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C E L E B R A T I N G
2 5
Y E A R S
DAIRY ST R 25
Volume 25, No. 24
February 10, 2024
“All dairy, all the time”™
Farmers Conservation a gather for long-standing tradition Ag Day at Menn family receives Monroe County award the Capitol By Abby Wiedmeyer
Legislators, lobbyists discuss political updates affecting agriculture By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
MADISON, Wis. — More than 275 farmers and agriculturists gathered Jan. 31 at the Monona Terrace in Madison for Ag Day at the Capitol. The day started with updates on legislation and concluded with attendees walking to the Capitol to meet with legislators from their respective areas. Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation President Brad Olson welcomed the group before turning the oor over to Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Secretary Randy Romanski. “Whether it’s your rst time or your 100th time speaking to a legislator, your voice matters,” Romanski said. “Think of ways you can interact with people in Washington, D.C., as well. There’s still time to get things done.” The Wisconsin Realtors Association’s director of political and governmental affairs, Joe Murray, provided an update on the political landscape in the state. “We’re in a very historically unique moment in Wisconsin politically, and everybody is going to be impacted one way or the other,” Murray said. Murray pointed to the April 4, 2023, Wisconsin Supreme Court election as the source of this political signicance. After 15 years of center-right control, the court shifted to center-left control, and with it came orders for new state legislative maps. Murray said that in a 4-3 ruling, the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided Dec. 22, 2023, that the state’s legislative maps violate the Wisconsin Constitution because they include districts that are not contiguous. They must be redrawn for the 2024 elections.
Turn to AG DAY | Page 2
abby.w@dairystar.com
NORWALK, Wis. — When it comes to conservation practices, the Menn family has a deeply rooted history. Harvey and Jackie Menn were presented with the Monroe County Conservation Farmer of the Year award at a banquet Jan. 27 in Sparta. For Harvey Menn, he is simply following the legacy laid before him. “Dad bought the farm in 1952, and he got the same award that year,” Menn said. “He was farming with my grandfather prior to that, so my grandfather was involved in conservation as well.” The farm originated when Menn’s ancestors homesteaded land in 1854. Today, Lawn View Farm consists of 250 owned and rented acres and 90 Jersey cows. The Menns have raised four children, Kayla, Jenna, Ryan and Kyle, on the organic farm. Jackie said the kids have all been contributors to the farm’s success. Menn graduated from college in
ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR
Harvey and Jackie Menn look over their conservaƟon plans Jan. 23 at their farm near Norwalk, Wisconsin. The Menns received the Monroe County ConservaƟon Farmer of the Year award Jan. 27. 1987 and worked for his dad for three years. In 1988, he and Jackie married and started taking over the operation. They purchased the farm from his dad in 1990. The conservation work began with
Menn’s grandfather in the 1940s. At that time, the Civilian Conservation Corps,
Turn to MENNS | Page 5
Dual herd enhances learning experience UW-Platteville manages parlor, robots By Abby Wiedmeyer abby.w@dairystar.com
ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR
The barn at Pioneer Farm at the University of Wisconsin-PlaƩeville houses 200 cows Jan. 31 near PlaƩeville, Wisconsin. Half the herd is milked in a double-5 herringbone parlor, and the other half is milked in two Lely A5 roboƟc milking systems.
PLATTEVILLE, Wis. — Pioneer Farm, the school dairy for the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, milks cows using two systems. Half of the 200-cow herd is milked in a double-5 herringbone parlor, while the other half is milked in two Lely A5 robotic milking systems. The dual-herd design offers optimal hands-on learning opportunities for the students, according to the herd manager, Cory Weigel. Turn to UW-PLATTEVILLE | Page 6
Page 2 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
DAIRY ST R www.dairystar.com
ISSN Print: 2834-619X • Online: 2834-6203
522 Sinclair Lewis Ave. Sauk Centre, MN 56378 Phone: 320-352-6303 Fax: 320-352-5647 Published by Star Publications LLC General Manager/Editor Mark Klaphake - mark.k@dairystar.com 320-352-6303 (ofce) 320-248-3196 (cell) 320-352-0062 (home) Ad Composition - 320-352-6303 Nancy Powell • nancy.p@dairystar.com Karen Knoblach • karen.k@star-pub.com Annika Gunderson • annika@star-pub.com Editorial Staff Maria Bichler - Assistant Editor maria.b@dairystar.com Stacey Smart - Assistant Editor 262-442-6666 • stacey.s@dairystar.com Danielle Nauman - Staff Writer 608-487-1101 • danielle.n@dairystar.com Abby Wiedmeyer - Staff Writer 608-487-4812 • abby.w@dairystar.com Tiffany Klaphake - Staff Writer 320-352-6303 • tiffany.k@dairystar.com Jan Lefebvre - Staff Writer jan.l@star-pub.com Amy Kyllo - Staff Writer amy.k@star-pub.com Emily Breth - Staff Writer emily.b@star-pub.com Consultant Jerry Jennissen 320-346-2292
Con�nued from AG DAY | Page 1
Dairy le brought to you by your “SomePro legislators might be in,
and some might be out,” Murray said. “In other cases, people will be paired. Districts will be far more competitive, which will alter the political landscape and affect my industry and yours.” This redistricting process is scheduled to be completed by March 15. With maps in place for the 2024 elections, Murray said there could be many new faces in the next session of the Wisconsin Legislature. “Republicans will lose seats when these maps change,” Murray said. “There will be fewer Republicans and more Democrats in Legislature, and all of us who do what we do for a living will have to be cognizant of it. However, agriculture is one of those industries that has more bipartisan support than a lot of others.” Murray said the makeup of this Legislature will impact issues like property taxes, private property rights, landlord-tenant regulations, building and development issues and more. “For example, over 20 landlord bills have been introduced since December that will signicantly change tenant-landlord law as we know it, and they’re not good for landlords,” Murray said. “That April 4 election will have more to say about the next 6-10 years than just about any election we’ve had in this state in the last 30 years.” During issue briengs, Jason Mugnaini, executive director of governmen-
Advertising Sales Main Ofce: 320-352-6303 Fax: 320-352-5647 Deadline is 5 p.m. of the Friday the week before publication Sales Manager - Joyce Frericks 320-352-6303 • joyce@saukherald.com National Sales Manager - Laura Seljan (National Advertising, SE MN) 507-250-2217 • fax: 507-634-4413 laura.s@dairystar.com Assistant Sales Manager - Kati Schafer (Northeast WI and Upper MI) 920-979-5284 • kati.s@dairystar.com Jerry Nelson (SW MN, NW Iowa, South Dakota) 605-690-6260 • jerry.n@dairystar.com Mike Schafer (Central, South Central MN) 320-894-7825 • mike.s@dairystar.com Megan Stuessel (Western Wisconsin) 608-387-1202 • megan.s@dairystar.com Julia Merten (Southeast MN and Northeast IA) 507-438-7739 • julia.m@star-pub.com Bob Leukam (Northern MN, East Central MN) 320-260-1248 (cell) bob.l@star-pub.com Mark Klaphake (Western MN) 320-352-6303 (ofce) • 320-248-3196 (cell) Deadlines The deadline for news and advertising in the Dairy Star is 5 p.m. Friday the week before publication. Subscriptions One year subscription $40.00, outside the U.S. $200.00. Send check along with mailing address to Dairy Star, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378. Advertising Our ad takers have no authority to bind this newspaper and only publication of an advertisement shall constitute nal acceptance of the advertiser's order. Letters Letters and articles of opinion are welcomed. Letters must be signed and include address and phone number. We reserve the right to edit lengthy letters.
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STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
Rep. Tony Kurtz (from le�), Sen. Patrick Tes�n, Sen. Brad Pfaff, Jason Mugnaini, moderator and execu�ve director of governmental rela�ons at Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federa�on, Rep. Dave Considine, Sen. Joan Ballweg and Rep. Travis Tranel speak at Ag Day at the Capitol Jan. 31 in Madison, Wisconsin. The panel shared thoughts on legisla�on under considera�on and opportuni�es to help farmers. tal relations at WFBF, discussed the Farm Bureau health plan bill, which would provide affordable comprehensive health coverage to members. Passing this bill is the organization’s legislative priority. The bill would create an exemption to allow WFBF to offer medically underwritten health plans. In the seven states in which they are operating, these plans have provided savings of 30%-60% compared to unsubsidized Affordable Care Act plans. With the legislative session coming to an end, the bureau wants representatives and senators to put these bills
Turn to AG DAY | Page 7
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Eron Equipment Junction City, WI
Lindstrom Equipment Menomonie, WI
Gibbsville Implement Waldo, WI
Cherokee Garage Colby, WI
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The views and opinions expressed by Dairy Star columnists and writers are not necessarily those of the Dairy Star / Star Publications LLC.
The Dairy Star is published semi-monthly by Star Publications LLC, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378-1246. Periodicals Postage Paid at Sauk Centre, MN and additional mailing ofces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Dairy Star, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378-1246. © 2023 Star Publications LLC
up for a vote and then send them to the governor’s desk. Tim Fiocchi, of WFBF, spoke about the $150 million Agricultural Road Improvement Program. “Make sure your local ofcials hear about which roads in your area need to be xed to help you do your job every day,” Fiocchi said. “The application and rst round of grants will be announced soon. Don’t wait to apply.”
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Waunakee, WI
Laufenberg’s quilt business celebrates 10 years First Section: Pages 25 - 26
Peshtigo, WI
West Salem, WI Women in Dairy: Jennifer Jandt First Section: Page 29
Green Bay, WI
Westby, WI
Von Ruden re-elected as Wisconsin Farmers Union president First Section: Page 31
Orfordville, WI
Dairy Prole: Mack Drees First Section: Pages 32 - 33
Producers share insights on multi-location expansion Second Section: Pages 3 - 4
Dooley’s dairy goat operation backed by nearly 30 years of experience Second Section: Pages 14 - 15
Greenleaf, WI
Rothschild, WI
Sun Prairie, WI
Wieses’ winter project produces giant snowman Third Section: Page 2
Neathery launched soap-making business to share benets Third Section: Pages 3, 5
FROM OUR SIDE OF THE FENCE: How long have you been dairy farming, and why is it the career for you? First Section: Pages 15 -16, 18
FFA: Inside the Emblem Third Section: Pages 6 - 7
For additional stories from our other zone, log on to www.dairystar.com
Zone 1
Zone 2
Columnists Ag Insider Page P 10 First Fi s Section Fir
R Ramblings ffrom the Ridge Page 36 First Fi Section
Vet Veterinary V W Wisdom P Pa a 37 Page Fir rs Section First
F From the Zwe Zweber Farm P Page 38 Fir Section First
The NexGen Page 39 First Section
The “Mielke” Market Weeklyy Pages 5 - 6 Second Sectionn
Country C Cooking C P Page 18 Second Section
Page 4 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
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ConƟnued from MENNS | Page 1
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The cows get their ll at the bunk before seƩling in for the night Jan. 23 at Harvey and Jackie Menn’s farm near Norwalk, Wisconsin. The Menn family milks 90 cerƟed-organic Jersey cows and is the recipient of the 2023 Monroe County ConservaƟon Farmer of the Year award. a government work relief organization, camped in the same valley in which the Menn farm is located. The crew planted the hillside of trees that overlooks the Menns’ farm. The organization also built some of the drop structures on the property. These were designed to prevent gulleys from forming when water ran down the steep, grassy hills. Over the years, Menn’s father introduced other conservation practices. In 1959, a dam was built on the farm to help with the watershed. The dam was rebuilt in 2015 when its galvanized tube had rusted and is still working today. Throughout the generations, the county Natural Resources Conservation Service ofce has helped the Menns implement practices. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program has several projects with monetary incentives. The Menns have completed projects for stream bank improvements and forest management, installed a lter bed in the cow yard, planted wildowers and enhanced wildlife habitat. “We’ve done basically everything possible within this program,” Menn said. “We had yet to establish much for wildlife habitat. To address this, Kyle took on the project of building a bat house.” The local high school got involved when students from Brookwood built the lunkers that improved the stream bank. The wooden structures provide trout protection within the stream bank and, as a requirement of the program, give public access to sh the water. Menn’s father introduced strip cropping the year he bought the farm from his grandfather and won the conservation award. Menn has continued the practice and credits much of the soil health to maintaining the strips. “Strip cropping is huge,” Menn said.
“Being organic, we have to be very conscientious about soil erosion.” The Menns have noticed a difference between the land they have maintained for generations and the land they have rented. When strip cropping is not maintained properly, soil health is noticeably depleted, Menn said. The transition to organic started in 2006, and the Menns shipped their rst organic milk in 2009. At that time, they set up 22 acres for rotational grazing, creating 11 paddocks and a perimeter fence around the lot. While many factors made them transition to organic, one of the biggest reasons was the sustainability of the soil. “When the soil goes, it’s gone,” Menn said. “You have to maintain it and keep it there for the next generation.” The Menns’ youngest son, Kyle, is attending the Farm and Industry Short Course in River Falls. Kyle aims to continue the dairy but is too young to decide, Jackie said. Menn plans to continue the conservation work that his ancestors began many years ago. This year, they are slated to participate in a program that closes the manure pit that Menn’s father built in 1971 since it is no longer operational or up to code. They also plan to reseed pasture ground to promote the growth of legumes and natural grasses and will continue the annual practice of mechanically cutting back any noxious weeds. Incorporating conservation practices is not a one-time event but a way of life for the Menns. Every task on the farm takes into consideration how to best conserve or improve the land that has been entrusted to them. Conservation is a tradition that has been passed down through the generations and one that will be carried into their farm’s future.
