Last Dairy to Close Its Doors
Note: This is one of the few articles where you just feel that everything seemed to go right -- a rare occasion in this business. I worked hard on this, and was able to spend time with the farmer, who helped by being so candid with me.
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
March 3, 2002
OAKLEY -- In the land of milk and money, Emerson Dairy has corralled a comfortable share of California's unrivaled dairy market.
The sprawling dairy at the foot of Sellers Avenue includes a herd of about 2,000 producing cows that help milk a profit from a long-running family business.
On-site breeders artificially inseminate the bulky animals, whose production is tracked on laptop computers. Tank trucks arrive three times a day, hauling away thousands of gallons of milk.
But just like the rusted grain storage tower that sits near the dairy office, Emerson, the last dairy farm in Contra Costa County, is fading away.
Stan Emerson, who operates the 614-acre dairy with his older brother, Dale, is negotiating a deal to sell his valuable land. It will shutter a dairy business that began in 1913.
The eventual closure of the farm underscores the swift changes in East Contra Costa, a rural region long identified by its rich agricultural history.
It is a difficult and complex issue with which Stan Emerson has grappled for years.
With few options, he has watched as large subdivisions crept up against his dairy from the west.
"This business has been in continuous dairy operation since 1913, and it's been a wonderful ride," said Emerson, wearing a cowboy hat and a pair of snug denims.
"It's been fun, but it hasn't always been rewarding. Sometimes it's been very difficult, especially when milk prices are depressed. But we've always worked hard to withstand the poor economic conditions and, in that, we've been successful."
Emerson Dairy sits on a prized swath of land in a fast-growing city of 26,000.
Three families -- the Emersons, Gilberts and Burroughs -- own 1,539 acres of Delta land, which they call the "Cypress Corridor." The combined property was once all used for dairy farming.
The families are negotiating to sell about 1,200 acres to CalFed, the state-federal agency whose role includes protecting the Delta and improving water quality statewide.
Before Oakley incorporated in 1999, the landowners entered into a development agreement with Contra Costa County. Now, Oakley city officials are wondering whether they need to renegotiate with the property owners over the more than 300 acres that would remain after a sale to CalFed.
No one knows when or precisely how a deal will be reached.
But Emerson, who was born and raised in the area, understands that the fabric of a family legacy is unraveling.
"As more and more people come, it gets harder to continue," he said, standing in a sun-splashed, dusty lot near his feeding barn.
Oakley, located six miles east of Antioch, has become demographically younger and more affluent in recent years. The evolving suburb is projected to add 6,000 new residents by 2005.
The average age in the city is now 33, suggesting to Emerson that a new generation of residents may lack the historical perspective to appreciate farming.
"A lot of people complain about the odor, and they don't even know where it came from. But it's been here long before they did," said Emerson, the great-great-nephew of Silas Emerson, who settled into Oakley in 1849.
The increasing pressure from developers and new homeowners is difficult to ignore; it's a lingering strain that adds to the tension of operating a 35-employee dairy.
Stan, 66, and Dale, 68, are not getting any younger. They both understand that retirement, however difficult to acknowledge, beckons.
No family members are lining up to take their place. Stan and his wife, Katy[CJL5], produced three sons, none of whom opted to stay on the farm.
In sum, Stan Emerson has been forced to address tough questions about his future.
"Nowhere in the world is dairy more regulated -- labor, safety or environmental -- than in California. Dairy producers are constantly under pressure to be ahead of the curve, always," said Michael Marsh, executive director of Western United Dairymen in Modesto.
The number of dairy farms statewide has plunged 78 percent since 1960, decreasing from 9,764 to about 2,195 today. California, however, is the No. 1 milk producer nationwide, churning out a record 33 billion pounds, in 2001, up 3 percent from the previous year.
Fewer dairy farms are producing more cows and milk, which helps show the extent to which consolidation has gripped the $3.7 billion industry in the Golden State.
In Contra Costa, more than half of the county's farmland was lost to development between 1940 and 1970 as growing cities began to unfold across rural fields. As a result, the number of dairy farms dropped from 42 in 1945 to 25 in 1964. By 1992, there were only five.
