[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 6]
[House]
[Pages 7940-7941]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               RETURNING STABILITY TO THE DAIRY INDUSTRY

  (Mr. COSTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, today I will introduce legislation to help 
put our dairy legislation on track and prevent future dairy crashes 
like the one we're now in. The Daily Price Stabilization Act is not 
just about trying to elevate dairy prices. It's about returning 
stability to the dairy industry. I was raised on a dairy farm, and we 
know that dairy boom and bust cycles have always existed. But in the 
past decade, booms have gotten shorter and the busts longer and more 
severe. These

[[Page 7941]]

highs and lows have forced many dairies to shut down. In the last 2 
years, we've lost over $12 billion of equity in the industry; and, 
sadly, some dairymen have taken their own lives.
  This unsustainable cycle must stop. Dairies can no longer survive on 
milk checks that are lower than their cost of production. Our bill 
gives dairymen the option to grow as they see fit, provides incentives 
to better align supply and demand. Mr. Speaker, we must take swift 
action now to protect our local dairy farmers across the Nation. I 
encourage my colleagues to join in this effort.

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