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ConƟnued from UW-PLATTEVILLE | Page 1 “We wanted to give students the opportunity to learn how to milk conventionally and be able to do research in both settings,” Weigel said. “They can do that plus learn how to manage the robots.” Weigel shared his experience with robots Jan. 31 during a farm tour sponsored by Lely Center Monroe. The cows are housed in one ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR freestall barn, with Cory Weigel, herd manager, takes a break Jan. 31 at the the robots on one side and the parlor University of Wisconsin-PlaƩeville Pioneer Farm in PlaƩeon the other. They ville, Wisconsin. The farm was part of a roboƟc tour sponare divided into sored by Lely Center Monroe. four groups and managed by Weigel with the help of handled by a human twice a day. The labor is much higher on the parlor student employees. When the facility was built in side. The student employee chores 2006, it was designed to house robots take up to an hour each shift for the and the parlor. In 2007, two Bou- robot herd, while it takes two people Matic robots were installed. The farm up to three hours per shift to milk in used them for three years and then the parlor. Days-in-milk and pregnancy rates shut them down in 2010. Cows were milked in the parlor until 2021 when are about equal for both herds. The robots are managed with Lely’s Hothe Lely A5 robots were installed. Weigel said he appreciates the rizon software which pulls data from A5 design. The former robots had a the cows’ collars. The parlor herd is force-ow system where cows went managed with the SCR collar system. First-calf heifers are milked in the through the parlor to get to the feed bunk. The new system is free ow, parlor for the rst week after freshenwhich gives cows a choice of feeding ing. After that, the cows remain with their peers for the most part. Weigel at the bunk or milking in the robot. “I didn’t know it would work as said if there is a severe case of maswell as it has, but it is nice,” Weigel titis, a cow will be moved back to the parlor and said. “Once the treated because cows gure it it is easier to out, they come treat in the in on their parlor than to own.” catch cows in Students at the headlocks. the university Additionally, if are employed there is a cow on the farm. that simply will Cows are fed not adapt to the once a day with robot for whata total mixed ever reason, he ration. The parwill move her lor cows and to the parlor inthe robot cows stead of culling are fed differher. ent feeds beCORY WEIGEL, DAIRY FARMER “I like havcause the robot ing another cows consume way to milk the cows that don’t adapt a pellet during milking. Two students are on shift for to robots without having to sell them,” milking in the parlor twice a day, Weigel said. “There have been maybe while one student comes twice a day 3-5 cows that didn’t adjust to the roto check the robot cows. At 6 a.m. and bots since we put them in.” Both herds are on monthly tests. 6 p.m., a student checks the fetch cow list. The student moves those cows When comparing the results between into the holding area, cleans the mat- the DHIA test and the data from the tress stalls and adds fresh sawdust robots, Weigel said it is very close. The students can learn more about bedding. The barn is cleaned with aucow behavior with the robots through tomatic scrapers. Weigel said they typically have different studies. They conducted a 5-6 fetch cows. They are usually fresh dry cow study to evaluate the effeccows or cows that have come over tiveness of discontinuing the pellet rafrom the parlor group to be trained in tion in the robot. Some cows stopped the robots. The 100-cow robot herd is visiting the robot within two weeks averaging 3.3 milkings per day and while one cow continued to try once producing about 95 pounds of milk per day for an entire month. Future research will involve feed per day per cow. The parlor cows produce slightly less because they are studies using an automatic feeder for one of the groups milked by the romilked just twice per day. The somatic cell count runs be- bots. Lely makes a stall that feeds peltween 180,000-200,000 for both lets without milking. This is another herds, Weigel said. He said there is way to measure feed intake and cow more management involved on the behavior. That project is tentatively robot side because the cows are not scheduled to start next month.
“I like having another way to milk the cows that don’t adapt to robots without having to sell them. There have been maybe 3-5 cows that didn’t adjust to the robots since we put them in.”
ConƟnued from AG DAY | Page 2 During a legislative panel, Sens. Patrick Testin, Brad Pfaff and Joan Ballweg and Reps. Tony Kurtz, Dave Considine and Travis Tranel shared their thoughts on legislation being considered and opportunities to help farmers. Before the current session ends, Ballweg is hoping to see Assembly Bill 440, which relates to permits for the overweight transport of certain uid milk products, passed. She said this would help cheese production in Wisconsin. The passing of a transparent and open carbon calculator is also on Ballweg’s wish list. This bill would mandate a service that gives Wisconsin farmers access to a website that helps them obtain a carbon score and learn how to improve that score through a transparent process. Ballweg has also seen support for a grazing bill that would provide grant money and technical assistance to farmers who want to establish a managed grazing system. Pfaff wants to see lower healthcare costs and has legislation in process to cap the price of insulin. Considine said a bill introduced that day would offer a signicant tax credit for beginning farmers. Improving farmers’ access to healthcare services was also mentioned as a need. Tranel said that the week before Ag Day at the Capitol, both houses passed legislation that require two emergency medical service volunteers to serve on the state board. Tranel said this can enhance emergency medical services in rural areas which volunteers often perform.
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 7
Workforce shortages were also discussed, and Ballweg assured the audience they were not alone in this issue. “No matter what industry you’re in, there is a workforce shortage,” she said. “We need to do more to incentivize folks to work in Wisconsin. We need a tax package to keep people and draw people here.” Testin agreed. “There is no question that the labor shortage is one of the biggest issues we face as a state,” he said. “One of the best things we can do is talent attraction, and one of the best ways to do that is through tax cuts.” Testin said Texas, Florida, Tennessee and South Dakota have the biggest inux of people because they are lowtax states. “Your dollar stretches further in those places than it does in California, New York, Illinois or Wisconsin,” Testin said. “It’s unfortunate that 95% of the tax cuts we sent to the governor were vetoed, but we have more working their way through Legislature right now to provide signicant tax relief. If we want to be competitive, we need to have a tax environment that reects that.” Testin also addressed migrant workforce issues and said they have been working with the Wisconsin Ag Coalition on proposals. “We rely on a migrant workforce in Wisconsin and across this country, and we need to have a safe and legal pathway for individuals to come here and help ll the workforce void we’re facing,” Testin said. The moderator’s nal question to
the legislators was: “How can farmers stay engaged with policymakers to ensure the interests of agriculture are prioritized?” Every legislator emphasized how important this is. “When you get to the Capitol today, it doesn’t matter if they have a D or an R behind their name, you let them know what’s important to you and you start that relationship with them,” Kurtz said. Testin told the crowd to share their stories. Pfaff told farmers to invite legislators to their farms and stay in touch with them within their districts. Considine echoed this thought. “Every year, I do tours of farms, and I take my Democratic members to farms also,” Considine said. “They need to be on farms too. Get them out to see what you’re doing because that will
help us understand.” Ballweg said to invite legislators to farm meetings and breakfasts as well. Tranel stressed how important it will be to stay on top of what is going on in the political world. “In addition to feeding the country and the world, you also have to start paying attention to politics because it’s going to get very important,” Tranel said. He encouraged farmers to inuence their friends and neighbors. “We are fortunate that the last 10 years we have had policymakers in place with a good pulse on rural Wisconsin,” Tranel said. “That’s in more jeopardy than it’s ever been in the last 14 years. Double down on your efforts because it is going to matter.”
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Page 8 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
Double the luck
Gerhardts enjoy calf rafe déjà vu
their friend was playing a trick was because Amy’s name was drawn as the winner of the calf at the 2020 convention. Indeed, Raatz was the bearer of good news. Brady was the winner of Kampy Luster Got Lucky-P, donated by the Kamphuis family of Kampy Holsteins near Brandon. Got Lucky is a polled Cherry-Lilly Zip Luster-P-ET daughter born in September. Her dam is sired by Duckett Crush Tatoo-ET and was classied GP-83 as a 2-year-old. Her second dam is an EX-91 Val-Bisson Doorman-ET daughter. She is backed by eight more generations of Very Good and Excellent cows including the alltime All-American junior 2-year-old and junior 3-year-old, Stookey Elm Park Blackrose-ET EX96-3E-GMDDOM. The teasing did not end with Raatz’s phone call. “I got home and told Dad I had met a girl at convention and we needed to go pick her up,” Brady said. Marty said his son’s admission confused him, and he was also in disbelief when Brady told him he had won the calf. Going to pick the calf up turned into a more challenging prospect than the Gerhardts had expected.
By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com
NEILLSVILLE, Wis. — They say lightning does not strike twice, but one Clark County family recently learned that it can. The lucky thunderbolt came twice in the form of a calf rafe win for 13-year-old Brady Gerhardt, whose name was drawn as the winner of a registered Holstein calf Dec. 31, 2023, at the Wisconsin Junior Holstein Convention in Fond du Lac. “I thought they were joking when they told us my name had been drawn,” Brady said. “I have never won anything before except a dollar on a scratch-off lottery ticket I got for Christmas.” The weather was less than ideal on the nal morning of the annual gathering of young Holstein enthusiasts, according to Brady’s mother, Amy. After a weekend of camaraderie and dairy bowl competition, they headed for home before the nal hours of the convention wrapped up, which included the drawing for the organization’s annual calf rafe. While the family was stopped at a gas station, Amy’s phone rang. Fellow Clark County Holstein breeder Teri Raatz called to share the good
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Derrek Kamphuis (from le�), Brady Gerhardt and Darren Kamphuis gather Jan. 22 at Kampy Holsteins near Brandon, Wisconsin. Gerhardt was at the farm that day to retrieve Kampy Luster Got Lucky-P, the calf he won in the Wisconsin Junior Holstein Associa�on annual calf raffle.
news. “We did all think she was pulling our leg,” Amy said. “We were all laughing and saying, ‘Good one,
Teri,’ but she kept insisting she wasn’t joking. I’m never speechless, but this time I was.” The reason the Gerhardts thought
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“Our rst plan to get her was on Jan. 13, but we got all that snow on Friday,” Marty said. “It was a good thing we decided not to go that day. The Kamphuises said their road did not get plowed until late Saturday afternoon.” The cold weather that followed the snowstorm thwarted the Gerhardts’ plans to pick up their newest Holstein again. Finally, Brady stayed home from school Jan. 22 and made the trip to Brandon with Marty to meet his calf. The Gerhardts — Marty, Amy and their children Dawson, Emily and Brady — have been lifelong supporters of the dairy industry and are happy to have the opportunity to raise their children in the same manner. The family supports the annual junior fundraiser put on by the Wisconsin Holstein Association, buying a book of six tickets for each member of their family. “That’s turned out pretty good for us,” Marty said. “We’ve gotten two really good-pedigreed registered Holstein calves for $50 apiece.” The calf Amy won in 2020, KWH Ltomax Ascrow-ET, had an equally impressive pedigree. She is a granddaughter of Kamps Hollow Altitude EX-95-2E — the same family as KHW Regiment Apple-Red-ET EX96-4E-DOM. “That calf was almost a year old when we brought her home,” Amy said. “Emily had kind of claimed her to show, but then with COVID that summer, we didn’t have a county fair.”
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 9
Ascrow has been shown at the county fair as a milking cow, but the Gerhardts said she does not love the show life. Emily has been able to show her daughter, though. While Brady said he has more of an afnity for showing pigs at the county fair, he has already told his sister that he will be showing Got Lucky this summer. Got Lucky will be transferred into a family partnership with both their names on the paper as had been done with Ascrow. “I am looking forward to showing her,” Brady said. “She is so black and pretty.” The Gerhardts will house Got Lucky at nearby Selz-Pralle Dairy in Humbird. Besides the Clark County Fair, the Gerhardts plan to show Got Lucky at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair in Chippewa Falls and the Central Wisconsin State Fair in Marsheld. They are considering becoming rsttime exhibitors at the WHA District 4 Holstein Show in Wausau. Amy said she would like Emily and Brady to have the experience of exhibiting at the Wisconsin State Fair as part of Clark County’s delegation of dairy youth at some point. “I still can’t really believe I won the calf rafe,” Brady said. “She is my rst calf that belongs to me, and she has such a good pedigree. It is really exciting, and I am looking forward to her growing up and showing her this summer.”
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After ve months and 12,000 pages of testimo- list of exclusions, there is no exclusion for agriny, the National Federal Milk Marketing Order Pric- culture, there’s no exclusion for small businesses,” ing Formula Hearing has ended. Forty Rumley said. The denition of benecial proposals were submitted. The U.S. Deowner is broad and includes those who Ag Insider partment of Agriculture will now review own or control at least 25% of the comthe transcripts, and there will be another pany and those who exercise substantial opportunity for amendments and closing control, including the president, CEO, statements from industry stakeholders. general counsel and board of directors After the USDA issues a nal rule, dairy members. Fines for non-compliance can farmers will vote in a referendum about add up quickly. “They’re looking at up the orders. to $500 for each day not in compliance with a maximum of $10,000 ne and/or NMPF defends its FMMO proposal up to two years imprisonment,” Rumley The National Milk Producers Fedsaid. Companies created before Jan. 1 eration is touting its federal order reform have until the end of the year to comply. plan as “the most comprehensive, coherNewly created companies have 90 days. By Don Wick ent and compelling framework for modIn 2025, that window shrinks to 30 days. Columnist ernizing a system that’s badly in need of improvement,” said Gregg Doud, presiAGCO FarmerCore model require a dent/CEO. The NMPF proposal seeks a return to the change in mindset higher-of Class I mover, discontinuation of the use AGCO Corporation has launched a new distriof barrel cheese in the protein component price for- bution model that it describes as “transformative.” mula, and updating component factors for protein, FarmerCore will use tools that puts dealers in closer other solids and nonfat solids in the Class III and proximity to farmers, both on-site and online. The Class IV skim milk price formulas. It also updates one-size-ts-all outlet approach will be de-emphadairy product manufacturing allowances. sized and moves to a hub-and-spoke model. The FarmerCore program includes mobile service eets; There is no united voice alternative formats, like a parts-only store; and new With the FMMO hearings complete, Dairy digital tools. This effort is beginning in select locaBusiness Association/Edge Dairy Farmer Coopera- tions and will expand throughout this year. tive CEO Tim Trotter said one thing is obvious. “There’s not a united voice, there’s not a consensus New automation for hay production as we thought there might be, but, again, it’s a very Case IH is bringing light detection and ranging diverse industry,” Trotter said. technology to hay producers with a rst-of-its-kind in large square hay baler automation. With the auAFBF seeks emergency decision tomatic adjustments and hands-free baling, farmThe American Farm Bureau Federation is urging ers can put less experienced operators in the cab or U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to issue a spend their time in the cab focusing on other farm nal decision on an emergency basis to speed up im- business. plementation of the higher-of Class I mover formula to lessen the impact of further losses. “Dairy farmers WFBF honored remain stuck with current pricing regulations until During the AFBF annual convention in Salt Lake the USDA publishes a nal rule,” said Sam Kieffer, City, Utah, the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation vice president of public policy, AFBF. “The current was recognized for the implementation of outstandClass I mover was a well-intentioned policy misstep ing member programs and membership achievement that has reduced dairy farmers’ checks with little re- in 2023. lief in sight.” Podesta replaces Kerry Milk production report released Senior White House advisor John Podesta will In the 24 major dairy states, December 2023 replace John Kerry as the Biden administration’s milk production totaled 18.1 billion pounds. That’s climate diplomat. Podesta has been in his current down 0.1% from one year ago. Wisconsin milk pro- role since late 2022. Previously, Podesta served as duction totaled nearly 2.7 billion pounds, up slightly chief of staff for President Clinton and counselor to from one year ago. The state’s dairy herd totaled President Obama. nearly 1.3 million head, unchanged from a year ago. National Mastitis Council recognizes dairy Ag Day at the Capitol The National Mastitis Council has awarded six More than 275 farmers and ag stakeholders par- dairy farms nationwide with platinum status for its ticipated in Ag Day at the Capitol Jan. 31. In ad- National Dairy Quality Awards. Larson Acres, of dition to meeting with legislators, the program in- Evansville, Wisconsin, is the sole Wisconsin farm on cluded updates on farm policy. Topics ranged from the list. Wisconsin also had four dairy farms receivaffordable healthcare to investment in infrastructure. ing gold status and six dairies with silver status. Court rules in favor of DNR, its permitting authority The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has the authority to require large dairy farms to get permits for its wastewater discharge program. Venture Dairy Cooperative and the Wisconsin Dairy Alliance challenged this authority in court, but Calumet County Circuit Court Judge Carey Reed ruled in favor of the DNR. The lawsuit alleged the permitting requirement was illegal because of two federal court decisions. The DNR and the intervening groups argued it was not proven concentrated animal feeding operations are harmed by the permit requirements. Stay vigilant: Corporate Transparency Act impacts farmers The Corporate Transparency Act was passed in 2021 and is now in full effect. National Agricultural Law Center senior staff attorney Elizabeth Rumley explains that businesses must now report benecial ownership information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. “Although there is a fairly long
Outstanding Young Farmers named The 2024 Wisconsin Outstanding Young Farmer recognition belongs to Jacob and Jennifer Hoewisch, of Fremont, Wisconsin. Hoewisch Homestead Dairy is the home farm for the couple. They are also involved in WFBF, township government and their church. Trivia challenge DiGiorno is the best-selling frozen pizza brand in the United States. That answers our last trivia question. For this week’s trivia, what is the term for the main bone in a cow’s hoof? We’ll have the answer in our next edition of Dairy Star. Don Wick is owner/broadcaster for the Red River Farm Network of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Wick has been recognized as the National Farm Broadcaster of the Year and served as president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. Don and his wife, Kolleen, have two sons, Tony and Sam, and ve grandchildren, Aiden, Piper, Adrienne, Aurora and Sterling.
