Dairy

Danone (BN), owner of the Evian water and Activia yogurt brands, said a takeover of Yakult Honsha Co. (2267) is “not on the agenda” after a nine-year-old agreement that prevented it from raising its stake was replaced with a new one. …

For the second time in two years, state public health and agriculture department officials participating in the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (NCIMS) turned down a proposal to reduce the maximum allowable level of somatic cell counts in milk. A lower level of somatic cells indicates higher quality milk. On a related decision with trade policy implications, the NCIMS delegates approved a proposal to permanently allow foreign dairy marketers to participate in the U.S. Grade A program, by permitting required sanitation evaluations of overseas dairy farms and processing facilities to be carried out by third-party, non-governmental inspectors. …

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that New York State is officially America’s Yogurt Capital, surpassing California in 2012 as the top producer of yogurt in the United States. …

Farmers Co-operative Dairy (Farmers) and Agropur Cooperative (Agropur) are extremely proud to announce that they have successfully finalized the steps leading to the merging of activities of the two dairy cooperatives. …

Winners of the dairy industry's prestigious Sustainability Awards join the ranks of celebrities, athletes and influencers – from country music singer Miranda Lambert to movie star Salma Hayek to actor and father Taye Diggs – by donning the famed Milk Mustache for their own ad. The dairy industry leaders were recognized yesterday for their efforts to advance sustainability at the U.S. Dairy Sustainability Awards in Washington, D.C. …