Dairy farming generated more than $3.9 billion in farm sales in 1997. Dairy farming is one of Canada’s most important agricultural activities, ranking first in total farm sales in Quebec, Ontario, and Nova Scotia in 1997. Most of the dairy farms in Canada are in Quebec (37%) and Ontario (33%). In 1996 there were 30 900 farms reporting over 1.2 million dairy cows, a dramatic drop since 1971, when approximately 145 000 farms reported 2.3 million dairy cows. Although the number of cows has steadily declined, milk production has continued to climb. In the 1996 to 1997 dairy year, approximately 77.5 million hectolitres of milk were produced in Canada.