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 11
Using diet to decrease milk fever incidents start are the best reasons to avoid incidents of milk fever in the rst place, Lippert said. “It seems a bit confusing; the condition is low blood calcium, but as the cow nears calving, you should By Danielle Nauman feed a diet low in calcium to help danielle.n@dairystar.com avoid milk fever issues at calving time,” Lippert said. In the early 1990s, the strategy of THORP, Wis. — Calving is one of the most stressful times a dairy feeding a negative-DCAD diet was cow experiences, and that stress can introduced. The troubles with negamake her vulnerable to metabolic tive-DCAD diets included expense disorders like milk fever. By nd- and reduced palatability, which can ing ways to prevent disorders, dairy lead to decreased intake that could farmers can ensure their cows get set the cow up for additional metaoff to a good start with each lacta- bolic issues, Lippert said. “It didn’t take too long and we tion. Matt Lippert, University of Wis- started looking for even better soluconsin-Extension dairy agent for tions,” Lippert said. Using forages that are low in poClark and Wood counties, presented “Exploring Diet Manipulation to tassium has become one way to feed Control Milk Fever” during a soil pre-fresh cows a diet that will support their nutritional needs without health meeting Jan. 31 in Thorp. “Milk fever is an old name, and the added expense or loss of palatit is really a misnomer,” Lippert ability. The challenge with that, Lipsaid. “Cows with milk fever have pert said, is that forages are naturalno milk, and they don’t have a fever. ly high in potassium. “One way to get that lower poCows can die from milk tassium diet is to feed fever, so it is a pretty bad corn silage, but we all deal.” know what happens Milk fever, caused when you feed corn siby low levels of blood lage to dry cows,” Lipcalcium, is more accupert said. “They get fat, rately known as either and that gives you a parturient paresis or hywhole set of other probpocalcemia. lems to deal with.” “They are bred to Growing forages make a lot of milk and that are low in potassicolostrum is even richer um is difcult, Lippert yet,” Lippert said. “They Matt Lippert said, because the apneed a lot of calcium. University of Wisconsinplication of manure as a Really, all cows, at calv- Extension fertilizer provides high ing time experience lowlevels of potassium to er blood calcium. Beyond a certain the soil. threshold, it becomes a problem.” According to Lippert, research Usually, rst-lactation cows are unlikely to suffer ill effects of low- is showing that reducing phosphoered blood calcium, with risks in- rus in diets is another way to raise blood calcium levels at calving. Lipcreasing as the cow ages. Lippert said a cow will rst be- pert said there are feed supplements come unsteady. If she is not treated, that will bind phosphorus in the dishe will eventually be unable to get gestive system when fed for the recup. The longer a cow is down, or left ommended two weeks. “Low phosphorus diets have less untreated, the slower her breathing and heart rate will be. She will even- hypocalcemia,” Lippert said. “They tually lose consciousness and die. If have a decade’s worth of research milk fever occurs before calving, that supports this.” Lippert said that nding the best the cow will experience weakened uterine contractions and be unable method of preventing the incidence of hypocalcemia requires dedicato deliver her calf. Once a cow goes down, the pos- tion, but it is time well spent when sibility of further damage increases. looking at the big picture of what “A Holstein cow is 1,500 each incidence can cost in a herd. “Milk fever is expensive and pounds,” Lippert said. “If she goes down, it is bad because it is difcult heartbreaking,” Lippert said. “The to get her back up. A cow that strug- interventions and preventatives are gles to get up could suffer muscle expensive, but the effects of milk damage that will last far beyond the fever, both primary and secondary, are expensive too. Milk fever occurs actual incidence of milk fever.” Preventing those long-lasting at the worst time for a cow and afnegative effects and getting a cow fects her for that lactation and even off to her best and most protable beyond.”
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Page 12 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
Building a common language
Farmers face stressors, barriers to mental health By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com
MARSHFIELD, Wis. — Dairy farmers often face unique stressors that are not understood by those outside the agricultural community. This can make it difcult for some farmers to feel understood when they reach for help. In a presentation during the central Wisconsin Farm Stress Summit, “Cutting Through the Manure to Get to the Roots of the Stress,” University of Wisconsin-Extension Marathon County educator Heather Schlesser spoke to members of both the medical and agricultural communities Jan. 26 at the Marsheld Clinic in Marsheld about stressors farmers face. Research funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture was conducted in 2021 using a focus group to learn what farmers perceived as their greatest challenges and what prevented them from reaching out for help. Three focus groups were established. Ten participants from across the state, six females and four males which included eight who had been
DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR
Brad Guse (leŌ) and Amanda Borkowski perform a skit showing how farmers might struggle to communicate about stress Jan. 26 during the central Wisconsin Farm Stress Summit in Marsheld, Wisconsin. farming for more than 20 years, were included in the study. Five dairy farmers participated in the discussion. “The objectives we had were to ask the participants to explain their farming subculture,” Schlesser said. “We wanted to know if they felt they had a subculture different from the general population, and if so, what was it? We also asked them to discuss resources that were available to farmers for farm stress. What did they know about, and what did they feel was available to them? We also wanted to identify how they wanted to be communicated with, as farmers.” The focus groups were conducted via video calls, using the anonymous call-in feature. “We wanted to make sure that the people who participated in the focus groups felt
like they really had the ability to share without being singled out,” Schlesser said. Schlesser said all the sessions were recorded, with transcripts being put into a data analysis program, allowing them to look for commonalities. Using literature, Schlesser identied common stressors throughout the global agricultural community to compare if Wisconsin farmers perceived similar or different stress to their counterparts. “We wanted to identify if our farmers felt the same way as farmers in California or Iowa or Europe,” Schlesser said. Stressors Schlesser identied through literature included nancial difculties; time and workload pressures; unpredictability of the agricultural industry; detrimental weather events; interpersonal conicts with
family and non-family; isolation and the process of farm transition. “These were all stressors our farmers could all relate to,” Schlesser said. “It wasn’t just in literature. It was what we were seeing here in Wisconsin, but they identied some additional stressors.” During the discussions, the data analysis program coded 81 comments as stressors, Schlesser said. “We had additional stressors that had not been previously identied,” Schlesser said. “One of those was management of the farm. What they meant by that was the stress of, ‘Who will manage the farm if I’m unable to do the chores?’ No one else had said that. It was getting at why don’t they seek help. One of their stressors is they can’t, because who will manage the farm if they’re away?” Schlesser said the focus group delved deeper into the stresses related to nancial management than what had been found in the literature. “This was related more to the stress of making the right decision to make the farm work nancially,” Schlesser said. “‘If I make decision A, will it make the farm better, more protable? Or will it end up collapsing the farm, losing it for the next generation?’” The pressure to continually improve and expand weighed on the minds of the focus group,
Schlesser said. “This referred to the pressure of becoming more efcient, consolidating, improving and increasing their acres and livestock numbers,” Schlesser said. “We’ve seen that trend in agriculture, to constantly get bigger and bigger, and they see that as a stressor, the pressure to do that in order to make ends meet.” Not all the stressors facing the group of farmers were connected to the farm. “We classied it as ‘just life’ — the stress of just being a human, a parent,” Schlesser said. “The everyday life of running your kids to sporting events or after-school activities. To me, it was kind of eye-opening. They don’t just have the pressure of running the business. They have the stress of being normal humans as well.” Schlesser said the next question was to determine what the panel saw as barriers to seeking help. “We know we have these stressors, we know we need help, so why are we not getting that help that we need?” Schlesser said. “The largest barrier they identied was time and timing. This referred to the farmers’ inability to get away from the farm due to the work-
Turn to FARM STRESS | Page 13
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ConƟnued from FARM STRESS | Page 12
load and the time pressure. They don’t take the time away to visit a healthcare provider.” Schlesser said self-reliance, disconnect and stigma were identied as other barriers to seeking care. “There was a feeling that healthcare providers didn’t understand agriculture enough to genuinely empathize with the farmers seeking help,” Schlesser said. “We need to build a common language to help break down that barrier of disconnect.” Schlesser said understanding how farmers think can be difcult for healthcare professionals. “They want you to meet them where they are, mentally,” Schlesser said.
“They are constantly thinking about farm life, the next chore that has to get done, even if they are sitting in the doctor’s ofce. They feel healthcare providers do not understand that farming is a 24/7 occupation. They can’t turn it off. They can’t leave it.” That understanding plays into developing a level of trust that farmers need with their healthcare provider, Schlesser said. “A farmer sitting in your ofce is really a cry for help,” Schlesser said. “It’s really important to understand that even if the farmer downplays the situation, if they are sitting in your ofce, treat it as an emergency situation.”
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Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 15
from our side OF THE FENCE How long have you been dairy farming, and why is it the career for you?
Kevin Aves (right) pictured with Kyle Aves (from left), Patrick and Stephanie Schroeder, and Julie Aves Belmont, Wisconsin Grant County 50 cows
the facilities. When we did that, we made great improvements to be able to better the quality of care for our cattle. This obstacle took a lot of thought. Do we invest more or sell out? After much thought, blood, sweat and probably a few tears, we built the farm back. What is the best decision you have made on your farm? The best investment we made was to build the separate facility for the show heifers. We were able to give the special girls more individual care and have an indoor wash rack for the kids.
How long have you been dairy farming? For 42 years. Tell us about your family and farm. I grew up on my family’s 60-cow dairy where we also farmed 1,000 acres. I started milking on my own in 1982. My wife, Julie, and I have two children, Kyle and Stephanie. Stephanie is now married to Patrick Schroeder, and they have our rst grandchild, Blake. Julie and I own our home dairy in northern Illinois which is being rented out. This is where our family started ST-YLE Holsteins in 1994. We milk 50 cows on a farm in Belmont, Wisconsin. What do you love about dairy farming? What I love most about dairy farming is working with my wife and kids toward the same goals of having a great herd of Red & White cows. When we have a fun job, it really doesn’t seem like a job. Since the kids now have their own careers off the farm, it makes me proud to be able to see them succeed in the eld using things we taught them when they were younger. Tell us a fond memory of your career. The fondest memories I have are watching my children show, from peewee showmanship to being adults in the show ring. I cannot wait to watch my grandson show his rst cow. What is the biggest obstacle you have faced in your dairying career, and how did you overcome it? The biggest obstacle was having a barn re in 2003 and rebuilding Paulette and Scott Ditter Plymouth, Wisconsin Sheboygan County 40 cows
Who has been an inspiration to you? The biggest inspiration to me has just been listening to the older generation of farmers. One once told me, “If you take care of the cows, they’ll take care of you.” I always remember that, no matter what decision I am making on the farm. What three characteristics do you have that help you excel at being a dairy farmer? Diversity, dedication and entrepreneurship. Diversity: We ran a lot of land and cattle. We were always looking at ways that we could make extra money to have a successful farm. This is why we raise St. Bernard dogs, too. Dedication: There has been a million times our city family and friends ask, “Why do you do this?” The answer is always that we love the cows and the farm life. Entrepreneurship: Starting my own farm in 1982, I had to become the person to make the decisions of all the day-to-day operations. Why is dairy farming the career for you? Dairy farming is a career for me because that is all I had dreamed of doing since I was in 4-H and FFA. I always grew up wanting beautiful cows that were enjoyable to milk and look at every day. As my career has progressed from owning my own dairy to working with my family, the highlight has been being able to develop and breed many show winners and All-Americans. The biggest highlight we had as a career, was breeding and showing the senior best three females that were all daughters of my daughter’s cow who was supreme champion of the World Dairy Expo Junior Show. hosted visitors from all over the world, including China, Germany, France, Austria and Taiwan. What is the biggest obstacle you have faced in your dairying career, and how did you overcome it? In the early 1980s, interest rates were at 18.5%. Not a lot of people live through that. It can eat you up and spit you out. You had to have business sense in you and put economics to it, or you went broke. Fortunately, I have those skills, and we made it through.
How long have you been dairy farming? I have been farming for 40 years. Tell us about your family and farm. My wife, Paulette, and I have been married for 49 years. We have two daughters, Brandy and Haley, who are both married. Brandy has two children, and Haley has three. Paulette, Haley, my granddaughter, Zoe, and I work on the farm. My father-in-law began working on this farm in 1956 and purchased it in 1971. Paulette and I bought it in December 1983. Our Holstein herd is housed in a tiestall barn in comfort stalls and registered under the prex Smilaire. We farm about 500 acres and ship our milk to Sartori. What do you love about dairy farming? I love working with and developing our cattle. I am always striving to get them up to the next level and continue to improve each generation. We have an EX94-2E cow named Smilaire Jill. She was grand champion of the junior show at the 2022 Wisconsin State Fair. We recently classied and had 15 Excellent cows out of 39. This included one EX-94, three EX-93, four EX-92, four EX-91 and three EX-90 cows. All are homebred as we haven’t purchased any cows in about 35 years. I also love planting and harvesting crops and seeing our achievements from that. Tell us a fond memory of your career. Sartori once did an advertising promotion at our farm and spent two days here shooting videos and taking pictures of the cows and barns. It was a memorable time, and this promotion was featured on their website for quite a while. We were also featured on the PBS show, “Wisconsin Foodie,” which was kind of a big deal. Sartori has also brought groups to our farm for tours, and we’ve
What is the best decision you have made on your farm? Keeping our cow numbers where we’re at so that we can manage the herd by ourselves is one of the best decisions we have made. My wife and I are not dependent on hired help. Purchasing land in a timely manner without having to overextend ourselves is another good decision we made. Who has been an inspiration to you? My father-in-law, Rueben Bunge. He was a heck of a cow man. I was not raised on a farm, so he was the one who taught me all about cows. Rueben helped me learn their habits and what to look for. He made me smart about the cow. What three characteristics do you have that help you excel at being a dairy farmer? I’m conservative, I’m not afraid to try new things, and I’m business savvy and have good nancial sense. An example of trying new things would be when we started vertical tilling 15 years ago. It changed my world, and now vertical till is all we do. The ground has changed drastically as a result. We have plenty of red clay here, but the ground has mellowed right out. It's hard to believe it’s the same ground we farmed 15 years ago. It’s a night and day difference. We also have less tractor hours and use less fuel. Why is dairy farming the career for you? I like having the ability to watch the cattle and the crops grow. I also enjoy being outside. We pasture our cows, and it’s neat to be able to watch them go out and lay down and enjoy themselves. A highlight from my career is consistently improving our BAA over the years. When we started the herd, our BAA was 102. Now, it’s 111.7, unofcially.
