U.S. Milk Production Rose 2.4 Percent In June

U.S. milk production increased 2.4 percent in June as a rise in per-cow output more than made up for a smaller dairy herd, according to the Department of Agriculture.

Production climbed for the fourth straight month, to 16.324 billion pounds (7.4 billion kilograms) from 15.935 billion in June 2009, the USDA said today in a report. The dairy herd fell 1.2 percent to 9.122 million head while the average cow produced 1,790 pounds of milk last month, an increase of 3.7 percent from 1,726 pounds, the USDA said.

“We had a little more milk as productivity offset the reduction in cow numbers,” said Bill Brooks, an economist for Chicago-based broker Downes-O’Neill LLC. “Temperatures were not hot enough to hurt production in June, but may trim output this month.”

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