"(Dairy) production and efficiency are better now," said Steve Lyle, a spokesman for the state Department of Food and Agriculture. "There hasn't been a real drop-off in production."
Most of the state's dairy giants are located in the Central Valley, where deep-pocketed farms triple the size of Emerson Dairy are perennial cash cows.
"The mega-dairies are definitely out there," Emerson said. "And to get bigger, you need more land -- We're just right for our herd size. We couldn't get any bigger."
Five counties -- Tulare, Merced, San Bernardino, Stanislaus and Kings -- collectively account for about 66 percent of all milk cows statewide.
In Contra Costa, Emerson Dairy stands alone, a dusty relic to a bygone era.
The fresh smell of manure lingers in the air at the large dairy, near which Stan and Katy live in a remodeled schoolhouse that dates to 1896.
On a recent day, Emerson watched as one of his employees, Bernardo Tantoja, used a tool that looked like an oil dipstick to artificially inseminate several cows with frozen bull sperm.
Rows of black-and-white cows with yellow tags in their ears poked their heads through iron gates, munching on alfalfa.
"Our goal is to produce as much milk as we can," Emerson said. "Each cow is like a factory, and they have to produce. Our goal is to milk productive cows, and they don't give milk until they produce a calf."
The milking herd, about 1,800 to 2,000 animals, produces about 28,000 pounds of milk a year.
In addition, the farm includes 3,000 "replacement stock," or cows that could replace those that are sick or unable to generate the desired quantity.
The milk is cooled on the farm, but not bottled there. Trucks load up at Emerson three times a day, and, after processing, the milk is sold by local retailers such as Foster Farms or Serrano Cheese.
Later in the morning, Emerson drove his red Chevrolet Silverado across a dirt road on his property. Gulls circled overhead.
He pulled up near a corral, where a cow was giving birth to a calf.
"With the change of times," he said, watching the wet calf tumble to the ground and into the world, "it's become a very nostalgic dairy. Three generations have run this dairy.
"It's always a sad thing to see something stop. But with sad things there are new opportunities. And there has to be a right time and not a right time to do things -- this is approaching the right time."
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
March 3, 2002
OAKLEY -- In the land of milk and money, Emerson Dairy has corralled a comfortable share of California's unrivaled dairy market.
The sprawling dairy at the foot of Sellers Avenue includes a herd of about 2,000 producing cows that help milk a profit from a long-running family business.
On-site breeders artificially inseminate the bulky animals, whose production is tracked on laptop computers. Tank trucks arrive three times a day, hauling away thousands of gallons of milk.
But just like the rusted grain storage tower that sits near the dairy office, Emerson, the last dairy farm in Contra Costa County, is fading away.
Stan Emerson, who operates the 614-acre dairy with his older brother, Dale, is negotiating a deal to sell his valuable land. It will shutter a dairy business that began in 1913.
The eventual closure of the farm underscores the swift changes in East Contra Costa, a rural region long identified by its rich agricultural history.
It is a difficult and complex issue with which Stan Emerson has grappled for years.
With few options, he has watched as large subdivisions crept up against his dairy from the west.
"This business has been in continuous dairy operation since 1913, and it's been a wonderful ride," said Emerson, wearing a cowboy hat and a pair of snug denims.
"It's been fun, but it hasn't always been rewarding. Sometimes it's been very difficult, especially when milk prices are depressed. But we've always worked hard to withstand the poor economic conditions and, in that, we've been successful."
Emerson Dairy sits on a prized swath of land in a fast-growing city of 26,000.
Three families -- the Emersons, Gilberts and Burroughs -- own 1,539 acres of Delta land, which they call the "Cypress Corridor." The combined property was once all used for dairy farming.
The families are negotiating to sell about 1,200 acres to CalFed, the state-federal agency whose role includes protecting the Delta and improving water quality statewide.
Before Oakley incorporated in 1999, the landowners entered into a development agreement with Contra Costa County. Now, Oakley city officials are wondering whether they need to renegotiate with the property owners over the more than 300 acres that would remain after a sale to CalFed.
