Comparing New York Dairy Farm Earnings

Aug 20, 2025

By Jason Karszes

The Dairy Farm Business Summary & Analysis Project (DFBS) is one of the longest applied research efforts within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University that interacts directly with rural stakeholders of the land grant mission. The DFBS started as a project in 1956 and works with dairy farm families to analyze financial and business performance over time, with the objective to improve business and financial management within the dairy industry using modern analysis techniques and historical farm data.

Comparing New York dairy farm characteristics by earnings

The 2024 business year had significant improvement in earnings over 2023. While on average financial performance improved, there continues to be a range of financial performance across farms that participate in the Dairy Farm Business Summary and Analysis Program (DFBS). DFBS data from 2024 provides insight into key measures of productivity, efficiency and financial performance. The data for 129 farms for 2024 is sorted into four groups representing earning quartiles, providing the opportunity to compare the four groups across selected measures of performance and efficiency.

Final Progress of the Farm extension bulletin

For the 2024 business year, financial performance across farms participating in the Dairy Farm Business Summary Program( DFBS) improved from 2023, with net farm income increasing by 150%. This report summarizes key measures of productivity, efficiency, and financial performance the same 128 farms that participated in the DFBS in 2023 and 2024.

Source : cornell.edu

Video: WARNING! Rough Start To Breeding Season!!

WARNING! Sheep Breeding Season Begins With A Bang! Breeding season is officially underway at Ewetopia Farms, but it didn’t exactly start the way we planned!

This vlog begins with us sorting through our rams to find the perfect match for a customer’s breeding program. What should have been routine quickly turned dangerous when one of our more nervous rams panicked. In seconds, Arnie’s knee was injured, and then I was slammed hard onto the concrete floor — both of us taken down by one ram!

Thankfully, it was just bruises, but it’s a reminder of how unpredictable and powerful mature rams can be. Once we recovered, it was time to get back to the real work — the start of breeding season.

We sorted the ewes into four breeding groups (two Suffolk and two Dorset), checking parentage as they ran through the chute, deworming those that needed it, and setting aside thinner ewes for session two of breeding season in a month’s time.This staggered approach keeps lambing organized and prevents overcrowding in the barns.

From rogue rams to the excitement of new breeding groups, this episode is full of action. Stay tuned for the next vlog, where we’ll share how we chose the rams for each group!