy Changes

NMPF and other agriculture groups submitted comments to EPA on Feb. 13 strongly opposing any policy in the “Draft Biological Evaluation for the Rodenticides and the Rodenticide Strategy” that involves making rodenticides restricted-use products. “We are deeply concerned that assumptions made and errors in the Agency’s analysis do not support the Agency’s finding that the rodenticides are likely to adversely affect even a single individual plant or animal,” the groups said in their comments.

NMPF IS DEEPLY CONCERNED THAT ASSUMPTIONS MADE AND ERRORS IN EPA’S ANALYSIS DO NOT SUPPORT ITS FINDING THAT RODENTICIDES ARE LIKELY TO ADVERSELY AFFECT EVEN A SINGLE PLANT OR ANIMAL.

NMPF and the other agriculture groups that signed on to the comments also voiced support for enhancing rodenticide stewardship to mitigate risks to non-target species and raised concerns about the effectiveness of EPA’s proposed strategy. The groups cautioned against designating rodenticide products as restricted-use items and warned of potential hazards on farms and ranches. Also emphasized was the critical importance of maintaining effective and affordable rodent control measures to safeguard animal welfare and food safety while preventing substantial environmental and financial losses in grain and feed.

NMPF, alongside other farm groups including the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Pork Producers Council, pointed to the need for EPA to collaborate with rodenticide manufacturers and agricultural stakeholders to conduct comprehensive studies on how specific uses of rodenticides and potential pathways of exposure could adversely impact endangered species.

NMPF has actively participated in this issue for several years, working alongside fellow agriculture groups to oppose the proposed ban on rodenticides.

NMPF Advocates Rendering’s Inclusion in EPA’s Food Waste Reduction Strategy

NMPF on Feb. 2 submitted comments to EPA on the draft “National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics.” The draft strategy aims to:

• Prevent food loss and waste where possible

• Increase food and other organic materials recycling to support a more circular economy for all

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions

• Save households and businesses money; and

• Build cleaner and healthier communities.

NMPF’s comments support EPA’s goals to increase organics recycling and lower the amount of food lost or wasted.

Dairy farmers take seriously their role as responsible stewards of cattle herds and seek to maximize both their productive uses and minimize waste every day.

Upon reviewing the recycling options proposed in the draft strategy, as well as those discussed in the agency’s recent report “From Field to Bin,” NMPF was disappointed over rendering’s exclusion and the potential adverse environmental effects of its omission.

Agricultural rendering for more than a century has played a crucial role U.S. dairy’s strategy to responsibly dispose of fallen stock while limiting emissions. The rendering process sequesters five times as much greenhouse gas as it emits.

Considering the substantial size of the U.S. dairy herd, approximately 9.4 million cows, and the indispensable role of rendering in the environmentally responsible disposal of fallen animals, NMPF recommends that EPA incorporate rendering as a waste stream pathway in its draft strategy.

Food Safety

The Pasteurized Milk Ordinance Turns 100 Years Old

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO), which helps ensure that American dairy products are among the safest in the world.

Looking back 100 years, milk was second only to water as a vehicle for transmitting disease. People were sickened or died from typhoid fever, scarlet fever, tuberculosis and other illnesses linked to harmful bacteria in raw milk. Today, for every 2 billion servings of pasteurized milk products consumed in the U.S., only one person gets sick, according to an FDA evaluation. This is directly tied to the adoption of pasteurization and other safety measures.

Adopted by Alabama in 1924, the 1924 Standard Milk Ordinance promoted safe, quality milk by providing a model milk regulation program—with uniform safety requirements—that states could voluntarily adopt. Two decades later, the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (NCIMS) formed to bring states together to continue developing uniform and effective milk safety programs. Today, NCIMS continues as a collaboration between FDA, the states and industry to update and ensure the PMO continues to be an effective tool for the entire industry. For more information on the PMO’s centennial celebration, visit FDA’s PMO Centennial website

Nutrition

NMPF Monitors Dietary Guidelines

Progress

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and USDA on Jan. 19 hosted the fourth meeting of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC). The committee provided key updates on its dairy-relevant work during the meetings, including:

• Positive results were presented related to milk consumption and health outcomes for children. Based on their review of the science, the committee concluded that milk consumption, including higher fat types, is associated with optimal growth and reduced risk of obesity in children and adolescents.

