Dairy economics: Milking blood from a stone

A TIGHT SQUEEZE: Dairy farmer Steve Harrison checks on one of his cows during a December milking

By Ivan Oransky

Feature: What's in your milk?

Slideshow: From feed to bottle

Milk: It's electric

The cow whisperer

Milk and human health: What's the state of the evidence linking milk to human disease?

Infographic: What's in your milk? A selected list of hormones, growth factors and other substances found in an 8-ounce glass of milk.

Steve Harrison grew up on a dairy farm outside of Knoxville, Tenn., that his grandfather started in the 1920s. Harrison, who took over the family farm, is standing in its milking parlor one day in early December. Around him, sophisticated equipment whirrs and clicks as it extracts milk from the 150 to 175 of Harrison's cows who will amble in this hour.

"The goal is to get the milk out as fast as possible but maintain teat ...