If You Drink Milk, Thank Big Government
Elsie the Cow was born in a Washington regulatory office, not in a rural barn.
An 1887 ad for Borden condensed milk.
Source: Corbis Historical/Getty ImagesElsie the Cow may be reaching the end of her days. The venerable Borden Dairy Co. filed this month for bankruptcy protection, citing declining sales. It’s not the first big milk producer to take this step in the past year: Dean Foods Co. filed for bankruptcy in November. But there’s something symbolic about Borden going bust: The company, founded in 1857, is one of those iconic brands that is inseparable from America itself.
This is sad news, but an opportune time to consider the little-appreciated ways that capitalist enterprise and government regulation went hand-in-hand to create the modern milk business that Borden once represented.