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# GRAPHIC: Dairy cows produce millions of pounds of milk in a day
- URL: https://www.investigatemidwest.org/dairy-cows-produce-millions-of-pounds-of-milk-in-a-day/
- Published: 2023-04-27T16:42:08.000Z
- Updated: 2023-04-27T16:42:08.000Z
- Description: The five top milk producing states in 2021 were California, Wisconsin, Idaho, Texas, and New York, according to USDA data.
- Author: Suzanne Behnke, Investigate Midwest
- Tags: Data Harvest, California, dairy farming, TP::Explainer, Idaho, New York, TP::News, Texas, USDA, Wisconsin, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-06-18 04:56

When you walk through the grocery store dairy aisle, you might wonder how much dairy cows work to produce those dozens of full gallons on the store shelves.

The latest numbers, from February 2021 through February 2023, record 631.25 million pounds of milk were produced in February 2023\. The [data](https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2022/march/u-s-dairy-productivity-increased-faster-in-large-farms-and-across-southwestern-states/?ref=investigatemidwest.org) was published in April 2023\. In 2021, a single dairy cow produced 23,950 pounds.

While dairy cows are in each of the 50 states, the five top milk producing states in 2021 were California, Wisconsin, Idaho, Texas, and New York, according to USDA’s Economic Research Service. These states produced 50% of the country’s milk, the [USDA website](https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/animal-products/dairy/background/?ref=investigatemidwest.org) reports.

In case you wonder, the dairy industry measures milk by pounds — not gallons — for accuracy.