1910.] PUBLIC DOCUMENT— No. 31. 27 



THE COST OF TRODUCING MARKET MILK. 



BY J. B. LINDSEY. 



It is impossible to determine just bow mucb it costs to pro- 

 duce a definite amount of milk, as so many factors enter into 

 tbe problem. Among such factors may be mentioned fertility 

 of the farm, skill in management, kind of buildings and utensils 

 employed, quality and care of dairy stock and care of the result- 

 ing product. It is the belief of the writer that in the past 

 a great deal of milk has been made and sold for less than 

 the cost of production. In making an attempt to gain a tem- 

 porary livelihood from dairying, many have sacrificed the fer- 

 tility of their farms, employed the most primitive methods of 

 housing and caring for the dairy stock, and the family has 

 cared for the milk and for the dairy utensils without credit. 

 Now that the health authorities are demanding better dairy 

 methods, the dairyman is indeed confronted with a serious prob- 

 lem, namely, how can he conform to these requirements, and 

 produce milk at a reasonable profit ? The writer sees no way out 

 of the dilemma other than to teach the public to appreciate the 

 highly nutritious character of milk, and to educate it to pay a 

 price commensurate with the increased cost of producing a 

 reasonably sanitary article. An attempt has been made, in the 

 figures which follow, to estimate the cost of producing a definite 

 amount of milk containing 4 per cent, of butter fat, which will 

 meet the ordinary requirements of the city boards of health. 

 The figures per quart mean the wholesale price at the farm, and 

 do not include profit to the producer, other than the fact that 

 he sells all of his roughage and whatever grain he may produce 

 upon his farm at market rates. If he cares for his own cattle, 

 he is allowed a reasonable compensation. It would probably be 

 no more than fair to add to the cost per quart 10 per cent, for 

 actual profit. In order to determine the retail price to the con- 



