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GOSHEN, Ind. – Milking cows has been a dream of a lifetime for Richard Thomas.
At Leann Acres, he lives his dream every day. Thomas starts his mornings at 4:30, milked until 8:30. He then deals again from 15h30 to 19h. – every day, no matter weekends or holidays.
Thomas has been living this dream for 39 years at his dairy farm in Middlebury. After his marriage, he buys land 5 miles from home and raises his herd from about 15 cows to 120 cows. But, for several years, he says that his farm "hobble".
And it's not sure of the future of the farm
Dairy farms like Thomas are struggling to make ends meet across America and Indiana while the milk market is drying up, said Doug Leman, executive director of Indiana Dairy
. is the market, "said Leman. "I hear about every week someone who leaves the company."
About 50 state dairy farms have closed since January, because of the dairy market lamentable or retreat from an owner, said Mr. Leman. He said there were about 1,000 dairy farms in Indiana.
To make matters worse, for 27 dairy farmers in Hoosier, contracts with Dean Foods expire this month. "Dean Foods has canceled contracts because of the weakening of the milk market," he said.
Farm contracts are expected to end in National Milk Month. to retire in the next few years and pass the farm to his son.
"At this point, I do not see when (the market) arrives," Thomas said. "I can not retire right now … They tell me that it takes money to live in retirement and that there is more to live in." now."
The cause of the struggles of Thomas and other farmers? According to Leman, the economic law of supply and demand is at the heart of the fall in milk prices.
People drink less milk, but milk production has increased. He explained that this caused a drop in milk prices.
In 2016, milk consumption was the lowest since 1975, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. But milk production is the highest since 1980, according to the USDA
which has lowered milk prices by an average of $ 20.10 per 100 pounds in 2011 to an average of $ 15.80 in april 2018. [JohnAdamKollownownerSchoolmanoftheShowersofmilkproductsweregenerallyexchangedforanfarmwithout200000$
Adam says he founded his dairy farm in 1986 with his wife Cynthia and could raise their family on the farm.
"I wanted to see my children grow up, I wanted to teach them how to work, I wanted to teach them Christian principles," he said. "We did it so that our children would end up doing so."
However, the milk market created difficult financial situations that drove the couple to seek additional income for their farm, did they? -he says. For lost money on the farm, the Adam family runs a maze maze, tours on the farm and Cynthia works full time.
"It's been so tight that we're just staying alive," he said. 19659022] Cynthia says that if something breaks on the farm, they do not have the money to fix it.
"Hang on, dig deep and no new purchases, no expansion, if it's broken, it's called string and leads"
The couple also changed its intermediate goals into long-term goals.
"Funding does not exist anymore," John said. Cynthia said, "Where life goes from here is in the hands of the Lord."
Reduced milk consumption could come from consumer preferences for nut milk or other alternative milks . by Nielsen, a global research company. In the past five years, sales of almond milk have increased by 250 percent, the report says.
"It's hard to say the direct impact of nut milks or dairy substitutes," said Nicole Olynk Widmar.
Although it's a "complex" problem, it's clear that people want less cow's milk, says Olynk Widmar.
International trade will play a role in the future of the milk market. The United States loses exports, dairy farmers could be affected
Trade is a global problem, but at home, Thomas, Leman and Adams all echoed the same words to help the milk market: Drink more milk. ] Source: The Goshen News
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Information from: The Goshen News, http://www.goshennews.com
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