Newly created Wisconsin Dairy Recovery Program to help farmers, underfed

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Hunger Task Force is joining together with Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection to help provide relief to dairy farmers and the underfed and unemployed across the state.

The partnership will help by buying milk from dairy farmers and getting it to emergency food organizations throughout the state.

Hunger Task Force is committing $1 million to the newly created Wisconsin Dairy Recovery Program. According to Hunger Task Force, Wisconsin dairy farmers will be paid to supply milk to farmer-owned dairy cooperative Kemps who will process it into thousands of gallons at its Cedarburg facility.

"This was milk that was going to restaurants primarily," Hunger Task Force Executive Director Sherrie Tussler said. "So that milk supply can all be purchased at a fair price to make sure those famrers recover through this process and now we can get that milk out to needy people."

Half of Wisconsin's dairy production was previously allotted for the food service industry, but with COVID-19 closures, dairy farmers have been hit hard.

More information can be found on Hunger Task Force's website.