Producer Structure in Federal Milk Orders in May 2005 * 

During 2005, handlers regulated under Federal milk orders (FMO) received milk from 53,036 

producers (dairy farmers). The volume of these milk receipts, 114.7 billion pounds, accounted 

for about 66 percent of total fluid grade milk marketed in the United States. Data on the 

volume of FMO milk marketed per producer, along with comparisons to similar data in earlier 

years, provides information on the current structure of U. S. dairy farmers and illustrates trends 

taking place in this sector of the dairy industry. 

Information on individual producer milk marketings in May 2005 was obtained from the 

market administrators of the ten FMOs. These data were sorted according to the State location 

of the producer and were arrayed into 10 size groups based on the volume of milk received 

from the producer. Beginning with this survey, the information also was collected for 

producers according to cooperative membership. For most States, the information in this report 

should be representative of the structure of all dairy farmers marketing fluid grade milk. 

However, for some States, where the proportion of milk marketings marketed under Federal 

milk orders were relatively small, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Wyoming, the 

information likely is not representative. 

This report summarizes the major findings of the current survey, and presents comparisons to 

similar data for previous years. These findings are: 

(1) For all producers, the average volume of milk marketed in May 2005 was 199,111 

pounds, roughly equivalent to the production of 114 cows. Producers who are members 

of cooperatives accounted for nearly 88 percent of all producers and marketed an 

average of 207,194 pounds of milk, about four percent more than the average for all 

producers. Independent producers marketed significantly less milk – 141,602 pounds, 

about 29 percent lower than average. Cooperative members marketed about 91 percent 

of all the milk marketed under FMO. (See tables 1.) 

(2) For all Federal milk orders, the milk marketings size group with the largest number of 

producers was the 50,000 – 99,999 pound size group with 33 percent of total producers. 

The milk marketings size group with the largest volume of milk was the 100,000 – 

249,999 pound size; 23 percent of total receipts were in this group. Smaller producers, 

those marketing less than 100,000 pounds of milk, account for 56 percent of all 

producers, and only 16 percent of all receipts. There were 1,634 producers who marketed 

more than 1,000,000 pounds of milk. While these producers accounted for only 3 percent 

of producers, they marketed 37 percent of total milk receipts. There were 147 producers 

who marketed more than 5,000,000 pounds of milk. 

The frequency distribution of the milk marketings size groups for cooperative members 

was not that different than for all producers. Independent producers had significantly 

more milk marketed in the smaller size groups. (See table 1.) 

(3) Producers marketing milk under FMOs show significant variations in size by region. For 

example, producers in the West marketed 1,292,094 pounds of milk, nearly 6.5 times as 

much as the average for all producers. In this region, producers marketing more than 

1,000,000 pounds of milk accounted for 35 percent of producers and 83 percent of milk 

marketed. More than half of all producers marketing 5,000,000 or more pounds of milk 

are located in the West. In contrast, producers in the North Atlantic marketed 143,489 
pounds of milk, 28 percent less than the average for all producers. In this region, 

producers marketing less than 100,000 pounds of milk accounted for 61 percent of 

producers and 24 percent of milk marketed. 

While producers in the North Atlantic, East North Central, and West North Central 

regions on the average marketed less milk per producer, each of these regions had 

producers in the larger milk marketings size groups. In fact, all regions had producers 

marketing 5,000,000 or more pounds of milk. (See table 2.) 

(4) On a State basis, the average volume of milk marketings per producer ranged from 

80,760 pounds in Rhode Island, to 3,319,624 pounds in New Mexico. Other States with 

notably large average milk marketings per producer were Arizona, Colorado, and 

Florida. States with notably small averages were Kentucky, Missouri, Pennsylvania, and 

West Virginia. 

The State with the largest average estimated number of milk cows per farm was New 

Mexico, which had 1,766 cows per farm; the State with the lowest average was Rhode 

Island, 49 cows. Of the 42 States listed, there were 21 for which the average estimated 

number of milk cows per farm was larger than the all producers combined average of 

114 cows. There were 20 States where the average was smaller. There was one State 

were the averages were the same. (See table 3.) 

(5) The average volume of milk marketed per producer has increased significantly over 

time. For May 2005, the average was 23 percent larger than 2001 and 73 percent larger 

than in 1995. Compared to 20 years ago, the current average is more than 2.5 times as 

large. 

 The change in the relative importance of the milk marketings size groups over time 

further illustrates the significant growth in the volume of milk marketed per producer. In 

May 1985, producers marketing less than 100,000 pounds of milk accounted for 55 

percent of total milk marketed; by 1995 this share was 32 percent. By May 2005, this 

group accounted for only 19 percent. Producers marketing more than 600,000 pounds of 

milk accounted for six percent of milk marketings in May 1985, less than 19 percent in 

May 1995, but 45 percent of receipts in May 2005. (See tables 1 and 4.) 

