Where It All Began: The Origins of National Dairy Month

Every June, dairy farmers across Central New York and the Southern Tier find themselves at the center of a national celebration. One that traces its roots back to the hardships of the Great Depression.

National Dairy Month began in 1937 as "National Milk Month," initiated by grocery organizations looking to promote and distribute more milk during a time of surplus production and fluctuating farm prices. Cows turned out to summer pasture produced more milk than consumers could drink, and grocers needed a way to move the product. By 1939, the National Dairy Council embraced the occasion and renamed it National Dairy Month, expanding its scope beyond fluid milk to include cheese, butter, yogurt, and ice cream, the full array of products that dairy farms make possible.

What started as a practical marketing effort has grown, over more than eight decades, into a nationwide celebration of farm families, rural communities, nutritional heritage, and agricultural tradition. Today, National Dairy Month is used not only to promote the health benefits of dairy but to highlight sustainable practices, innovation in the industry, and the stories of the people behind every glass of milk.

Nowhere is that story more deeply felt than in the rolling hills of Central New York and the Southern Tier.

Sources:

• cals.cornell.edu

• www.nydairy.co

• agriculture.ny.gov