Canadian feed-grade dairy product class expanded

Buttermilk products now qualify for 4(m) permit price

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Published: February 2, 2021

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A dairy product class set up to boost markets for solids non-fat (SNF), by boosting their use in animal feed such as milk replacer, has been expanded to include more products.

The Canadian Dairy Commission announced Monday that its 4(m) milk class has been updated to allow dairy processors to get the 4(m) permit price for buttermilk incorporated in making skim milk powder sold for animal feed, effective Feb. 1.

The class is also now updated to include liquid buttermilk for animal feed as an eligible permit product in the 4(m) milk class, up to the set limit, the commission said.

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Eligible end-uses for products sold in the 4(m) class already include skim milk powder bought either for direct feeding to farm animals, or for blending and repackaging into a feed blend. The class also includes the animal feed blends themselves, to be sold for feed as-is.

The expansion allows for inclusion of liquid buttermilk, whether evaporated or not, for direct feeding to farm animals.

Companies registered in Canada and using SNF-type products to make feed and feed blends may be eligible for a 4(m) permit. The limit under the 4(m) permit program for animal feed is now up to 20,000 tonnes of skim milk powder-equivalent per year.

The commission had originally announced Dec. 24, 2020 that it was considering such an update to the 4(m) class effective for Feb. 1 this year.

Prices for SNF sold in the 4(m) class are updated monthly and posted online, the commission said, noting that 4(m) butterfat is priced at the same level as butterfat in class 4(a). — Glacier FarmMedia Network

About the author

Dave Bedard

Dave Bedard

Editor, Grainews

Farm-raised in northeastern Saskatchewan. B.A. Journalism 1991. Local newspaper reporter in Saskatchewan turned editor and farm writer in Winnipeg. (Life story edited by author for time and space.)

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