Dairy farmers in the state will get the same price for their milk as what Matanuska Maid paid to farmers in the Lower 48.

The news was welcomed Tuesday by dairy farmers who last saw an increase five years ago.

Point MacKenzie dairy farmer Vicki Trytten said the increase gives farmers some breathing room, allowing them to pay bills and buy needed supplies like fertilizer. She estimated the increase would mean an extra $4,000 a month for her family.

Creamery Board chairwoman Kristan Cole said the boost was needed to keep dairy farmers in business, at least until the state can finally decide what to do about the financially ailing state dairy.

Cole said the increase in the price paid for milk will be passed on to Northern Lights Dairy in Delta Junction, which buys milk from Matanuska Maid, and by raising the price charged to retailers.

Under the new system, the dairy would pay farmers the same price it pays for imported milk, minus the cost Mat Maid pays to truck the milk to the Anchorage plant, about $3 per 100 pounds, the board said.

Imported milk has been running about $30 per 100 pounds delivered, compared with about $23 per 100 pounds locally.

Mat Maid officials have said about 30 percent of the milk the company uses, about 2,000 gallons a day, comes from local producers, which would translate into an extra $25,000 a month cost to the dairy.

Source: Alaska Journal of Commerce