* Prepared by Market Information Branch, Dairy Programs, Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA, July 2007. 
Table 1 -- Number of Producers, Producer Milk Marketings, and Average Milk Marketings Per Producer for All

Federal Milk Orders Combined, by Type of Cooperative Membership, by Milk Marketings Size Group, May 2005

All Producers Combined

Number Percent Cumulative 

Percent

Thousand 

Pounds Percent Cumulative Percent

Average 

marketings 

in pounds

Up to 49,999 12,506 22.9 22.9 383,343 3.5 3.5 30,653

50,000-99,999 18,016 33.0 55.8 1,324,072 12.2 15.7 73,494

100,000-249,999 16,549 30.3 86.1 2,504,682 23.0 38.7 151,349

250,000-399,999 3,240 5.9 92.1 1,006,849 9.3 48.0 310,756

400,000-599,999 1,493 2.7 94.8 725,043 6.7 54.6 485,628

600,000-999,999 1,214 2.2 97.0 934,318 8.6 63.2 769,619

1,000,000-1,499,999 616 1.1 98.1 746,705 6.9 70.1 1,212,183

1,500,000-2,499,999 506 0.9 99.1 955,184 8.8 78.8 1,887,716

2,500,000-4,999,999 365 0.7 99.7 1,263,456 11.6 90.5 3,461,524

5,000,000 or more 147 0.3 100.0 1,038,165 9.5 100.0 7,062,348

Total 2/ 54,652 100 - - - 10,881,818 100 - - - 199,111

Cooperative Members

Number Percent Cumulative 

Percent

Thousand 

Pounds Percent Cumulative Percent

Average 

marketings 

in pounds

Up to 49,999 11,040 23.0 23.0 336,548 3.4 3.4 30,484

50,000-99,999 15,539 32.4 55.5 1,141,862 11.5 14.9 73,484

100,000-249,999 14,419 30.1 85.6 2,185,326 22.0 36.9 151,559

250,000-399,999 2,897 6.0 91.6 902,213 9.1 46.0 311,430

400,000-599,999 1,347 2.8 94.4 653,873 6.6 52.6 485,429

600,000-999,999 1,111 2.3 96.8 856,890 8.6 61.2 771,278

1,000,000-1,499,999 571 1.2 97.9 692,519 7.0 68.2 1,212,818

1,500,000-2,499,999 486 1.0 99.0 916,864 9.2 77.4 1,886,551

2,500,000-4,999,999 355 0.7 99.7 1,229,657 12.4 89.8 3,463,822

5,000,000 or more 143 0.3 100.0 1,010,497 10.2 100.0 7,066,413

Total 2/ 47,908 100 - - - 9,926,249 100 - - - 207,194

Independents (Non-members)

Number Percent Cumulative 

Percent

Thousand 

Pounds Percent Cumulative Percent

Average 

marketings 

in pounds

Up to 49,999 1,466 21.7 21.7 46,795 4.9 4.9 31,920

50,000-99,999 2,477 36.7 58.5 182,210 19.1 24.0 73,561

100,000-249,999 2,130 31.6 90.1 319,357 33.4 57.4 149,933

250,000-399,999 343 5.1 95.1 104,636 11.0 68.3 305,061

400,000-599,999 146 2.2 97.3 71,170 7.4 75.8 487,466

600,000-999,999 103 1.5 98.8 77,428 8.1 83.9 751,724

1,000,000-1,499,999 45 0.7 99.5 54,185 5.7 89.6 1,204,119

1,500,000-2,499,999 19 0.3 99.8 35,382 3.7 93.3 1,862,210

2,500,000-4,999,999 11 0.2 99.9 36,738 3.8 97.1 3,339,802

5,000,000 or more 4 0.1 100 27,668 2.9 100 6,916,993

Total 2/ 6,744 100 - - - 955,569 100 - - - 141,692

Milk 

marketings 

size groups 

(Pounds) 1/

Producers Producer Marketings

Milk 

marketings 

size groups 

(Pounds) 1/

Producers Producer Marketings

Milk 

marketings 

size groups 

(Pounds) 1/

Producers Producer Marketings

1/ These milk marketings size groups can be converted to approximate herd-size groups by assuming that the U.S. average milk 

production per cow of 1,754 in May 2005 is representative for these producers. For example, the "up to 49,999" milk marketings size 

group would convert to a "1-28" herd size group (1-28 cows). 2/ Totals and Cumulative Percents may not add due to rounding.
Table 2 -- Number of Producers, Volume of Producer Milk Marketings, and Average Milk Marketings Per Producer, Based on Milk Marketed Under Federal O