Turn to OUR SIDE | Page 16
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Page 16 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
ConƟnued from OUR SIDE | Page 15 Dan Smits, pictured with grandson, Mason Scheuers Markesan, Wisconsin Fond du Lac County 1,800 cows
Tell us a fond memory of your career. I was the calf feeder for many years. I worked in that capacity with all four of my kids, from oldest to youngest. Each kid developed their own special, favorite song — “our song” — on the radio. What is the biggest obstacle you have faced in your dairying career, and how did you overcome it? We tried a digester in 2002 that worked well at rst, but then when it went south, it was a lot of headaches. We ended up abandoning the system.
How long have you been dairy farming? I’ve been farming for 40 years, plus working for others in my school-aged years. Tell us about your family and farm. In 1983, I saw an ad in the paper that said, “Farm for rent: 50/50 shares.” I bought half the herd of cows and the line of machinery that was on that farm. We milked 60 cows there and operated it for 11 years. My wife, Nancy, and I wanted to buy the farm but realized it probably would not happen. Our vet told us about a farm we should check out. My brother, Steve, and I told the bank if they didn’t want to nance a parlor, we were not going to buy the farm. I had already had a back surgery and Steve had knee surgery. Then, in May 1994, we milked for the rst time in our new parlor. It was a double-8, and we milked 240 cows. After several expansions, we now have about 1,800 adult animals milking in a double-20 parallel parlor. We are a rst-generation farm. Nancy and I have four adult children. Two daughters are nurse practitioners, a third daughter has a teaching degree, and our son works on the farm. What do you love about dairy farming? It is a joy working with animals. There is reward in treating animals and seeing them come to full health and production. The miracle of birthing never gets old.
Dean and Wanda Good Dewgood Holsteins Oconto, Wisconsin Oconto County 70 cows
What is the best decision you have made on your farm? Our move from a tiestall barn to a freestall barn and parlor was a decision that kept us farming. Moving from a tiestall single-owner setup to a partnership with a parlor allowed Steve and I to work together, giving me the opportunity to farm with my brother and his wife, Heidi. That partnership brings in the second generation with my son and Steve’s sons-in-law. This setup also allowed Steve and I to farm with our dad for more than 20 years. Who has been an inspiration to you? All through high school, I worked for an uncle on his dairy farm. A year out of high school, I worked on another uncle’s dairy farm. If I hadn’t been involved with them, I never would have had the interest to start farming. My grandpa Westra always farmed, and I spent a lot of time throughout my childhood there. My dad did not dairy, but he spent many years helping me, and later Steve and I, on our current farm. There are so many people in the industry who we appreciate for helping us along the way. What three characteristics do you have that help you excel at being a dairy farmer? I’m pretty relaxed, and I’m told that I’m patient. I’m also willing to learn from others. We visited a lot of farms and talked to many dairy operators through the years. Why is dairy farming the career for you? Dairy farming allows you to work with family and spend time with grandkids. One of my favorite memories and a highlight of my career is baling hay together years ago with my dad, my grandpa and my brother.
What is the best decision you have made on your farm? Staying focused on a plan to breed high-producing registered Holsteins with high components and functional type for longevity has been our best decision.
How long have you been dairy farming? I have been farming for 43 years. Tell us about your family and farm. I was born on a dairy farm, and we started our own farm in March 1981. Our farm is a family farm, where we have raised 10 children. Throughout our career, we have focused on highproduction registered Holsteins, with high components and functional type. What do you love about dairy farming? I love watching the birth of a new calf, the amazement of a new life and watching that calf develop into a protable cow. Tell us a fond memory of your career. First, it would be working together as the family grew up here on the farm. Second would be all of the people we have met and how they have impacted our lives. Third would be the blessings of being entrusted with the Dewgood Russ Beauty cow family. What is the biggest obstacle you have faced in your dairying career, and how did you overcome it? The crash of land prices in 1982 and 1983 was the greatest obstacle we faced. We bought an 80-acre farm in southern Indiana in 1981 for $2,500 an acre. By 1982-83, it had dropped to $1,200 per acre. In the winter of 1993-94, we sold that farm for $1,975 an acre and moved to our present location in Wisconsin Oct. 29, 1994. During the 1980s, interest rates were 17%, which added to the challenge of the land being worth half the price we paid for it. We overcame that by learning to trust God and ask for help, along with years of working long days and refusing to give up.
Who has been an inspiration to you? The list is endless so I will only name a few. First would be Lowell Lindsey from Ontario, Canada. He expressed condence in our breeding focus, and his trust and encouragement gave us desire to keep going on. Second would be Doug Schmitt, a good friend who passed away many years ago. Doug was a friend who helped me see both sides of any cattle breeding or sale. I often think of his guidance in looking at all things of life especially the difcult things. Third, and most importantly, would be my wife, Wanda. She has stood by my side through all the joys and challenges of farming. When I would stray from the goal of breeding good cows, she would point me back to our focus, especially in the area of high components. What a difference those years of commitment to high fat and protein have made today. What three characteristics do you have that help you excel at being a dairy farmer? First would be realizing how important it is to learn from others. I'm still working on listening to learn. That was my only failing grade in school — an unsatisfactory mark in the category of “Listens and follows directions well.” Second would be learning to surround ourselves with good, positive people. Third would be having a passion for cattle genetics. Why is dairy farming the career for you? Making gains in cattle genetic gains are slow. God has used that to work on teaching me patience. I have learned that what you put in effects what you get out. If you take care of cows, they will take care of you. Seeing the life cycle from birth to death has been amazing and has helped us desire to nurture our fellow men to seek God to develop a relationship with Jesus Christ. Regardless of our accomplishments in life, nothing else matters when we come to the end of life. Our farm motto has served us well: Success is not what we achieve but enjoying God’s blessings one at a time. Turn to OUR SIDE | Page 18
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ConƟnued from OUR SIDE | Page 16
Eric Goplin Osseo, Wisconsin Trempealeau County 60 cows
Larry Kruse Dyersville, Iowa Delaware County 40 cows
How long have you been dairy farming? I have been farming for 50 years.
How long have you been dairy farming? I’m 80 years old, and I’ve been farming all my life. I started milking by hand when I was 7 years old, and now, I help my son.
Tell us about your family and farm. Jackie and I have been married for 40 years. She worked off the farm as a band director for 33 years. Music has always been central in our family life; a lot of singing, playing instruments and participating in musicals. Our son, Bradley, is renting the farm and owns the cattle and machinery. Our daughter, Julie, is a respected chiropractor and part owner of the Optima Health & Vitality Center in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Our farm is beginning its 154th year of existence. What do you love about dairy farming? When all things are smooth in the barn, there is nothing more satisfying than milking time. Seeing content cows being milked while they are eating or sleepily chewing their cud is a pretty special moment. Tell us a fond memory of your career. After farming for many years, there are many memories. Weather and economy have had impacts. I remember having our rst cow milk 100 pounds of milk a day. Then, a few years later, we hit the 20,000-pound herd average. These were rewards of hard work, breeding decisions and putting up better forage. What is the biggest obstacle you faced in your dairy career, and how did you overcome it? High interest rates of the late 1970s. Our farm survived by not overreacting to the situation. We certainly watched our expenses and always were vigilant to ward off unexpected expenses by paying attention to animals and machinery maintenance. I always think about and give credit to the power of prayer many times. What is the best decision you ever made on your dairy farm? After a miserably cold winter in 1989-90, we built a heated shop. The main reason for this was to keep the tractor and manure spreader inside. I haven’t cleared off the manure spreader in the winter for 34 years. That is without a doubt the best decision we made. Who has been an inspiration to you? I would have to say my dad. But more than that, it was my dad’s generation of dairy farmers. It is what my life was growing up. Everyone we knew farmed: my uncles, my neighbors and my friends. What three characteristics do you have that help you excel at dairy farming? I am persistent and have a stick-to-it attitude in spite of difculty. I am thorough and do a good job all the time, and I am diligent, showing care in my work. Why is dairy farming right for you? Dairying was good for me because it was here for me. My dad and generations of my family before me built and made improvements on the farm. I grew up around dairy cattle and knew the basics of animal care and genetics. Many events have happened at the Goplin homestead, but the highlight for me was when the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack spent an afternoon on our farm, especially seeing him talk to my mom, who was 85 at the time. The U.S. Secret Service was present also. They were glad to receive a cold chocolate milk.
Tell us about your family and farm. I’m proud of the fact that we made a living on an 80-acre farm. We raised seven kids. It was a family farm and still is today. We had registered Brown Swiss all of our lives. My son runs the farm now, and I am here almost every day helping him. I’ve had a good life in the dairy business. I really enjoy doing chores. What do you love about dairy farming? The biggest part is the fact that you can work with your family. We’re very family-oriented. We always enjoyed our fellow farmers in the dairy business and still do. Tell us a fond memory of your career. The fondest memory of my career was showing cattle through the years and judging overseas. I was always able to take my wife along when I judged in foreign countries and got to make friends all over. We still get calls from people in other countries and states. What is the biggest obstacle you have faced in your dairying career, and how did you overcome it? Trying to make a decent living at it. All our expenses have gone up many folds. The farm, equipment and supplies have all gone up compared to the price we get for milk. We are lucky that the cows produce more than they did years ago. We are also lucky to get paid for components too. The colored breeds have higher components, and that’s how we’ve been able to compete. What is the best decision you have made on your farm? Stay small and improve in quality versus getting bigger. Making a living at it and being able to compete in the world where it’s all bigger, bigger, bigger. We were able to make it with a small herd. We’ve only ever had 40 cows. Who has been an inspiration to you? My father. He was a very particular man, honest and straightforward. We always kept a beautiful farmstead. Things were always clean and neat. It is maybe not the biggest, but we’ve always maintained a very attractive farmstead. What three characteristics do you have that help you excel at being a dairy farmer? I had a great wife and seven wonderful kids. I had wonderful neighbors. We always kept religion and God in our farming operation and always made time to go to church. Our community has a lot of family-oriented farms, and that’s the greatest part of it. Why is dairy farming the career for you? I have loved cows from day one. I was in 4-H as early as I could be and showed cattle all those years. It was what I wanted to do for life, and I married a girl who came from a dairy farm and milked cows. We wanted to raise a good family, and we got that accomplished. It was the life we wanted. It was hard at times, but we were fortunate that we were quite successful in merchandising cattle. We showed cattle at World Dairy Expo, and I got the honor of getting the A.C. “Whitie” Thomson Memorial Award at Expo. It was probably one of the highlights of my life. We also had a national champion and reserve champion cows.
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“With the Udder ComfortTM Battery“Udder Comfort is something we Operated Backpack Sprayer, don’t cut. It gets swelling out faster. we do our prefresh groups in We see faster, better milkouts headlocks 1x/day for 7 to 10 days and higher quality milk. We do before calving. They come in with udders full of milk, every fresh cow for a week after calving. but so soft. Robot attachments are quicker, and milking We mark high-count cows on DHIA and do them too. is faster and more complete - cutting robot fetch days We tried other brands. They don’t work. - Josh Lingen, Lingen Dairy, Balaton, MN by more than half.” Udder Comfort is the one that works!” 340 cows, 90 lbs, 130,000 SCC
“Udder Comfort is the best tool for fresh cows. They transition into milk faster with healthier udders. We used it periodically for years. Then last year at World Dairy Expo, they talked me into the Udder Comfort Battery-Operated Backpack Sprayer. We now are getting our fresh cows sprayed consistently 3x/day for a week after calving. In just 3 months, our SCC came down from - Scott Stempfle, Stempfle Holsteins, Maynard, IA 165 to 137,000.”
750 cows, 95 lbs, 137,000 SCC
- Matt Nealy, Nealand Farms Newville, PA, 400 cows, 92 lbs, 100,000 SCC
For external application to the udder only, after milking, as an essential component of udder management. Wash and dry teats thoroughly before milking.
Page 20 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
TOP PERFORMERS Brian Waldner, of Blumenfeld Holsteins | Hawley, Minnesota | Clay County | 550 cows How many times a day do you milk, and what is your current herd average, butterfat and protein? We use a robotic milking system and average 2.7 visits per cow per day. We are producing 30,476 pounds of milk with 1,327 pounds of fat and 1,017 pounds of protein. Describe your housing and milking facility. We house the cows in a 6-row freestall facility retrotted with DeLaval robots. The barn has cross ventilation for the summer and natural/power ventilation during the winter. Who is part of your farm team, and what are their roles? John Jr. and John L. feed all groups of cattle. Joel and Isaiah manage calves and youngstock. Brian does a lot of the genetics and herd work. Michael is the maintenance manager on the robots, and Jesse assists with health and herd work. What is your herd health program? Ultrasound pregnancy checks are performed every two weeks with Dr. Sletten, and our vaccination protocol is set up with his recommendation. Fresh cows get Inforce at freshening; Pyramid 10 and Endovac Dairy at 20-30 days in milk; Endovac at 150
DIM, a vaccine for leptospirosis at 150 days carried calf; and Endovac Dairy and Vision 8 at dry off. What does your dry cow and transition program consist of? We use a 60-day dry period. Dry cows are housed in an open-sided pack barn. Three weeks before calving, cows are brought back to the main barn into free stalls where they are watched closely for calving and then moved to a calving pen when actively calving. Fresh cows have their udder clipped, are vaccinated and moved to a robot pen where they remain for the entire lactation. What is the composition of your ration, and how has that changed in recent years? Our ration consists of corn silage, haylage, dry hay, cottonseed and a grain/mineral mix. We maximize forage content to the top level cows and work closely with our nutritionist, Dan Schimek, from NutriQuest on our ration formulation. Tell us about the forages you plant and detail your harvest strategies. We plant brown mid-rib corn silage as it’s second to none in digestive ber. A high-stress growing season does have a larger impact on yields, though. We start to
MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR
John Jr. and Brian Waldner stand in their freestall barn Feb. 5 near Hawley, Minnesota. Blumenfeld Holsteins has a herd average of 30,476 pounds of milk with 1,327 pounds of fat and 1,017 pounds of protein. harvest when it hits 30% dry matter, expecting an average across the pile of 32%-35% DM when nished. Alfalfa hay is chopped on rst cutting and baled and wrapped on the subsequent cuttings. John believes
in balage you can put through the hay buster, so it is usually between 25%-30% moisture. What is your average somatic cell count and how does that affect your production? Our average SCC is usually around
+2,755 lbs
180,000, but will increase in the hotter months of the year.
Turn to TOP PERFORMERS | Page 23
2,755 LBS MORE MILK!
