Arkansas dairies have gone to the goats.
The state had about 42,000 dairy cows at the turn of the century and ranked as the 36th-largest milk producer, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The dairy cattle inventory has since fallen to near goat level, according to state data.
"It's been almost a continuous decline the last 20 years," said Travis Justice, chief economist of the Arkansas Farm Bureau. Rising costs -- for feed, land, maintenance and labor -- paired with stagnate retail milk prices have squeezed producers' profit margins nationwide over the years, Justice said.
"There are fewer and fewer dairy farms that can maintain in that type of system," he said. "We've seen a number of people exit the industry, because it's not profitable."
After a series of declines, the number of dairy cows in Arkansas reached record lows this year. There were 5,000 milk cows across the state as of January, which is 1,000 fewer than last year, according to the Arkansas Cattle, Goat and Sheep Report, published Feb. 28.
While cow dairies in the state have struggled to stay afloat, goats have maintained their appeal. Data show 4,000 milk goats in the state as of January, unchanged from last year.
Chelsea Kimbrough, a goat and sheep specialist with the University of Arkansas System's Division of Agriculture, said goats appeal to new farmers and ranchers because they require less in startup costs, less room to roam and are easier to handle compared with cows.
Many people take pride in their goats and enter them in shows and festivals around the state. She said some cattle ranchers buy meat or dairy goats to diversify their operations.
"It isn't as intimidating to get started," and goats "multiply much more quickly than cows, so it's easy to grow your herd," Kimbrough said.
Domestic goats, a subspecies of Capra aegagrus, have origins in Asia and Eastern Europe and are grown typically for wool, meat or milk, according to "Encyclopedia Brittanica." One or two goats can "supply sufficient milk for a family throughout the year" and be kept in small quarters.
In 1924, there were 378,000 dairy cows in Arkansas, compared with 1.8 million people, according to the "Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture" and the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. Back then it was normal for families to own one or two cows, typically Jerseys or crossbreeds, that produced milk. The excess milk was often sold to nearby dairies.
Thirty years ago, there were 852 dairy farms in Arkansas, when 68,000 dairy cows were milked on a regular basis.
But dairy numbers fell as farmers faced pricing pressures that stemmed from federal deregulation, which cut the price of milk in Arkansas and southeastern states compared with the major milk-producing areas of the Midwest. The price cut hurt Arkansas production, and the smaller dairy farms dwindled. By 2009, there were 140 in the state.
PROFIT CHURN
As land prices rose and farms were consolidated, many farmers in the state left the milk industry. Several saw goats as a way to produce a small profit, using goats milk for specialty soaps, cheeses and creams, despite state laws that discourage the sale of the products.
Although there are thousands of milk goats in the state, there is only one goat dairy with a license from the Arkansas Department of Health: White River Creamery in Elkins, just outside of Fayetteville.
Lower grade milk, typically used by cheese processors, was once an option for farmers around the state. All Arkansas dairies now are either fully certified (grade-A) or not certified, said Tess McCormick, co-owner of White River Creamery. She runs the farm with her husband, Scott McCormick, who learned to craft cheeses in Vermont before setting up shop in Arkansas.
The reason McCormick and her family chose to raise and milk goats over cows was not financial, but more health-related. She said most people who are allergic to cow milk "do better with" goat milk.
"I can tell you it would have been a lot cheaper to do two cows than 40 goats," she said. "But no one's doing what we're doing."
They raise Nigerian Dwarf goats, known for high yields of protein and butterfat, ideal for cheese.
On the property -- where cheddars, cheves, fetas and more are made -- is a repurposed barn with all the certification requirements: a milking barn with a concrete floor, a separate room for goat milk storage (also with a concrete floor), adequate milking lines and equipment, and an on-site toilet, among others. Officials also inspect the site four times a year.
McCormick said people with milk goats in Arkansas tend to operate hobby farms. To legally sell goat milk products for human consumption in stores, restaurants and across state lines, milk must be processed at a licensed operation. White River Creamery has held up to five permits to comply with state regulations.
Topical products like goat milk soaps don't apply.
NUTRITIONAL VALUE
Raw milk is a different story.
Katie Rose more or less "gives" raw goat milk fudges, caramels and cheeses to her friends, since she can't sell them.
What she does sell is raw goat milk by the gallon from her farm in Roland, about 6 miles north of Pinnacle Mountain in central Arkansas. She is also quick to say that raw milk is a "contentious" product in industry circles.
Some view raw milk, which is neither pasteurized nor homogenized, as risky because it is unregulated and different people manage raw milk differently.
"There's a lot of misconceptions, but if you handle it wrong you make people very sick," Rose said.
However, proponents argue that there are benefits to drinking raw milk. They believe raw milk has higher nutritional value than milk typically found in stores, according to the UA System's Division of Agriculture. Arguments are made that producers of raw milk also treat their animals more "naturally" than conventional producers do; that drinkers of raw milk are less susceptible to allergies; and because of high milk fat levels, the milk tastes better.
Rose with the Arkansas Goat Producers Association is one of several producers across the state who sell raw milk. She said the reason she raises dozens of goats is "to help bring back an endangered breed and provide a central service in Arkansas."
There were only 36 purebred Oberhasli goats registered with the American Dairy Goat Association as of October, and Rose owns 10 of them. They are considered a "recovering" breed with the Livestock Nature Conservancy.
"Some people were born into," goat herding, she said. "Literally it's in their blood, it's a heritage. For others -- they are trendy. People have gotten into goats because they are fun, cute and very high maintenance. If you look at them funny they will fall over sick."
Before the passage of Act 1209, Arkansas farmers had more freedom to sell raw milk from cows or goats. Once the law took effect in August of 2013, farmers could sell at most 500 gallons of raw milk each month, with stipulations.
Sales can only be done on the farm, where the milk is produced, according to the legislation. Resale of raw milk is not permitted. A label informing buyers that they are liable for any health issues that arise from raw milk consumption is to be on the bottle or present at the sale site. Raw milk purchased under the act also cannot be used in food products that are going to be sold.
"We're not subject to state inspection. Now I try to run as close as I can to a grade-A dairy," Rose said. "But I don't have a triple-stainless steel vat or concrete floors. I also don't have tens of thousands to invest in my farm."
Despite laws that are "kind of frustrating," she said there are ways to get the word out.
Rose owns about 40 dairy goats and sells milk for $12 a gallon, she said, but "I'm not making bank on that."
"I pay high property taxes, I pay a lot in feed, and the hay this year -- the hay has gone through the roof, if you can find quality hay," she said. "If you want to farm correctly you have to spend the money correctly ... people get burned out financially, emotionally or both."
Raw milk producers can be found online through Facebook, Craigslist and other marketplace websites. At realmilk.com, Arkansas farmers sell raw milk from cows and goats as low as $5 a gallon.
Farmers today are "either really brave, born into it, or a little bit crazy," Rose said. "It's expensive, it's hard and it's heartbreaking -- but it's also beautiful."
SundayMonday Business on 03/17/2019