August 14, 2021 Dairy Star - 1st Section - Zone 1 by Dairy Star

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DAIRY ST R “All dairy, all the time”™

Volume 23, No. 12

August 14, 2021

A marriage promise: Through sickness, in health Boesl donates kidney to ailing husband By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com

BRANDON, Minn. – Jeff Boesl stole Julie’s heart 35 years ago, and now he has her kidney. The couple’s strength and devotion to each other was reaffirmed when Julie became an organ donor for her husband Jan. 19. “I tell her, ‘Thank you,’ every day,” Jeff said. “I’m unbelievably thankful for this small miracle, and I show my appreciation every day.” Jeff suffers from an inherited disorder known as polycystic kidney disease, where clusters of cysts develop on his kidneys, ultimately resulting in organ failure. Yet, with the successful transfer, the 54-yearold is back to completing farm chores as if he was in his 30s. “This is a game changer,” Jeff said. “I’m a completely different guy now. I felt absolutely better immediately after surgery.” The Boesls milk 400 cows with Jeff’s family

in Douglas County near Brandon. They also crop farm and have a herd of beef cattle. In Jeff’s family, polycystic kidney disease is quite common; his grandfather, mother and six of seven siblings were affected by the illness. Jeff’s first inkling of being a carrier was when he enrolled in the local fire department and was flagged for high blood pressure during the physical assessment. “At first we thought it might be related,” Julie said. “We had it in the back of our minds of what could be causing his high blood pressure.” Jeff’s health worsened eight years ago, so he began doctoring with a specialist to monitor his situation. At the time, he was visiting with his doctor every six months, and with vitamins and a strict diet, Jeff was able to prolong the use of his kidneys. “In the last five years, I could see it getting worse, but honestly I thought it was just me aging,” Jeff said. However, in 2019, Jeff’s kidneys were functioning at 10%. He was consulting with his doctor every two months and developing a plan. He was in need of a transplant or needed to be put on dialysis. Turn to BOESL | Page 6

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Jeﬀ and Julie Boesl are recovered from kidney transplant surgeries earlier this year. Julie donated one of her kidneys to Jeﬀ. The Boesls dairy farm near Brandon, Minnesota.

Done with daily hauling Curriers’ new pit makes manure more manageable By Krista Kuzma

krista.k@dairystar.com

KRISTA KUZMA/DAIRY STAR

Ben (le ) and Jay Currier stand in front of the new manure pit facility on their 110-cow dairy near Mantorville, Minnesota. The brothers finished the project in December 2020.

MANTORVILLE, Minn. – Brothers Jay and Ben Currier are thankful they no longer have to haul manure each day. “You get a lot of hours back in your life,” Ben said. “And it’s nice not to have to haul in the winter time.” In December 2020, the Curriers finished their new manure storage facility on their 110-cow dairy near Mantorville. Their project was one of four funded at 90% through the Lower Mississippi River Feedlot Management in Minnesota Regional Conservation Partnership Program project. The one-basin pit holds 1.4 million gallons, and measures 108 by 252 feet and is 8 feet deep. A ramp into the pit allows access to the bottom to haul out solids when they are

cleaning. “We bed with sand so whatever is left we can haul out with slinger spreaders,” Ben said. The project also included pouring sloped concrete to connect their animal housing and allow any runoff to drain into the pit. Wastewater from the milkhouse is also pumped to the pit, and a clear water diversion diverts clean rainwater to a different area. “We haven’t had much rain this year to see how well it works, but it’s supposed to keep as much clean runoff water out of the pit,” Ben said. After graduating from high school in 1972 and working off the farm, Jay returned to make dairying his career alongside his mom in 1976 after his dad passed away from cancer. Turn to CURRIER | Page 7

Page 2 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

DAIRY ST R

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ISSN 020355 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave. Sauk Centre, MN 56378 Phone: (320) 352-6303 Fax: (320) 352-5647 Published by Dairy Star LLC General Manager/Editor Mark Klaphake - mark.k@dairystar.com 320-352-6303 (office) 320-248-3196 (cell) 320-352-0062 (home) Ad Composition Nancy Powell 320-352-6303 nancy.p@dairystar.com Consultant Jerry Jennissen 320-346-2292 Editorial Staff Krista Kuzma - Editor/Wisconsin (507) 259-8159 • krista.k@dairystar.com Jennifer Coyne - Assistant Editor (320) 352-6303 • jenn@dairystar.com Danielle Nauman (608) 487-1101 danielle.n@dairystar.com Stacey Smart - Staff Writer (262) 442-6666 • stacey.s@dairystar.com Maria Bichler - Copy Editor 320-352-6303

