rbST Bomb Drops in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania
Daniel Brandt
Lebanon County Dairy Farmer
I got a bombshell dropped on me this past week when my milk inspector stopped by and said they had a meeting at our dairy (Swiss Premium Dairy, formerly Wengerts Dairy in Lebanon, PA), and have made a final decision to go 100% rBST free. As you may know, our dairy is owned by Dean Foods. They have targeted October 1st as the latest cutoff date to have no producers using rBST. Upon further questioning I was informed that 3 of their largest retailers are requesting rBST-free milk and threatening to pull their product if they don’t comply. At the same time our processor has developed a fine reputation in this area for the great product they supply from local well-kept and run dairy farms. They also said they will not compensate farmers in any way for giving up their right to use this safe, approved product. They admitted the public hasn’t given much pressure yet but this is business and you have to stay ahead of the ball. Read the rest of this entry »
