A dairy economist says higher cattle prices have helped motivate dairy farmers to reduce their cow herds.
Vice President of Global Operations and Insights Alyssa Badger with Highground Dairy tells Brownfield U.S. milk production declines showed up earlier than expected in USDA’s latest report.
“Farmers have just not been profitable, break-even costs here in the Midwest are around $18.00 per hundredweight,” she says. “We saw the July futures contract dip as low as having a $13 handle in front of it, so you can imagine how bad those margins are.”
New Mexico and Texas had the largest declines in milk production during June with nearly 60,000 fewer cows compared to last year.
