CPA Info #380 June 2020
Questionnaire for On-Farm Dairy Processing Visits
Authors:
Dr. Liz Eckelkamp
Assistant Professor
University of Tennessee Extension
With Collaboration from:
Mr. Hal Pepper
UT Extension
Center for Profitable Agriculture
Dr. Kim Jensen
UT Institute of Agriculture
Agricultural and Resource Economics
Dr. David Hughes
UT Institute of Agriculture
Agricultural and Resource Economics
Dr. Mark Morgan
UT Institute of Agriculture
Food Science
Mr. Rob Holland
UT Extension
Center for Profitable Agriculture
The following questionnaire was developed to guide conversations and aid in the collection of input from
dairy farmers regarding thoughts, plans and experiences with processing milk and the development of
dairy products. The questionnaire will be used to conduct on-farm visits with dairy farmers as part of the
University of Tennessee Extension Dairy Processing Innovation Initiative and the Small-scale Dairy
Processing Equipment Study.
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
You and Your Operation
1. What is your role in your operation?
□ Dairy farm owner/manager
□ Processing plant owner/manager
□ Both
□ Other (please describe) _______________________________
2. What is your age? ___________
3. How many years have you owned or managed your dairy farm? _____________
4. How many years have you owned or managed your processing facility? ____________
5. Please indicate you County, State. ____________________, _______
6. Please indicate your level of agreement with each of the following statements.
Statement
Strongly
disagree
Disagree
No
opinion
Agree
Strongly
agree
I am the kind of businessperson who is
more willing to take financial risks than
others
I must be willing to take substantial
financial risks to be successful in business
I am reluctant about adopting new
production or processing methods until I
see them working for others
I am more concerned about a large loss to
my enterprise than about missing a
substantial gain
7. What species do you milk or will you purchase milk from?
□ Cattle
□ Sheep
□ Goats
□ Other (please list) ____________________________________________
8. Please indicate which of these bests describes your enterprise
□ Value-added processing with own farm milk
□ Considering value-added processing with own farm milk
□ Value-added processing with purchased milk (skip dairy farm specific information)
□ Considering value-added processing with purchased milk (skip dairy farm specific
information)
□ Other ____________________________________________________
9. Please describe any other value-added, direct marketing or agritourism activities you are
currently involved in, if any.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
Dairy Farm Specific Information (skip if not involved in a dairy farm)
10. What is your current herd/flock size and the number of animals for the enterprise?
Total herd
Value-added
enterprise herd
11. What breed(s) do you milk?
_____________________________________________________________________
12. What is the number of farm-specific workers, including yourself? Please record numbers
for both types of workers even if zero (0). Record yourself as a family member.
___________ Number of family members
___________ Number of non-family employees
13. How do you market most of your milk?
□ Milk cooperative
□ Independent contract with a plant
□ On-farm processing
□ Other (please list) ____________________________________________
14. What is your:
_____________ Average production per animal (pounds per animal per day)?
_____________ Yearly average bulk tank somatic cell count (SCC) in cells/mL?
15. Which situation best describes your farm:
□ Freestall with traditional parlor
□ Tiestall with traditional parlor
□ Open barn with traditional parlor
□ Pasture with traditional parlor
□ Freestall with robotic milker
□ Tiestall with robotic milker
□ Open barn with robotic milker
□ Pasture with robotic milker
□ Other (please list) ____________________________________________
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
Processing Facility Specific Information
16. Please select and indicate the total annual volume produced in pounds for all value-added
enterprises you are involved in.
