Brown County Agriculture
- Brown County Agriculture
- Value & Economic Impact
- Dairy Processing Plants
- Wisconsin Agriculture
Updates:
7/03/07: Brown County Dairy Processing Plant added
Wisconsin ’s Dairy Industry contributes 20.6 billion dollars annually to the state’s economy.
Whether you live in a rural or urban area of Wisconsin , your community’s economy benefits from the dairy industry’s 20.6 billion dollar annual economic impact. Plus, dairy farmers depend on the land and its natural resources to provide abundant crops that help feed their animals as well as provide food for us. Therefore, dairy farmers take care of the land and the environment because they depend on these things for their livelihood. Take the time to meet your local dairy farmers in Brown County , they work to keep us all well fed and clothed.
Agriculture is an important economic force in Brown County. It includes hundreds of family-owned farms, related businesses and industries that provide equipment, services and other products farmers need to process, market and deliver food and fiber to consumers. The production, sales and processing of Brown County's farm products generates employment, economic activity, income and tax revenue.
Brown County has a true mix of the best rural and urban settings in the state. While it is well known as the home of "Titletown USA," it also ranks among the top ten counties in the state for agricultural, milk and dairy products sold. It is ranked among the top five counties in Wisconsin for the sale of cattle and calves, livestock and livestock products, and corn silage acreage.
How important is agriculture to the county's economy?
1. Agriculture provides jobs for 16,759 Brown County residents.
2. Agriculture accounts for $3 billion in economic activity.
3. Agriculture pays $75 million in taxes. This figure does not include all property taxes paid to local schools.
Who owns the farms?
1. Individuals or families = 88%
2. Family Partnerships = 8.5%
3. Family-owned Corporations = 3.3%
4. Non-family Corporations = 0.2%
5. That means over 99% of Brown County’s farms are family owned and operated.
Agriculture provides jobs.
Brown County agriculture provides 16,759 jobs. That's almost 10% of the county's workforce of 172,016 people. These jobs are diverse - farm owners, on-farm employees, veterinarians, crop and livestock consultants, feed and fuel suppliers, food processors, farm machinery manufacturers and dealers, barn builders and agricultural lenders, just to name a few. Every new job in agriculture generates one additional job in Brown County.
Agriculture stimulates economic activity.
Brown County agriculture generates over $3 billion in economic activity, accounting for about 17 percent of the county's total economic activity. Every dollar of sales of agricultural products generates an additional $0.34 of economic activity in other parts of the Brown County economy.
Here's how the agriculture's $3 billion economic impact breaks down:
1. The direct effect of agriculture is $2.2 billion and includes the sale of all farm products and value-added products.
2. Purchases of agriculture inputs and services create another $547.7 million in economic activity; for example, business-to-business purchases such as fuel, fertilizer, feed, farm, equipment, veterinary services and crop consultants.
3. This business-to-business activity then generates another $212.2 million in economic activity, because people who work in agriculture-related businesses spend their earnings.
Agriculture contributes to county income.
Agriculture accounts for $844.5 million - 9.4 percent of Brown County's total income. This includes wages, salaries, benefits and profits of farmers and workers in agriculture-related businesses. Ever dollar of agriculture income generates an additional $0.99 of county income.
Agriculture pays taxes.
Economic activity associated with Brown County's farms and agriculture-related businesses generates almost $75 million in local and state taxes. This figure does not include all property taxes paid to support local schools. If it did, the number would increase dramatically.
Taxes paid by Agriculture:
Corporate Profix Tax = $4.2 million
Fees/Charges/Other = $11.7 million
Income Tax = $17.7 million
Sales Tax = $18.7 million
Property Tax = $22.7 million
Total Taxes paid by Agriculture = $75 million
Brown County agriculture is diverse.
Brown County farmers produce a variety of products. Dairy, cattle and calves, grain, greenhouse and tree nurseries, and dry hay and silage are the main commodities.
Brown County's Top Commodities (sales by dollar value, 2002)
1. Milk = $86.7 million
2. Cattle & Calves = $44.7 million
3. Grain = $8.7 million
4. Greenhouse & Tree Nurseries = $4.6 million
5. Dry Hay & Silage = $1.7 million
Dairy's impact in Brown County.
