Latest economic threat to the Rust Belt states

   


     We are hearing a great deal about how the Democrats lost the last presidential election because of the loss of Midwestern states like Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.  Trump spoke to their feelings about the loss of blue-collar jobs to overseas competition and automation.  This area is now looking at a future of another economic loss that is just beginning.  I am talking about the loss of dairy farms and meat production with the shift away from dairy and meat products.  This is a big problem for a state like Wisconsin.  The movement to plant-based substitutes for milk and meat is only beginning to have strong consumer demand.    Milk usage is dropping quickly.





  Plant-based milk substitutes are rapidly increasing.   Foreign exports which had been picking up some of the loss of domestic demand has been hurt in the tariff war with China. 
   



      Quickly following the switch to plant-based dairy products is the switch to plant-based meat substitutes.   You know when Burger King introduced its own version of the Impossible Burger that even McDonalds will have to follow with its own plant-based burger.   The next big thing is growing real meat in a lab rather than slaughtering animals.
      Recently the PBS NewsHour did a report on the difficulties of dairy farmers in the Midwest surviving falling demand and the competition from large factory type dairy farms.  After listening to this report it is not hard to imagine that the adjustment for dairy farmers will be as challenging as the adjustment to the loss of blue-collar jobs in this area of our County.   As the area has struggled to adjust to the loss of blue-collar jobs there are no easy answers to how to adjust to this new economic threat for the Mid West.