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 21
FLEXIBLE FINANCING OR CASH DISCOUNTS ON QUALIFIED 9R SERIES TRACTORS
359,900
2013 John Deere 9560R $ 2699 hrs., #574414
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2021 John Deere 9620RX $ 1289 hrs., #549411
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2018 John Deere 9470R $ 1002 hrs., #572947
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2019 John Deere 9620RX $ 2578 hrs., #570644
2016 John Deere 9420R $ 2235 hrs., #575074
2019 John Deere 9570RT $ 2350 hrs., #572619
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ARTICULATED 4WD TRACTORS
JD 9360R 2013, Power Shift, Duals, 6889 hrs., #567725 ........................$176,800 JD 9420R 2016, Power Shift, Duals, 2235 hrs., #575074 ........................$335,900 JD 9470R 2018, e18, Duals, 1002 hrs., #572947.....................................$359,900 JD 9520R 2021, e18, Duals, 358 hrs., #274698.......................................$515,500 JD 9560R 2013, Power Shift, Duals, 2699 hrs., #574414 ........................$283,500 JD 9570R 2021, e18, Duals, 658 hrs., #274704.......................................$541,900 JD 9620R 2018, e18, Duals, 2500 hrs., #576058.....................................$419,900 JD 9620R 2022, Power Shift, Duals, 1098 hrs., #557073 ........................$509,900 JD 9620R 2021, e18, Duals, 598 hrs., #542210.......................................$556,500 JD 9R 490 2023, e18, Duals, 200 hrs., #540248......................................$535,900 JD 9R 590 2022, Power Shift, Duals, 479 hrs., #574403..........................$548,900 JD 9R 590 2022, e18, Duals, 627 hrs., #570618......................................$548,900 JD 9R 590 2023, Power Shift, Singles, 1006 hrs., #575410 .....................$549,900 JD 9R 590 2023, e18, Singles, 895 hrs., #575412 ...................................$554,900 JD 9R 590 2022, e18, Duals, 323 hrs., #570619......................................$569,900 JD 9R 590 2023, e18, Duals, 300 hrs., #565783......................................$599,900 JD 9R 640 2022, Power Shift, Duals, 449 hrs., #574405..........................$569,900 JD 9R 640 2022, Power Shift, Duals, 894 hrs., #574417..........................$575,900 JD 9R 640 2023, e18, Duals, 800 hrs., #573312......................................$579,900 JD 9R 640 2023, e18, Duals, 777 hrs., #573307......................................$579,900 JD 9R 640 2022, e18, Duals, 510 hrs., #570615......................................$589,900 JD 9R 640 2022, e18, Duals, 374 hrs., #567239......................................$599,900
FIELD CULTIVATORS
Case IH 200 2013, 60 ft., 5-Section Folding, #563382 .............................$49,900 Case IH 255 2022, 60 ft., 5-Section Folding, #575440 ...........................$164,900 JD 980 1998, 44 ft., 5-Section Folding, #561358 ......................................$13,900 JD 980 2000, 38 ft., 3-Section Folding, #576013 ......................................$14,300 JD 980 2002, 41 ft., 3-Section Folding, #559043 ......................................$15,900 JD 2200 2002, 55.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #575710 .................................$19,500 JD 2200 2002, 54 ft., 5-Section Folding, #556959 ....................................$19,500 JD 2210 2005, 27 ft., 3-Section Folding, #576023 ....................................$30,500
JD 2210 2006, 50.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #562336 .................................$32,900 JD 2210 2004, 41 ft., 5-Section Folding, #575153 ....................................$37,500 JD 2210 2012, 45.5 ft., 3-Section Folding, #573269 .................................$42,900 JD 2210 2007, 44 ft., 3-Section Folding, #574413 ....................................$43,000 JD 2210 2012, 54 ft., 5-Section Folding, #561176 ....................................$44,900 JD 2210 2014, 55.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #568427 .................................$54,900 JD 2210 2014, 53 ft., 5-Section Folding, #575187 ....................................$55,100 JD 2210 2015, 58 ft., 5-Section Folding, #570873 ....................................$59,900 JD 2210 2017, 65 ft., 5-Section Folding, #574527 ....................................$84,300 JD 2230 2019, 60.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #555708 ...............................$114,900 JD 2230 2018, 60.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #570874 ...............................$114,900 JD 2230 2021, 56 ft., 5-Section Folding, #574134 ..................................$134,900 JD 2230 2023, 60.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #573361 ...............................$156,900 JD 2230 2023, 60.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #573362 ...............................$156,900 JD 2230FH 2023, 60.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #572282 ..........................$185,900 Wil-Rich QUAD 5 1999, 46 ft., 5-Section Folding, #564834 .....................$13,900 Wil-Rich QUAD X, 40.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #575373 ...........................$16,900 Case IH Tiger Mate 200 2012, 50.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #561242 ......$40,900 DMI Tiger-mate 2 , 50 ft., 5-Section Folding, #563708...........................$15,900 Case IH Tigermate 200 2008, 50.5 ft., 5-Section Folding, #576132 .......$32,900 Case IH TigerMate II 1999, 55 ft., 5-Section Folding, #563481 ..............$17,900
TRACK TRACTORS
JD 9520RT 2020, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 1903 hrs., #572783 ...............$425,900 JD 9520RX 2018, 760mm/30 in., Wide Spacing, 2316 hrs., #575706 .....$436,000 JD 9520RX 2019, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 2478 hrs., #572519 ...................$447,900 JD 9520RX 2019, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 2326 hrs., #575575 ...................$456,500 JD 9520RX 2019, 600mm/24 in., Wide Spacing, 1755 hrs., #566764 .....$469,900 JD 9520RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1693 hrs., #554064 ...................$535,000 JD 9560RT 2013, 36 in., 5031 hrs., #559761 ..........................................$180,000 JD 9570RT 2019, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 2350 hrs., #572619 ...................$394,900 JD 9570RT 2018, 36 in., 2742 hrs., #573772 ..........................................$409,900 JD 9570RT 2020, 760mm/30 in., Narrow Spacing, 867 hrs., #567505....$489,900
JD 9570RT 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 972 hrs., #572962 .....................$529,900 JD 9570RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 842 hrs., #274716 .................$599,900 JD 9570RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 477 hrs., #274715 .................$609,900 JD 9620RX 2019, 760mm/30 in., Narrow Spacing, 2578 hrs., #570644..$489,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 1800 hrs., #572279 ...............$509,900 JD 9620RX 2020, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 2158 hrs., #554426 ...................$509,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 1289 hrs., #549411 ...............$519,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1551 hrs., #554427 ...................$524,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 1159 hrs., #555459 ...............$529,900 JD 9620RX 2020, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1407 hrs., #572949 ...................$539,900 JD 9620RX 2020, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1207 hrs., #573743 ...................$563,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1450 hrs., #573980 ...................$579,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1342 hrs., #576016 ...................$589,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 820 hrs., #568970 .................$596,500 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 644 hrs., #566745 .................$599,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 760mm/30 in., Narrow Spacing, 875 hrs., #554261....$619,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 785 hrs., #274708 .....................$624,900 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 541 hrs., #552760 .....................$632,500 JD 9620RX 2021, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 820 hrs., #567217 .....................$639,900 JD 9620T 2004, 36 in., 5242 hrs., #576067 ............................................$114,900 JD 9RT 570 2022, 36 in., Narrow Spacing, 670 hrs., #575546.................$584,000 JD 9RT 570 2023, 36 in., 515 hrs., #575884 ...........................................$584,900 JD 9RT 570 2023, 36 in., 475 hrs., #573448 ...........................................$599,900 JD 9RX 640 2022, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 1155 hrs., #566048 ..................$674,900 JD 9RX 640 2023, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 840 hrs., #572031 ....................$699,000 JD 9RX 640 2023, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 450 hrs., #569917 ....................$704,900 JD 9RX 640 2022, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 729 hrs., #572028 ....................$725,900 JD 9RX 640 2022, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 675 hrs., #567870 ....................$729,000 JD 9RX 640 2022, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 758 hrs., #557149 ....................$739,900 JD 9RX 640 2023, 36 in., Wide Spacing, 407 hrs., #568963 ....................$754,900 JD 9RX 640 2023, 760mm/30 in., Wide Spacing, 225 hrs., #574506 ......$758,500
Locations throughout minnesota & western wisconsin! CALL TODAY! (320)365-1653 SEE OUR COMPLETE INVENTORY WITH PICTURES AND DESCRIPTIONS AT: www.mmcjd.com
Page 22 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
HVC12 HOOF VET CARE CHUTE
The chute provides comfort for the cow and easy use for the operator during trimming, breeding, palpitation, and other vet work.
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Joe’s Refrigeration Inc. Withee, WI 715-229-2321 Mlsna Dairy Supply Inc. Cashton, WI 608-654-5106 Professional Dairy Services Arlington, WI 608-635-0268 Redeker Dairy Equipment Brandon, WI 920-346-5579 The Scharine Group Inc. Whitewater, WI 800 472-2880 Mt Horeb, WI 800-872-3470
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is a registered trademark of Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance S.A. and “DeLaval” is a registered trade/servicemark of DeLaval Holding AB © 2023 DeLaval Inc. DeLaval, 11100 North Congress Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri 64153-1296. Dairy producer testimonials reflect their real-life experience using DeLaval products. Results in testimonials have not been independently verified and DeLaval does not claim the results are typical. Actual performance and improvement will depend on a number of factors, including prior milking practices, type of cows, farm and herd maintenance practices. Testimonials do not constitute warranties or guaranties of service or performance. www.delaval.com
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 23
ConƟnued from TOP PERFORMERS | Page 20 What change has created the cows. We’ve been happy with biggest improvement in your the performance of the system, herd average? There’s hardly and they’re always making it ever a single change that can more inclusive and upgrading drastically improve a herd, the platform. right? We credit genetics as laying the base foundation and What is your breeding promakeup of the cattle and then gram, and what role does having them in an environment genetics play in your prowhere they can perform to their duction level? We are heavy top genetic potential. That in- into genetics. It has major imcludes calves starting at 1 day pact on the performance of the of age. Feed, of course, has a herd. We routinely ush our major impact in performance top-genetic animals and have as that’s the fuel that drives the an extensive embryo transfer engine. The better your forage program where we use a large quality, the more milk you can portion of the herd as recipisqueeze out of a pound of feed. ents. The rst implant is set up using a double ovsync, and we What technology do you use resync pre herd check and also to monitor your herd? We watch for repeats using the use CowManager tags to moni- CowManager tags. tor the herd for heats and sick
MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR
The cows at Blumenfeld Holsteins are housed in a 6-row freestall facility near Hawley, Minnesota. They use natural/power venƟlaƟon during the winter and cross venƟlaƟon during the summer. List three management strategies that have helped you attain your production and component level. Genetics, environment, feed and ration formulation. Tell us about your farm and your plans for the dairy in the next year. Blumenfeld Holsteins has milked cows
at the current site since 1979. The original herd was 80 cows milked in a tiestall barn. We expanded to 120 cows in 1997 and added a parlor. We built the freestall/parlor to milk 300 cows in 2001. We expanded the barn and added robots in 2017. We always look for ways to economize and bring costs
down without hindering performance. In the year ahead, we hope to capitalize on the more reasonably priced feedstuffs and continue our quest to build a better Holstein cow.
MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR
Cows eat a total mixed raƟon Feb. 5 in the freestall barn at Blumenfeld Holsteins near Hawley, Minnesota. The dairy uses brown mid-rib corn silage in their raƟon.
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Page 24 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
32nd Annual | Carver County
Dairy & Beef E X P O
Schedule of Events Registration - Trade Show beings and open until 3:00 pm BQA TRAINING 9:45 am Beef Quality Assurance Training 10:15 am Early Bird Drawing in Trade Show Arena Beef Quality 9:00 am
“Beef on dairy: Breed selection and management 10:30 am considerations”
COST:
$15/person $5/Student
Over 40 Vendors!
655 SW 7th St. • Norwood Young America, MN
Hosted by University of Minnesota Extension-Carver County and the Carver County Ag Initiatives
All registered participants are eligible for the grand prize. Must be present to win. Multiple prizes for completing and return ing the program evaluation. Must be present to win.
Online information available at https://z.umn.edu/24DairyBeefExpo and Facebook: @CarverScottExtension For Dairy Expo information, please call Carver County Extension (952) 466-5300.
Presented by
UMN Beef Team
Luiz Ferraretto
Keynote Address:
11:30 am
“2024 Dairy Markets and Policy Outlook” Chris Wolf - Cornell University Enjoy Lunch and the Trade Show
12:30 pm
Trade Show and Education for Dairy & Beef Producers. 3:15 p.m. Grand Prize & Evaluation Drawings
“Modulating cow performance and feeding behavior with high-quality corn silage”
Assurance Training
University of Wisconsin
Monday, February 19, 2024 9 AM-3:15 PM • CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
“Interpreting your milk check” Milk procurement and field service manager for Bongards Creamery
Greg Moes of MoDak Dairy, Larry Dreier of Dreier Farms and Ryan Starry of University of Wisconsin Extension
(Includes lunch, refreshments and program notes. Cash or Check only.)
Session C
Tom Beringer
Panel Discussion
(with ID)
Session B
Session A
2:00 pm
Session D
Session E
Session F
“Feeding and managing dairy beef cross cattle from 400 lbs to finish”
“Deeper dive into dairy market programs”
“Modulating cow performance and feeding behavior with high-quality corn silage”
Bill Halfman
Chris Wolf Cornell University
University of Wisconsin
3:15 pm
Door Prize Drawings - Trade Show Arena
Luiz Ferraretto
University of Wisconsin
In case of inclement weather, please call the Farm Information Line for event status: 1-800-232-9077
Visit these Businesses at the show! 1015 Highway 212 West Norwood Young America, MN 55368
952-467-2181 lanoequipofnorwood.com
WWW.BONGARDS.COM
FARMER-OWNED SINCE 1908
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 25
Decorating barns across the country Laufenberg’s quilt business celebrates 10 years By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
WAUNAKEE, Wis. — Emma Laufenberg made her rst barn quilt in 2014 as a Father’s Day gift for her dad. Word got out, and people in the area began asking Laufenberg if she could make one for them as well. Since then, Laufenberg has made more than 700 quilts and turned a hobby into a full-time business. “I never thought this is what it would be 10 years later,” Laufenberg said. “It’s taken a lot of effort and tears. Business owning is not for the faint of heart.” Laufenberg grew up liking music more than art. “I played piano for 12 years and was the kid who always wanted to be on the farm with the animals,” she said. “Then, I happened upon this.” At the urging of her college business professor in 2019, Laufenberg created a limited liability company. She built a website and made business cards, and El Barn Quilts was born. Last year, the 24-year-old sold more than 200 quilts. Laufenberg can have anywhere from ve to 40 projects going on at the same time.
“I like to work on multiple quilts at once; otherwise, I get bored,” she said. Since 2020, a renovated dairy barn near her family’s farm has served as Laufenberg’s workshop. Previously, she ran her business from the farm’s shop and her parents’ garage, eventually leaving her dad with no place to park machinery. The Laufenbergs milk 300 cows with four robotic milking units and farm 750 acres near Waunakee. In 2021, Laufenberg left the farm to create barn quilts full time. “I was making enough money to support myself, and my cousin wanted to come back to the farm, so it was perfect timing,” said Laufenberg, who continues to help on the farm when needed. Laufenberg averages a 12-hour workday, seven days a week. Christmas is her busiest time of year. Last year, Laufenberg made over 40 quilts during a ve-week timeframe, often putting in 20-hour days. Sometimes, when Laufenberg’s dad is done working on the farm for the day, he drops by her shop and offers a helping hand. “My parents helped package quilts before Christmas when I had 18 going out in one day,” she said. Laufenberg tailors her quilts to the farming commu-
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
Emma Laufenberg takes a break Jan. 30 at her parents’ farm where one of her custom barn quilts hangs near Waunakee, Wisconsin. Laufenberg made her rst quilt in 2014 and has since made over 700 quilts.
nity, featuring International Harvester and John Deere logos, for example. Patriotic pieces are especially popular. “Anything you can put red, white and blue on will sell,” Laufenberg said. In 2021, Laufenberg ventured from the traditional barn quilt and began creating custom designs. Her quilt featuring the American ag with an eagle is her most popular design. One such eye-catching quilt hangs on her parents’ barn with the addition
of the John Deere logo. It was the 600th quilt made by the young artist. Laufenberg said her favorite part of the job is the creativity it allows her. “When I get to come up with a new, one-of-a-kind design and play around with different designs to create something only one person is ever going to have, that’s my absolute favorite,” she said. Laufenberg’s portfolio contains 49 one-of-a-kind designs. One of her most chal-
lenging quilts to date was an 8- by 8-foot design upon which Laufenberg painted four breeds of cows. The masterpiece took 37 hours to complete. Laufenberg’s barn quilt paintings come in 11 sizes ranging from 2 feet by 2 feet to 8 feet by 12 feet. Her works of art are shipped all over the country. Turn to LAUFENBERG | Page 26
Visit these Businesses at the Carver County Dairy & Beef Expo!
