Strategic Investments Continue To Strengthen The cooperative

DFA Reports 2021 Financial Results

At the Cooperative’s recent Annual Meeting, Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), a national dairy cooperative owned by family farmers, reported its 2021 financial results for the 12-month period ending Dec. 31, 2021.

In 2021, the Cooperative reported net income, excluding significant non-recurring items, of $199 million compared to $171 million for 2020, an increase of $28 million or 16.4%, primarily driven by lower general and administrative costs and other expenses.

DFA’s net sales totaled $19.3 billion for 2021, compared to $17.9 billion in 2020, an increase of $1.5 billion or 8.1%. The increase is a result of a full year of operations of the facilities acquired as a result of Dean Foods’ bankruptcy compared to a partial year in 2020, along with a higher U.S. all milk price. The average price paid to DFA members was $18.37 per hundredweight in 2021 compared to $17.79 in 2020.

“COVID-19 variants and ongoing supply chain challenges have made 2021 a difficult year for many, but our family farm-owners and employees have continued to persevere and stay focused on keeping people across the United States and the world nourished with milk and other dairy products,” says Rick Smith, president and chief executive officer at DFA. “In 2022, we remain committed to progressing on our core strategies of providing value to our family farm-owners by marketing their milk, offering valuable farm services and continuing to grow our commercial businesses in the U.S. and around the globe.”

In 2021, DFA directed the marketing of 65.5 billion pounds of milk for both members and others through the Cooperative’s consolidated businesses, which represent approximately 29% of the total milk production in the United States. Cash distributed to members in 2021 totaled $71 million. Of the cash distributed to members in 2021, $47 million was in capital retirements and $24 million represented the cash portion of the allocated patronage dividends.

In 2021, DFA continued to integrate the plant assets and regional brands acquired out of the Dean bankruptcy into the Cooperative. Additionally, we stayed focused on expanding our global customers and growing global demand for dairy.

DFA’s farmer-owners and employees continued the Cooperative’s commitment to progressing on its environmental, social and governance goals, including partnering with customers with on-farm sustainability initiatives, launching a consumer educational campaign around sustainable farming practices and increasing focus on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts through the Cooperative’s council and ambassador program.

Our Commercial Operations, including DFA Dairy Brands, DFA Ingredient Solutions and DFA Beverage and Dairy Foods, also had continued growth and success in 2021. A few highlights include:

• Our TruMoo® brand introduced a reformulated chocolate milk using a more premium cocoa that provides superior flavor without additional sugar;
• Ingredient Solutions exported products to 60 countries and more than 200 global customers in 2021 despite supply chain disruptions impacting the industry and the world in general;
• We expanded distribution on Amazon for our Siips brand, a line of shelf-stable, low-fat flavored milks targeted to teens and tweens;
• Ingredient Solutions partnered on new product developments supporting some of the world’s largest food brands and continued to focus on building our presence in the U.S. foodservice industry; and
• La Vaquita®, our growing Hispanic cheese brand, added butter to its product line with salted and unsalted varieties in compostable wrappers.

Finally, DFA continued to support local communities in 2021 through its Farmers Feeding Families Fund, which helps raise money and get dairy products to food banks across the country. Since its inception, the fund has positively impacted more than 570 communities. Additionally, this last year, 17 of our regional milk brands stepped up to help fill a need at food pantries across the country with the donation of more than 2 million shelf-stable “Giving Cow™” milks. The Giving Cow milk packs provide valuable nutrition, but don’t require cold storage, which is limited at smaller pantries and shelters.

Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) is a national, farmer-owned dairy cooperative focusing on quality, innovation and the

future of family dairies. While supporting and serving more than 11,500 family farm-owners, DFA manufactures a variety of dairy products, including fluid milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, dairy ingredients and more that connect our Cooperative’s family farms to family tables with regional brands such as Alta Dena® Dairy, Meadow Gold® Dairy, Friendly®’s, Borden® Cheese, Plugrá® Premium Butter and Kemps® to name a few. On a global scale, we work with some of the world’s largest food companies to develop ingredients their customers are craving, while staying committed to social responsibility and ethical farming. For more information, please visit dfamilk.com.