New York dairy farms produced nearly 1.32 billion pounds of milk in March, up 2.1 percent from almost 1.29 billion pounds in the year-prior month, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) recently reported. Production per cow in the state averaged 2,100 pounds in March, up 2.2 percent from 2,055 pounds a year ago. The […]
New York dairy farms produced nearly 1.32 billion pounds of milk in March, up 2.1 percent from almost 1.29 billion pounds in the year-prior month, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) recently reported.
Production per cow in the state averaged 2,100 pounds in March, up 2.2 percent from 2,055 pounds a year ago.
The number of milk cows on farms in New York state totaled 626,000 head in March, down slightly from 627,000 head in March 2019, NASS reported.
On the milk-price front, New York farmers in February were paid an average of $19.10 per hundredweight, down 70 cents from January, but $1.40 higher than prices in February 2019. February’s price data didn’t reflect the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
In neighboring Pennsylvania, dairy farms produced 907 million pounds of milk in March, up 2 percent from 889 million pounds a year earlier, according to the USDA.
There have been widespread media reports about dairy farmers in New York, Pennsylvania, and across the U.S. being forced to dump milk during the COVID-19 crisis as milk demand has plummeted with restaurants, schools, and workplaces closed.
