U.S. Milk Output Rises in March

WASHINGTON - Apr 18/06 - SNS -- The United States produced 14.6 billion pounds of milk 23 major States during March, up 5.5% from March 2005.

February revised production, at 13.0 billion pounds, was up 5.9% from February 2005. The February revision represented a decrease of 7 million pounds from last month's preliminary production estimate.

Production per cow in the 23 major States averaged 1,773 pounds for March, 66 pounds above March 2005. The number of milk cows on farms in the 23 major States was 8.22 million head, 124,000 head more than March 2005, and 17,000 head more than February 2006.

Milk production in the U.S. during the January - March quarter totaled 45.5 billion pounds, up 5.0% from the January - March quarter last year. The average number of milk cows in the U.S. during the quarter was 9.09 million head, 91,000 head more than the same period last year.

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