KOTA Territory milk prices could more than double - KOTA Territory News

KOTA Territory milk prices could more than double

There's been a lot of talk about the new Farm Bill, but no decisions and that could mean an increase in commodity prices for consumers.

Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees have agreed to extend the 2008 Farm Bill for a year in order to prevent a huge mark up in milk prices and other commodities. But if congress doesn't vote to extend, the bill reverts back to the last permanent bill which was in place in 1949.

South Dakota Stockgrower's Association Executive Director Silvia Christen says that would mean milk prices could more than double. She says in the short term producers may gain from the increase in prices, but in the long term it could be detrimental for all South Dakotans. "The concern is that if customers can't afford to buy the milk that's at the grocery store anymore our producers aren't going to benefit from it anyway and it's really a concern because our producers to provide a high quality product with a real awareness of making sure also that a family can afford to buy and benefit from the product that they're producing," said Christen.

The 2008 Farm Bill expired September 30^th and without new law in place consumers could begin to see price changes in 2013.