Small Town News

For Kramer the pluses of milking outweigh the hard work

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Telle Kramer is a real country girl. She has grown up and lived on a dairy farm her whole life, and she wouldn't have it any other way. She loves milking cows early in the morning and late at night.

Telle lives on a small dairy farm just north of Fountain. Aside from milking 22 Guernsey cows at home, she also works for Adam Daniels at his dairy farm, where she milks 35 Hol-stein, Dutch Belt, and cross bred cows. She has been working there for close to two years.

"Being outside and working with the animals are my favorite parts of working on dairy farms, " replied Telle when asked what she enjoyed about farming. She plans to stick with her jobs and keep working dairy farms in the future.

Research shows dairy farming got its start in the United States way back in 1607 with the founding of Jamestown. The founders were the first to import dairy cows. Each family typically kept two or more cows, staggering their "dry" times. This way they could have milk year-round.

To this day dairy farming still plays a big role in this country. In 2002 alone, dairy cash receipts totaled $20.5 billion. With increasing scientific advancements in agriculture, the number of dairy cows in the United States has been steadily going down since the 1970's, while the amount of milk being produced per cow has been increasing.

Looking at the map, dairy farming is shrinking in the southeast and Midwest regions of the United States. It is, however, steadily increasing in the west. Idaho, New Mexico, and California all showed increases in farming from 1997-2001. Minnesota, Texas, and Missouri showed the greatest declines. Wisconsin and California remain the leading producers in milk.

According to statistics from 1998, Progressive Dairies, based out of Bak-ersfield, California, was the nations largest single dairy business. That herd reached 18, 500, with locations in California, Texas, and Georgia. The nation's top seller of organic milk is Horizon Organic Dairy.

Currently, dairy farms are continuing to increase in size. In 2001, 39 percent - of all milk was produced by farms of over 500 head of cattle or more. Yet in 1997, only 24 percent of dairy farms recorded 500 head of milk cows.

Kramer shared that dairy farming is certainly not easy. The farmers put in long hours with few days off. It is a busy job because the cows must be milked twice a day. Along with milking, the farmers must also keep the pens and barns cleared out, clean milking equipment, and keep track of food consumption and milk production of the cows.

A large portion of the tasks are now automated on the larger farms due to the increase in technology.

Dairy farming in the United States remains an important aspect to society to this day, and hopefully all will develop a better appreciation for it.



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© 2011 The Chatfield News Chatfield, Minnesota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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