Milk production in the 24 major milk-producing states, including Wisconsin, during January totaled 19.1 billion pounds, up 3.4 percent from January 2025, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Kansas saw the largest increase at 26.1 percent, followed by South Dakota (10.9) and Texas (7.6), following the “T” zone referenced by Extension dairy specialist Leonard Polzin in a recent Mid-West Farm Report interview: https://omny.fm/shows/mid-west-farm-report-madison/the-11b-question-navigating-processing-realities-in-2026
Wisconsin trailed the average at a 2.1 percent increase.
Other states saw declines, including Washington at -6.1 percent, followed by New Mexico (-3.8) and Pennsylvania (-3).
Production per cow in the 24 major states averaged 2,082 pounds for January, 24 pounds above January 2025. The number of milk cows on farms was 9.15 million head, up 200,000 head from January 2025 and up 15,000 head from December 2025.
Nationwide Stats
The annual production of milk for the entire United States during 2025 was 232 billion pounds, up 2.6 percent from 2024. Annual total milk production has increased 9 percent from 2016.
Production per cow in the U.S. averaged 24,390 pounds for 2025, 218 pounds above 2024. The average annual rate of milk production per cow has increased 7.2 percent from 2016.
The average number of milk cows on farms in the U.S. during 2025 was 9.5 million head, up 153,000 head from 2024. The average annual number of milk cows has increased 1.8 percent from 2016.
