Who We Are
The Purdue Dairy Page is maintained by an interdisciplinary group of
Purdue University and Extension faculty and staff interested in a variety of dairy-related
issues. Information contained in this site is arranged by subject matter (nutrition, waste
management, genetics and breeding, economics, etc.) to better help answer your questions.
Subject categories are listed in the Dairy Subjects
section. Select a subject from the list for more information or click on the topic area on
the Dairy Farmsite map on the main page. To find an individual by name or area of
specialization, go to the Dairy Personnel listing.
There's even a clipart collection which will provide
access to numerous dairy cow images and sounds.
General Facts & Figures
Indiana is home to nationally recognized
Ayrshires,
Brown Swiss,
Guernseys,
Holsteins,
Jerseys, and
Milking Shorthorns
and their breeders. A wide variety of Indiana dairy products is enjoyed by Hoosiers,
Americans and Earthlings. Fort Wayne, IN is considered the Ice Cream capital of the World,
and every auto racing fan knows the Indianapolis 500 is annually capped off by the victor
chugging a quart of ice cold milk in victory lane. Moderate climate, availability of
forages and feed grains, and proximity to the dairy deficit areas of the Southeastern US
make Indiana a very appealing state for bovines and dairy farm families.
Dairying continues to be an important part of Indiana Agriculture, even if the number
of dairy farms in Indiana has continued to decline over the past decade like it has in
most of the US. The number of milk cows on dairy farms in Indiana from 1967 to the present
is shown in Figure 1 (GIF). There was a 48.5 percent
decrease in number of milk cows for that time period. Currently, Indiana ranks 18th
in the United States in number of dairy cows and 17th in total milk production.
Total cash receipts for dairy products, not counting cull dairy cattle, veal, and fed
steers, was $278,272,000 which ranked 18th in the United States (Gann, 1996). Numbers of dairy
operations in Indiana from 1975 to 1997 are shown in Figure 2
(GIF). While the number of milk cows in Indiana declined by 33 % from 1977 to present,
the number of dairy farms also declined by 44 % over a similar period. Thus, the average
number of cows on remaining dairy farms has increased over the same time period, which,
along with increased production per cow, has allowed Indiana to maintain its rank in the
top 20 dairy producing states.
The largest numbers of dairy farms in Indiana are in the northeastern counties (Figure 3-Grade "A" Farms by County (GIF) and Figure 4-Grade "B" Farms by County (GIF)). Many
counties in the western part of the state have few if any dairy farms. Parke and Davies
Counties in southwestern Indiana are exceptions, and the number of dairies is actually
increasing there. On July 1, 1995, Indiana had two counties with no dairy herds, 16
counties with 1 to 4 herds, 23 counties with 5 to 10 herds, 38 counties with 11 to 50
herds, 8 counties with 51 to 200 herds, and only 4 counties with more than 200 herds.
The family dairy farm continues to dominate in Indiana. As a percentage, the number of
small dairy operations (1 to 29 milk cows) has declined only slightly from about 60 to 59
% of total dairy operations (Gann,
1996). Only large operations (100 or more milk cows) have increased as a percentage of
total operations from 5.0 to 6.6 percent in that same time period. In actual numbers,
small dairy operations decreased by 519 herds, moderate sized operations (30-49 cows)
decreased by 132 herds, average sized operations (50-99 cows) decreased by 171 herds, and
large operations increased by 22 herds. Many dairy producers have expanded herds in an
attempt to increase milk volume and achieve economies of scale, while other herds have
opted to get out of the dairy business.
We hope you find the information in this page to be useful and the links to other sites
helpful in locating the information you need. Please enjoy ... and have some fun along the
way!
Last modified: 11/14/97 |