UFC
507-228-8270
www.ufcmn.com
www.isaacsonsales.com
United Farmers Cooperative
71 9TH ST. LAFAYETTE, MN
Page 26 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
ConƟnued from LAUFBERG | Page 25 “I only have seven states left that I have not shipped to yet,” she said. Laufenberg makes her quilts out of medium-density overlay plywood. The layered epoxy board prevents rotting or warping and is primed with an exterior primer. She cuts the wood down to size using a table saw or a track saw. Laufenberg said almost all designs are based on a grid. “I like the math aspect of making barn quilts more than the art aspect,” Laufenberg said. “I really enjoy the graphing, layout and design. I have gotten more into the art in the last few years with custom designs, and my art skills have advanced.” After drawing angles or doing free-hand sketches to complete the design, Laufenberg paints the quilt. The more colors a quilt has, the longer the process takes. LinSTACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR ing one wall of Laufenberg’s workshop are 370 cans of Barn quilts made by Emma Laufenberg are displayed on corn cribs Jan. 30 outside of her workshop near Waunakee, Wisconsin. Laufenberg enjoys creaƟng custom designs. paint. “The paint I use doesn’t that kind of business. My her craft with the world and wear out — it lasts,” Laufen- plete one quilt varies on size, her workspace is used. “I’ll take 100 pieces with best customer has bought six appreciates the exposure a berg said. “It’s guaranteed for design and the number of colors used and can take any- me to those shows to sell at quilts.” barn quilt provides. 30 years without fade.” Laufenberg is also de“Wherever you drive Red is her most popular where from six hours to up- my booth,” Laufenberg said. ward of 30. In addition to barns, the veloping relationships with across the country, you might color. “A lot of time goes into quilts can also atter houses builders and other businesses. see my art,” Laufenberg “It’s bright red like a stop sign and takes eight coats to each quilt,” Laufenberg said. and garages or be hung as art- Furthermore, Laufenberg’s said. “Most artists are stuck When Laufenberg is pre- work inside homes. work is displayed in an art in a gallery; whereas my art complete,” Laufenberg said. “I have a lot of return- gallery in Door County. She can be seen by thousands of “It takes a full day for a color paring to attend a show, such to dry before you can repeat as Wisconsin Farm Technolo- ing customers, which sur- also teaches classes on how people each day. That’s really gy Days or the Badger Steam prised me,” Laufenberg said. to make barn quilts. cool.” it.” Laufenberg loves sharing The time it takes to com- and Gas Show, every inch of “I didn’t think this would be
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Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 27
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On the road with Alice
A look back on how we became America’s Dairyland
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By Ashley Hagenow 76th Alice in Dairyland
Around the time Wisconsin became a state in 1848, it was known as America’s Breadbasket, with one-sixth of the nation’s wheat being harvested here. According to the Wisconsin Historical Society, settlers in Wisconsin chose wheat because it did not require much money, was fairly easy to grow, and it could be harvested twice a year. So, what caused our change from America’s Breadbasket to America’s Dairyland? Wheat became a rather risky crop in Wisconsin. It had a varied yield, and the 1860s brought about an insect called chinch bugs, which further decimated crops. Needing to change course, Wisconsin’s farmers found that dairying was a viable replacement for the earlier wheat boom. Our climate was ideal for dairy cattle, and the soil was better suited for feed crops. Prior to Wisconsin’s dairy boom, New York was the leading dairy state. Many New Yorkers moved to Wisconsin and brought with them their knowledge and skills for dairying on a commercial scale. WHS states that even before the dairy boom happened here, Charles Rockwell was one of the earliest cheesemakers in Wisconsin. He began production at Koshkonong, near Fort Atkinson in Jefferson County, in 1837. Taking the lead from Rockwell and other budding cheesemakers in the state, many dairies primarily produced cheese because it kept longer than the butter that was being made in other dairy-producing states. Seeing a fast-growing opportunity for farmers, the University of Wisconsin soon began researching ways to support the dairy industry. William A. Henry, the UW’s rst professor of agriculture, used the school’s farm to experiment with various methods, and professor Stephen Babcock developed the rst test for butterfat content in milk. Babcock’s test enabled high-quality butter and cheese to be manufactured consistently. The university also started a short course to educate farmers about the dairy industry. William Dempster Hoard, the 16th governor of Wisconsin, should also be recognized for the success of Wisconsin dairy farming. WHS shares that he started the Wisconsin Dairyman’s Association in
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Alice in Dairyland has a long history of promoƟng Wisconsin dairy, daƟng back to the rst Alice, Margaret McGuire BloƩ. BloƩ was crowned the rst Alice in 1948. Watertown in 1872. With an original focus on marketing, the Wisconsin Dairyman’s Association also provided education on dairying methods through its publications and meetings. Hoard’s Dairyman was established in 1885 and quickly became the nation’s leading dairy magazine. Dairy cow numbers grew quickly, and by 1899, more than 90% of Wisconsin’s farmers raised dairy cows. By 1915, Wisconsin had become the leading dairy state in the nation, producing more butter and cheese than any other state. Fast forward more than 100 years and Wisconsin maintains the title of America’s Dairyland. Today, our state is home to nearly a quarter of the nation’s dairy farms, 95% of which are family owned. Our farm families understand the importance of keeping cows healthy and comfortable as well as managing land and water resources. Our nearly 6,000 farms house more than 1.2 million cows, which are milked and cared for using the latest technology to ensure cow comfort and product safety. The history of Wisconsin dairy isn’t just on a statewide level. While visiting farms throughout my life, and especially during my time as Alice in Dairyland, I have been honored to hear the histories of those family farms. The next time you’re able to visit with a farmer, ask them their farm’s history. You won’t be disappointed. You can also nd inspiring stories from our dairy farmers at wisconsindairy. org/our-farms.
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Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 29
women
IN DAIRY
Tell us about your farm and family. I farm with my husband, Joe. We have three kids, Gabe, Gibson and Ellison. Our cows are housed in sand-bedded free stalls and milked in a stanchion barn with 13 units. Joe and I have been running the dairy since 2014. What is a typical day like for you on the dairy? We milk at 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. I start chores in the morning and then get the kids to school by 8 a.m. Joe keeps chores going while I get the kids off to school. Then the calves get fed, cows get fed and manure gets scraped. I pick the kids up at 3 p.m. from school. We work on homework and dinner and then do chores again. What decision have you made in the last year that has beneted your farm? Within the last couple years, we made the decision to install a peroxide injector into the water supply. We discovered that we had high iron levels in the water; it was four times higher than it was supposed to be. We were experiencing low production issues, and once we xed the water supply, the production came back up. We can tell if we run out of peroxide because production will drop by 1,000 pounds. Tell us about your most memorable experience working on the farm. Someone was on the run from the cops and stole our farm truck out of our driveway in the middle of the day. We are not far from town, so the person was on foot. The truck’s brakes did not work, and the person had to abandon it after driving at high speeds through town and narrowly missing houses. When the cops found him, he was in his underwear, and his clothes were near where the truck was abandoned and soaked in manure. We discovered that right before he stole the truck, he had run right through our manure pit. The top crust on the pit was broken up, and there were footprints on the ramp coming out of the pit. We got our truck back and still laugh about the justice he served himself by taking a swim in the pit and then stealing a truck that had faulty brakes.
Jennifer Jandt
West Salem, Wisconsin La Crosse County 160 cows
What have you enjoyed most about dairy farming or your tie to the dairy industry? Raising cows that we bred, seeing the genetics that we created grow up and realizing what we’ve accomplished. What is your biggest accomplishment in your dairy career? We got the rst awards for somatic cell count on this farm. We got it twice. We were just diligent with the milking procedure and stayed consistent. It was rewarding to be the rst ones on the farm to achieve it. What are things you do to promote your farm or the dairy industry? I give all the kids’ teachers cheese baskets for Christmas. We eat a lot of cheese and drink a lot of chocolate milk. We wear our promo T-shirts from Associated Milk Producers Inc., and I always educate when the opportunity arises. What advice would you give another woman in the dairy industry? You are worthy and enough just as you are with everything that you are doing. It can be hard to feel like we do enough sometimes, and we have to remember that we are worthy. I also feel that farm kids are not there to be your free help. If we choose to farm, we should do the work. The kids are not expected to do the parents’ work in any other job, and it should be no different on a farm. What is a challenge in the dairy industry you have faced and how did you overcome it? Transitioning. There are people in the younger generation who want to work, but the older generation needs to allow it. The older generation needs to ask themselves what they want out of their farm. Do they want the younger generation to get in, or do they just want to be wealthy? It is something we are still working on. When you get a spare moment, what do you do? Spend time with our friends and our kids.
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Jennifer Jandt farms with her husband, Joe, and three kids, Gabe, Gibson and Ellison, near West Salem, Wisconsin. They milk 160 cows in a stanchion barn with 13 units. The herd is hosued in a sand-bedded freestall barn.
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Page 30 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
www.extension.umn.edu/dairy
A difference in personalities
What if I told you I could provide traits, communication styles and core you with a tool that may resolve poten- values. All of these pieces work togethtial conicts on your farm or in your er in the puzzle of understanding who family? I am sure intrigued you are and how to work best would likely be the answer. with other personality and All it takes is just ve minutes communication styles. of your time to gure out if Why would it be imporyou have a lion, otter, golden tant to know and understand retriever or beaver personality. the personalities of colleagues, Figuring out which personemployees, family members ality animal you most align or friends? Everyone operates with can help pave the way to differently; it is what makes smooth conversations and po- By Brenda Miller each of us unique. If we know tentially alleviate conict. what type of personality we University of We recently held two Minnesota are and those around us, then Planning Your Dairy Farm Fuwe can have conversations ture sessions in central Minnethat are more effective and sota where we talked about personality have more streamlined teamwork.
The GEA DairyRobot R9500
There are four personality styles: lion, otter, golden retriever and beaver. To determine a personality style, there is a short quiz with 10 questions. For each question, you have to rank four words/phrases from the one that is most like you down to the least. Plus, you have to be quick about it. There cannot be overthinking as there is no wrong answer. Once you have the questions answered, you tally up the points from the vertical columns. The column with the highest total is your personality animal. However, it may happen that you have two or even three animals that are close, or even tied in points, and that is OK. You just have a well-rounded personality. The lion is the leader type. They are good at making decisions and like challenges and tasks, but can sometimes come off as bossy or argumenta-
tive. Otters are people persons. They are social, positive and have lots of friends but can be chatty and have a hard time keeping on task or nishing jobs. Golden retrievers are very loyal, caring and good at making friends but can be indecisive and have trouble holding others accountable. The beaver is the workhorse. They are organized, have high standards and take their time to do the job right, but may not like sudden changes and have high expectations of themselves and others. Check out the chart for additional traits. Feel free to take this personality quiz. Print a copy at: z.umn. edu/5MinPersonality. Take the time to learn and understand about how other personalities operate. It can make for more effective and often more efcient communication.
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“Centre Dairy was very easy to work with, we had the robots installed about five months ago, and after a slight learning curve, the cows have adapted well and efficiency and production are up. We are finding it takes less labor and time for each milking.” - Marc Claseman
Automatic milking with less complexity The milking robot’s strong performance is achieved in combination with streamlined maintenance, and the ability for 24/7 operation with minimum use of consumables and energy. With the DairyRobot R9500, up to four boxes can be connected to one supply unit. This way they share one vacuum pump, compressor, milk and calf milk line, and tank connection – which means less equipment and reduced system complexity.
Dana Adams, adam1744@umn.edu 320-204-2968
Brad Heins hein0106@umn.edu 320-589-1711
Isaac Salfer ijsalfer@umn.edu 320-296-1357
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Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 31
Continuing the good ght Von Ruden re-elected as Wisconsin Farmers Union president By Abby Wiedmeyer abby.w@dairystar.com
WESTBY, Wis. — Darin Von Ruden is continuing his work as president of the Wisconsin Farmers Union while he and his son continue to live out the transition plan of the family’s dairy farm near Westby. While the organization continues to address concerns about the upcoming farm bill, it is also focusing on concentrations in agriculture and fair trade as well as growing memberships. All the work is done with family farming in mind. “I just believe in the true value of family farming,” Von Ruden said. “Whether it’s dairy farming, crop farming or whatever, it ts our values.” The biggest project for the organization right now is the purchase of its new ofce building in Chippewa Falls. The site will serve as the organization’s new headquarters. The 45,000-square-foot building will serve a much wider purpose as well. The rst oor will feature restaurants that promote farm-to-table dining and areas for vendors. The second oor will be the ofce space and a large gathering area for educational purposes and meetings. This will also be available to the community since Chippewa Falls does not currently have any space available with a capacity of more than 100 people. The third oor will consist of apartments and a bed and breakfast. Von Ruden said the building is a way to diversify the organization’s business model and keep a steady income stream. “I put a commitment on being a farmer, but now my son owns the farm,” Von Ruden said. “So hopefully with a good business model here, we can build this to be a prot center for this organization, too, one that the next generation of Farmers Union members can have something to be proud of.” Membership of the organization grew last year and now numbers
about 2,000 family memberships. Von Ruden said the boost came in part because partnerships were formed that focus on local food programs and also work to help minorities and disadvantaged individuals. As president, Von Ruden is concerned about the continued concentration trends that are resulting in the declining number of dairy farms. With 2024 being an election year, the Wisconsin Farmers Union is working to improve the dairy program. Von Ruden would like to see a farm bill passed so that people in the dairy industry know what they are dealing with. “Looking at the 2024 farm bill is certainly front and center for us,” Von Ruden said. “We’re seeing some renewed enthusiasm. We’ve got another nine months to work on it, so can we get a growth management plan into it too?” He also said the organization does not favor the make allowance processes that are being considered in the Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing process. While he understands that processors’ costs are going up, so are the farmers’. Historically, Von Ruden said whenever the processors have seen a make share increase, the farmers continue to receive a smaller share of the consumer’s dollar. The organization is also lobbying for a competition title in the farm bill that leads to more than six or seven companies buying meat and ensuring there are at least 30 processors for dairy. Von Ruden said he believes it is important to work in partnership with other organizations to get legislation passed. Wisconsin Farmers Union has a history of collaboration with the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and currently works with Marbleseed and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. “I like to build bridges,” Von Ruden said. “Let’s work together on those issues we have in common, get those accomplished and then move on.” At the end of the day, the challenges and concerns hit home for Von Ruden, as he remains on his family
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PHOTO SUBMITTED
Darin Von Ruden was re-elected as Wisconsin Farmers Union president in 2023. Von Ruden resides on his family’s dairy farm near Westby, Wisconsin.
farm supporting his son and hopes his parents’ legacy will continue. “We’re working on those farm issues that are going to be hopefully
improving the economic viability of rural communities and farms,” Von Ruden said. “That’s why I’m still here; because I love it.”
