By Scout Nelson
The latest data from the Agriculture Department indicates a continuing decline in U.S. milk production, now down for the thirteenth consecutive month. In July, preliminary figures showed milk output at 18.915 billion pounds (about 8579692680 kg), marking a 0.4% decrease from July 2023. The combined output for 24 key states also saw a reduction, totaling 18.2 billion pounds (about 8255374400 kg), a slight drop of 0.2%.
Significant adjustments were made to June's milk production data for the 50 states, with figures revised down by 137 million pounds (about 62142104 kg), resulting in a 1.7% decrease from the previous year, a larger decline than the 1.0% initially reported.
Additionally, July's dairy cow numbers saw a slight increase, totaling 9.325 million head, which is up 5,000 from June. However, this count was revised down by 15,000 and remains 43,000 heads or 0.5% below the figures from July 2023.
The count for the 24 main dairy states in July reached 8.878 million heads, an increase of 3,000 from June but still 31,000 or 0.3% less than the same period last year, with June's count also being revised downward by 13,000 heads.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-jesp62.
Categories: South Dakota, Livestock, Dairy Cattle