US dairy levies to cost $2 million

New levies imposed on imported dairy goods under the US Farm Bill's Dairy Import Check Off (passed by the US Congress and Senate in April 2002) will cost Australian farmers about $A2 million.

Under the legislation, tariffs on milk protein concentrate will be introduced.

Great Milk Company vows to block NZDF takeover

A farmer's collective, The Great Milk Company, is to tell its members to keep their shares, making it harder for Graeme Hart's Rank Group to make an all-out bid for NZDF. The move comes after The Great Milk Company unsuccessful in its bid to acquire New Zealand Dairy Foods (NZDF).

Hart is offering the farmers, who collectively hold just under 50% of NZDF, $A1.70 a share.

"Food for Life" dairy campaign reaches second stage

The Australian Dairy Corporation has started the second stage of its "Food of Life" campaign aiming is to promote the nutritional value and essential nature of dairy products.

The campaign targets mothers in stressing the importance of the10 essential nutrients in dairy (in additional to calcium) that are being targeted by the campaign. It is hoped that convincing the mothers to provide three serves of dairy each day will filter through to influence their children's diets.

Dairy industry welcomes first round of Foundation grants

The Australian dairy industry is to receive a first round of grants from the Geoffrey Gardiner Dairy Foundation, formed in October 2000 to manage funds from the sale of the industry's assets and brands.

The foundation is looking at building alliances to enable it to undertake long-term and complex projects to benefit the industry. On-farm productivity, milk quality and technology transfer have already been highlighted by the Foundation as areas of investment.

Cow clones show potential for milk production

Australian scientists yesterday announced the successful birth of the country's first genetically modified cows. The four cloned calves have an extra gene that boosts the amount of protein produced in their milk by up to 120%.

The calves were created by researchers from Genetics Australia, the Monash Institute of Reproduction and Development, and the Victorian Institute of Animal Science. They believe that it will be at least five years before protein-enhanced milk from GM cows was available on supermarket shelves.

Scientists hope to also produce a range of human medicines in the cows' milk using the same technology.