California, Wisconsin, Texas, Idaho, NewYork are the five largest dairy states. Cows in 2003 produced an average 18,759 pounds of milk; in 2023 and average 24,117 pounds - an almost 30% increase.
Today's U.S. dairy herd numbers roughly 9.4 million. But compared with 2002 there are far fewer herds with less than 1,000 cows, while the number of farms with more than 1,000 cows has increased by 60%.
Source: USDA.
