Low milk prices hurting farmers; helping consumers

ALTO, Mich. (WZZM) - Times are tough for the family that started the Swisslane Dairy Farm nearly a century ago, because of falling milk prices. While low milk prices are benefitting shoppers, they are hurting farmers.

The farm has been a mainstay in Alto, Michigan for nearly 100 years. For the Oesch family that founded it in 1915, farming is all they know.

"This is my hobby," said Tom Oesch, a third generation dairy farmer. "This is what I do for a living. It's a family deal here."

Times are tough thanks to his main export - milk. Last year, milk sold on retail shelves for almost $4 a gallon. Now, that same gallon sells for half that price.

"It was too good last year," said Oesch. "We need a happy medium where we can make money and stay in business and not eat our equity."

With 1,250 cows milked a day, Oesch says the low milk prices are costing him money to run his 1500-acre farm. But while he's struggling, retailers are booming and consumers are taking advantage of the cheap prices.

"We try to be aggressive when the market will allow us to and we try to offer a good value for our consumers and that is an excellent item to bring people in the door," says Jay Maddern, a Senior Director at Plumb's Foods. "And if they're there, we hope to fill the rest of their needs."

Oesch isn't sure why the price of milk has plummeted in the last year. He's even contemplated selling off some of his cows if things don't change and it would be hard to say good bye. "They're really important to us," says Oesch. "We put a lot of time and effort into caring for them, making sure they have something to eat. It's hard."

Oesch says low milk prices could make dairy farmers better managers and producers, if they can find ways to achieve the same milk production despite the current costs .