Dairy West briefs Senate committee on marketing, school programs and export plans; 2024 budget about $19.3 million

Dairy West made its annual presentation to the Senate Agricultural Affairs Committee, outlining consumer marketing, school-education programs, sustainability messaging and export initiatives, and reporting a combined 2024 budget of roughly $19.3 million.

"We are Dairy West," interim CEO Jenny Nelson said in a presentation video shown to the committee. Nelson, who identified herself as interim CEO and said she has worked in the dairy sector for 25 years, told members Dairy West represents the Idaho Dairy Products Commission and the Utah Dairy Commission and employs about 21 staff across the region.

Nelson described funding and assessments: producers are assessed 15¢ per 100 pounds of milk; 5¢ of that goes to the National Dairy Board, 10¢ remains for local marketing and promotion, and 2.5¢ of the local portion is sent to United Dairy Industry Association to support national efforts. She also said 1¢ is collected for the Idaho Dairymen's Association to support policy work that promotion funds cannot cover.

The presentation highlighted consumer and school outreach programs. Nelson said Dairy West runs virtual "adopt-a-cow" classroom programs that let students follow a cow’s lifecycle when an in-person visit is not possible; the program was mentioned during committee Q&A as a direct classroom engagement that helped increase student interest in milk. The commission also partners with processors and retailers to place dairy products in higher-visibility retail locations and runs digital promotions: a cited Instacart promotion showed a return on ad spend of $10 for every $1 spent and drove "incremental pounds" of milk sales.

Nelson discussed sustainability messaging and export-focused work. She told the committee Dairy West will lead an outbound trade mission to Singapore in October to promote sustainability practices and connect Idaho processors and farmers with in-market buyers; Dairy West plans to include Idaho and Utah producers and processors on that mission.

Committee members asked about production and product formats for export markets; Nelson said Idaho has roughly 350 dairy operations, 19 processing plants and that processors are increasingly using ultrafiltration and aseptic processing to create shelf-stable products that meet overseas market needs. She also said some alternative beverage sales have declined and that, in her view, milk remains the dominant beverage in sales figures.

Nelson said Dairy West’s 2024 combined budget was about $19.3 million and that the organization’s audits for Idaho Dairy Products Commission, the Utah Dairy Commission and Dairy West would be presented to their board that week. She offered to provide finalized financials after the board audit. The committee received the presentation; no committee action was taken.