• The review of the science related to sources of saturated fat and cardiovascular disease outcomes is still underway.

• Dairy was not included in the conclusion statement for dietary patterns associated with “favorable” outcomes. This is a change from the 2020-2025 guidelines and something that NMPF will continue to examine.

• New drafts of food pattern modeling protocols were presented, including an analysis of discretionary calorie flexibilities. Specifically, the committee is looking at what happens when full-fat dairy products are swapped out for low-fat or non-fat.

• The committee announced they will be analyzing a new vegan-type dietary pattern that omits animal source foods.

It is still too early to predict what recommendations the committee will make regarding dairy. NMPF will continue to monitor and participate in the process.

NMPF Advocates for Balanced Approach to Added Sugars Reduction

NMPF emphasized the need for a realistic and balanced approach to reducing added sugars in comments to FDA submitted Jan. 22. The comments, which supported the agency’s overall goal to improve healthful eating in the United States, but urged for added sugars reductions to be voluntary, were a follow-up to an FDA listening session in which NMPF participated.

NMPF cited dairy’s successful work in voluntarily reducing added sugars in flavored school milk in its comments. “The dairy industry’s proactive, voluntary reduction of added sugars in school milk demonstrates the power of industry-led initiatives in this area,” it said in its comments. “Industry leaders came together around reducing added sugars, investing the time, energy, and resources to reformulate products into healthier options that people still enjoy.”

NMPF also pointed out that modest amounts of added sugars can make nutritious food more palatable, thus encouraging consumption and improving health. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association have both noted that using small amounts of added sugars has effectively increased vital nutrient intakes in a way that improves overall diet quality without increasing calories to unhealthy levels.

DAIRY’S PROACTIVE, VOLUNTARY REDUCTION OF ADDED SUGARS IN SCHOOL MILK DEMONSTRATES THE POWER OF INDUSTRY-LED INITIATIVES.

Animal Health

FDA Moves Toward Improved Feed Ingredient Review Process

In an important step to modernize its review and approval of animal feed ingredients, FDA announced Feb. 2 it is withdrawing longstanding policy that classifies animal feed ingredients as animal drugs if making claims on production, environment or food safetyrelated benefits. NMPF has long advocated for FDA to rescind this policy to pave the way for expeditious review and approval of animal feed ingredients that can reduce enteric methane emissions.

FDA also made clear that it supports the legislative authority embodied in the NMPFbacked Innovative FEED Act (H.R. 6687, S. 1842), which will provide clear direction to the agency to review enteric-reducing and other products using its Food Additive Petition process. This legislation is critical to speeding FDA approval of Elanco’s 3-NOP (Bovaer) and similar future products.

To get this bill passed, NMPF is asking for help in winning sponsors for the Innovative FEED Act through a call-to-action campaign

Jonker Engages in Global Dialogue on Antimicrobial Resistance

In his role as a member of the Global Leaders Group on AMR, NMPF Chief Science Officer Dr. Jamie Jonker attended the Wilton Park and GBCHealth Convened Dialogue to consider actions and strategies to invigorate the response to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The United Kingdom meeting held Dec. 4-6 focused on the upcoming United Nations High-Level Meeting (HLM) on AMR at the

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) this September. Sixty-three stakeholders, including experts across the human, animal and environment sectors, patient groups, parliamentarians, communications experts and policy makers contributed to the dialogue.

Dialogue focused on high-level political requests centered on three pillars—access, innovation, and stewardship. Politically realistic expectations will need to be grounded for the UNGA HLM and the Political Declaration. The 2024 AMR Political Declaration will build upon previous Political Declarations on Health and Health Security, including the 2016 AMR Political Declaration and likely the outcomes of the 2023 HLMs on Universal Health Coverage, Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response and Tuberculosis. Existing country commitments on AMR related to animal health, agriculture, food systems and the environment will also be pivotal for the 2023 AMR Political Declaration.