Planned Current Annual Volume (lbs)
□ Soft cheese _______ _______ __________________
□ Aged cheese _______ _______ __________________
□ Homogenized milk _______ _______ __________________
□ Cream-top/line milk _______ _______ __________________
□ Ice cream or mix _______ _______ __________________
□ Butter _______ _______ __________________
□ Cream _______ _______ __________________
□ Drinkable yogurt _______ _______ __________________
□ Traditional or Greek yogurt _______ _______ __________________
□ Lotions, soaps, etc. _______ _______ __________________
□ Other (please list) ______________________________________________
17. How many gallons are used/you plan to use annually for your value-added enterprise?
_______________________________________________________________________
18. What type of pasteurization do you use/plan to use?
□ Low temperature (vat)
□ High temperature short time (HTST)
□ Ultra-high temperature (UHT)
□ Other (please list) _________________________________________
19. What serving sizes are you planning on processing?
□ Single serving (8 to 16 oz bottles; ½ pint ice cream, 8 oz blocks)
□ Multi-serving (Quarts, ½ gallons; 16 oz blocks)
□ Family size (1 or multi-gallons; ½ pound or more blocks)
□ Other (please describe) ____________________________________________________
20. Was/will your processing facility built new or a retrofit of an existing facility? ________
21. What is/will be the number of processing-specific workers, including yourself? Please
record numbers for both types of workers even if zero (0). Record yourself as a family
member.
___________ Number of family members
___________ Number of non-family employees
___________ Unknown/yet to be determined
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
Skip questions 22-27 if still in the planning stages.
22. What are the dimensions of your processing facility and the cost of the construction
itself?
________________________________________________________________________
23. In what year was the processing facility built or retrofitted? ______________
24. On average, how many hours do family members work in a week devoted to the value-
added enterprise? _______________________________________________________
25. On average, how many hours do non-family members work in a week devoted to the
value-added enterprise?
_____________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
26. What was your estimated annual operating cost for the value-added enterprise in 2019?
____________
27. Of your total operating cost, what percentage or actual value goes to the following:
Amenities and Supplies
% of Annual
Operating Cost
Actual Annual
Value
Electricity
Water
Sewage
Trash
Gas (propane or natural)
Packaging
Cleaning and Sanitation
Processing Supplies
Other (please list)_____________
Other (please list)_____________
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
28. From the below list, indicate the purchase price, whether it was new or used, and which value-
added enterprise(s) it is used for. If you are in the planning stages, indicate “Need” in the
purchased column.
Item Price
Purchased
New or Used
Enterprise(s)
Bulk tank
Chiller
COP tank
In-line pasteurizer
Homogenizer
Separator
Chart recorder
Vat pasteurizer
Butter churn
Cheese drain table
Cheese vat
Cheese press
Ice cream freezer
Filler/capper/sealer
Holding tanks
Aging rooms
Freezer storage – sqft ___x___
Refrigerated storage – sqft ___x___
Other (please describe)
29. Of the following, what all is included/planned in your packaging?
□ Caps □ Containers □ Other (please list) __________________
□ Bottles □ Sealing plastic
□ Labels □ Wax
30. Does/will your processing facility generate any waste dairy products (whey/skim, etc)?
□ Yes
□ No
□ Other (please list) _____________________________________________
31. If so, what do you do/plan to do with your waste dairy products?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
32. If there is a cost associated with disposal, what is the approximate value of that cost? If
you are unsure, indicate with “unknown.”
________________________________________________________________________
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
Value-Added Marketing
33. Before starting your enterprise, did you do any market research and if so, what kind?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
34. Do/will you have any dedicated marketing personnel? If so, how many and how many
hours a week do they spend on marketing?
________________________________________________________________________
35. Annually, how much do you/do you plan to spend on marketing? ___________________
36. Through what types of outlets do you sell/plan to sell your value-added products? (Please
mark all that apply)?
□ Farmers market(s) □ Direct to restaurant □ Direct to grocery
□ Wholesale distributor □ Off-site farm stand □ On-farm store
□ Delivery to customers □ CSA/box program □ Mail delivery to customers
□ Direct to other specialty retailer (including gift shops and wineries)
□ Delivery to schools
□ Other (please list) _________________________________________________
37. How do you market/plan to market your value-added products (Please mark all that
apply)?
