Speaking to attendees of the American Dairy Products Institute and American Butter Institute’s annual conference last week, Michael Dykes, D.V.M., IDFA president and CEO, joined other dairy leaders to discuss the priorities for their dairy organizations and how they are collaborating for the common good of the dairy industry.
The event was attended by 1,040 manufacturers, marketers and suppliers of manufactured dairy products from nearly 20 different countries.
Dykes was joined in the panel discussion by Tom Gallagher, CEO of Dairy Management Inc.; Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation; and Dave Thomas, CEO of the American Dairy Products Institute. Tom Balmer, executive director American Butter Institute, moderated the discussion.
Dykes stressed to the audience that a majority of dairy issues are areas of mutual interest, and that collaboration is necessary for the industry to achieve its common goals.
He also added introduced several of IDFA’s trade priorities to the discussion, including:
- Preserving dairy industry market access in Mexico;
- Seeking increased access to the Canadian market in the event of a North American Free Trade Agreement renegotiation; and
- Reducing and eliminating tariffs and other restrictive agricultural policies in the Asia Pacific region.
For more information about the event, contact Dykes at mdykes@idfa.org.