NMPF Highlights Dairy Industry’s Commitment to One Health, Advocates for Regulatory Enhancements

NMPF submitted comments Jan. 19 to the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine on their Environmental Scan.

The scan’s purpose is to identify major trends, including emerging issues and ongoing challenges, in the veterinary center’s internal and external environments to support, inform, and improve short-term and longterm strategic planning. The center asked six wide-ranging questions about priorities, legal authority, communications, and One Health, an

effort to improve health outcomes among all species.

NMPF’s comments reviewed the nearly 40-year U.S. dairy industry commitment to One Health through residue avoidance and the FARM Animal Care Program. Comments to specific questions included support for broader FDA authority through the FEED Act to regulate feed additives with non-nutritive benefits, including environmental benefit claims, production claims, and claims about effects on the animal well-being and pre-harvest food safety. The comments also supported FDA’s efforts to streamline development and approval of other novel technologies to address animal health, antimicrobial use, and environmental issues.

The veterinary medicine comments followed joint comments NMPF submitted Jan. 5 with the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP), the Academy of Veterinary Consultants (AVC) and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) on the draft FDA Guidance for Industry (GFI) #273 Defining Durations of Use for Approved Medically Important Antimicrobial Drugs Fed to Food-Producing Animals. In reviewing GFI #273, the groups identified several substantive concerns.

The group also referred the agency to extensive evidence-based comments previously submitted to earlier requests for public comments on this topic by the agency—specifically, the joint comments from AABP, AVC, NMPF and NCBA in 2017 and 2021—to include a request for information document with more than 80 scientific references.

2023 Milk and Dairy Beef Residues Continue to Decline

NMPF leadership in antibiotic use and residue testing continues to pay dividends through the veterinary oversight standards in the FARM Animal Care Program and long-term

commitment to the residue testing requirements in the PMO. Less than seven-hundredths of one percent—only 1 out of every 14,100 milk tankers—tested positive for antibiotic residues last year, according to the 2023 National Milk Drug Residue Database annual report from FDA.

The data illustrates the continued long-term national pattern of improvements in milk quality practices by the industry. Of the approximately 3.3 million milk pickup tankers tested in the past year, only 238 (0.0007%) yielded a positive result. The number of samples tested (tankers, packaged products, producer samples) and reported positive decreased from 424 in 2022 to 345 in 2023; no pasteurized packaged dairy products out of 28,842 tested were found to have an antibiotic residue.

FARM Animal Care Kicks Off Version 5 Training

Preparing for new standards that go into effect July 1, the National Dairy FARM Program hosted the 2024 FARM Animal Care Version 5 trainer course Denver, CO from Jan. 9-11.

Nineteen trainers reviewed Version 5 revisions, discussed evaluation best practices and calibrated animal observation scoring on a nearby farm. The trainers will manage training sessions to FARM’s 400 Animal Care evaluators throughout 2024. The first of those sessions for evaluators was held Feb. 13-15 in Minneapolis. That meeting had training content for both seasoned and first-time FARM Animal Care evaluators.

The FARM Program’s aim is to continue to proactively communicate updates and prepare cooperatives, processors, and farmers during the first half of 2024, before new FARM Animal Care Version 5 standards are implemented in July.

International

NMPF Works Toward “Low Risk” Status for U.S. Dairy Exports to UK

U.S. dairy products should be categorized as “low risk,” argued NMPF’s trade policy team during a series of December meetings with British government officials and agriculture organizations.

The United Kingdom government is still finalizing its import risk management system, following the country’s 2020 departure from this European Union. As it stands, U.S. dairy exports to the United Kingdom must undergo redundant health certification processes and adhere to additional documentation requirements. In addition to bilateral trade deals that the United Kingdom has negotiated with New Zealand, Australia and the European Union, these burdensome regulations significantly limit the ability for U.S. exporters to access the market.

NMPF trade policy staff traveled to the United Kingdom in December to advocate for recategorization of U.S. dairy exports as “low risk”—removing the onerous barriers and aligning the requirements of U.S. dairy exports with those from the European Union, Canada and New Zealand.