Advertising Sales Main Office: 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@dairystar.com Bob Leukam (Northern MN, East Central MN) 320-260-1248 (cell) bob.l@star-pub.com Mark Klaphake (Western MN) 320-352-6303 (office) 320-248-3196 (cell) Laura Seljan (National Advertising, SE MN) 507-250-2217 fax: 507-634-4413 laura.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 Amanda Hoefler (Eastern Iowa) 320-250-2884 • amanda.h@dairystar.com Megan Stuessel (Western Wisconsin) 608-387-1202 • megan.s@dairystar.com Kati Kindschuh (Northeast WI and Upper MI) 920-979-5284 • kati.k@dairystar.com

AgResource Company President Dan Basse believes the Class III milk market is dealing with too much supply. “We are still looking at cow numbers that are way too high at 9.5 million head,” Basse said. “Assuming we have a little contraction in milk yields in the month of July because of the heat across the Plains, I’m still seeing more milk than we need.” Basse expects the butter and cheese markets will lead the market lower through the end of the year. Milk output continues to rise During June Dairy Month, U.S. milk production icreased 3.2% from June 2020. Milk production is up 14.7% in South Dakota and 3.2% in Minnesota. The size of the state dairy herd increased by 20,000 head over the past year in both states. Cattle inventory report released According to the United States Department of Agriculture semi-annual cattle inventory report, the total supply July 1 was 101 million head. That is down 1% from 2020. Beef cow numbers are down 2% from 2020, but dairy cow numbers increased 2%. The number of dairy replacement heifers increased 3% from last year, reaching 4.1 million head. Record exports When measured as a percentage of U.S. milk solids production, U.S. dairy exports in May was the highest ever at 18.76%. That squeaks past the previous record of 18.72% in April 2018. May continues a track record of record or nearrecord monthly exports this year. Dry whey products, butter and ice cream all performed well in the export market.

ited supplies of dairy quality hay. One auction had no dairy quality hay but saw an influx of 2019 and 2020 round bales that were stored outside. USDA Market News reports good quality large rounds at $160 to $170 per ton. Small square bales are averaging $5.40 per ton. At Rock Valley, Iowa, good quality large rounds sold at $145 to $160 per ton. The hay sale at Corsica, South Dakota, saw good quality large rounds in a range of $165 to $170 per ton.

By Don Wick Columnist

Walz waives trucking regulations Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz issued an executive order waiving trucking regulations to support Minnesota’s livestock producers who are facing a decrease in the availability of hay and other forages. Severe drought conditions have caused a decline in 10,000 acres of harvestable hay. This means farmers and ranchers will travel farther to get their forage needs. This new executive order goes into effect immediately and remains in effect for 30 days. Government support for agriculture to decline USDA’s Economic Research Service is estimating U.S. farmers received nearly $58 billion in federal assistance this past year. From that total, more than 60% came from the various COVID-19 relief programs. USDA is forecasting

Dairy quality hay is in short supply Due to the drought, Midwestern hay auctions report lim-

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Deadlines The deadline for news and advertising in the Dairy Star is 5 p.m. Friday the week before publication. Subscriptions One year subscription $35.00, outside the U.S. $110.00. 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 final 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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The views and opinions expressed by Dairy Star columnists and writers are not necessarily those of the Dairy Star LLC.

The Dairy Star is published semi-monthly by Dairy Star, LLC, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378-1246. Periodicals Postage Paid at Sauk Centre, MN and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Dairy Star, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378-1246.

