For the second year in a row, Zisk, a phone app and dairy data source founded by veterinarian Kevin Hoogendoorn, is predicting a profitable year for dairy. Those profits will vary by both herd size and region. Top among dairy herds is profit projections of over $1,000 per cow in the Southeast region for herds with over 5,000 cows. Herds with under 250 cows in that region will struggle to earn a return on their investment, while other herds in that size category should eke out positive cash flow.

The Zisk app . . . zisk meaning profit in the Polish language . . . now has nearly 3,600 farms using the platform available to both iPhone and Android users. That total is up 700 farms when compared to last year. In all, there are 3.4 million cows now tracked by the app, with that total representing 33% of the U.S. dairy herd. Just one year ago, the Zisk app tracked 2.4 million cows.

A look at regions

Midwest: 1,871 herds; average herd size: 829 cows; average production: 78 pounds

• Under 250 cows: 925 herds, $61 profit per cow, $2.06 average basis
• 250 to 1,000 cows: 664 herds, $376 profit per cow, $1.75 average basis
• 1,000 to 5,000 cows: 243 herds, $796 profit per cow, $1.58 average basis
• Above 5,000 cows: 38 herds, $661 profit per cow, $1.32 average basis

Northeast: 589 herds; average herd size: 453 cows; average production: 75 pounds

• Under 250 cows: 395 herds, $36 profit per cow, $2.09 average basis
• 250 to 1,000 cows: 133 herds, $321 profit per cow, $1.73 average basis
• 1,000 to 5,000 cows: 58 herds, $943 profit per cow, $2.21 average basis
• Above 5,000 cows: 2 herds, $539 profit per cow, $0.63 average basis

Southeast: 81 herds; average herd size: 1,460 cows; average production: 71 pounds

• Under 250 cows: 32 herds, $30 loss per cow, $2.40 average basis
• 250 to 1,000 cows: 23 herds, $419 profit per cow, $2.61 average basis
• 1,000 to 5,000 cows: 17 herds, $918 profit per cow, $3.25 average basis
• Above 5,000 cows: 8 herds, $1,036 profit per cow, $1.69 average basis
  

Southwest: 296 herds; average herd size: 2,771 cows; average production: 77 pounds

• Under 250 cows: 41 herds, $34 profit per cow, $2.22 average basis
• 250 to 1,000 cows: 70 herds, $263 profit per cow, $1.59 average basis
• 1,000 to 5,000 cows: 145 herds, $622 profit per cow, $0.91 average basis
• Above 5,000 cows: 40 herds, $984 profit per cow, $1.53 average basis

Northwest: 175 herds; average herd size: 1,689 cows; average production: 77 pounds

• Under 250 cows: 30 herds, $40 profit per cow, $1.63 average basis
• 250 to 1,000 cows: 71 herds, $364 profit per cow, $2.28 average basis
• 1,000 to 5,000 cows: 60 herds, $695 profit per cow, $1.34 average basis
• Above 5,000 cows: 13 herds, $842profit per cow, $1.42 average basis

Click on this link to view the entire Zisk dataset.

To review the Zisk predictions from 2022, read “Dairy could be profitable in 2022.”