The US Department of Agriculture will provide $290 million aid to country’s dairy producers to help them fight against low prices of milk and high cost of feeding.

The national average price for milk plunged from $16.80 per hundredweight in the fourth quarter of last year to $12.23 in the first three months of this year, representing a decline of around 27 per cent.

Producers will receive a direct payment based on 2009 production data.

In addition, The US Department of Agriculture will buy $60 million in cheese plus cheese products to use in domestic feeding schemes under the Agricultural Appropriations Act 2010.

On the other hand, the California Department of Food & Agriculture has said that it would increase the minimum price of milk for a period of three months. The rise in price will include a 3-cents-a-gallon increase for fluid milk products.