If you don’t know by now, consider this your notice, milk
prices on-farm have been dropping for months and currently are at the lowest
point they have been in almost 7 years.
The last time financial impacts like this hit the dairy community there
was a mass exodus of producers, many of which wish they didn’t have to sell
their cows but they couldn’t provide for their families anymore. This is our current reality. Today I read articles about record cheese
inventories in the United States putting pressure on milk price to drop even
lower. I heard from fellow dairy farmers
that the exodus has started again, dairy farmers are being forced to sell their
herds and even land in order to pay off debt and save themselves. This dip in prices will have long lasting
effects on the dairy community, no matter the size of the farm. It does not discriminate. So as a reader, why should you care? What is my purpose in sharing this with
you?
These dairy farmers work tirelessly for their families,
their cows, their farms, and yes you the consumers. They are experiencing emotional stress that
you can’t even describe. These dedicated
farmers wake up every morning fully aware that they are literally paying admission
to milk their cows. They are not receiving
income from their farms, but paying just to keep them. Many
farms are accumulating thousands and even millions of dollars of debt just to
feed and care for their cows. But it
isn’t the financial situation that concerns me the most. What concerns me the most is the emotional
and mental health of these amazing people.
These men and women will most likely sacrifice everything
they have to give to keep doing the one thing they know and love, milking
cows. I talked to a dear friend in Ohio
who has a small herd. He told me he will
farm until he’s completely broke and go to a food bank for himself and his wife
before he sacrifices his cows. That’s right, he would sacrifice for his
family before he would sacrifice for his cows.
He’s not alone, I know many just like him. I know of farmers trying to make cuts to the
budget, but they refuse to compromise their soil, water, and cows’
well-being. These passionate men and women
believe in a hope that is impossible to describe, because many believe if they
keep pushing forward through the hard times that good times will soon
follow. Their perseverance pushes them to keeps them fighting for their calling. Crops were planting this spring
and hay is being harvested, farmers’ optimism continues, but at what
price? I can see the stress on their
tired faces. The worry is in their eyes:
how will they feed and clothe their families, how will they pay even part of their
monthly bills, how long will this last and can they make it that long?
What can you do to help farmers? Keep drinking milk, eating cheese and
enjoying yogurt. Dairy foods are some of
the most local foods we have available, with the average gallon of milk
traveling no more than 100 miles to the grocery store from the nearest dairy
farm. By drinking milk, you are helping
your neighboring dairy farmers. Please
help these amazing farmers provide for their families and yours, by doing
something as simple as making sure you and your family enjoys 3 servings of
dairy each day. And while you’re at it,
please pray for these hard working heroes, they need all the love and support
they can get! Thank you!