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Page 32 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
DAIRY PROFILE Mack Drees of Peshtigo, Wisconsin | Marinette County | 250 cows
How did you get into farming? I was raised being around the farm. I never felt pressured to be a part of the farm, and it was something I was able to choose to be a part of. I have always enjoyed working with the cows. I watched both my grandpa and my dad, who are great cowmen. I became intrigued by genetics at a young age, looking at bull books, and I found something that interested me. What are the most signicant ways your farm has changed since you started farming? The implementation of technology, particularly the robots, is one of the biggest things along with the activity and rumination monitors. I love our sort gates. They route our cows out of the robot if there is a cow we need to work with, without disturbing the pen. Keeping the peace in the free stalls is important to us, and that was something that appealed to us about installing robots. Another big thing is how much my dad, my brother and I all care about doing things right. We are at a good size for us to manage, and we have one full-time employee, Kyle. We are all involved in the day-to-day management. My dad is one of the best cow people I know, and I am learning those skills from him. Thanks to all the data, we
can use that information as we are walking the pens. Technology is never going to stop, and there is enough data now behind all of the technology that it is successful. What was a challenge you faced in your dairy farming career and how did you overcome it? The greatest challenge was going from a 69-stall tiestall barn into a new barn, milking 250 cows with four robots. Our farm started in 1977 with a 23-stall barn, growing to a 46-stall barn in the mid1980s. That was the last expansion before the move to robots in 2015. We lost some acreage, so getting back to a better balance and doing a better job with our cropland was the next biggest challenge. We use more conservation practices to better care for our land, doing things like reducing tillage as much as possible, avoiding compaction, and being more intentional about our rotations and our manure application. We started using more cover crops because they could provide us with six to eight months’ worth of heifer feed. We began working with an agronomist, which helped us work through those challenges. My brother is as passionate about the elds and crops as I am about the cows, and that helps provide balance in our farm.
DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR
Bill (leŌ) and Mack Drees stand in their roboƟc freestall barn Feb. 1 near PeshƟgo, Wisconsin. Drees Dairy Farm LLC is home to 250 cows that are milked with four roboƟc milking units. What is the best decision you have made on your farm? The robots were a great decision for us. It took a bit of time to learn how to maintain and repair the robots, and the costs associated with that were higher than what we had expected. Moving into the robots was a stressful time. We were having to learn the system as much as the cows were having to learn the
system, and now we are more proactive in terms of maintenance, which decreases those costs. Aside from that, we have done a great job learning how to not only manage the robots but manage the cows on the robots. Our cows are healthier than they were before, and we are averaging about a 78,000 somatic cell count.
What are three things on the farm that you cannot live without? My family is super important. That is the luxury in agriculture. Your family means so much more to you, and you learn what is important. You are all on the same team, working together, striving for the same goal. Second would be technology, because it makes your life so much easier. It allows me to develop a plan when I come in the morning, and it gives my day direction. I know what needs to be done, and I can start checking things off the list. Robots also make us more exible because they free up such a substantial amount of time that milking would take. Third would be the people around us: our landlords, our employee and the farmers around us that we work with. We couldn’t farm without any of them. They want us to succeed, and we want them all to succeed. What are your thoughts and concerns about the dairy industry for the next year? Interest rates are a big deal, but we aren’t looking to expand. The cow and heifer numbers are concerning. Cow numbers are lower than they think they are. We raise more heifers than we need, and we sell a lot of Turn to DAIRY PROFILE | Page 33
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Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 33
ConƟnued from DAIRY PROFILE | Page 32
cows. We are making it work for us. Those extra heifers are not a liability for us. They are an asset and provide an income stream. We are fairly selfsufcient. We have the heifers we need, we grow out and sell feeders, and we combine our own corn. I am not scared of what this next year is going to bring in terms of markets. I would like to see exports grow and the local economy staying healthy to keep moving product. I am more concerned about the global pressures and the idea of the country shutting down again in addition to limiting what people can and cannot do. They have done that once. Our economy cannot do it again. What we experienced through that was literally the most unique situation — signs in the grocery store limiting consumers to 2 gallons of milk at a time while farmers were dumping milk. What strategies do you use to withstand the volatile milk prices? We use Dairy Margin Coverage program because it is fairly inexpensive and paid well last year. We are not using Dairy Revenue Protection, but we did use it right before the pandemic. It can be a great tool, but I am not sure it always makes sense for us. The real problem is why should we have to insure our income? What other occupation has to do that? We don’t live in a communist country, but we work in a dictatorship where we have no say in our
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income. When you have a job interview, before you accept a job, you discuss your wage and salary requirements. Why are we told, with no input, what the value of the product we produce is? How do you retain a good working relationship with your employees? It all comes down to respect and placing value on people. Working together and keeping your cool, regardless of the situation, and always remembering the people are more important than whatever the problem might be. It is extremely important to give back to your community by being involved and giving of your time, not only to grow and improve your reputation and the farm’s reputation within the community but to build relationships within the community. What people care about is seeing you give of your time, making that personal connection. I coach wrestling and am able to give my time to kids. The relationships that I have been able to build through that impact our farm, when it comes to hiring employees. Our employee was one of my wrestlers, and I have high school kids asking me about jobs frequently. By giving them my time, they develop a respect not only for me but for my work at the farm as well. It is important for us as dairy farmers to get out of our circle and involve ourselves in things outside of agriculture and the dairy industry.
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DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR
Cows eat a total mixed raƟon aŌer visiƟng the robot Feb. 1 at Drees Dairy Farm LLC near PeshƟgo, Wisconsin. The Drees family uƟlizes roboƟc milking as well as acƟvity and ruminaƟon monitors. What do you nd most rewarding about dairy farming? What you put into it, you get back. If you are working hard, educating yourself to the highest level and putting a lot into it, you will get rewarded. Dairy farming maybe isn’t for everybody, but it is for every person who wants to reap the benets of their own hard work. In college, I worked at a cast iron factory and hated it. At the farm, I am the driver. I can take it anywhere I want, making it blossom, or I could run it into the ground in two months. But, I am the one making those decisions, putting that effort in. Working as a team with my family is so important. This is what we have chosen for our careers.
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Tell us something special about your farm. We are just a family business with my dad, my brother and I all working together. The robots aren’t as unique as they were 10 years ago. Our focus on genetics is important to us. The quality of our milk is important to us. We average a 4.5% fat test and 78,000 SCC. We are doing things correct. We have a low cull rate. We have healthy animals, and we don’t need to cull heavily. It is hard to be faced with the prospect of having to cull a cow only because she is getting older and isn’t milking at her peak. We are actually looking at building a retirement pasture and pen to keep those old girls around who have done their jobs well and done everything we have asked of them. It has become impor-
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What are your plans for your dairy in the next year and ve years? For the next year, we are planning to pay down any debt we have. We aren’t planning on buying anything new right now due to interest rates. We plan to keep working toward our sustainable goals and will be using variable rate fertilizer spreading. We would like to put in a new feed pad this year. We would like to be able to have the option to buy feedstuffs in bulk. For the next ve years, the question is to expand or not to expand. I am young enough to expand, we have a good number of heifers, and we have a good carryover of crops. We could probably milk more cows, but we need to decide if we want to or if we need to. We know it would make us more efcient, but we don’t want to lose quality for gaining efciency. Quality and doing things the right way is important to us. We were raised to take care of what we have and do the best we can with that. How do you or your family like to spend time when you are not doing chores? We enjoy spending time with family and friends, kicking back and relaxing a little, and we love watching Packer games. I enjoy wrestling and coaching and building that circle of friends and community involvement.
Page 34 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
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Whirlwinds of farming
I’ve always enjoyed talking to farmers and sharing their stories. Seeing the passion they hold for what they do daily always keeps me smiling. Coming from a farm myself, I know the work it takes to keep it running, especially when something goes wrong. One of the hardest and most eye-opening parts of writing for Dairy Star is getting to talk to farmers about their worst day and how they pushed through it. My family and I have been fairly lucky, normally having smaller problems or the common problem of a stubborn cow that takes the fence down. The worst day I remember is Aug. 28, 2021, when an unpredicted storm hit. At the time, I was working for Freeport State Bank. My coworker and I just locked up and were By Emily Breth getting ready to leave when it Staff Writer hit. Sitting in the cafe next door to wait it out, I got a call from my mom. She told me to not even get into my car. As I sat in the cafe watching all the vehicles shake, all that was on my racing mind was the farm. After almost an hour, my mom called asking if it had calmed down in town and told me I could head home. She also warned me to watch for power lines. During the drive home, I didn’t see much damage besides crops lying down. That was until I hit the small town of St. Anthony where the power lines were down. After another four painful minutes of driving, scared of what damage would be on the farm, I got home. Parking behind the house, due to a fallen tree, I ran to the house attempting to calm my fears. When I got into the house, I couldn’t nd anyone. I called all of my family members’ phones with no answer. That’s when my heart began to race and the tears came with the added fear for my family. I watched out the window, looking at the damage I could see from there, which wasn’t much compared to the actual damage. After about ve minutes, I heard them walk through the door, and I jumped up to hug my mom. They had gone to the neighbors to get a bigger skid loader. Relieved by this, my heart lightened a bit knowing they were safe. In total, we had two trees laying on a shop, another tree on a detached garage, one almost on the house and a window shattered in the milkhouse. A spare calf hut was destroyed, and our camper rolled 360 degrees into a tree. The roof and side of the pole barn were wrecked, and over 50 trees were down on the farm. After going around and taking pictures of everything, we got to work right away, in the sunshine, to clean the farm with help of neighbors and friends. If I learned anything from this experience, it’s that there are people who are willing to lend a helping hand, and a situation is only as bad as you let it be. That day, we got the trees off the buildings along with the ones that would eventually fall on buildings, patched the shop and cleaned up most of the debris. The following day, we learned there was an F4 funnel cloud that passed over the farm. The days we spent cleaning up reminded me of the reason we fought for the farm. Farming isn’t a job; it’s a lifestyle to raise a family on. I am grateful my parents kept the farm going, giving me the opportunity to learn the true meaning of hard work and how to treat others. I wouldn’t be the person I am if it wasn’t for my parents’ farm.
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A little gruff
The break in the cold weather is wonderful for us, but it creates extra work. We have calf pens to pitch out. The bedding pack needs to be loaded into the spreader and hauled to the elds, and we need to clean the chicken coop. All of these are chores make our day a bit longer, yet make us feel good when nished. I love to see the calves jumping and rolling in the new straw, calling out their moos. The close to freshening cows rush into the clean bedding pack and start kicking around and shufing the straw to make a nice nest to have a calf. The chickens start to chatter and cluck with excitement, scratching for any wheat seeds that might be in the straw. All the hens are so happy to see fresh straw in their nesting boxes. The snow piles are starting to melt, and since the ground isn’t frozen, it is soaking into the soil. By Tina Hinchley Farmer & Columnist This might affect the drought areas throughout the state, putting extra moisture into the elds for this year’s crops. The puddles and muddy areas are throughout the driveway, and I am cautious to not drive through them because they just get bigger and bigger. Duane has pushed around the snow piles to encourage the melting snow to stay out of the buildings and melt in areas that we are not driving in. I am certain we will be having more snow yet this winter, so the piles may be there when the next storm warning hits our area. The warmer weather brings thoughts of spring tours for many of the teachers throughout the Madison, Milwaukee and Janesville areas. They have been reaching out to make a reservation for their classes. It is nice hearing that this eld trip is their favorite, so they want to make sure they not only get their date on the calendar, but also secure busing. There simply are not enough bus drivers. We are working through all the loops to make sure that it will be another favorite school trip. Reservations for senior group tours have been coming in since the fall. Community groups, church groups and traveling seniors have been making plans to stop at our farm to see the cows and robots. Many of these seniors are retired dairy farmers, and they get a kick out of watching the robots milk the cows and the robots that push the manure and the feed. We have a couple of groups that will be having box lunches delivered, but most are heading off to visit other attractions that Wisconsin has to offer. I love to see seniors who are not letting their age hold them back. We often have visitors in their 90s getting on the wagon and walking through the barns. I enjoy hosting tours of our farm. It makes me feel like I am connecting with the students, families, seniors and international visitors. I am condent and feel I have information that our visitors would like to hear. I share facts, but also stories, and I listen to them share about where they are from, if they are farming or if they have farmed. After two hours, we have become friends, and the children from families are all warmed up, talking and laughing. It is an educational tour, but there is also an emotional connection. Hosting tours for over 25 years has been such a wonderful thing for me emotionally. I’ve interacted with children who want to be a farmer, parents who realize that whole milk is not all cream, and seniors who wish they had robots, because they would still be farming. Every tour has a moment that is special. I have learned that I have given a lot of time to visitors. As I get older and have watched my kids grow up, I wish I had spent more time with my family. I am now only hosting tours for families on weekends and Wednesdays starting in the spring through the fall. School and groups are weekdays, usually May and October, and summer school programs are just a few too. Interested farmers who might be considering doing tours have asked me if I ever turn people away. It depends on who it is. If it is someone we know or an international visitor, I might have time. For people who don’t plan ahead or simply show up thinking our farm is an open business to walk around, the answer is always, “No, I am sorry. Our insurance doesn’t allow
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 35
for visitors without a guide.” This past week, I woke up to a phone message, text message and also an email from two gals coming into Chicago from New York. They wanted to come to the farm that day. I tried to explain that with the warm weather, my day was booked full with extra chores and I would not be able to squeeze a tour in. The reality is that often a tour can be much longer than two hours when people ask a lot of questions or simply want to hang around. My day was planned to make sure the animals would have fresh bedding. I did not want to do the tour. I was bottle feeding calves with Anna when the phone call came again. I was holding bottles, with the phone up to my ear with my shoulder. I didn’t recognize the number. They were insistent that this would be the highlight of their visit to the Midwest. I repeated that we were going to be working together to get all of the pens cleaned, and I couldn’t do it. The gal
replied, “We can help.” Now, realize I made it clear that I would not be able to squeeze a tour in. It isn’t often that I get irritated. But I said, “I really don’t have time to show you how to use a pitchfork.” When that rolled off of my tongue, Anna’s eyes widened, wondering what the phone call was about. Anna said, “That was a little gruff. You should have said that would be a liability.” My response didn’t matter to the gal from New York. She replied, “We are fast learners.” In the end, I encouraged them to check other farms in the area. I did not give them a tour and thoroughly enjoyed cleaning pens. Tina Hinchley, her husband Duane and daughter Anna milk 240 registered Holsteins with robots. They also farm 2,300 acres near Cambridge, Wisconsin. The Hinchleys have been hosting farm tours for over 25 years.
Questions
Page 36 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
Questions. Questions. Every day. Some come at me from every which way They make my head spin and spin Which answer to give to win? Life is full of them, at all ages Out of many mouths, at many stages “Mom? Do you hear me?” “Mommm!? Oh, can we?” My children pepper me with asks After giving them a list of tasks
“Why do I have to? Why doesn’t he?” Uffda, how challenging motherhood can be “Can I go here? Can I do that?” “Only after Pa and I have a chat” A big sigh out and a deep breath in I turn around and sneak a grin I ask myself plenty as well “I have some ideas; who can I tell?” “What would Mom say to this new thing?” “What greatness could this bring?”
