According to a Wisconsin Public Radio report, there are about 5,100 dairy herds operating in Wisconsin as of Jan. 1, just over half of the number of farms operating a decade ago, and about a third of the number of farms licensed two decades ago.
However, lower herd doesn’t mean fewer cows milked, as the number of cows being milked in Wisconsin has stayed the same over the last 20 years. The state is also producing more milk every year.
Today, however, there are fewer, larger farms operating as consolidation takes root.
