Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Award Date

1960

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department / School

Economics

Abstract

The Dairying industry has undergone and will undergo evolutionary adjustments. Many changes have already taken place. This is evidenced by the change in the size of herds; the shifting from the sale of farm separated cream to the sale of whole milk; the improved methods of feeding; improved feeds and the changed system (adopted by many farmers) of purchasing feed requirements; the change in consumption trend, and finally, the system of marketing dairy products. The changes started with World War I, when the prices of all products were soaring. These changes took the form of (1) variation in supply, (2) changes in the demand function for various commodities. In recent years whole milk production in South Dakota has never approached the levels of thirty years ago, although recently, it has been exhibiting an uncertain rise. In 1959, South Dakota produced 1422 million pounds of whole milk from 274,000 milk cows. This was a decrease of 15,000 in the number if cows below the 1958 level. The 1959 volume of whole milk produced was 70 per cent of the averaged 1926-1930 production. For the United States, there was a 28.9 per cent increase over the same period. The state’s share of the nation’s production declined from 2.1 per cent in 1926-1930 to 1.1 per cent in 1959. However, 87.1 per cent of the milk production in the state takes place in the eastern section. Thus, there were fewer cows per farm, and many producers, who slowly shifted from the sale of farm separated cream to the sale of whole milk. At the start of the shifting there were many cream stations and a considerable number of creameries. The trend toward the sale of whole milk and bulk assembly is evidenced by the decline of cream stations. In 1943 there were 626 such stations. By 1947 the licensed stations declined in number to 508. The downward trend continued until only 389 cream stations remained in 1951. There were 293 operating in 1957, and, finally, there were 219 such stations in 1959. Together there were 421 cream stations, creameries, and licensed dairy milk plants in South Dakota in 1957. The number of creameries also fluctuated. In 1921 there were 101 licensed creameries. The number rose to 125 in 1936, then declined to 104 by 1943. After 1943, there was an upward swing to 113, but this trend was not long-lived. By 1951 they dropped to 96, then to 73 for 1957.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Butter
Dried milk
Butter trade -- South Dakota

Description

Includes bibliographical references

Format

application/pdf

Number of Pages

112

Publisher

South Dakota State University

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