The Pennsylvania Milk Marketing Board is reminding dairy producers who received letters last month demanding payments as part of the Dean Foods bankruptcy case to respond as soon as possible indicating that they do not owe any money.
Independent producers who previously shipped milk to Dean received the letters the last week of November from ASK LLP, a bankruptcy law firm representing Dean’s estate, demanding a partial refund of past milk checks. Farm Bureau does not believe there was any legal basis for this demand.
As a result of advocacy by Farm Bureau and the PMMB, the firm worked with PMMB and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office to create a simple, one-page form that farmers can fill out to demonstrate that the payments they received for milk sold to Dean were part of routine business and, therefore, do not need to be paid back.
Be sure to include the file number and date listed on the letter received from ASK LLP and return the form via email, fax, or US Mail to the paralegal assigned to the matter as noted in the letter from ASK LLP.