Dairy farming is dying. After 40 years, I’m done

Washington Post ^ | Dec 21, 2018 | Jim Goodman

[ETL]

After 40 years of dairy farming, I sold my herd of cows this summer. The herd had been in my family since 1904; I know all 45 cows by name. I couldn

[lightman]

I used to help some small dairymen in my parts milking their ≤45 cow tie stall herds. They were too small to continue. Even the guy milking 70 in a parlor had to give it up. Dairy farming is a commitment to never traveling more than two hours away from home--so you can get back in time for the next milking.

[LeoTDB69]

“I know all 45 cows by name.”

Let’s see Bessie 1, Bessie 2...Bessie 45.

[Boomer]

Lots of trades went byebye in years past. Wagon wheel and wagon makers are just one example.

[oldasrocks]

I doubt this Roundup story. Wheat is not harvested green. It’s fully matured and dried up before harvest. Spraying it in the last 2 weeks would have nor affect on harvest volume. Spraying it when green would hurt the yield.

How many days have you spent watching and waiting on a field like I have?

[steve86]

I actually do buy the Lactaid chocolate milk from time to time because it’s good and I don’t half to remember the tablet. That is the only problem with the tablets: remembering. Once or twice I thought I took a tablet but actually didn’t. Predictable results. If I’m going to have a lot of dairy I take one before and one at the end of the meal. I don’t believe they ever failed me when I actually took them.

[Pollster1]

If your cows are 114 years old, maybe that's the problem.

The Rockettes have been dancing since 1925, and so far age has not been a problem. I imagine they will still look good two decades from now - great workouts keep their legs and their lungs in fine shape. The dairy cows just aren't getting enough exercise since they moved indoors out of fear of global warming.

[Larry Lucido]

Since 1904, eh? Dang! Those must be some mighty old cows!

Well, the author must be pushing 60 or 70, and the cows must be getting up to, geez, 120? Yeah, about time to start taking it easy.

[SC DOC]

Go big or get out......so he got out.

My brother in law is a dairy farmer in Wisconsin, having grown up on a dairy farm and taking over his wife's family farm after he returned from Vietnam. He incrementally grew the operation to the point now where he milks about 700 cows 3 times a day. He was one of the first dairies to do this schedule as it increases overall production about 15%. He has always been on the cutting edge of technology, and although he doesn't name his cows, they all have microchips in their ears so they can be tracked for their daily milk production and diet modification. They do almost all of their veterinary procedures and have a very profitable business that likely will remain in his family.

[Badboo]

The next step is to go to kefir. Easy to make. The misses or I make enough each night for my cereal in the morning. I have colitis and kefir is great for it. Use to use Lactaid but don’t need to anymore.

The chicken go nuts for the extra kefir grains you get once a week.

https://www.webmd.com/allergies/news/20030530/kefir-helps-lactose-intolerance

[jjotto]

Glyphosate is sometimes used in preharvest situations, but it is certainly only on a very small percentage of wheat, and must be done at least 14 days before harvest. It’s not worth the expense or hassles.

There is, BTW, no commercially grown GMO wheat although it could certainly be done.

[jjotto]

Mentions cliate change but not the ever-increasing burden of federal, state, and local regulations on such an operation. If he’s real, he’s too stupid to run a business.

[DannyTN]

0 days. Got a container garden, not the same.

but Snopes ranks the story a mixture.

[Cuttnhorse]

Better stay away from southern Idaho where a new dairy seems to sprout up every day or so.

It’s all about scale...the new dairies milk 5,000 to 12,000 cows per day. 45-cow herd has no chance to compete.

[cornfedcowboy]

A 45 cow milking herd? Dairy operations this small got out of the market 38 years ago.

[Data Miner]

Boy. If that global warming is making it too hot for the cows in Wisconsin just imagine what it must be doing to the cows of the competition in Texas he talked about.

Keeping 42 cows and being able to know and milk each one sounds very romantic but economy of scale was always going to win. You simply can’t complete if you refuse to expand the business. My “retired” neighbors keep at least twice as many cows not including calves. This editorial doesn’t convince me that dairy farming is on the way out but that this guy is not one to give much credence on the subject.

[D Rider]

Do you use splenda?

[NoCmpromiz]

..sounds like something Ortasio-Cortez might say.

And probably did...

[windcliff]

You always post the best pics and gifs.

[PGalt]

“And now, the real reason for this article.....good catch “

[Gay State Conservative]

How much is Whole Paycheck (aka: Whole Foods) charging for milk these days? Perhaps the Compost can contact Corporate Headquarters to find out.