Dairying is the branch of agriculture concerned with the production of milk, butter, evaporated milk, ice cream, cheese, and dried milk products. It includes the care and feeding of the animals that give the milk. Dairies operate in most countries. Denmark, France, Italy, Switzerland, and the United States are among the countries that are famous for their dairy products.
Although cattle produce about 85 percent of the world's milk supply, other animals are important to dairying in many countries. In France, Greece, Italy, and the United States, sheep's milk is used to make certain cheeses. Goats are also an important dairy animal, particularly in some less developed countries. Many people in the Middle East drink camel's milk. The Sami, a people of far northern Europe, drink reindeer milk. The people of China, Egypt, and India are among those who use the milk of water buffalo. This article discusses primarily dairy cattle.
There are about 230 million dairy cows throughout the world. They produce about 130 billion gallons (490 billion liters) of milk each year. But milk yields vary widely in different parts of the world. In the United States, for example, the average annual milk yield per cow is about 2,200 gallons (8,300 liters). In Africa, it is only about 125 gallons (485 liters). Some of the better dairy herds average as much as 3,500 gallons (13,250 liters) of milk per cow per year.
