l68 ACRICULTURl' OF MAINE. 



COST OF MILK PRODUCTION. 



Compiled from the South Lyndeboro Cow Test Association, 



and from other sources. 



By Fred Rasmussen, Professor of Dairying, New Hampshire 



College. 



INTRODUCTION. 



The South Lyndeboro Cow Test Association began opera- 

 tions January 15, 191 1, with Mr. B. C. Higgins as official tester. 

 Mr. Higgins made a visit to each farm once a month, weighed 

 dud tested the milk produced, and weighed and figured the feed 

 consumed and profit made by each cow during the twenty-four 

 hours, which was used as a basis for the month's record. The 

 results were entered in the farmer's herd book, which is always 

 in the possession of the farmer and in the Association Record 

 Book which is kept by the tester. At the end of the year each 

 farmer was given a complete record of the production of indi- 

 vidual cows and a herd summary. 



CONDITION OF IIKRDS. 



Through the South Lyndeboro Cow Test Association data 

 were collected on the feed cost of milk production from twenty- 

 six herds comprising 325 cows. Of these 288 or 88.4 were 

 grades or cows of mixed breeding, 37 or 11.6 per cent were 

 pure bred cows. The conditions for an economic production 

 from these herds is a great deal better than the average New 

 Hampshire conditions (i) because the cows are above the 

 average as found in the vStatc. The LTnited vStates Department 

 of Agriculture in a field survey in cooperation with the New 



