During the nineteenth century the production of livestock was much more important to the Florida economy than it is today. Cattle of low quality were grazed throughout the peninsula and sold to Cuba or driven to other southern states for sale.
Since World War II modern technology has been applied to the cattle industry, which is still concentrated in the watershed of the Kissimmee River and to the west of Lake Okeechobee. Here, once the cattle tick was eliminated and pastures greatly improved, modern breeds of beef cattle were introduced, replacing the small, slow-to-mature descendants of Spanish cattle. Few Florida cattle are slaughtered within the state. Many young cattle are trucked to be fattened in feeder lots in Texas, Oklahoma, and even as far away as California. Fresh milk is produced for Florida markets near the northern shore of Lake Okeechobee, and in Hillsborough and Clay counties. Poultry is a major source of farm income in north Florida, around Madison, where broiler chickens are raised. In the Tampa area chickens are raised for their eggs. Hogs and pigs no longer play the significant role they once did in Florida's economy. The last large Florida sausage factory closed in the early 1980s.
