Texas dairy cattle approved for CWT herd retirement program

By KARI KRAMER | East Texas Edition

Feb. 17, 2005 - Cooperatives Working Together has announced the final figures for the second round of their Herd Retirement Program.

While the majority of the herds selected were from the Pacific region, 19 Texas herds were selected for retirement. These herds contain 4,506 cows that produced 76.9 million pounds of milk last year. The retired herds account for about 1 percent of Texas' 318,000 dairy cows, according to Chris Galen with the National MIlk Producers Federation.

Nationwide, 363 herds were selected for retirement from the 732 that had originally applied for the program. According to NMPF, the farm audits done over the past two months confirmed that 50,478 cows would be removed as part of the current round's efforts. These cows had previously produced 908 million pounds of milk each year.

The CWT Herd Retirement Program began in 2003 to stabilize the milk market. During the first round, 32,724 cows were selected for retirement. Despite CWT's efforts, dairy cattle numbers rose last year.

"The rise in cow numbers is a primary mover behind going ahead, when we did, with the second herd retirement program," said Galen.

Within a few weeks, the selected herds should be retired. Under Herd Retirement Program guidelines, the cattle should be immediately sold for slaughter.