Quiero saber acerca de...

khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS

25966

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 12, 2021 / Proposed Rules
and 85.1 percent 36.62 head were both born and raised on the farm. Based on 2,559 total dairy farms with a mid-point herd size of 267,523 reported in the Census of Agriculture, ARMS data indicates that 110,037 total heifers and milk cows 41.1 percent of the herd were added to operations in 2016.24
Purchased animals from off-farm sources included 4,325 milk cows 3.9
percent, 1,953 large heifers weighing more than 500 pounds 0.73 percent, and 559 small heifers weighing less than 500 pounds 0.2 percent.
Of the organic farms responding to the 2016 ARMS, 8.7 percent reported purchasing dairy cows and 10.9 percent reported buying replacement heifers.
Farms that purchased milk cows purchased an average of 19 cows per farm and those that purchased heifers bought an average of 7 head. Most organic dairies also reported selling cull cows animals that are no longer productive for milk production and are sold for beef, milk cows, and replacement heifers. Organic dairy farms sold an average of 1.6 milk cows and 1.3 replacement heifers with sales of replacement heifers exceeding purchases. Alternatively, the 2014
NAHMS data similarly show that the average organic dairy farm added 39
replacements that were born on the operation and added to the milking herd and purchased 7 replacements that were added to the milking herd.
Exact data on how many replacement heifers bought were transitioned heifers and how many were managed organically from the last third of gestation are not available. For this reason, this RIA calculates costs for two conjectured values for the share of purchased replacements that are transitioned heifers. Furthermore, AMS
does not have aggregated data on what approach producers currently use when purchasing replacement heifers.
Therefore, we do not have data on how many producers are bringing heifers into organic production as nonorganic animals and transitioning them into organic or purchasing animals transitioned on other organic operations versus sourcing and managing animals as organic from the last third of gestation. Excluding small heifers, the percentage of replacement heifers that are transitioned to organic production is, at most, 1.7 percent.25
AMS also notes that the OIG report 24 The 2017 ARMS survey indicates that the average organic herd size is 102.7 head while the 2016 Census of Organic Production indicates it is 104.5 = 267,523 head/2,559 farms.
25 This percentage represents 0.75 purchased large heifers divided by 43.0 replacements 2016
AMRS data.

VerDate Sep<11>2014

17:00 May 11, 2021

Jkt 253001

provided survey data indicating the proportion of sampled producers that may be practicing continuous transitioning. OIG found that out of a sample of six of the top ten certifying agents that certify the most organic dairy operations in the U.S., three allowed continuous transitioning.
Regulatory Impact Analysis Comments Received on Costs and Benefits AMS specifically sought input from the public about the estimated costs and benefits presented in the 2015 proposed rule. We received 29 comments in 2015
and 82 comments in 2019 that addressed our estimated costs and benefits. We summarize and respond to these comments below.
Availability of Replacement Animals In 2015, some comments noted that organic heifer supplies were tight and that the heifers for sale were not of consistently high quality. This led commenters to believe the proposed rule could curtail growth of existing or new operations, restrict milk supply, and raise consumer prices. Some comments urged AMS to seek a consistent standard for all operations while considering that operations may need to grow to meet consumer demand.
A comment in 2015 calculated that a dairy could be expected to raise only enough of its own heifers to grow at an annual rate of 5 percent, after accounting for morbidity and culling.
This commenter questioned AMS
conclusion there would be an ample supply of organic heifers under the rule. The commenter estimated that the industry would take time to catch up with the demand for organic from last third of gestation heifers.
Other comments in 2015 argued that there was an adequate supply of organic last third of gestation heifers available or that operations would raise and sell them if the price was higher and reflected the cost of raising them. In 2019, commenters claimed there is a surplus of organic last third of gestation heifers available to meet market needs and that there is an ample supply of animals even if morbidity/
mortality rates are high or heifer selection is aggressive. No comments in 2019 claimed that organic heifer supplies were constrained.
AMS response: Based on our analysis of the comments received, AMS
continues to believe that sufficient numbers of organic heifers organically managed from last third of gestation would be available after rule implementation to maintain and/or
PO 00000

Frm 00006

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

grow existing organic dairies. To mitigate potential and unforeseen impacts, AMS proposes establishing a compliance date for this rule to allow animals in the middle of an approved transition to complete the transition and produce organic milk. AMS received many comments that supported this approach during the 2019 comment period.
Price of Replacement Animals A commenter in 2019 disagreed with AMS estimate of a $1,300 cost difference between transitioned animals and last-third-of-gestation organic animals. The commenter believed AMS
estimate was too high. The commenter further explained that its discussions with dairy auction sales barns that previously sold organic cattle do not align with that value and the most common response it received from extension agents in the Northeast was that demand and verified sales have all but dried up for organic springing heifers.
AMS received many comments in 2019 related to the cost difference for raising heifers organically vs.
nonorganically during the first 12
months of life. One commenter found a $469 average cost difference organic being more costly per animal. Most comments noted a cost difference from $600 to $1,000 per calf, and some comments noted a difference as high as $1,300 per calf. Commenters tended to use the difference in production costs to describe the financial disadvantage and the harm to operations that source only last-third-of-gestation organic animals in comparison to operations that continually transition heifers to organic production.
Commenters in 2015 and 2019
generally agreed that implementation of the proposed rule would result in greater demand for organic heifers and would likely increase the price of organic replacement animals. Many commenters viewed this scenario favorably, as it would benefit organic producers who sell last-third-ofgestation organic animals as opposed to heifer-raising operations selling transitioned animals.
AMS response: AMS continues to present the costs of the rule as a range based on different potential scenarios see Table 4. We agree with comments that the price of organic heifers may increase, and we have estimated costs under two scenarios where the price of heifers increases by $500 and where the price does not increase. We estimate that the price of an organic last third of gestation heifer is $2,000 and up to $2,500 if increased demand drives
E:FRFM12MYP1.SGM

12MYP1