What happens on the NCE has a direct bearing on what shows up in your milk checks. S ome of the basics are worth going over to understand how the system works and why the NCE is in the middle of the controversy regarding the largest cheese price drop in history following a period of record high prices. T he NCE convenes every Friday morning at 10.
Trading usually lasts about a half hour.
There are 40 members of the NCE and on any given Friday morning, four to six members actively participate. What is traded at the NCE is considered a sample of the cheddar market coming from the subset of barrels and 40 lb. blocks. T he NCE is unique in the commodity marketing world because for dairy producers, it's the only proprietary, cash wholesale market for cheese in the nation. Grain and livestock producers have lively and diverse cash markets for price discovery at many times and places across the country. The BFP is the major, published number used in pricing milk for dairy producers.