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Dairy Farm Pulse 2026 - Economic Outlook Survey

Dairy farms have been navigating changing milk price formulas, new market dynamics, higher input costs, interest rates, labor challenges and rapidly changing market structure. American Dairy Coalition wants your voice in this important conversation. We are asking dairy farmers to complete this anonymous survey so we can better understand current economic position and the many drivers. Results will be reported and used as a guide as ADC communicates economic realities and priorities to policymakers and the industry and develops a multi-level response. If you are an allied industry representative, please share this survey with your dairy customers and be on the lookout for a survey geared to the allied industry.

Estimated time: 10 minutes.
ABOUT YOUR FARM
1.In which Federal Milk Marketing or Unregulated Area is your dairy primarily located?
2.Approximately how many cows are currently milked in your operation?
3.Compared with three years ago, your dairy herd is currently:
WHERE THINGS STAND TODAY
4.How would you describe the financial position of your dairy operation today?
5.Compared with three years ago, is your farm financially:
6.What are the top 3 factors negatively impacting your dairy farm’s profitability over the last 12 months? Check 3 boxes and use the 'other' line for optional additional input.
7.What are the top 3 factors positively impacting your dairy farm’s profitability over the last 12 months? Check 3 boxes and use the 'other' line for optional additional input.
DO YOU KNOW YOUR NUMBERS?
8.Do you know your farm's current total cost of producing 100 pounds (cwt) of milk?
9.If you know or have estimated your cost of production, please provide it here.
Please enter your cost per cwt of milk. Optional.
10.What is your milk check 'mailbox' milk price per cwt (most recent)? Check the box that applies
11.Please consider blacking out your personal information and including a copy or photo of your latest milk check stub for our market research. Optional
No file chosen
12.Do you have, or have you ever signed, a written contract with your milk buyer? Pick the best answer for your situation. Choose one, unless more than one applies to your situation.
13.Do you understand the contract you signed with your milk buyer and/or testing co-op and the responsibilities it includes?
14.Have environmental practices earned any revenue for your dairy?
15.Finish this sentence as suits you best: In the past year, income from my calf and cow sales helped my farm...
16.How often do you review your farm's financial performance or cost of production?
17.Which statement best describes your farm's cash-flow position over the past 12 months?
18.Over the past three years, would you say your farm's equity position has:
MANAGING MARGINS AND COSTS
19.Which of the following risk-management tools has your dairy used during the past three years?
20.Overall, how important is risk management to your farm's financial strategy?
21.Does your farm participate in any purchasing group, buying group, cooperative purchasing arrangement, or other effort to reduce input costs through group purchasing?
22.Does your farm have a regular management/profit team that brings key advisors together to review performance and make decisions?
23.Who is regularly involved in helping you make major financial or management decisions?
Select all that apply.
THREE TO FIVE YEARS FROM NOW
24.Looking ahead three to five years, which best describes where you expect your dairy operation to be?
Check all that apply
25.How confident are you that your dairy will still be operating as a dairy farm five years from now?
26.Which of these factors will have the greatest influence on whether your dairy is successful and operating five years from now?
Pick the top 3
THE BIG PICTURE
27.Which statement best describes your outlook for dairy farming over the next three to five years?
28.What is the ONE change — in markets, policy, management tools or the dairy industry — that would make the biggest difference to the future of your farm?
29.Is there anything else you want policymakers or dairy industry leaders to understand about the economic situation on dairy farms today?
30.Are you interested in more information on calculating your farm's cost of production, breakevens, and other business tools to improve decision-making and financial resilience?
31.If you could choose a meeting or webinar topic, what would you be interested in learning more about or understanding better?
Thank you for participating in this important survey. American Dairy Coalition will use aggregated responses to better represent dairy farmers' economic circumstances, management needs and outlook for the future as we develop a multi-level response and communicate with policymakers, industry, and dairy farmers. If you have a question about any part of this survey or want assistance with any of the questions or to communicate additional information, please feel free to reach out in confidence to our office at 1.920.288.2322 or email info@americandairycoalitioninc.com