No one knows when or precisely how a deal will be reached.
But Emerson, who was born and raised in the area, understands that the fabric of a family legacy is unraveling.
"As more and more people come, it gets harder to continue," he said, standing in a sun-splashed, dusty lot near his feeding barn.
Oakley, located six miles east of Antioch, has become demographically younger and more affluent in recent years. The evolving suburb is projected to add 6,000 new residents by 2005.
The average age in the city is now 33, suggesting to Emerson that a new generation of residents may lack the historical perspective to appreciate farming.
"A lot of people complain about the odor, and they don't even know where it came from. But it's been here long before they did," said Emerson, the great-great-nephew of Silas Emerson, who settled into Oakley in 1849.
The increasing pressure from developers and new homeowners is difficult to ignore; it's a lingering strain that adds to the tension of operating a 35-employee dairy.
Stan, 66, and Dale, 68, are not getting any younger. They both understand that retirement, however difficult to acknowledge, beckons.
No family members are lining up to take their place. Stan and his wife, Katy[CJL5], produced three sons, none of whom opted to stay on the farm.
In sum, Stan Emerson has been forced to address tough questions about his future.
"Nowhere in the world is dairy more regulated -- labor, safety or environmental -- than in California. Dairy producers are constantly under pressure to be ahead of the curve, always," said Michael Marsh, executive director of Western United Dairymen in Modesto.
The number of dairy farms statewide has plunged 78 percent since 1960, decreasing from 9,764 to about 2,195 today. California, however, is the No. 1 milk producer nationwide, churning out a record 33 billion pounds, in 2001, up 3 percent from the previous year.
Fewer dairy farms are producing more cows and milk, which helps show the extent to which consolidation has gripped the $3.7 billion industry in the Golden State.
In Contra Costa, more than half of the county's farmland was lost to development between 1940 and 1970 as growing cities began to unfold across rural fields. As a result, the number of dairy farms dropped from 42 in 1945 to 25 in 1964. By 1992, there were only five.
"(Dairy) production and efficiency are better now," said Steve Lyle, a spokesman for the state Department of Food and Agriculture. "There hasn't been a real drop-off in production."
Most of the state's dairy giants are located in the Central Valley, where deep-pocketed farms triple the size of Emerson Dairy are perennial cash cows.
"The mega-dairies are definitely out there," Emerson said. "And to get bigger, you need more land -- We're just right for our herd size. We couldn't get any bigger."
Five counties -- Tulare, Merced, San Bernardino, Stanislaus and Kings -- collectively account for about 66 percent of all milk cows statewide.
In Contra Costa, Emerson Dairy stands alone, a dusty relic to a bygone era.
The fresh smell of manure lingers in the air at the large dairy, near which Stan and Katy live in a remodeled schoolhouse that dates to 1896.
On a recent day, Emerson watched as one of his employees, Bernardo Tantoja, used a tool that looked like an oil dipstick to artificially inseminate several cows with frozen bull sperm.
Rows of black-and-white cows with yellow tags in their ears poked their heads through iron gates, munching on alfalfa.
"Our goal is to produce as much milk as we can," Emerson said. "Each cow is like a factory, and they have to produce. Our goal is to milk productive cows, and they don't give milk until they produce a calf."
The milking herd, about 1,800 to 2,000 animals, produces about 28,000 pounds of milk a year.
In addition, the farm includes 3,000 "replacement stock," or cows that could replace those that are sick or unable to generate the desired quantity.
The milk is cooled on the farm, but not bottled there. Trucks load up at Emerson three times a day, and, after processing, the milk is sold by local retailers such as Foster Farms or Serrano Cheese.
Later in the morning, Emerson drove his red Chevrolet Silverado across a dirt road on his property. Gulls circled overhead.
He pulled up near a corral, where a cow was giving birth to a calf.
"With the change of times," he said, watching the wet calf tumble to the ground and into the world, "it's become a very nostalgic dairy. Three generations have run this dairy.
"It's always a sad thing to see something stop. But with sad things there are new opportunities. And there has to be a right time and not a right time to do things -- this is approaching the right time."
posted by Corey at 9:52 AM
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