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About The Oregon statesman. (Salem, Or.) 1916-1980 | View Entire Issue (May 27, 1956)
Statesman,' Satan,' Or., Sun.', May 27, '50 (Sec.I)-T Million Cows AT . Te not raj Their Way' By OVID A. MARTIN 1 Associated Prut Farm Reporter WASHINGTON - Govern ment experts My there are at least one million dairy cowi that are "free boarden" on the farm that keep them. That is, they do not produce enough milk to pay their way. Their owners are shelling out for the privilege of keeping them whether they realize it or not. But that's the least of the un favorable things that can be said about these cows. They are, with out doubt, at the root of the dairy problem a problem that has been the subject of bitter debate in and out of Congress. It has been a problem that has influ enced many elections and could play a major role in this year's national voting. There are about 21 million dairy cows on the nation's farms. Agri culture Department dairy experts say fully one million of these pro duce less than 5,000 pounds of milk a year each. They say a dairyman hasn't much chance to make any money off his cows on less they average at least 1,000 pounds. It wouldn't be so bad if the own ers of the low-producing cows were the only ones hurt. Add to Sarpluf As it is, the 22 million cows are expected to produce about 127 billion pounds of milk this year. That is expected to be five billion pounds more than consumers will buy in the form of fluid milk butter, cheese, ice cream, and other dairy products. This extra or surplus five bil lion pounds depresses the price for all the milk produced not just the price of the unneeded sup ply. This surplus milk is diverted into butter, cheese, and dried milk and sold to the government under a dairy price support program. The accumulation of these stocks in the hands of the government serves to depress prices of all milk and dairy products as long as they exist. Now here: is "where the one mil lion boarder cows fit into the pic ture. They produce the equivalent of the surplus supply a pro duction which takes money out of their owners' pockets rather than puts it in. If these cows could be culled from herds at once, the surplus supply would disappear and dairy prices would improve, the experts say. CJ CullInK Needed In the view of Dr. J. Erank Kendrick, head of the depart ment's dairy herd improvement and sire-proving section, a solu tion to the problem of low re turns Is to be found in culling rather than in legislative pro grams affecting dairy price sup ports and surplus "give-away" programs. Why do farmers keep unprofit able cows The experts say that for the most part, it is a lack of realization that such cows do not pay for their keep. But for the dairy farmers as a whole, there has been a marked improvement in their herds in re cent years. And there is room for much more improvement. Milk production this year is ex pected to average 6,000 pounds a cow. Twenty-five years ago, the average was only 4.500 pounds It has climbed from 5,000 to 8,000 pounds since 1!M7. But some idea as to the possi bilities may be obtained from the fact that a few cows have pro duced as much as 25,000 pounds a year. About one and one-half million dairy cows In dairy im provement herds in this country produced an average of 9.363 pounds last year or 57 per cent more than this year's prospective average level. Only 14 Million It would require only about 14 million instead of the present herd of 22 million to produce the nation's milk and dairy prod uct requirements this year if such a herd produced the average of those in present improvement herds While Wisconsin Is generally looked upon as the No. 1 dairy state, several others rank ahead of it in the average production of their dairy cows The Califor nia average last year was 8,550 pounds. New Jersey was second with 7,800. Rhode Island third with 7.6flfl. Arizona fourth with 7,500 and Wisconsin fifth with 7,160. Louisiana trailed with the low average of 2,670 pounds. General ly speaking, production averages were lowest in Southern states, where the dairy industry has only recently began to lake hold. Dr. Kendrick says a number of factors have contributed to the production of more and more milk with fewer and fewer cows. He said they include herd improve ment eltorts ol various agencies, including the Agriculture Depart; ment and state agricultural col leges. Through use of artificial insemi nation, more and more dairy farmers have been able to get the benefits of proved sires in breeding better producing cows. Another factor, he said, has been the development, through the department's "grasslands" pro gram, of better grass and forage feed for dairy cows. Economic factors, Too, have contributed, Kendrick said, to the improvement. 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