Marketings Size Group, by Region, May 2005 1/

Number Percent 1,000 pounds Percent Average 2/ (pounds) Number Percent 1,000 pounds Percent 

NORTH ATLANTIC 3/ EAST NORTH CENTRAL 7/

Up to 49,999 3,808 23.5 114,625 4.9 30,101 Up to 49,999 5,073 24.9 155,813 4.7 

50,000-99,999 6,021 37.2 445,370 19.2 73,969 50,000-99,999 6,800 33.3 497,774 14.9 

100,000-249,999 4,720 29.1 701,139 30.2 148,546 100,000-249,999 6,012 29.5 905,777 27.1 250,000-399,999 772 4.8 237,905 10.2 308,166 250,000-399,999 1,182 5.8 369,035 11.0 400,000-599,999 345 2.1 169,182 7.3 490,383 400,000-599,999 511 2.5 248,005 7.4 600,000-999,999 264 1.6 202,624 8.7 767,515 600,000-999,999 403 2.0 310,660 9.3 

1,000,000-1,499,999 146 0.9 178,753 7.7 1,224,337 1,000,000-1,499,999 187 0.9 226,204 6.8 1,500,000-2,499,999 83 0.5 157,545 6.8 1,898,135 1,500,000-2,499,999 129 0.6 235,032 7.0 2,500,000-4,999,999 32 0.2 97,858 4.2 3,058,065 2,500,000-4,999,999 69 0.3 229,218 6.9 

5,000,000 or more 3 4/ 18,657 0.8 6,218,990 5,000,000 or more 24 0.1 167,246 5.0 

Total 16,194 100 2,323,658 100 143,489 Total 20,390 100 3,344,763 100 

SOUTH ATLANTIC 5/ WEST NORTH CENTRAL 8/

Up to 49,999 513 19.1 14,460 2.0 28,187 Up to 49,999 2,052 21.1 66,010 4.0 

50,000-99,999 522 19.4 38,245 5.3 73,267 50,000-99,999 3,366 34.6 246,478 15.0 

100,000-249,999 1,006 37.4 162,969 22.6 161,997 100,000-249,999 3,248 33.4 486,450 29.6 250,000-399,999 293 10.9 90,136 12.5 307,632 250,000-399,999 511 5.3 158,266 9.6 400,000-599,999 144 5.4 69,882 9.7 485,290 400,000-599,999 204 2.1 97,627 5.9 600,000-999,999 88 3.3 67,977 9.4 772,467 600,000-999,999 165 1.7 123,064 7.5 

1,000,000-1,499,999 43 1.6 52,430 7.3 1,219,310 1,000,000-1,499,999 70 0.7 84,811 5.2 1,500,000-2,499,999 50 1.9 97,307 13.5 1,946,133 1,500,000-2,499,999 52 0.5 96,708 5.9 2,500,000-4,999,999 25 0.9 87,744 12.2 3,509,766 2,500,000-4,999,999 38 0.4 133,263 8.1 

5,000,000 or more 6 0.2 38,984 5.4 6,497,393 5,000,000 or more 19 0.2 150,537 9.2 

Total 2,690 100 720,135 100 267,708 Total 9,725 100 1,643,214 100 

SOUTH CENTRAL 6/ WEST 9/

Up to 49,999 971 23.0 29,787 3.0 30,677 Up to 49,999 89 6.2 2,647 0.1 

50,000-99,999 1,208 28.6 88,537 8.8 73,292 50,000-99,999 99 6.9 7,669 0.4 

100,000-249,999 1,292 30.6 202,100 20.2 156,424 100,000-249,999 271 18.9 46,248 2.5 250,000-399,999 330 7.8 103,762 10.4 314,431 250,000-399,999 152 10.6 47,745 2.6 400,000-599,999 160 3.8 77,694 7.8 485,586 400,000-599,999 129 9.0 62,654 3.4 600,000-999,999 104 2.5 81,216 8.1 780,925 600,000-999,999 190 13.3 148,776 8.0 

1,000,000-1,499,999 47 1.1 56,099 5.6 1,193,605 1,000,000-1,499,999 123 8.6 148,407 8.0 1,500,000-2,499,999 49 1.2 93,812 9.4 1,914,536 1,500,000-2,499,999 143 10.0 274,781 14.9 2,500,000-4,999,999 45 1.1 162,223 16.2 3,604,961 2,500,000-4,999,999 156 10.9 553,150 29.9 

5,000,000 or more 16 0.4 105,830 10.6 6,614,394 5,000,000 or more 79 5.5 556,910 30.1 

Total 4,222 100 1,001,061 100 237,106 Total 1,431 100 1,848,987 100 

Milk marketings size 

groups (pounds)

Milk marketings size 

groups (pounds)

