Mon, 05/10/2021 - 5:00pm tim
Vermont Business Magazine Vermont State Auditor Doug Hoffer today released a first-ever comprehensive accounting of Vermont state government’s total annual spending in support of Vermont’s dairy industry. From State fiscal year 2010 to 2019, the State Auditor’s Office estimates that Vermont taxpayers spent more than $285 million on programs and policies to support the dairy industry and/or address adverse environmental impacts caused by some dairy practices. In fiscal year 2019, the most recent year of the analysis, spending totaled more than $35 million.
“Every Vermonter knows the important historical contribution dairy farming has made to our state’s economy and identity,” said Auditor Hoffer. “We also know the last few decades have been extremely challenging for small- and mid-sized dairy farms. Below-cost payments from milk processors, industry consolidation, water quality requirements – these and other pressures help explain why V