S1E474 - E474 $30 Million, Co‑ops, and Genetic ROI: Who Really Keeps Your Dairy Barn Lights On

It's 1973, and New England dairy farmers just pulled off something that wasn't supposed to happen—$30 million in negotiated premiums in less than two years. Then they lost it all. Not to processors. Not to consumers. To each other, chasing nickels when they could have held out for dollars.

This episode isn't about nostalgia. It's about a question you're facing right now, every time you look at a new milk contract: What does this do for my cash flow today—and what does it do to my community's bargaining power tomorrow?

From a tired kid in a Co...