USDA says it will purchase approximately 11 million pounds of excess cheese from private inventories to address the highest cheese surplus in 30 years. The surplus cheese will be distributed to food banks and pantries across the country.
The purchase, valued at $20 million, will be provided to families in need across the country through USDA nutrition assistance programs, while assisting the stalled marketplace for dairy producers whose revenues have dropped 35 percent over the past two years.