Monthly U.S. milk production was lower than the year earlier in December 2023, extending the decline to six consecutive months.

The preliminary estimate of overall November U.S. milk production compared to a year earlier was down by 104 million pounds (0.6%).

Ten states including California, New Mexico, Texas, Idaho and Colorado reduced milk production by a combined 224 million pounds.

Contributing to the smaller milking herd, about 2.38 million head of dairy cull cows were marketed through U.S. slaughter plants during January-September 2023, up about 101,500 from the same period in 2022.

Here’s an update on risk management tools available through the USDA and/or USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA), as well as other information impacting your milk check.

The March 2023 USDA data summarizes milk production prior to the fire the killed an estimated 18,000 cows at South Fork Dairy in Dimmitt, Texas, on April 10.

The number of milk cows on U.S. farms was estimated at 9.42 million head in October, 31,000 head more than October 2021 and 1,000 head more than September 2022.

Price movement didn’t necessarily follow state-level patterns where dairy cow numbers are changing.

With preliminary September numbers in, the USDA estimated July-September U.S. milk production was up 1.2% from the same period a year ago.

August 2021-22 recap at a glance