USDA Forces Dairy Farmers to Spill Cheese Costs Secrets
Published Date: 2/27/2026
Proposed Rule
Summary
The USDA wants to start mandatory surveys to collect info on how much it costs to make dairy products and how much product is made. Dairy producers will need to share this info, helping USDA understand costs better and improve the dairy market. Comments on the plan are open until March 30, 2026, so now’s the time to speak up!
Analyzed Economic Effects
6 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 4 costs, 0 mixed.
Mandatory cost and yield reporting
If your dairy plant is required to report price information under the Dairy Products Mandatory Reporting Program, USDA is authorized by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 to require your plant to provide manufacturing cost and product yield data for all products produced at that plant.
Publication confidentiality protections
Data published in USDA's Biennial Report will be subject to Dairy Products Mandatory Reporting Program confidentiality metrics: only aggregated data of no fewer than three plants will be published, and no single entity may represent more than 60 percent of the volume of the commodity surveyed.
Detailed cost categories to be reported
USDA is planning to collect manufacturing input expenses and product yield data and lists example cost categories including labor (processing), non-labor (processing), utilities, product volume, dairy ingredient inputs, other ingredients, general and administrative, packaging, and return on investment; USDA also seeks input on specific data points and allocation methods for unallocated expenses.
Verification and records access requirement
USDA will define a verification process and requires reporting entities to make cost accounting records available upon request to support verification; the ANPR seeks comment on how long such records are typically kept and what records could support cost and yield data.
Possible reporting schedule options
USDA is considering three data collection schedules and seeks comment: (1) collect two years of data every two years (e.g., collect 2025 and 2026 data in a 2027 survey for a 2028 Biennial Report); (2) collect data every year and publish two years' worth in the Biennial Report (e.g., collect 2025 data in 2026 and 2026 data in 2027 for publication in 2028); or (3) collect one year of data every other year (e.g., collect 2026 data in a 2027 survey and publish it in a 2028 Biennial Report).
Biennial public cost and yield report
USDA will collect, analyze, and publish a Biennial Manufacturing Cost and Product Yield Report every 2 years that provides cost and yield statistics for commodities subject to the Dairy Products Mandatory Reporting Program, currently including butter, 40‑pound block cheddar cheese, dry whey, and nonfat dry milk.
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Key Dates
Department and Agencies
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