By DOUG SCHMITZ
Iowa Correspondent

AMES, Iowa – With Des Moines ranking first in the United States in per capita milk consumption, Iowa truly has alot to celebrate in June, during National Dairy Month.

Just to add to the Iowa dairy accolades, Le Mars, Iowa is commonly known as the ‘Ice Cream Capital of the World’ and the Midwest Dairy Assoc. named the state an honorary chair of the June 2007 National Dairy Month campaign.

“The Iowa State Dairy Assoc. encourages (everyone) to take time during June Dairy Month to thank dairy families for all the nutritious foods they provide and for their dedication to our local communities,” said Erin Vagts, industrial relations manager for the
Iowa State Dairy Assoc. (ISDA) in Ankeny, Iowa.

Established in 1937, National Dairy Month in June celebrates the U.S. dairy industry’s contribution to society, as well as the cooperation between dairy farmers and the community, who mark this month in unique ways with dairy food demonstrations and promotions, parades, ceremonies and contests.

As a leader in dairy product innovation, Swiss Valley provides milk to a significant number of schools, and is currently running a promotion with Garfield the Cat on the cartons, becoming one of the first processors to adopt the 3-A-Day of Dairy logo and offer milk in the new 8 oz. plastic bottles.

“We are thrilled to recognize Swiss Valley Farms as our 2007 Iowa Honorary Chair for June Dairy Month,” said Kevin Stiles, senior vice president of Midwest Dairy Assoc. (MDA) of Swiss Valley, which makes 10 percent of the Swiss cheese eaten in the United States.

“They have been a terrific partner for many years, bringing new products to schools and the grocery dairy aisle,” he said.
Headquartered in Davenport, Iowa, Swiss Valley participates in the first-ever test of 3-A-Day of Dairy vending machines in schools, and were the first to offer cash to schools for collecting milk caps, a program known as “Cash for Caps.”

Helping to promote healthy eating habits, Northwest Iowa is working to grow its dairy numbers, “and all across the state we are working to keep our dairies in business,” Vagts added.
“We continue to have a steady dairy industry in Iowa,” she said. “Northeast and Northwest Iowa are the (densest) dairy areas; however our dairies cover the entire state.”

As a result, Vagts said the focus is being placed on positioning the state’s young and beginning farmers with those retiring or leaving the dairy business.

“These new dairy producers will be the future of Iowa’s dairy industry,” she said. “The dairy industry as a whole is very important to Iowa’s economy and communities.”

Blue Bunny introduces new yogurts

To kick off National Dairy Month, Blue Bunny Ice Cream, based in Le Mars introduced two new yogurt product lines: Blue Bunny Light Omega-3, which features 300 mg of Omega-3, which is completely derived from flaxseed oil, and Blue Bunny Light Yogurt, which features a unique hybrid sweetener system with probiotic cultures.

“Consumers have told us they want more taste and nutrition from their dairy products,” said Mike Cecil, Blue Bunny retail dairy marketing manager. “The changes we have made to our yogurt line help us to continue to exceed our consumers’ expectations for great tasting yogurt with healthy benefits.”

Founded in 1913, Wells’ Dairy, Inc., the parent company of Blue Bunny, is the world’s largest manufacturer of ice cream in one location and the largest family-owned and managed dairy processor in the nation, employing over 2,700 in production, sales and office staff.

Iowa number one in milk

According to the Iowa State Dairy Assoc., the state’s capital of Des Moines ranks first nationally in per-capita milk consumption at 17.5 gallons per person per year, which outpaces its counterparts of Chicago and New York.

With 2,143 licensed dairy farms, Iowans own 205,000 dairy cows with a yearly herd size of 85 that produce 4.13 billion pounds of milk annually, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.

In addition, Iowa ranks 12th in milk production in the United States, which is higher than Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota and Missouri. Iowa’s dairy farmers rank 9th in production per cow as well.

Also, Iowa ranks 10th in U.S. cheese production (147,995 pounds), and 6th in the nation in the importance of dairy to the state’s GDP, contributing 2.1 percent.

In total, dairy farmers help generate more than $1.5 billion in economic activity and provide nearly 26,000 jobs.

Larry Tranel, Iowa State University Extension dairy specialist, said this year Iowa produced 113 percent more milk than in 1987.

“We have lost cows and herds since then, but have kept our share of total milk production better than the states around us,” he said. “Western Iowa has averaged around 24.9 percent annual growth since 1996.”

“At 20,146 pounds per cow, Iowa is ranked 12th nationally (in milk production), higher than surrounding states,” he said.

Ron Orth, dairy consultant with the Iowa Institute for Cooperatives in Ames, Iowa, said the American dairy industry is undergoing a rapid and major transition, which would provide both challenges and changes for Iowa dairy farmers.

“(These) changes include a growing market, a geographic shift in milk production, fewer cows and herds, and increased production per cow.”

This farm news was published in the June 13, 2007 issue of Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee.