From staff reports

The impact on southeastern Ohio farmers of a reduction in milk purchases by Dean Foods, owners of Broughton Foods in Marietta, cannot yet be determined, a spokeswoman for Dean said Tuesday.

Dean sent a letter two weeks ago indicating to some of the farmers from whom the company purchases milk that it will discontinue milk purchases effective May 31.

“At this point, all we have done is adjust milk supply to meet the current demand,” Reace Smith, a spokeswoman for Dean, said Tuesday. “We can’t speculate about the specifics regarding Broughton.”

Washington County dairy operations could not be contacted Tuesday afternoon, and a message left at Broughton was not returned. An Associated Press story indicated that Dean will drop about 100 of the 12,000 farms across the country from whom it has purchased fluid milk in the past. The farms are in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, New York, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina.

The development is related to a global surplus of milk production coupled with difficulty Dean is encountering with one of its primary customers, Walmart. The retail giant is preparing to open its own fluid milk production center in Fort Wayne, Ind., according to an online article in Farm and Dairy magazine.

At a glance

¯ Dean Foods, owner of Broughton Foods in Washington County, announced a cutback in milk purchases.

¯ The reduction will impact about 100 farms in an eight-state area including Ohio.

¯ Dean Foods has purchasing arrangements with about 12,000 dairy farms in the U.S.