SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. & MODESTO, Calif. — The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) wants to set the record straight regarding two factual misstatements that were included in an Associated Press story today on Senate bill AB 1778. Both are confusing to consumers:
•The CMAB is funded by California’s dairy producers through a check-off program. It is not funded by taxpayer dollars as the story stated. Because this money is administered through the California Department of Food and Agriculture, it can be called “public funds.” But it does not come from taxes. It comes out of the pockets of California’s 1,752 struggling dairy families. This is an important clarification that needs to be made.
•The CMAB has never filmed a “Happy California Cow” anywhere but in the state of California. It did shoot a portion of the “Unhappy Cows Auditions” campaign – which features unhappy foreign cows auditioning to come to California – in New Zealand. This production decision realized a savings of more than $750,000 to California’s dairy families who paid for the making of the commercials.
There have been a number of misperceptions about the CMAB, its campaign and where the funding comes from. These are damaging to the state’s dairy families – we appreciate your making a correction to any current stories or using this information in any future stories about this issue.
Source: California Milk Advisory Board
