WASHINGTON, November 29, 2022—Michael Dykes, D.V.M., president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), released the following statement today on the potential for Congress to impose a tentative contract between railroad unions and freight carriers to avoid a possible strike.

“On behalf of companies throughout the U.S. dairy industry, the International Dairy Foods Association supports President Biden’s request of Congress to step in and negotiate an agreement between rail carriers and their employees that protects our nation’s food and economic security. A rail strike would devastate our nation’s dairy industry, which employs more than 3.3 million Americans and relies on rail carriers to move nutritious, wholesome, and perishable dairy products to destinations throughout the country and to ports for export around the world. Congress must act without delay to keep our nation’s food supply chain intact.”

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The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), Washington, D.C., represents the nation’s dairy manufacturing and marketing industry, which supports more than 3.3 million jobs that generate $41.6 billion in direct wages and $753 billion in overall economic impact. IDFA’s diverse membership ranges from multinational organizations to single-plant companies, from dairy companies and cooperatives to food retailers and suppliers, all on the cutting edge of innovation and sustainable business practices. Together, they represent 90 percent of the milk, cheese, ice cream, yogurt and cultured products, and dairy ingredients produced and marketed in the United States and sold throughout the world. Delicious, safe and nutritious, dairy foods offer unparalleled health and consumer benefits to people of all ages.