NINETEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART V 349 



the dairy interests began to be alarmed. The markets were con- 

 gested, prices for milk and butterfat were getting low, but the price 

 of feed and labor continued at the high water mark. 



Dairymen were afraid. The condenser companies and creani- 

 erymen offered no encouragement, and when the dairymen got to- 

 gether in Chicago, April 12th and 13th, they were a serious bunch. 

 It was learned that ships for transporting dairy products were not 

 available and hence, the markets could not be cleared by exporta- 

 tion. 



Good business management prevailed. The people were ad- 

 vised to eat more and they did. This government and foreign gov- 

 ernments used their purchasing power and the day was saved. No 

 one M^as hurt seriously and the dairy industry remained intact. 



During 1918 it is estimated that we will export approximately 

 320,000,000 pounds of butter, 330,000,000 pounds of cheese, and 

 1,250,000,000 pounds of condensed milk. 



The exportation of butter and cheese dropped off considerably, 

 but the condensed milk exportation made up the shortage, so that 

 our total exports will be far in excess of the year 1917. 



In 1913 when we imported 460,000,000 pounds of cheese dairy 

 product, we had the production of 90,000 cows, estimating that the 

 average production was 4,000 pounds per cow, while we M^ere ex- 

 porting butter and condensed milk from approximately 15,000,000 

 allowing the same producti9n per cow 



In 1914 we exported the products of approximately 5,000 cows 

 and received the products of 175,000. In 1917 we exported the 

 product of approximately 375,000 and in 1918 it is estimated that 

 the products of 490,000 cows will be shipped abroad. 



With less than half the milk cows in Europe, that were there 

 before the war the indications , are that the United States will not 

 only be required to continue to furnish dairy products but she must 

 also supply thousands of dairy cattle for foundation stock in the 

 devastated countries. 



BUILDING IOWA HERDS 



Due to the shortage of labor and the high cost of feed for the 

 production of milk many herds in Iowa have been dispersed. The 

 cost of production has also caused many dairymen to investigate 

 the profitableness of their cows and has resulted in the sale of the 

 unprofitable animals. All of these factors have had a tendency to 

 reduce production. In order to overcome this lo.ss the Iowa State 

 Dairy Association has been bending its efforts toward the organ- 



