The Suburban Nature of the US Dairy Industry

Keywords: agricultural geography, dairying, rural-urban fringe, economic geography, livestock
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Sunday
Session Start / End Time: 2/27/2022 08:00 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/27/2022 09:20 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 14

Abstract

When we think of farming, we picture wide open rural spaces with grass as far as the eye can see and animals dotting the landscape. But in reality, for some components of the agricultural economy, this is not an accurate image. In some cases, this is because of a need to be near the market or that the particular crop under cultivation is not space-intensive. In others, it is because the world grew around the farm and now barriers to switching force the farmer to work within the landscape they currently reside. The latter is often the case with the US dairy industry. Farmers who once were on the fringes of the cities in an effort to provide fresh milk to customers prior to refrigeration, now find themselves in the middle of suburban housing developments where neighboring land uses are not necessarily complimentary. This paper will look at the data supporting the shift of dairy farming from rural to suburban and the challenges and opportunities that the situation presents.