How has the dairy industry changed from 1860?
It’s pretty much changed completely. Back then it really wasn’t much of an industry. Most people raised their own small herd of cattle and produced what they needed for their family. What little commerce existed was on an extremely local and mostly bartered basis. There would have been very little regulation (if any) regarding sanitation, safety, or pricing. Prior to 1864, pasteurization didn’t exist. Sanitation, safety, and pricing are heavily regulated today. In much of the US it’s illegal to sell unpasteurized dairy products and the pricing structure is hotly debated by the federal government. There has also been a huge change in production since 1860. In the 1860’s there would have been very little dairy surplus to export. In 2008, dairy exports from the US were nearly $4 billion. Production per animal and per farm has increased greatly, too. Typical farms in the US milk over 100 cows that give over 70 lbs of milk a day, while back in the 1860’s there were likely less than 10 cows
