Why does there seem to be controversy over dairy farm expansions?
Expansion is often discussed as a recent phenomenon in the dairy industry, but Wisconsin dairy herds have been steadily growing larger since pioneering times. In fact, the typical Wisconsin dairy herd is nearly six times larger than it was 56 years ago, from 15 cows in 1950 to 85 cows today. During the 1990s, growth in the average Wisconsin herd size increased 3% per year. (Yet when compared to other states, Wisconsin’s dairy farms tend to be much smaller. California farms average about 900 cows. Even some Vermont farms have larger dairy herds than Wisconsin.) In addition, research from the University of Wisconsin’s Program on Agricultural Technology Studies shows that most large Wisconsin dairy farms reached their current size through a continued series of incremental expansions. Surveys of Wisconsin dairy producers indicate that most expect to either maintain their current herd size or expand by a moderate number of cows over the next five years. So while the trend in Wisconsin is to
