Celebrate Dairy impact in Wisconsin during June Dairy Month
June is Dairy Month in Wisconsin.
For decades the state of Wisconsin, along with the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin has designated this month to celebrate the state’s multi-billion dollar dairy industry and the farmers who work year-round to keep that industry strong.
It is only fitting that Wisconsin residents take time this month to recognize the impact dairy has on the state and to thank farmers for their hard work as the backbone of the state’s economy.
The dairy industry in Wisconsin is big business. Dairy farms in the state generate $45.6 billion of economic impact in the state. The feed mills, dairy equipment manufacturers and technicians, veterinarians, construction companies, genetics companies, milk haulers, dairy plants, dairy software companies - create a wave of economic impact that rolls across the entire state.
According to state statistics, Wisconsin dairy farms fuel the state’s economy to the tune of nearly $90,000 per minute.
According to the Wisconsin Agricultural Statistics Service (WASS), the state has about 1.28 million dairy cows spread over 5,943 licensed herds a drop from more than 9,000 just a few years ago. While there have been many headlines about large dairy farms with thousands of cows crowding out smaller operations, the average number of cows per farm in Wisconsin remains relatively low at 215 and the overwhelming majority of Wisconsin dairy farms are family owned.
Compared to other dairy-producing states, Wisconsin’s herd size is small. The average sized herd nationwide is 251 cows. In California the average herd size is 1,299 and in Idaho the average herd size is 1,269 animals.
At the same time, farmers, through improved genetics and feed options, continue to increase the milk production per cow. Total monthly milk production in the state was 2.64 billion pounds in May. Each month, cows in the state produce 2,085 pounds (about 242 gallons) of milk. Nationally, dairy farmers produce 217.6 billion pounds of milk each year, of that amount 14.1 percent comes from Wisconsin farms. In 2018, Wisconsin farmers set a new record by producing 30.6 billion pounds of milk.
About 90 percent of the milk produced in the state is turned into cheese with about 90 percent of that cheese sold outside of the state.
Wisconsin’s nearly 1,200 licensed cheesemakers produce over 600 types, styles and varieties of cheese – nearly double the number of any other state.
Wisconsin cheesemakers make 25% of the nation’s cheese, producing 3.52 billion pounds in 2022.
In 2022, the state led the nation with the production of 928 million pounds of specialty cheeses.
Wisconsin dominates the country in awards and recognitions for its specialty cheese products. Value added products, such as the award winning processed cheeses produced by Gilman Cheese Corporation, further contribute to the economic might of the dairy industry while bringing jobs and economic growth to rural communities.
