The Kansas CW | Kansas Dairy Farmers Face Milk Surplus
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By Alana Rocha(NEWTON, Kan.)
Too many houses. Too many cars. Too many cows. Industries and consumers are scaling back because of the economic downturn.
That's putting more than 400 Kansas dairy farmers in a difficult position.
Byron Lehman is a second generation dairy farmer. He's owned and operated Lehman Farms LLC, in North Newton, since 1976.
He says, "We've always made a living at it. But some years are better than others."
Lehman says so far, 2009 is shaping up to be a tough one. Within the last week, the market price of cheese dropped 40 percent. All while feed expenses remain high.
"It's just overproduction. Too much milk, cheese," Lehman said.
Fifteen dairy farms operating in western Kansas account for more than half of the state's dairy products. Many farms are transplants from California.
Lehman Farms operates on a smaller scale. Two-hundred head of cattle graze the property and produce 1400 gallons of milk every day. Halting the assembly line, sort of speak, for milk products is a whole different animal.
"Cows are milked 365 days a year, twice a day, no holidays off," Lehman said. So right now, many U.S. dairies are looking to reduce their herds.
Analysts say the state of the industry will put several producers out of business all together.
Many dairy farmers, like Lehman, are banking on things like an increase in dairy exports and new, innovative ways to use the product here in the states, to address the supply issue.
He says, "It's going to cause some real stress to keep milking, and we'll just try to weather the storm." And make the most of what's produced.
So what about you, the consumer? The price for a gallon of milk has fallen to $3.67. That's down six percent from its peak last summer.
Dairy farmers can get financial assistance from the government.
Milk Income Loss Contract Program
Congress extended the Milk Income Loss Contract Program when it passed the Farm Bill last year. Producers now have until September 30, 2012 to apply.
