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Dairy Industry Survey to Aid UK College of Agriculture’s
Regulatory Services in Future Planning
By
Aimee Nielson
 LEXINGTON,
Ky., (March 14, 2007) – Kentucky’s dairy industry is changing.
Numbers of cows, farms and producers have been on the decline –
4,000 fewer head in 2005 than in 2004, and milk production down
4 percent in the same time period.
To keep current with the state’s dairy operations, the
University of Kentucky College of Agriculture’s Division of
Regulatory Services surveyed dairy farmers about their
enterprises in 2006. Now in 2007, a survey is aimed at dairy
laboratory managers and technicians, milk haulers, marketing
agency representatives, processor representatives, and other
allied and public service representatives impacted by milk
program activities.
“The dairy industry has fewer farmers, but herd sizes tend to be
growing,” said Chris Thompson, coordinator of the milk program
in the UK College of Agriculture Division of Regulatory
Services. “With that in mind, we need to know how to plan for
the future to better serve our clientele.”
The milk program’s mission is to ensure raw farm milk produced
and marketed in Kentucky is bought and sold using accurate
weights and tests, and to provide a fair and equitable
marketplace environment for all producers and processors in
Kentucky's dairy industry. The program uses education,
licensing, monitoring and service to accomplish the mission.
Thompson said the industry survey results will provide valuable
input to help evaluate the milk program’s current activities and
also help plan future activities.
The college’s Department of Community and Leadership Development
is administering the survey. Participants will receive the
12-question document in late March and early April. Thompson
expects to have completed surveys returned sometime in May.
“We will combine the results of the industry survey with the
farmer survey done in 2006,” he said. “With input from both
sides, it will really help us to see a clearer picture of what
we need to be doing down the road. It will be valuable in
guiding the milk program’s efforts during the next five years.”
Thompson plans to present a report drawn from the combined
surveys to the Kentucky Milk Handler’s Advisory Board later this
year.
Surveys were developed and distributed with support from the UK
College of Agriculture Division of Regulatory Services, UK
Department of Community and Leadership Development, Kentucky
Department of Agriculture and the Kentucky Dairy Development
Council.
For more information, contact Thompson at 859-257-2785 or at
cthompso@uky.edu. |
Contact: Chris Thompson at 859-257-2785 |
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The UK College
of Agriculture, through its land-grant mission, reaches across
the commonwealth with teaching, research and extension
to enhance the lives of Kentuckians. |
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