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It’s all inside... Columnists Ag Insider Pages 2, 8 First Section

Revillo

A day in the life at Meyer Dairy Second Section: Page 39

Beltrami

Edmunds

Day

Clark

Jerauld

Sanborn

Douglas

Tripp Bennett

Todd

Lake

Moody

Gregory

McCook Minnehaha

Hutchinson

Charles Mix

Turner

Clay

Lin

Nicollet Brown

Rock

Nobles

Lyon

Bon Yankton Homme

Redwood

Murray

Jackson

O’Brien

n inso Emmet

Clay

ago

Win

Palo Alto

e Buena Vista

Ida

Sac

Mitchell Howard

Hancock Cerro Gordo

Floyd

ic Ch

old

Boone

Zone 1

Fre

Owatonna

Dallas

Tama

rsh

Benton

Zone 2

Dela

Clinton

Jasper

n Cedar

Iowa

o ns

Scott

Polk

Linn

ton

Muscatine

Madison Warren Marion Mahaska Keokuk

Adair

y mer Adams

Page

e war Dubuque

Wa Mon

Clayton

n na

Guthrie

tgo

Mills

First Section: Page 36

Jones

all

Story

Pottawattamie Cass

Erf represents Washington County in Princess Kay contest

Jackson Greene

Harrison Shelby

Fayette

Black Hawk

Grundy un Webster Hamilton Hardin

Crawford Carroll

Oakdale

Houston

Bremer

Wright Franklin Butler

lho

Monona

Worth

Winona

Fillimore

Mower

c Po

Freeborn

neb

Dick

ero

Woodbury

Wabasha

Faribault

Martin

Kossuth

Plymouth

Goodhue Rice

Cottonwood Watonwan Blue Earth Waseca Steele Dodge Olmsted

Osceola

Sioux

Dakota

Scott

Sibley Lyon

oln

Aurora

Mellette Shannon

Miner

Lyman

Jackson

Fall River

Brookings

Jones

Brule

Custer

Kingsbury

Haakon Buffalo

Hennepin Carver

Renville

Yellow Medicine Lincoln

Beadle

Chippewa

Pipestone

Hand

Da vi so n

Page 30 Second Section Pennington

Deuel

Hamlin Hyde

Wright

Meeker

McLeod

Sully

Lawrence

Anoka Kandiyohi

Lac Qui Parle

Codington

Spink

Hughes

Isanti Sherburne

Swift

Faulk

Potter Ziebach

Stanley

Stearns

Pope

Grant

Dewey

Country Meade Cooking

Benton Stevens

Big Stone

First Section: Pages 23, 25

Walworth

Douglas

Brown

Pages 8 - 9 Second Section Butte

Roberts

Marshall

McPherson

Tra ver se

Campbell

Corson

Mille Lacs

Morrison

isa Ch

The “Mielke” Market Weekly Perkins

Pine

Todd

iek

Sargent

Carlton

ake

Richland Dickey

McIntosh

Otter Tail

Lindahl leans on family, community while representing Minnesota dairy

Aitkin Crow Wing

Emmons Sioux

Adams

First Section: Pages 34 - 35

Lindstrom

Cass

Grant

Ransom

LaMoure

Logan

Becker

Clay

Cass

Bames

All

Stutsman

iek

Page 32 Hettinger First Section

Kidder

Burleigh Morton

ing

nom

Mah

Norman Oliver

Itasca

Norwood Young America

Leonard loves promoting industry as Princess Kay finalist

Lake

Washington

Trail

Steele

Mercer

Cook

Kanabec

Griggs

Polk

ms ey

Wells

Grant

Harding

St. Louis

Red Lake

Eddy Foster

Koochiching

Pennington

Grand Forks

eu r

Bowman

Marshall

Benson

Sheridan

From the Stark Zweber Farm Slope

Lake of the Woods

McHenry

McLean

First Section: Pages 8 - 9

Roseau

Walsh

Nelson

Billings Golden Valley

Kittson

Veterinary Wisdom

Mergen aims for sustainability with carbon credits program

Pembina

Ramsey Ward

Page 31 First Dunn Section

Cavalier

Towner

Pierce

Mountrail

McKenzie

Rolette

Page 30 First Section

First Section: Pages 10 - 11

Bottineau

Third Section: Pages 6, 8

Williams

Renville

First Section: Pages 1, 6

Gov. Walz listens to farmers’ concerns over worsening drought

Wilkin

Divide

Brandon

Dombeck siblings take to water skiing

Hubbard

Dear County Burke Agent Guy

Perham

Boesl donates kidney to ailing husband

Wadena

Page 27 First Section

Albany

Brandon

Clearwater

On the Road with Princess Kay

Taylor

Union old

Rin

Clarke

Lucas

Monroe Wapello e

Decatur Wayne

oos

pan

Davis

son

fer

Jef

Van Buren

Lewiston

Cut flower garden is heart-felt entrepreneurial endeavor for Tweten

Louisa Henry Des

Moines

Second Section: Pages 14 - 15

Lee

Kids Corner: The Schillers First Section: Pages 12 - 13

FROM OUR SIDE OF THE FENCE: For additional stories from our other zone, log on to www.dairystar.com

What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? First Section: Pages 15 - 16

