California dairy industry

Dairy is a significant part of the agricultural output of the state of California. California ranks first out of the fifty states in dairy production. The state has about 1,300 dairy farms and 1.727 million dairy cows.^[1] The state produces nearly 20 percent of all U.S. milk.^[2]

History

A Californio rancher takes in cattle, a duty that would begin the process of the California Hide Trade.

The first cows were brought to California by the Spanish. The cows provided them a source of meat and milk to make butter.^[3]

The Inland Empire, formerly one of California's largest areas for dairy farming, has lost a significant amount of land to real estate development.^[4]

In 2011, PETA sued California agriculture officials and the California Milk Advisory Board for what they claimed was a false and misleading "Happy Cows" ad campaign.^[5]

In 2018, the Trump trade war led China to put retaliatory tariffs on US dairy products. This led to major losses among California dairy farmers.^[6]

Environmental impact

Water scarcity in California and other states in the American west has led to concerns about large users of water such as the dairy industry. Water usage for cattle feed crops represent 70% of the entire Colorado river usage, of which the California dairy industry is a major contributor.^[7] Pastures for cattle are often irrigated, ranking third in California's water when placed against water usage for the various crops grown in the state.^[8]

Environmental impacts extend beyond usage of scarce water. The dairy industry additionally makes up 44% of California's methane emissions as of 2018. This mainly originates from the cattle's manure and enteric fermentation.^[9]

Appearances in popular culture

Visiting... with Huell Howser
- Episode 410^[10]
- Episode 1408^[11]
California's Gold Episode 14020^[12]

Notes

^ "What Does the Typical California Dairy Farm Look Like?". Milk Business. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
^ "Contributions of the California Dairy Industry to the California Economy in 2018" (PDF). April 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-06.
^ "Two Centuries Of Prominence And Personalities | The California Dairy Press Room & Resources". www.californiadairypressroom.com. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
^ Hirsch, Jerry (2006-01-09). "Dairies Moving Out of Inland Empire". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
^ Jack Robinson (June 15, 2011). "PETA renews "Happy Cows" complaint". Sacramento Business Journal. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
^ Hiltzik, Michael (2018-10-26). "Column: California's dairy farmers were struggling to regain profitability. Then came the trade wars". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
^ Torrella, Kenny (2023-04-10). "The Colorado River is going dry to give us milk, steak, and hamburgers". Vox. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
^ Shapero, Matthew; Dronova, Iryna; Macaulay, Luke (8 June 2017). "Implications of changing spatial dynamics of irrigated pasture, California's third largest agricultural water use". Science of the Total Environment. 605–606: 445–453. Bibcode:2017ScTEn.605..445S. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.06.065. ISSN 0048-9697. PMID 28672233.
^ Amini, Seyedmorteza; Kuwayama, Toshihiro; Gong, Longwen; Falk, Matthias; Chen, Yanju; Mitloehner, Qian; Weller, Stephen; Mitloehner, Frank M.; Patteson, Douglas; Conley, Stephen A.; Scheehle, Elizabeth; FitzGibbon, Michael (8 April 2022). "Evaluating California dairy methane emission factors using short-term ground-level and airborne measurements". Atmospheric Environment: X. 14: 100171. Bibcode:2022AtmEX..1400171A. doi:10.1016/j.aeaoa.2022.100171. ISSN 2590-1621.
^ "Dairy Farm – Visiting (410) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University".
^ "Chino Dairy – Visiting (1408) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University".
^ "Camel Dairy – California's Gold (14020) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University".