Mad About Milk's Challenge to California Dairies: Put Up or Shut Up About Calcium Standards.

Business/News Editors

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 3, 2000

With the introduction of a new bill setting calcium levels for milk in accordance with standards set for a federally mandated nutrition program, Mad About Milk has issued a challenge to California's dairy industry to support the bill or quit pretending to be concerned about nutrition.

"If California dairies won't support legislation that actually sets minimum standards for calcium, the industry's real motives for supporting the state's anti-competitive market rules are exposed -- to maintain artificially high prices and limit consumer choice," said Audrie Krause, executive director of the consumer coalition Mad About Milk.

The coalition's campaign to lower California milk prices gained substantial momentum with the introduction last week of Senate Bill 2164, a pro-consumer bill aimed at expanding the choice of milk products eligible for purchase by Californians participating in the federal Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program. The bill was introduced by Senator Debra Bowen (D-Marino Del Rey), and Senator Joseph Dunn (D-Santa Ana).

"This bill will guarantee that children who are most in need of it get as much calcium as the dairy industry claims they get from California milk," said Krause. "It's time for the dairy industry to put up or shut up."

SB 2164 was introduced in response to the findings of nutrition experts who testified at a Dec. 9, 1999, joint hearing of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee and the Senate Agriculture and Water Resources Committee, in Los Angeles. UCLA nutrition expert Dr. Gail Harrison and other experts who testified said the calcium content of most California milk is essentially the same as the calcium content of milk processed to federal composition standards.

Harrison also said that California's high milk prices have prevented the expansion of WIC services to approximately 100,000 additional mothers and children in need of its assistance. She also said that a conservative estimate is that the high price of California milk is costing taxpayers literally more than $50 million per year for anti-hunger programs serving schoolchildren, the elderly, and WIC program participants.

"SB 2164 would allow more women and children to be served by the WIC program, since milk prices should drop if California allows the sale of milk that meets the specific nutritional standards set for that program," said Krause.

Milk prices in California are among the highest in the nation, largely because of protectionist barriers that limit competition and consumer choice. California bans the sale of milk meeting federal composition standards, prohibits retail grocers from selling milk below cost, and effectively imposes a tariff on milk produced outside California and shipped here for processing.

California dairies defend the current rules, claiming that milk processed to the state's standard is more nutritious. But the state's standards say nothing about the calcium content of milk. SB 2164 would change that by specifying exactly how much calcium is required in each eight-ounce glass of milk sold in the state.

"If California dairies were really concerned about how much calcium consumers get from milk, they'd welcome this change," said Krause.

More information on Mad About Milk is available at www.madaboutmilk.org.

Coalition members include Anderson Dairy Inc., Aztex Dairy Inc., Bashas', California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, Center for Public Interest Law (CPIL), City of Los Angeles Council on Aging, Colfax Market, Congress of California Seniors, Consumers Coalition, Consumers First, The Country Store, The Customer Company, East Los Angeles Health Task Force, El Regalo de Michaoacan, Friday Breakfast Club (Long Beach), Gray Panthers of Berkeley, Orange County, Sacramento, San Diego, San Fernando Valley, Santa Barbara, and Southern Alameda County, D. Kuiper Dairy, Libertarian Party of California, Orange County Taxfighters Inc., Ponderosa Dairy, REVOLT (Responsible Voters for Lower Taxes), Rockview Dairies Inc., Seniors for Action, Shamrock Foods, Shasta County Taxpayers Association, Councilman George Stevens (San Diego), Tenants, Seniors, and Labor (San Francisco), Chrysler Retirees Local 230 of United Auto Workers, The United Dairymen of Arizona, United Organizations of Taxpayers, and Waste Watchers.