Why Missouri dairy is big business
With 1,250 grade A and 500 manufacturing grade dairy farms, Missouri is in the top 22 milk producing states. Each year, about 1 billion, 660 million pounds of milk is produced in the state, according to the Missouri Department of Agriculture.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture values all milk and dairy product commodity sales in Missouri at $302,684,000.
What makes the state a good place to operate a dairy? According to the Missouri Dairy Growth Council:
- Missouri farmers are livestock oriented. Livestock and related products account for 53 percent of the state's agricultural receipts. As a result the work force looks favorably on and enjoys working in animal husbandry.
- Missouri is a major producer of grain and forage. This means there are plentiful supplies of high-quality feed for dairies. Its Midwest location means that large quantities of grain and forage are at hand from neighboring states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas.
- Missouri has the infrastructure for handling a large capacity of milk for processing which makes for a competitive market. Currently, Missouri's milk processing facilities have the capacity to handle annually more than an additional billion pounds of milk--or the milk from 50,000 more cows. Missouri's central location also puts it in a position to supply milk-deficit areas of the United States such as southeast markets.
- Land. Lots of land. Thirty percent of Missouri's 114 counties have a population of less than 10,000. Many of the lesser populated counties are in north Missouri, an area with soil types and water resources ideal for a dairy operation.
- Cheap land, too. Missouri land values are significantly less than California, some northeast states, and the southeast dairy growth states while comparable to the upper Midwest states.
MU Ice Cream Research Efforts Before 1995
- Enhancing Survival of Lactic Acid Bacteria in Ice Cream By Natural Encapsulation and Gene Transfer
- Utilization of Freeze Concentrate in Lowfat Frozen Desserts
- Casein Micelles Partially Hydrolyzed by Chymosin Modify Texture of Lowfat Ice Cream
- Ice Cream Attributes Affected by Milk Fat Fractionation and Dairy Cow Diets
- Chemical, Physical and Sensory Properties of Frozen Desserts Formulated to Meet Consumer Preferences
- Microentrapment of Culture Bacteria as a Method Of Increasing Viability and B-Galactosidase in Frozen Desserts
- Release of Flavor Compounds From Full-Fat and Low-Fat Ice Cream During Eating
- Effects of Fat and Fat Replacers on Volatiles In Chocolate Ice Cream
- Milkfat and Whey Protein Fat Replacers in Chocolate Ice Cream
- Effect of Fat Content on Flavor Perception of Vanilla Ice Cream
- Interactions of Flavor Compounds with Soy and Dairy Proteins in Model Systems
- Interactions of Vanillin with Whey Protein Derived Fat Replacers in Nonfat and Lowfat Ice Creams