Producers Producer Marketings Producers Producer Mark

1/ Total marketings of milk by producers located in each State to handlers regulated under Federal milk marketing orders. The plants to which milk from a particular State is delivered are not lonecessarily in that State. Data for Alaska and Hawaii are not shown as none of the producers in these States marketed milk under Federal orders. 2/ Average milk marketings per producer. Ficomputed using unrounded numbers. Totals may not add due to rounding. 3/ North Atlantic Region includes CT, MA, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, and VT. 4/ Less than 0.05 percent. 5/ South Atincludes DE, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, and WV. 6/ South Central Region includes AL, AR, KY, LA, MS, OK, TN, and TX. 7/ East North Central Region includes IL, IN, MI, OH, and WI. 8/ WeRegion includes IA, KS, MN, MO, ND, NE, and SD. 9/ West Region includes AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, and WY. 
Table 3 -- For Dairy Farmers Marketing Milk Under Federal Orders: Average Milk Marketings Per Producer, Average Number of Milk Cows Pe

Milk Marketings under Federal Orders as a Proportion of State Milk Marketings, By State, May 2005

State

Average milk 

marketings per 

producer

State

Average milk 

marketings per 

producer

Alabama 238,288 182 100 New Hampshire 185,139 111 Arizona 2,911,433 1,392 84 New Jersey 148,702 105 Arkansas 129,372 109 95 New Mexico 3,319,624 1,766 Colorado 1,236,277 633 93 New York 166,825 100 Connecticut 207,081 123 97 North Carolina 243,023 157 Delaware 187,787 121 92 North Dakota 143,817 105 Florida 1,219,600 772 100 Ohio 148,202 94 Georgia 301,914 194 97 Oklahoma 205,400 144 Illinois 153,178 92 95 Oregon 487,985 291 Indiana 185,667 103 99 Pennsylvania 115,667 69 Iowa 175,530 96 92 Rhode Island 80,760 49 Kansas 417,634 230 97 South Carolina 311,121 210 Kentucky 93,528 78 99 South Dakota 234,522 154 Louisiana 137,120 119 100 Tennessee 138,932 102 Maine 142,451 91 99 Texas 599,164 327 Maryland 161,310 116 99 Vermont 195,183 118 Massachusetts 129,516 86 94 Virginia 158,657 102 Michigan 253,054 133 99 Washington 884,650 430 Minnesota 144,772 90 84 West Virginia 115,717 94 Mississippi 159,451 114 100 Wisconsin 149,669 93 Missouri 117,933 85 96 All StatesNebraska 244,934 158 92 Combined 199,111 114 

Average number of

milk cows per farm 

1/

Federal order milk 

marketings as a percent 

of State fluid grade milk 

marketings 2/

Average number of

milk cows per farm 

1/

Fed

marke

of Sta

m

1/ Average milk marketings per producer divided by average milk production per cow as reported by the National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS). For some States, the monthl

cow was estimated from quarterly data. 2/ Figures were computed using annual Federal milk order marketings and annual fluid grade milk marketings reported by NASS. Note: NA

include milk sold directly to consumers and milk produced by institutional herds. Data for the following States are not shown either because there was a small number of producers m

Federal orders or the data is administratively confidential; California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming. Data for Alaska and Hawaii are not shown as none of the producmarketed milk under Federal orders. 
Table 4 -- Number of Producers, Producer Milk Marketings, and Average Milk Marketings per Producer for 

Orders Combined, by Milk Marketings Size Group, May, 1985, 1990, 1995, and 2001

1985 1990 1995 

Percent of Total

Up to 49,999 40.1 17.0 32.0 10.9 27.8 7.6 27

50,000-99,999 40.8 37.6 41.3 31.3 39.0 24.6 34

100,000-249,999 16.7 30.7 22.5 34.3 26.6 33.9 27250,000-399,999 1.5 5.9 2.4 7.9 3.6 9.6 4400,000-599,999 0.4 2.8 0.9 4.6 1.3 5.5 2600,000-999,999 0.4 6.0 0.9 11.0 1.6 18.7 1

1,000,000-1,499,999 - - - 1/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 01,500,000-2,499,999 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 02,500,000-4,999,999 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 0

5,000,000 or more - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 0

Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 10

Number of ProducersProducer Marketings

Average milk marketings

Per Producer

(Pounds)

76,365 94,405 114,931 

8,858,209 9,090,974 10,306,414 

115,998 96,298 89,675 

Producer 

Marketings

Number of 

Producers

Producer 

Marketings

Number of 

Producers

Milk marketings size 

Groups (pounds) Number of Producers Producer Marketings Numb

Produ

1/ Prior to 2001, the maximum milk marketings size group was 600,000 pounds or more.