By  E. W. Lang

MIlk was up and genetics sold at a record level this week during World Dairy Expo. 

Block and barrel cheese each gained a significant 14 cents this week to close at $1.85 and $1.75 per lb., respectively.  Butter gained three cents at $1.75 per lb.  October, November and December Class III Milk Futures currently average $18.07 per cwt., up 92 cents or 5.4%.    Class IV Futures for the same three months average $17.21 per cwt., up  21 cents.   For Calendar 2022, Class III for January to June average a not-far-behind $17.71 per cwt.  Class IV for the first half of next year averages $17.36 per cwt.

All of that is good news for milk producers large and small, even the ones that didn't attend World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin, this past week.  It was evident that commercial exhibitor numbers were down from two years ago, and foot traffic on four of the five days seemed lower as well, much in line with lower attendance at recent state fairs across the nation.  It looked like cattle show entries were up from 2019, and that is a dilemma.  The cost for every live animal in attendance has to be subsidized by commercial exhibitor revenue and gate receipts. 

Here's the major news item of World Dairy Expo week, as far as all things dairy are concerned.  A recently born, DNA tested Registered Holstein bull calf sold for, "more than any ruminant in history," as one participant put it. 

I know of two Holstein cows that sold at public auction for $1 million each in my lifetime, Ivy and Apple.  I have heard of two Holstein cows sold at private treaty for a rumored $1.2M and $1.5M and an Angus bull that sold for $1.8M.  The first year I farmed, the Holstein bull Paclamar Tidal Wave sold for $1M for a half interest.  I have from one reasonably reliable source that the cash sale price for this calf was north of any of those numbers by $1 million dollars, though that has not been confirmed by either a buyer or seller. 

The buyer was a trio of major genetic organizations and the final underbidder was a family farm.  The bull, SDG-PH 6998 Deluxe 7672-ET, is the current Number 4 Net Merit bull and No. 10 Genomic Total Performance Index bull.  

For readers wanting to buy a cane of Deluxe 7672-ET, don't expect him to be generally available to the public.  The buyers will use him to sire a generation of sons and future bull mothers, not to sell to farmers to breed their cows and heifers, at least for a couple years. 

This baby bull calf was initially consigned to the World Classic Sale, a public auction scheduled for Friday night of Expo week.  The bull was sold at private treaty before the sale and withdrawn from the public auction, but the auction manager was compensated in good faith, according to one participant.

Here is a little new information on the USDA Pandemic Market Assistance Voluntary Program.  Your milk buyer will have to get an attestation from you that your adjusted gross income is less than $900,000 or that 75% of your income is from agriculture.  They then should get your subsidy to you by December of this year.