Wisconsin home to 5,115 dairy herds

Although the number of dairy farms in Wisconsin milking cows decreased again last year, it was at a slower rate than past years.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service, there were 5,115 dairy farms in Wisconsin as of Jan. 1. This is a loss of 233 farms or 4.5% compared to one year ago when farms numbered 5,348. For the second year in a row, the rate of loss of dairy farms has been less than what was lost the year prior.

“Wisconsin’s dairy industry remains incredibly strong and resilient,” said Suzanne Fanning, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Cheese. “What we’re seeing right now is steady cow numbers, strong milk production and record consumer demand for dairy products, especially cheese.”

Cow numbers in Wisconsin are up from a year ago, with a statewide herd of 1,285,000 as of Jan. 1, compared to 1,265,000 one year prior. Monthly milk production also climbed from 2.69 billion pounds in January 2025 to 2.75 billion pounds in January 2026.

As of Jan. 1, the Top 10 dairy counties by farm numbers are Clark, 615; Marathon, 334; Grant, 223; Vernon, 175; Lafayette, 170; Dane, 156; Shawano, 152; Chippewa, 144; Monroe, 139; and Manitowoc, 134.

Janet Clark and her family milk 140 Holstein cows and farm 1,100 acres at Vision-Aire Farms LLC near Eldorado in Fond du Lac County. The farm is being transitioned from Clark’s par-ents, Roger and Sandy Grade, who started the farm in 1972, to Clark and her husband, Travis, and Clark’s brother, David. These fifth-generation farmers are the second generation in their family to dairy farm.

Since joining the farm full time in 2010, Clark and her husband have seen a change in the number of dairy farms around them.

“They didn’t have another generation to come in, and now they are working the land as their retirement or renting it out to another farm close by,” Clark said. “Some farms have tran-sitioned to the next generation — our farm being one of them and another farm up the road.”

Clark said she attributes the slowdown of farm losses to better prices.

“Last year’s milk prices were amazing, which keeps people in the business longer,” she said. “Along with that, beef prices were record high, which keeps that cow in the herd for one more lactation. There are cows that farmers are not culling because it doesn’t matter if you get a bull calf or an Angus calf out of that cow.”

High prices can also make for an attractive exit.

“If I were a farmer looking at retiring and didn’t have another generation coming, this would be the optimum time to sell,” Clark said. “A lot of farms are expanding and need more cows. You can get a really nice price to cull your cows right now, too.”

A couple of months ago, the dairy industry environment felt negative to Clark, she said.

“Prices were forecasting low, corn and bean prices were low, and fertilizer costs were up,” Clark said. “Our family was trying to figure out how to navigate through 2026. Now, milk and cheese prices are up and look great for the rest of the year. We’re still keeping our pencils sharp and making sure we’re not doing anything extraordinary because you don’t know when it will change.”

Fanning said demand for dairy products is strong.

“Consumers are increasingly looking for high-quality protein, and dairy delivers that in a natural way,” she said. “Wisconsin also produces more than 50% of the nation’s specialty cheese, which creates real opportunity for our farmers and cheesemakers. When you combine strong consumer demand with Wisconsin’s dairy expertise and infrastructure, there are many reasons to feel optimistic.”

Fanning said Wisconsin also continues to see strong investment in dairy processing.

“We’re seeing companies expand facilities, upgrade equipment and develop new dairy products to meet growing consumer demand in the U.S. and around the world,” she said. “We’re also seeing increased interest in farmstead processing, where farmers are creating value-added products.”

Like Wisconsin, Illinois is also losing dairy farms at a slower rate than in the past. Currently, Illinois is home to approximately 350 Grade A dairies compared to about 360 a year ago — a loss of 3%. From 2024 to 2025, Illinois lost 5.3% of its dairy farms. Milk cow numbers have dropped slightly in the past year and are currently at 76,000.

“We’re still meeting demand,” said Jolene Neuhauser, executive director of Illinois Milk Producers Association. “Increased feed efficiency and better genetics help to make the number of dwindling farms and cows more productive.”

John Mitchell, an Illinois dairy farmer from Winnebago County, milks 450 cows and farms 450 acres with his brother, Aaron, at Mitchell Dairy and Grain LLC. Located near Winnebago in northern Illinois just west of Rockford, the farm used to be one large operation with four people involved, whereas now there are two people on the dairy side, while the grain side is farmed separately.

Mitchell and his brother are the seventh generation on the farm that has been in their family since 1840. The Mitchells milk registered Holsteins along with a couple of Jerseys and Brown Swiss and ship their milk to Prairie Farms Dairy Inc.

“Having a market for your milk is the No. 1 thing,” Mitchell said. “Prairie Farms is a very strong cooperative in Illinois and has a milk quota-based system, which helps control growth. You can’t just go double in size.”

Mitchell said there are about 15 dairy farms in Winnebago County with an average size of 100-150 cows. He said their farm is the biggest in the county. The Mitchells expanded in 2015 to over 350 milking and continued to grow to their current size. Mitchell said he has not seen many dairy farms near him go out of business; only a few have retired or switched to beef.

“I feel like the people who are still in it are probably too stubborn to change,” Mitchell said. “We love what we do, we love the cows, and we’re probably going to stick it out as long as we can.”

Young blood is on many of the farms near Mitchell.

“I just turned 40 and in my immediate area, most of the farms have an operator who is younger than me,” Mitchell said. “It could be a father and son or father and daughter setup. That seems to be the most common for farms hanging on with 100-200 cows. There are still a few stanchion or tiestall barn setups and a lot of multigenerational farms.”

Many Illinois dairy farms are diversified with crops, Mitchell said.

“The last few years were pretty good for grain farming,” he said. “That’s the advantage of farming in Illinois. If you have land, it’s one of the best places to grow corn and soybeans.”

Clark said she believes the dairy industry is poised for a positive future.

“Demand is up, and as a dairy farmer, this gives me a completely different outlook than I had a couple months ago,” she said. “It reenergizes you. It feels like things are moving ahead in a much better light.”