MARSHFIELD, Wisconsin — The U.S. dairy herd grew to its largest size since 1992, prompting the Holsteins at Ruth Keller’s place to call for a return to the buying power of that year’s milk check. Keller’s father, who kept his old ledgers in a metal box under the television, volunteered to look. He came back with the book, a service invoice and a set of opinions that nobody had asked him to reconcile.
The first item he remembered buying was a replacement farm truck. Ruth pointed out that the truck in his photograph had one mirror and a bench seat with a spring showing. He said it had been paid for, which accounted for the relaxed look on everyone in the picture.
The U.S. Dairy Herd Reaches 9.74 Million Cows
AgWest Farm Credit’s dairy industry update put the September herd at 9.74 million cows and said both herd size and output per cow contributed to higher milk production. More cows produce more milk if other conditions hold, and in September they also produced more milk per animal than they had a year earlier. The practical question for a farm is what it can keep after paying to produce it. One Holstein looked over the figures from the end of the stall and, like the electric company, declined to discuss a volume discount.
Ruth’s brother said a dairy cow was more productive now and ought to be proud. Ruth said there were days when she was more productive too, and the suppliers generally took advantage of them. They agreed that both cows and people were doing an admirable job, which improved morale until the shop called with an estimate on a pump.
Compare the Milk Check With the Bills It Has to Cover
If you want to compare with an earlier year, put the milk price and major costs on the same basis. Milk commonly gets priced per hundredweight, or 100 pounds. Use the revenue you actually received and count feed, labor or debt costs on a matching basis for the comparison. Components and premiums can also affect what goes on the check. A photo of Grandpa’s truck can tell you something about the past, especially if the front fender still has the price written inside it, but there are better ways to build a budget.
Ruth’s father found an old hardware receipt. There, in his handwriting, was a note complaining about what he’d had to pay for bolts. Ruth read it out loud. Her father said he’d had no idea how good he had it. Ruth said she expected to discover something similar about the current year if she could stand to keep the paper that long.
After chores, someone taped a copy of the current milk check beside the old one. The family stood around comparing figures. The Holsteins moved down the feed alley together, satisfied they had set another production record. They’d decided the wisest way to handle the buying-power question was to let the family go on being in charge of buying things.
The 1992 ledger has been returned to the metal box, where a set of truck keys has been missing since 1993.
Last Updated on November 15, 2026 by Alan Nafzger