Hundreds of thousands of America’s dairy cows are being turned into hamburgers because milk prices have dropped so low that farmers can no longer afford to feed the animals. Dairy farmers say they have little choice but to sell part of their herds for slaughter because they face a perfect storm of destructive economic forces. At home, feed prices are rising and cash-strapped consumers are eating out less often. Abroad, the global recession has cut into demand for butter and cheese exported from the U.S. Prices for milk now are about half what it costs farmers to produce the staple, and consumer prices are falling. Unless the market can be bolstered, industry officials project that more than 1.5 million of the nation’s 9.3 million milking cows could be slaughtered this year as dairy operators look to cut costs and generate cash.
Dairy cows head for slaughter as milk prices sour
Like many Americans, Darris and Sarah Dixon are struggling with mortgage payments and trying to avoid bankruptcy. But the home the Dixons live in isn’t the problem. The problem is their three chicken houses, on which they owe nearly $500,000. “There’s no way we’ll make the chicken house payments,” Mr. Dixon says from his farm abutting the Ozark Mountains. A chicken housing crisis has cropped up in the U.S., and it’s producing some of the same bleak results as the human one — foreclosures, lawsuits and devastated homeowners. In the wake of last year’s bankruptcy filing by poultry giant Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., hundreds of farmers suddenly find themselves unable to make mortgage payments on their pricey chicken coops.
Farmers Face Empty-Nest Syndrome Amid Chicken Housing Crisis
