U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman to open
AMPI Annual Meeting

Dairy cooperative members gather to review
cooperative performance, set policy

 

NEW ULM, Minn. (March 13, 2008)—U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, will share his farm bill forecast during the opening session of the Associated Milk Producers Inc. (AMPI) annual delegate meeting. The event is set for March 24-25 at the Sheraton Bloomington Hotel, Bloomington, Minn.
 
“Senator Coleman has a keen understanding of both agricultural and dairy industry issues,” says Mark Furth, AMPI president and chief executive officer. “He'll provide AMPI members with valuable insight into farm bill negotiations, which are in the final stretch.”
 
AMPI delegates will also hear from Gene Hugoson, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, and Michael Swanson, an agricultural economist with Wells Fargo. Other guest speakers include Tom Rothman, a farm broadcaster with the Minnesota Farm Network, and James Olson, a former CIA counterintelligence chief.
 
The annual delegate session features a review of the cooperative’s financial statements and management reports. Furth and AMPI Chairman of the Board Paul Toft, a dairy farmer from Rice Lake, Wis., will present 2007 highlights.
 
The cooperative’s grassroots policy-making process culminates with delegates considering proposed resolutions. The resolutions process gives members an opportunity to determine AMPI positions on issues and policies that affect the cooperative.
 
 

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About AMPI: Associated Milk Producers Inc. (AMPI) is a dairy marketing cooperative with 3,600 member farms, 5.5 billion pounds of milk and $1.6 billion in annual sales. Members operate dairy farms located throughout the Midwest states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota. They own 15 manufacturing plants and market a full line of consumer-packaged dairy products, including the Cass-Clay® brand. For more information about AMPI, visit the cooperative’s Web site at www.ampi.com.