538 



STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



feeding, and it is easy to trace in these suggestive names the causes 

 for the larger or smaller milk flows just noted. In addition, further- 

 more, to the drying up of pastures in the summer and fall seasons 

 by which milk supply is decreased the hot weather also distresses the 

 herd, flies and other cattle pests are at their worst and these add to the 

 causes for a falling milk yield. 



It has sometimes been urged that herd freshening at the time of 

 annual shortage would solve the problem of a better supply of milk. 

 Summer freshening of herds is of course possible but this does not 

 remove the evils of hurtful weather and scant pasturage. Indeed it 

 can easih' be shown that winter dairying which requires winter or late 

 fall freshening of herds will give the maximum of milk at lowest average 

 costs and is, therefore, the best for the milk trade in every way. 



These periodic differences between the monthly demand for milk and 

 the monthly supply in Detroit may be easily seen by a study of the 

 following graph where the spring surplus and fall shortage are very 

 evident. 



MILK DEMAND AND SUPPLY FOR 13 MONTHS IN DETROIT 



K 



i 



I 





q^ 



1^ 







I 



i- 

 ^ 



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-f 





^ 





I 



4 



supply, 

 (leiiiand. 



This graph shows for the thirteen months from December, 1917 to 

 December, 1918 the status of milk supply and demand for milk dealers 

 in Detroit handling one-half the milk trade of the city. The month of 

 December is taken as the typical month for the year, and the supply and 

 demand for milk for the remaining mouths are reckoned in percentages 

 abvive or below the amounts for this month. The solid line shows 

 the amounts per month supplied by dairymen patrons to the companies 

 in question. The broken line shows the amount per month sold to 

 consumers. Late spring is tlie period of high supply; early fall the 

 period of low suppl3\ The least consumption is in mid-winter; the 

 greatest in mid-summer and early fall. 



Milk surpluses and shortages have been irritations in the milk trade 

 from the beginning. It would seem that self-interest would encourage 

 herds of suflicient size among dairymen to furnish dealers with an ade- 

 quate supply of milk at the time of peak consumption but herds of this 

 size are bound to give a surplus when pastures are green and rich and a 

 greater milk flow is natural and the losses from this source tend to stop 

 the too great growth in size of herds. 



