﻿18 BULLETIN 1H4. V. S. DEPARTMENT OF AoKH'ULTURE. 



prices are usually paid in December and January; lowest prices in 

 May, June, and July. The 1920 prices did not follow the normal 

 course. Instead of going up in the fall they went down. The high 

 prices in late summer are partly explained by the success of producers 

 in bargaining, with high cost as (he basic argument, which distrib- 

 utors considered, lmt following the fall in grain prices, milk prices 

 could not be sustained. 



The spread in prices is some inducement to winter production, and 

 those who produce in winter receive higher average prices for their 

 milk than those who follow the normal practice. But the spread in 

 prices is not commonly held to be sufficient to offset the extra cost of 

 feeding for winter milk production, above roughing the cows through 

 the winter and turning them out all summer where pasture is abun- 

 dant. The chief arguments, however, for winter production are that 

 the total yield for the year is increased by having the cows freshen 

 in the fall, and that there is a better distribution of the farm labor 

 over the year. Many who follow this practice say " it is easier to 

 produce milk in the winter." There is more time to care for the 

 cows, feeding can be controlled more definitely, there is not so much 

 milking to do in hot Weather and harvest time, and the production of 

 cows suffers less from heat, flies and shrinking pastures. With the 

 higher producing cows, year-around feeding is necessary, so that the 

 time of freshening is not a significant factor in feed consumption. 

 There may be some increase in " opportunity cost of feed," by which 

 is meant that the farm price of feeds increases from harvest time on, 

 and feeds might have been sold at increased prices instead of being fed. 

 but the necessary supplies are definitely set aside on a dairy farm for 

 the stock and the question of possible sale is disposed of early in the 

 season. Purchased feed is also provided for on the same basis. The 

 record of 120 cows in the Register of Production, selected without 

 regard to any factor other than date of freshening, were examined 

 to determine the effect of time of freshening on production and on 

 feed supply. The records of the cows freshening in each month of 

 the year were taken. There was no significant difference in the aver- 

 age production, and very little difference in the character of the feed 

 consumed. The fall-fresh cows were fed a little more grain than 

 the cows freshening later in the winter, but the April and June fresh 

 cows consumed more than the average. Of the 421 cows listed, only 

 142 freshened between March 1 and September 1. 



Storage" of butter, cheese, condensed milk, milk powder, and ice 

 Cream materials, tends to keep the winter price of milk below and 

 the summer price above the points they would naturally reach with- 

 out storage facilities. This is of benefit both to the consumer, who 

 can have as much as he desires at all times, and to the producer, who, 

 on account of the tendency of production to concentrate in the low 

 price months, gets a higher price for his year's product. 



Though the cost of milk is higher in winter than in summer, it is 

 more nearly uniform than prevalent methods of figuring indicate. 

 The tendency to figure cost of feeding dry and nearly-dry cows as 

 part of the cost of winter milk is practically unavoidable. It results 

 in a cost figure, which would mean a prohibitive price of dairy 



c Wisconsin Agricultural Experiment Station Circular 120. 