Editorial disclaimer: The views expressed by our columnists are the opinions and thoughts of the author and do not reect the opinions and views of Dairy Star staff and ownership.
They often spiral out of control Like running along the edge of a bowl “Am I doing this mom job right?” “Why do parents and children ght?” “Am I doing enough for those in my life?” “Am I a good sister, friend, daughter, wife?” “Should I use my energy on this or on that?” “Do I make time for an impromptu chat?” On certain questions I denitely dwell Such as: “Am I feeding them well?” “Do I work kids too hard or let them off Ramblings from the Ridge easy?” “Am I too blunt? Are my poems too cheesy?” Every day is lled with questions Say them out loud and get many suggestions I let them ll my head until they shout I guess perhaps they needed let out
By Jacqui Davison Columnist
“Will this be worth it at the end of the day?” Sometimes trying is the only way “Quality or quantity?” This one applies a lot “Are you thankful for what you’ve got?”
I hope your questions are not making you dizzy Take a deep breath, don’t be in a tizzy We all have deep, heavy thoughts inside Hold on tight, enjoy life’s ride Jacqui Davison and her family milk 800 cows and farm 1,200 acres in northeastern Vernon County, Wisconsin. Her children, Ira, Dane, Henry and Cora, help on the farm while her husband, Keith, works on a grain farm. If she’s not in the barn, she’s probably in the kitchen, trailing after little ones or sharing her passion of reading with someone. Her life is best described as organized chaos, and if it wasn’t, she’d be bored.
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Assessing a herd for hyperkeratosis
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 37
Recently, a farmer called me because a consultant had recommended changing pulsation settings in her parlor. This consultant thought that fewer of their cows might suffer from teat-end hyperkeratosis if the settings were changed. When I asked the farmer if her herd had a high Veterinary Wisdom incidence of hyperkeratosis, she said, “I don’t know.” “Well, if that is the case, it seems the rst thing we should do to answer the question is score teats on at least 80 cows on your dairy,” I said. She agreed, and I scored 320 teats on 80 high-producing cows the next day. 16% of cows By Jim Bennett had at least one teat that Columnist scored rough or very rough, with 10% of the 320 teats scoring rough or very rough. National Mastitis Council standards say that when either 20% of cows or 20% of teats score rough or very rough, there is likely to be a problem. However, I seldom nd more than 5% of teats and 8% of cows with rough or very rough teat ends on high-producing farms, so I felt that hyperkeratosis was somewhat of a problem on this dairy. My client’s farm is an elite dairy: extremely high production, beautiful cows, great animal health, etc., so the prevalence of rough teat ends stuck out as too high for this farm, and the farmer agreed. Plus, there were more teats that scored very rough, and more of those cows had long, pointy teats than I expected. Hyperkeratosis can be problematic because rough teat ends are more likely to lead to mastitis, and rough teat ends may increase milking time. Long, pointy teats may be genetic, but they also
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may develop from milking with improper design or operation of milking systems. Hyperkeratosis is usually caused by excessive time in low milk ow. Teat-end vacuum level is inversely related to milk ow, so low ows result in higher teat-end vacuum, and higher teat-end vacuum results in hyperkeratosis. In a perfect milking system, line vacuum and teat-end vacuum would be the same throughout the entire milking period. While this is theoretically possible in a low line system, it does not happen in high-producing cows at peak milk ow, because high milk ows reduce vacuum. Thus, line vacuum needs to be adjusted higher to achieve adequate peak ow vacuum. Any restriction between the teat end and the line means that line vacuum will need to be raised more to achieve adequate claw vacuum, which means more potential for teat exposure to high vacuum levels. There are two periods during milking where low ow, and thus high teat end vacuum, may be present: at the beginning and at the end. High vacuum may occur at the beginning of milking if udder stimulation or prep-lag time to attachment are not correct. High vacuum happens at the end of milking when milk ow declines and units are not promptly removed. Neither of these appeared to be a problem on this farm. However, line vacuum measured surprisingly high, even though the farm did have milk meters. The farm had a type of vacuum shut-off valves that, according to noted milking equipment expert Dr. David Reid, can cause signicant restriction to milk ow. Indeed, I was able to measure up to nearly 1 inch of vacuum difference between the inlet and the outlet of the shutoff valve. This means that the teat end vacuum is nearly 1 inch higher at the beginning and end of milking than it would need to be if not for the design of this valve. Besides causing hyperkeratosis, signicant differences between line vacuum and claw vacuum usually result in
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lower peak ow claw vacuum on the highest-producing cows. This results in longer milking unit on time, which can also cause more hyperkeratosis and potentially the harvest of less milk at every milking on the farm’s very best cows. So, anything that causes a restriction, such as this shut-off valve, for example, could result in more mastitis, longer milking times and less milk harvested. All of a sudden, those valves look very expensive. Milking systems should be designed and maintained to eliminate unnecessary restrictions to air and milk ow. High line systems need to have higher line vacuum to move milk, but if udder stimulation is good, prep-lag times are correct and units are taken off promptly when milk ow declines, adequate claw vacuum and rapid milk out can be achieved without causing signicant hyperkeratosis, even in high line systems. Milking cows correctly, safely and rapidly are keys to harvesting more milk and maintaining great udder health. Jim Bennett is one of four dairy veterinarians at Northern Valley Dairy Production Medicine Center in Plainview, Minnesota. He consults on dairy farms in other states. He and his wife, Pam, have four children. Jim can be reached at bennettnvac@gmail.com.
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The beauty of redundancy Page 38 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
The beauty of redundancy lies well in line with how I prefer to labor. Given the choice, that means I labor as little and as leisurely as possible to achieve my goal. To be able to carry on and say, “I’ll take care of that tomorrow,” when something goes bad with an essential piece of equipment after all the part stores are closed for the day is golden. While it’s hard to justify having two of everything, it sure pays to have doubles of things that can’t break down without bringing the dairy to a halt. For us, one of those pieces of equipment that has to be functional is the skid loader. We have come to rely on skid loaders so much at our farm for manure handling, feeding cows and snow removal (on the years it’s not 50 degrees with green grass in January). If we don’t have at least one functional skid loader, we can’t do many of the
chores. I suppose I could grab a fork and a wheelbarrow and get scooping, but that doesn’t really appeal to my working-little-and-leisurely philosophy nor any version of reality. Moving 10,000 pounds of haylage a couple hundred yards and 1,800-pound bales seems a bit difcult to do by hand; although, with a large, properly motivated crew of guys, it could be done in a couple hours, and there would still be time for beers and a midday nap. We don’t happen to have a crew like that just hanging around ready to do so. Thankfully, we do have a second skid loader to ll in for what we lack in a mob of people with pitchforks at the ready. A couple weeks ago our Bobcat S650 couldn’t nd its joystick to control the driving part of operation. It caused kind of an issue, because at that moment, it was parked running with the arms in the
Today’s Consumption Tomorrow’s Production
air while I cut the strings off a large square bale of alfalfa to dump in the feeder wagons for evening feeding. When I got back in the skid loader, it just beeped at me and claimed it couldn’t locate the joystick I was holding in my left hand. I shut it off and turned it on again as you do with all electronic things that are being obstinate, but it still insist- From the Zweber Farm ed it couldn’t locate the left joystick. I turned it on and off a few more times to no avail. I unplugged and plugged in all available connectors. No good. I got frustrated and tried the last thing you should always try before giving up, which is hit it hard By Tim Zweber and see if that xes it. Farmer & Columnist Sometimes that works. Just yesterday, the bulk tank control box was making a humming noise. I bumped it, and the noise went away. It didn’t x the joystick, unfortunately, so Dad grabbed a tractor. We drug it off the yard out of the cows’ way. Apparently, joysticks do not commonly fail and are accordingly expensive and take a week to get without paying an absurd price to ship it in two days. I got the new joystick and installed it only to have the skid loader complain about three more electronic related issues, which I doubted existed so I loaded it on the trailer and dropped it off at the dealer to gure out why it was being so whiny. At least I could drive it on the trailer with the new joystick, because short of hiring a atbed with a winch to haul it, I have never gured out how to move a disabled skid loader other than dragging it. They found a bad wiring connection and xed a few other things I’d been putting off because I didn’t feel like folding myself into a pretzel under the cab until absolutely necessary. I hope you’re enjoying the April weather we are having in February. Until next time, keep living the dream. May all your mechanical problems be solved simply by a well-placed tap. Tim Zweber farms with his wife, Emily, their three children and his parents, Jon and Lisa, near Elko, Minnesota.
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The power of passion, purpose, pairs Recently, we have been discussing goals, one of which is to focus on calf health, specically pneumonia, in our calves during the rst 100 days of age. Anyone who has ever worked with dairy farms that raise replacements understands the challenges that arise during the rst few months of life, more specically, respiratory challenges. It is especially frustrating because the lungs, once affected, are never the same. Numerous research
The NexGen: Adventures of two dairy daughters
By Megan Schrupp & Ellen Stenger Columnists trials have demonstrated the costs of a case of pneumonia as it relates to the cost of decreased milk production during lactation, increased age at rst calving, increased risk of leaving the herd and subsequent risk for additional cases of disease. With tight margins and the increased expense of heiferrearing programs, mitigating respiratory disease and ensuring high-quality springers enter the milking herd are paramount. If you are unfamiliar with our dairy farm, our calf housing system is slightly different than most. We background our Jersey calves in huts for the rst few weeks of age, then they move into a group-housed, but individually fed monoslope calf barn. The groups in this building consist of six calves fed in headlocks with a bottle holder attached. Our calf huts are a conglomeration of all brands that have been acquired over the years, with cattle panels attached to the fronts, bent in a “U” shape to allow for free outdoor access. Historically, our calves were raised through weaning in calf huts, as they are on many dairies, for the perceived health benets and ease of identication of illness. However, our industry is changing, and there are new considerations to take into effect, such as calf socialization, labor costs, the effects of stress on immunity and growth, and also consumer perceptions of individual calf housing. The stress on calves is often overlooked. Two common stress points in calf programs are weaning and commingling. Our calves are moved into group pens weeks before weaning, and that transition occurs smoothly for us in our calf barn. However, our pinch point was when calves entered our calf barn, moving from individual huts to their rst small group of six. When everything else in a management program seems to be right where it needs to be, creative ideas and potential solutions need to be
developed to remove bottlenecks to success. Calves are extremely social creatures, and commingling can be stressful. Therefore, we decided to experiment with pair housing in calf huts before commingling. Calves would then no longer face the stress of commingling alone. The effect on reducing stress and, therefore, our incidence of pneumonia that this one change has made to our calf program is incredible. If you have ever considered the pairing process, it is extremely simple. We pair at about 14 days, ensuring that both calves are healthy, drinking at a similar rate and about the same age. It is also best to try to pair calves earlier in life than later, within a few weeks of age, ensuring that they each have 35 square feet of space. To pair them, we open our two calf panels, each on the nearest side to the subsequent hut, and use a snap to clip the panels together, creating a larger “U” shape. We then place a poly door from our calf huts across the gap between the two huts. A major observation is that paired calves always lay together in the same hut; however, they will return to their separate huts when bottles are placed for feeding without any guidance from calf feeders. Calves also consume starters much earlier and in larger quantities when paired versus when they were raised individually. Cattle are social eaters. Eating calf starter is critical for rumen development and a successful transition through the weaning period, not to mention the increases in average daily gains. To minimize cross-sucking, calves need to be fed at a higher rate than 2 quarts. We feed our Jerseys 3 quarts of pasteurized waste milk, but higher levels could be fed for larger calves. Bottle rather than pail feeding is another recommendation, including the length of time bottles remain in holders. We leave all our bottles in holders until all the calves have emptied them. This allows dominant calves to continue sucking on nipples after milk has been consumed, allowing time for feelings of satiety and fatigue. Now, more than ever, our dairy industry is being challenged with nancial efciency, sustainability and animal care. All areas of the dairy are being considered, especially heiferrearing programs. Heifers are expensive to raise, and returning healthy springers to the dairy is critical to success in the milking herd. Also, now more than ever, we are faced with increasing consumer pressures to ensure our cattle can socialize with each other and express natural behaviors. The addition of pair raising to our calf program is a key management strategy that we now use on our dairy that has almost zero cost, minimizes a critical stress pinch point and is preparing our dairy to move into the next generation of dairy farming. Megan Schrupp and Ellen Stenger are sisters and co-owners of both NexGen Dairy and NexGen Market in Eden Valley, Minnesota. They can be reached at Nexgendairy@gmail.com.
Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024 • Page 39
BENEFITS OF USING DIRECTIONAL DRILLING INSTALLATION INCLUDE:
Ŷ Continuation of Normal Operation Ŷ Avoidance of identi¿ed Infrastructure Installation Ŷ Maintain Integrity of Driveway, Roadways, Buildings, and Natural Features Ŷ Little to No Disturbance to Wetlands or Other Sensitives Areas Ŷ Many Unique Installation Capabilities Vs. Open Cutting/Digging (Entering underBuildings or Tanks) Ŷ Minimal Site Restoration
PRODUCT INSTALLATION
Ŷ Water Lines/Water Mains Ŷ Drainage/ Tile Lines Ŷ Forced/ On Grade Sewer Ŷ Manure Transfer Lines
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Page 40 • Dairy Star • Saturday, February 10, 2024
“The biggest benefit I see with GEA’s DairyRotor is our ability to milk 60 cows in 8 minutes. And we’re seeing complete milkouts in 3 minutes, 15 seconds with 60% of milk harvested in the first 2 minutes.” MIGUEL GARCIA | PARLOR MANAGER, DOUBLE P DAIRY
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Double P Dairy in Marathon City, Wisconsin, is redefining efficiency with a parlor system that delivers consistent milking performance and record-breaking returns. Think you can beat that? Take your herd for a lap around GEA’s DairyRotor. Contact Your Local GEA Milking Equipment Dealer: Central Ag Supply, Inc. ĉ΄˷ɤǸ΄ռڒLjÅڒգڒԚԑԏ՟ԓԙԗ՟ԑԗԐԐ AǸͅǸȿ̇̇ռڒLjÅڒգڒԗԏԙ՟ԓԕԗ՟ԙԓԙԔ Centre Dairy Equipment and Supply Inc. Sauk Centre, MN ԓԑԏ՟ԓԕԑ՟ԕԘԗԑڒգڒԙԏԏ՟ԓԔԑ՟ԑԗԚԘ Eastern Iowa Dairy Systems _̻ῼ̇͵ʔռڒÅ ڒգڒԕԗԓ՟ԙԘԗ՟ԓԏԙԘ Fuller’s Milker Center, Inc. ĘǸ˷ɆǸͣ͵ɤͅռڒLjÅڒգڒԙԏԏ՟ԙԙԘ՟ԔԗԓԔ žʧɆʔ˓Ǹ˷ɒڒIɤ˷͵ɤͅռڒLjÅڒգڒԗԏԙ՟ԗԔԘ՟ԔԔԙԙ J Gile Dairy Equipment, Inc. I΄ȿǸڒIʧ͵ηռڒLjÅڒգڒԗԏԙ՟ԘԔԔ՟ԑԗԗԐ
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