Dean Foods, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2019, had continued paying dairy farmers for milk up until May 2020, when it failed to pay independent farmers or make Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) producer settlement payments for April milk. The USDA’s Ag Marketing Service confirmed Dean Foods failed to make payments in the nine FMMOs in which the company was fully regulated.
The bankruptcy sale of most of Dean Foods assets was completed on April 30. Read: Dean Foods misses FMMO payments; DFA sale faces another lawsuit.
According to Toby Anekwe, public affairs specialist with the USDA’s Ag Marketing Service, there had been no update regarding FMMO payments as of June 16.
PMMB staff were completing audits to determine the amount owned to co-op members in Pennsylvania, with plans to make bond claims to recover the money owed to cooperatives.
