The Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) Program was authorized by the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill). This program replaced the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy). Similar to the MPP-Dairy, the DMC program is a voluntary program that provides dairy operations with risk management coverage. DMC makes payments to producers when the difference (the margin) between the national price of milk (all-milk price) and the average cost of feed (average price of corn, soybeans, and blended alfalfa hay) declines below a certain level selected by the program participants.

All dairy operations in the U.S. are considered eligible for the DMC program. Those eligible operations must have a production history as established by USDA Farm Service Agency (USDA-FSA) and must be registered to participate during the signup announced by FSA. The participants must pay a $100 administrative fee annually for each year they participate. An...