Cows producing enough milk to meet demands

Dairy council calms public: Unexpected high demand before Rosh Hashana caused some supermarkets to run out of milk prematurely.

By EHUD ZION WALDOKS
cows 311 (photo credit: Courtesy)
cows 311
(photo credit: Courtesy)
All those empty milk bins in supermarkets and convenience stores over the last week have been the result of overzelaous consumers, not due to any milk shortage, Israeli Dairy Council spokeswoman Ayana Peleg told The Jerusalem Post Wednesday.
“The latest report from the dairy farms is that they have actually produced more milk than usual,” she said, adding that there is currently no milk shortage and none expected over the coming weeks.
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Unexpectedly high demand before Rosh Hashana caused some supermarkets to run out of milk prematurely, and because the holiday was followed immediately by Shabbat, there was no time for the dairy farmers to provide more milk, the spokeswoman said.
“Succot is not the same thing because the holiday is on Thursday and they can milk the cows on Wednesday, Thursday night, Friday and Saturday night,” she pointed out.
The spokeswoman also said that claims of a milk shortage last month were not true. In fact, more milk was produced during July and August this year than last year, according to data provided by the council.
However, she theorized, media reports which claimed there was a shortage may have caused people to panic and buy more milk for Rosh Hashana than they usually do.
“Cows generally produce less milk in the summer than in the winter, but we know how to deal with heat in the summer using fans and other methods,” she told the Post. The intense heat of August, therefore, did not adversely affect milk production.
According to data provided by the council, 2,004,393,000 liters were produced this past July and August; 189,960,000 liters were produced during the same period in 2009. In general, over the last five years, production during July and August has fluctuated between 179,332,000 liters and this year’s high of 2,004,393,000.