Pennsylvania Dairy Producer Survey Results
The Center for Dairy Excellence conducted a survey in the spring of 2009 to better understand how changes in the industry are influencing Pennsylvania's dairy producers and their operations.
The goals of the survey were to find out:
-- The demographics of the industry
-- Current milking and housing facilities
-- Current operational practices used
-- Plans for retirement
-- Plans for modernization and investment in facilities
-- Use of professional resources
-- Limitations to growth, profitability and business transition
More than 1,600 producers completed the surveys. They represented about 22 percent of the farms and 27 percent of the cows in Pennsylvania, producing about 24 percent of the state's annual milk production.
Preliminary results to the survey were unveiled at the June 2009 Pennsylvania Dairy Task Force meeting in Harrisburg. The data was divided into four regions across the state, and top line information from each region is included in the presentation below.
Highlights from the PA Dairy Producer Survey
The Center for Dairy Excellence hosted a conference call in early August to review findings of the survey. The information was shared with call participants through the presentation below.
Producer Survey Information from Conference Call
In the coming weeks, the Center will work with the University of Pennsylvania to further analyze the data and develop a white paper with conclusions and recommendations from the survey. Look for that white paper to be posted later this month. For more information, call the Center at 717-346-0849.