As part of this outreach, NMPF met with the British regulatory authorities directly responsible for the certification process to highlight the U.S. dairy industry’s leadership on animal health and sustainability and will update membership when additional information becomes available. NMPF is working closely with the U.S. Dairy Export Council’s (USDEC) regulatory staff on pursuing “low risk” status for U.S. dairy exports to the United Kingdom.

U.S. DAIRY EXPORTS TO THE UK MUST UNDERGO REDUNDANT HEALTH CERTIFICATION PROCESSES AND ADHERE TO ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENTS.

NMPF Highlights Key Regulatory Concerns to China

NMPF staff, accompanied by USDEC Market Access and Regulatory Affairs staff, traveled to Beijing and Shanghai in November for a series of meetings to promote the U.S. dairy industry and urge attention to a pair of regulatory challenges that U.S. exporters are keen to see resolved.

In meetings with Chinese officials, NMPF thanked China for its approval of hundreds of

U.S. dairy facilities last September while noting that the U.S.-China Phase 1 Agreement commits China to register and publish an updated list of approved facilities and allow imports from those facilities within 20 days of notification by USDA. In contrast, the 2023 updates took several months. U.S. dairy exports have not faced the degree of challenges other commodities have in securing product listing. Full adherence to the Phase 1 Agreement would further streamline facility additions and updates, however.

NMPF also raised the issue of China’s intellectual property office deviating from prior common name status determinations established by China’s agricultural authorities. At risk is the continued ability to use generic terms such as “parmesan” in the growing Chinese market.

U.S. DAIRY EXPORTS HAVE NOT FACED

THE DEGREE OF CHALLENGES OTHER COMMODITIES HAVE IN SECURING PRODUCT LISTING. FULL ADHERENCE TO THE PHASE 1 AGREEMENT WOULD FURTHER STREAMLINE FACILITY ADDITIONS AND UPDATES

NMPF Insists on More Urgency in Protecting Common Names

The NMPF trade policy team—in coordination with USDEC—submitted comments Jan. 24 for the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) annual Special 301 report on international intellectual property trade abuses. In support of more comprehensive comments from the Consortium for Common Food Names, NMPF and USDEC emphasized the importance of protecting

common names like “parmesan” and “feta” to American cheesemakers.

In 2023, U.S. dairy producers faced increased restrictions—and attempts at restricting—their ability to use common names to market and sell their products overseas. The European Union doubled down on their common name confiscation campaign and continued to push potential Free Trade Agreement partners to adopt its protection of geographical indications, which often exclude U.S. producers from accessing those markets.

In their comments, NMPF and USDEC urged USTR to proactively secure explicit commitments from trading partners that they will protect the right to use common names that the European Union is systematically targeting.

Other

NMPF Accepting Applications for 2024 Scholarship Program

NMPF is now accepting applications for its National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program for the academic year 2024-2025.

NMPF awards scholarships annually to outstanding students enrolled in master’s or doctoral programs actively pursuing dairyrelated fields of research of immediate interest to NMPF member cooperatives and the U.S. dairy industry at large.

Graduate students pursuing research that directly benefits milk marketing cooperatives and dairy producers are encouraged to apply. Applicants do not need to be members of NMPF to qualify. Scholarship recipients will be invited to present their research via webinar during the summer of 2024. Top applicants are eligible to be awarded the Hintz Memorial Scholarship, created in 2005 in honor of the late Cass-Clay

Creamery Board Chairman Murray Hintz, who was instrumental in establishing NMPF’s scholarship program.

Recommended fields of study include but are not limited to Agriculture Communications and Journalism, Animal Health, Animal and/ or Human Nutrition, Bovine Genetics, Dairy Products Processing, Dairy Science, Economics, Environmental Science, Food Science, Food Safety, Herd Management, and Marketing and Price Analysis.

Applications must be received no later than April 12. For an application or more information, please visit the NMPF website or email scholarship@nmpf.org

Scholarships are funded through the National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Fund. If you would like to support the scholarship fund, please consider a donation here