Dairy is the largest part of Brown County's agriculture. Brown County milk producers and the dairy industry contribute $1.24 billion to the county's economy. The on-farm production and sale of milk accounts for $103.5 million in economic activity. The processing of milk into dairy products accounts for another 41.17 billion.
1. One dairy cow generates $1,968 in direct income to producers.
2. Each dairy cow generates around $15,000 to $17,000 of economic activity.
3. Seventeen plants process dairy products in Brown County.
4. Brown County's on-farm milk producton and dairy processing account for 5,922 jobs.z
Horticulture is growing in Brown County.
The production of landscape trees and plants as well as landscape and grounds maintenance are rapidly growing segments of Brown County's agricultural industry. Greenhouses, tree farms, nurseries, sod farms and other horticultural businesses add to the diversity of agriculture in the county. Horticulture generates $45 million in county economic activity, providing 1,012 full-time and many seasonal jobs.
Agriculture and the environment.
Brown County Farmers own and manage the resources on 196,859 acres of land - 58 percent of all land in the county. This includes pastures, cropland and tree farms. Famers implement various conservation practices to protect environmental resources and provide habitat for wildlife.
Produced in 2004 to increase the awareness of agriculture in Brown County by: University of Wisconsin - Extension, Cooperative Extension - Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.
Economic Data (2000) provided by Steve Deller, professor of agriculture and applied economics, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Wisconsin - Madison and community development specialist, University of Wisconsin - Extension, Cooperative Extension.
For more information, contact:
Brown County UW-Extension
Agriculture & Extension Service Center
1150 Bellevue Street
Green Bay, WI 54302-2259
920-391-4610
An EEO/AA employer, the University of Wisconsin-Extension, Cooperative Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and programming, including Title IS and Americans with Disabilities (ADA) requirements.
Hungry for that perfect slice of cheese? Brown County ’s dairy processing plants offer a wide selection of quality cheese. Find out which dairy processing plants are in your local area.
| Arla Foods, Inc. 489 Holland Court (Hollandtown), Kaukauna, WI 54130 Phone: 920-766-5139 Sample a diverse line of cheese products that compete with the most distinguished domestic and imported cheeses. Their specialties include Gouda, Edam , Feta, and Havarti. |
| BelGioioso Cheese Inc. 5810 County Road NN, Denmark, WI 54208 Phone: (920) 863-2123 / www.belgioioso.com Twenty year history of all-natural, award-winning Italian cheeses using fresh Wisconsin milk. Consists of five manufacturing facilities located in the areas surrounding Denmark and Pulaski , Wisconsin |
Laack Brothers Cheese Company, Inc. |
Winono Foods, Inc. |
Scray’s Cheese, LLC |
Painted Cow Cheese and Deli
Look for this seal to ensure you are purchasing quality Wisconsin cheese.
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Taste the Dairy Difference –Dairy Fun Facts
Increase your Wisconsin Dairy IQ with these fun facts:
It takes 12 pounds of milk to make one gallon of ice cream and 10 pounds of milk to make one pound of cheese.
Wisconsin cheese makers produce more than 2.6 billion pounds of cheese each year. If Wisconsin were a country, it would rank 4th in the world in terms of total cheese production, behind the United States, Germany and France, and just ahead of Italy.
Wisconsin produces more than 650 different varieties, types and styles of award-winning cheese.
The average American eats nearly 33 pounds of cheese each year – twice as much as in 1975.
Average milk production per Wisconsin cow each year is 20,625 pounds (or 2,398 gallons). That’s enough for 38,372 eight ounce glasses of milk from just one cow.
According to the NPD Group’s National Eating Trends In-Home Database, the top five ice cream flavors are vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, chocolate chip and butter pecan.
The first ice cream sundae was served in Two Rivers, Wisconsin in 1881. George Hallauer, a customer at Edward C. Berner’s soda fountain in Two Rivers asked Edward to top off his dish of ice cream with the chocolate sauce used for chocolate sodas. The new concoction caught on and was originally offered only on Sundays.