Dairy Report: Southeast Asia on Track to Overtake Mexico in Dairy Imports
Dairy Report 102720
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is putting more money into the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. It is providing an additional $500 million for a fourth round of boxes to be delivered through the end of the year.
The program coordinators say the boxes will continue to include fresh produce, dairy products, milk and meat. The USDA says it recently surpassed 110 million boxes delivered. The National Milk Producers Federation says the program has delivered about $1 billion worth of dairy products to needy people since the spring.
U.S. Dairy Export Council Opens First Overseas Facility in Asia
Southeast Asia is well on track to overtake Mexico as the largest volume importer of U.S. dairy.
This is happening as the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) opens its first overseas facility in that region.
USDEC unveiled a new U.S. Center for Dairy Excellence in Singapore this month. The council says it will serve as a hub for collaborative dairy innovation in Southeast Asia. It's a way to explore the use of U.S. dairy products and ingredients.
“The [center for dairy exports] also expands our capabilities to resurge and deliver tailored customer and consumer insights to drive demand and interests for U.S. dairy," says Dalilah Ghazalay, USDEC Reginal Director of Southeast Asia.
USDEC says U.S. dairy exports climbed $250 million from 2017 to 2019 in Southeast Asia, seeing gains in milk powders, dairy protein, lactose and permeate. The top markets in the regions include the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
