Schumer: Lawmakers Must Act To Prevent Massive Potential Increase Of Milk Prices
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The price of a gallon of milk could skyrocket if the Farm Bill is not renewed by the end of the year, according to Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer.
Schumer held a news conference in front of a Manhattan supermarket on Sunday to urge his fellow lawmakers to act quickly on the bill, which expires today.
1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck reports
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"It will not just go up 10 cents or even a dollar but actually double. My favorite food is cold cereal so I use a lot of milk. Love milk and I love cold cereal and the shame of it all is it's avoidable. There is no need for this to happen," Schumer told reporters including 1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck.
If the measure is not renewed, Schumer said economists estimate milk prices could double in New York by January 1st.
"They say you shouldn't cry over spilled milk, but it seems perfectly reasonable to cry over a 100 percent increase in the price," said Schumer. "This is an entirely avoidable and unnecessary burden on families, and it could be easily addressed. All the leaders of the House of Representatives have to do is put the bipartisan Senate Farm Bill on the floor for a vote. It will pass, and we can avoid this problem all together."
A gallon of milk could surpass $6 on average if no action is taken, Schumer said.
"Well I don't drink it at $4, so I certainly am not going to drink it at $8. Everything is outrageous. It's easy to get on a diet now," one shopper at the Associated Supermarket on 14th Street told Schuck.
For some families, milk is a necessity regardless of price and those families worry where that extra money will come from.
"It means I'm going to have to buy milk at double the price. I've got two kids and they go through milk like crazy, so it's going to cost me double the price, it's going to a lot," a mother told Schuck.
The Farm Bill was passed by a large bipartisan majority in the Senate but Schumer said it is time for the House to act on this important issue.
Without renewal of the Farm Bill, Schumer said the country would revert to a 1940s era agriculture policy which would require the government to purchase non-fat dairy products above market rates.
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