Missouri Dairy Business Update
Volume 2, Number 3
March 2002

Mt. Grove

1) On our dairy, the best thing that we have done in the last 5 years that has helped us make money is:

• Custom Heifer Grower
• Extend cow life/sell heifers
• Improve ration & milk production
• Split partners went solo
• Stop feeding fescue - Corn silage and Alfalfa
• Better dry cow program
• Being own boss
• Added transition cow care

2) On our dairy, the one thing that has kept us from making more money is:

• Cow comfort
• Cow comfort
• Cow comfort
• Startup costs
• AI Breeding
• Heifer replacement & culling
• Cow Comfort
• Making things too complicated

3) My biggest problem is:

• Labor
• Labor
• High Quality Hay
• Labor
• Labor
• Better Feed Management
• Labor
• Need Benchmarks

4) In ten years I want

• 4 To be milking more cows
• 0 To be milking fewer cows
• 1 To be milking no cows
• 1 To be milking same no of cows
• 1 No answer

5) It costs_____ per head per day to feed our cows.

• Range of $3.02-$3.90, Average $3.31
• $3.90
• $3.02
• $3.21
• $3.40
• $3.02
• $4.20/cwt

6) On our farm, we need one full time person for every ____ cows.

• Range of 40 - 200, average of 97
• 70 cows
• 60 cows
• 40 cows
• 50 cows
• 200 cows
• 50 cows
• 200 cows
• 85 cows