Pa. distributed millions in CARES money to help more than 1,500 dairy farmers

Written by Victoria Scialfa on December 9, 2020

Pa. distributed millions in CARES money to help more than 1,500 dairy farmers

By Larkin Page-Jacobs / WESA

December 9, 2020

FILE – Cows on pasture at the University of Vermont dairy farm eat hay in a Thursday, July 23, 2020 file photo, in Burlington, Vt. The dairy industry has a familiar question for you: “Got milk?” Six years after the popular tagline was retired, “Got milk?” ads are back. The dairy industry is reviving the campaign hoping to prolong the U.S. sales boost milk has gotten during the pandemic. (AP Photo/Lisa Rathk, Filee)

More than 1,500 Pennsylvania dairy farmers have benefited from a program that aimed to reimburse them for losses suffered early in the pandemic, when some farmers had to dispose of milk.

The abrupt closures of schools and many restaurants in March led to supply-chain disruptions that also hurt farmers’ bottom line.

Shannon Powers is a spokesperson for the state’s Department of Agriculture and says that the pandemic has been instructive in one way.

“People are really starting to understand just how complicated our food system is, and how much is behind getting that food from that farm to your table.”

The funds to aid farmers came from the federal CARES Act.

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