ST. PAUL — University of Minnesota Extension and the Farm Service Agency kick off a series of free seminars across Minnesota next week to help milk producers understand their options under a new federal dairy program.

Dairy farmers have until Nov. 28 to enroll in the Dairy Margin Protection Program, which was created under the 2014 farm bill. The voluntary program aims to reduce producers’ exposure to catastrophic losses through risk management. It pays producers when the difference between the national price of milk and the average cost of feed falls below specified levels.

The seminars will be offered at 18 locations, staring Monday in Willmar and finishing Nov. 7 in Cologne.

Extension economist Kevin Klair says most dairy producers should enroll at least at the minimum level and consider higher coverage options.