Milk and gas prices

[clipper220]

Hey country gal, we just recently saw a huge jump in milk prices by the gallon at the grocery store. I mean, it went for just over $4 to about $6.25 a gallon. Did the farmers get any of that, or is it the same old stuff, everybody getting a cut except the farmer?

We always pay a little more for milk here in the Bristol area, because most of our milk comes from out of the area. We have a lot of beef production here, and you see alot of Angus cows and feed lots, but no many dairy barns or Holsteins. There are a few, but very few.

I just got back from a trip to the nursing home to see my dad. The gas has continued to fall here over the last week. I paid $2.82 today. Down from $2.90 the beginning of last week. I was shocked when we came to Utica for Christmas. We were paying $2.85 here, and paid $3.29 in Utica. Has it come down any?

Countrygal, I worked on farms for quite a few years, and worked for farmers from schuyler to Honeyhill in Newport. I love the country life and farm animals. I have a lot of respect for the hard work of farmers. Thanks for feeding me!! Haha! If you miss the charity ball, you will probably be better served to stay home and rub elbows with the "girls" down at the barn than some of the people that attend those sort of functions, (snicker snicker) Possibly less BS to be shoveled too. At least you have the benefit of a barn cleaner if ya stay home. LOL

Don't get me wrong, I support Roefaro, and I am glad to see a change of the guard. I only hope that something will be accomplished to change the way the city does business, and that some of the benefit goes to the neighborhoods and to the common citizens. So far I have seen things that enthuse me, and things that discourage me. We will just have to wait and see.

[countrygal]

It's funny you bring that up. I got home from the grocery store yesterday and told my husband he's been holding out on me. We must be getting rich, because milk is over $4. Of course he just laughed. We see a little less than half of that price. Usually if it goes up in the store, our price stays the same. While our gas and feed prices sky rocket. We also pay for trucking and advertising out of our cut. Politicians are trying to blame it on ethanol, but that is only a small part of the rising costs. We don't want to see high prices for milk. What we'd really like is for the milk price to level off and stay there so we have money we can count on every year instead of this up and down stuff!

[Swimmy]

So if you guys don't see much of that money, where does it go? The store owners? The government?

[clipper220]

The money gets smaller and smaller with every step down the chain from consumer to producer. Country gal gets just enough to stay in business. The one that really deserves a raise is the COW!!!! Poor things. They eat nothing but grains and "last summer's grass". I can't stand a wilted salad, much less something that was bundled up, and stored in the barn for months. At least they won't have high cholesterol with all the fibre and grain, and low fat. I suppose those salt lick things could cause hypertension if they lick em enough, haha. Hey country gal! Maybe for superbowl sunday, you could buy the cows a few wings and a pizza. They work hard all year, givem a treat!

In all reality, farm price supports are something that everyone should support. Farmers put the food on our tables, and they suffer lower and lower prices while paying more and more in overhead and fuel costs.

If ya don't think a farmer deserves a break, follow one from dawn to dusk some day. You will be exhausted by noon!!!

[Swimmy]

I never doubted how hard a farmer works. In high school, during the summers I would volunteer at a farm bailing hay. That was exhausting and I swam 4 hours a day.

I just assumed that the higher prices were government subsidies to go to the farmers. You would think I learned my lesson to never ASSume anything. Anywhooo, sorry to hear that my assumption was not the case.

[countrygal]

swimmy - the money goes to the co-ops like Hood/Dairylea and the store owners.

Clipper - you are too funny. Actually our cows don't see too much wilted forages. They do get some hay and it's pretty good stuff. Smells great! We feed our cows a TMR (total mixed ration) of corn silage, haylage, cotton seed, brewers grain (right from Budweiser) and different grains. Mix it all up and the cows love it!

Any more questions, just ask away and I'll try to answer as best I can!

[clipper220]

I guess I wasn't thinking CG. I suppose that hot wings and pizza with garlic and pepperoni and stuff might make the milk taste strange. Maybe you could at least slip them a short beer during the game. I mean if you buy your brewery grain from Bud, they should give ya a discount on a few 12packs for the cows.

I used to be amazed at what byproducts could be recycled through a cow and make nutritious feed. Beet pulp from sugar production, brewery grains from beer production, whey from cheese production and other byproducts of other production processes. Then after the cow has processed it and recycled it, we send the manure to a facility that drys it, sterilizes it and bags it to be sold at K-mart. What a country, huh?

Technological advancements have made farming a science since I took agriculture at West Canada Valley. One has to be educated and aware of the latest advances in order to succeed anymore. A lot more to farming than monitoring the breeding program, and milking cows and baling hay.

[Swimmy]

Well, apparently you can't write a-s-sumption unless you want it to be disagreeumption.

Thanks Countrygal.

[losjibaros]

one of my neighbors lets his cows graze, he said he gets a higher quality milk that stewarts pays a premium for.. he also is out 24\7 tinkering and farming around...

i am sad because he just cut down a field that was full of black berries for his cows to graze in.

[countrygal]

That's great that your neighbor makes high quality milk on pasture! Not an easy thing to do these days. Different areas have better grasses and we do have some pastures that are pretty good. Some of our cows go outside in the summer and some don't. Just depends where they are in their milking cycle.

Most producers will pay a premium or incentives for good quilaity milk. We ship to Dairylea and (knock on wood) we've received their "Super Milk" award for over 20 years in a row. Feeding cows has turned into a science. Thank goodness that is my husband's and our nutritionist's department!

[countrygal]

Clipper, Yes milk will taste different depending on what you feed cows. If we drink another farms raw milk, I can taste a difference from ours. Just like a mother nursing her baby. She has to be careful what she eats or the baby may not nurse. Pasteurizing and homogenizing tends to make all the milk taste the same.

And to answer a question you posted earlier......no our gas prices haven't come down. Still around $3.28. Good old New York State!

[kim]

Friday night I paid $3.15 for a gallon of milk at Costco here in NC. The regular grocery stores are a lot more than that. I also paid $2.94 for a gallon of gas at Costco on Friday night. The regular gas stations seem to be running about $2.99 or so. I love Costco!

The gas prices in the Utica area are nuts. I've never understood how Utica could be so much more expensive than Syracuse or Albany. Makes no sense.

[losjibaros]

Just curious Kim, What you do for a living and if Costco does buisness with the company you do buisness with.. while you might think your saving a buck or two....

[countrygal]

You're right Kim. Syracuse gas is cheaper. Rome is even more expensive than Utica most times. It does seem strange!

[kim]

Hey Los!

I write and I'm attempting to make money off of that, but I'm not making a whole lot that way, yet! My husband is an engineer, and, no, his company does not do business with Costco...we just have a regular membership, which works for us. We shop there so often that it pays for our membership, AND we put everything on American Express, which gives us cash back. We should be getting a check for $200.00 in February. I'm happy with it! Besides, Costco gives free food samples. I'm not kidding, if you time it right you can eat your entire dinner at Costco just by sampling. Sometimes they even have samples of wine! WHEEEE! :-)