□ Farm website □ Social media □ Billboards
□ Directional road signs □ Brochures/rack cards □ Radio
□ Product sampling □ Print (newspaper, etc.) ads □ Word of mouth
□ Local food publications (Nourish Knoxville, etc.) □ Press releases
□ Other online listings (LocalHarvest, etc.) □ Television ads
□ Pick Tennessee/Kentucky Proud/Got to Be NC
□ Other (please list) _________________________________________________
38. What are the most common questions asked to you by your customers?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
39. Do you currently/do you plan to communicate breed, animal raising methods, processing
methods, etc. as part of your marketing?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
40. Describe your target audience/ideal customer.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
Enterprise Economics
41. Aside from financial success, what are your personal definitions of success?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Skip questions 42-45 if still in the planning stages.
42. In 2019, which of the following options best describes your value-added enterprise,
including the cost of your own and other family members labor?
□ I’m making a comfortable profit
□ I’m making a small profit
□ I’m barely breaking even
□ I’m not breaking even
□ Other (please describe) _______________________________________________
43. Over the next 5 years, assuming current conditions persist, which of the following best
describes your value-added enterprise?
□ I plan to grow my sales revenue by _________ percent and this increase will come from
(check all that apply)
□ Moving more existing products
□ Increasing product pricing
□ Creating new products
□ Expanding into new geographic markets
□ Expanding into new stores
□ I plan to stay the same size in terms of sales revenue
□ I plan to decrease my sales by _______ percent
□ Move less existing products
□ Decrease product pricing
□ Reducing geographic sales area
□ Reducing storefronts that sell my products
□ I plan to cease operations
□ Close the business
□ Transfer the business to another family member
□ Sell the business to another owner
□ Other, please describe ____________________________________________
44. My 2019 sales from dairy products were:
□ $0 (no sales) □ $20,000 - $29,999 □ $75,000 - $99,999
□ $1 - $9,999 □ $30,000 - $49,999 □ $100,000 or greater
□ $10,000 - $19,999 □ $50,000 - $74,999 □ I prefer not to disclose
45. Which of the following best describes your overall value-added enterprises’ net income
in 2019 (before taxes)?
□ Less than $0 □ $15,000 - $19,999 □ $50,000 - $74,999
□ $0 - $4,999 □ $20,000 - $24,999 □ $75,000 or greater
□ $5,000 - $9,999 □ $25,000 - $34,999 □ I prefer not to disclose
□ $10,000 - $14,999 □ $35,000 - $49,999
Value-added Enterprise Assessment
University of Tennessee
46. What percentage of your 2019 household income comes from the following sources:
□ Value-added enterprise (dairy only) _________
□ Value-added enterprise (other) _________
□ Farming activities _________
□ Off-farm income _________
47. For every $100 of enterprise assets you have in 2019, how many dollars are financed with
debt? (Circle the answer)
□ $0 □ $5 - $9.99 □ $20 - $39.99 □ I prefer not to disclose
□ $1 - $2.99 □ $10 - $14.99 □ $40 - $69.99
□ $3 - $4.99 □ $15 - $19.99 □ greater than $70
48. What impact does each of the following factors have on your personal consideration of a
value-added enterprise?
Factors
Impact Level
Strong
negative
impact
Some
negative
impact
No
impact
Some
positive
impact
Strong
positive
impact
State regulations
Federal regulations
Start-up costs
Knowledge about processing
Labor for processing
Product marketing
Liability risk
49. Has COVID-19 impacted your enterprise/plans for your enterprise? Please explain how.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
50. What educational resources or information would be helpful to your business? (Select all
that apply)
□ Start-up costs □ State regulations
□ Federal regulations □ Food safety
□ Product marketing □ Employee training on products and equipment
□ Farmers market regulations □ Human resources and employee management
□ Food packaging □ Interstate shipping certification (NCIMS)
□ New product development □ Direct marketing products
□ Business feasibility □ Developing a marketing plan
□ Managing milk quality on the farm □ Expanding into wholesale and retail markets
□ Using social media as a marketing and sales tool
□ Maintaining and assessing financial records on the processing operation
□ Maintaining and assessing financial records on the dairy operation
□ Other (please describe) ____________________________________________