Mantorville

Utica

Curriers’ new pit makes manure more manageable

Dairy’s Working Youth: Katie Ketchum

First Section: Pages 1, 7

Third Section: Page 11

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Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 5

Con nued from AG INSIDER | Page 5 net farm income to decline 8% this year. Nations Food and Agriculture OrganizaThat is due, in part, by a 45% reduction tion, National Farmers Union, Minnein direct government payments. sota Farmers Union, Midwest Dairy and Minnesota Milk Producers Association. Dairy industry represented at USMCA hearing Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation The U.S. dairy industry has had presents awards some heartburn with Canada’s dairy The Minnesota Farm Bureau Federtariff quotas and Mexican regulations ation Promotion and Education Commitdesigned to limit imports. Idaho dairy tee presented its Golden Apple Award to farmer Allan Huttema addressed the Wanda Patsche of Martin County. This need for enforcement of the U.S.-Mex- award is presented for her work with the ico-Canada Agreement during testimony Agriculture in the Classroom program. before the Senate Finance Committee. Carolyn Olson, of Cottonwood CounHuttema said the dairy industry has pri- ty, was recognized as the Advocate of orities for any trade agreement. “No. 1 is the Year. Ruth Linkenmeyer Meirick, market access, especially when it comes of Dodge County, was honored by the to Mexico,” Huttema said. “The zero tar- Young Farmers and Ranchers Commitiff on our imported product there was a tee with the Golden Pitchfork Award for great thing to go after. No. 2, there’s a her support of the program. Nathan and resolution process put in place, which we Suzanna Nelson, of Pine County, rehave and we’ll see how that plays out.” ceived the Outstanding Friend of YF&R. Huttema, who is a member of the executive committee of the National Milk Pro- Cows are the answer ducers Federation, said the U.S. should As the focus on sustainability and go beyond the USMCA and work on new carbon grows, Minnesota Milk Protrade agreements worldwide. ducers Association Executive Director Lucas Sjostrom says there is a simple Federal support for biodigesters solution – more cows. During Farmfest, Bills have been introduced in both Sjostrom said Minnesota allows some the Senate and House to encourage in- types of livestock farms to exist and does vestment in biodigesters. The bill makes not give the same support to other parts these systems eligible for a 30% tax of animal agriculture. This comes at a credit. These biodigesters can turn ma- time when more carbon sequestration is nure into electricity and provide a new being sought. “We have fantastic techrevenue stream for farmers. South Dako- nology to store more carbon in the soil ta Sen. John Thune is one of the spon- through the manure and you have a natusors for the biogas bill. ral carbon cycle through the crops that livestock, especially cows, eat. Cows are Startup company focused on plant- the answer.” Over 90% of milk produced based cheese alternative in Minnesota goes to farmer-owned proSan Francisco-based Nobell Foods cessing plants. Sjostrom says that unique has raised $75 million in investor dollars relationship with consumers gives the to produce a plant-derived cheese alter- dairy industry an edge when it comes isnative. Nobell founder Magi Richani sues like sustainability. claims her approach recreates the genetic code in soybean to grow plants that have Trivia challenge the same dairy caseins found in milk. President Ronald Reagan designated The investment funds will be used to July as National Ice Cream Month in scale production and bring her product 1984. That answers our last trivia questo market. In a statement, Nobell Foods tion. For this week’s trivia, who manages said its mission is to create “a radically World Dairy Expo? We will have the anmore humane and sustainable food sys- swer in the next edition of Dairy Star. tem.” Don Wick is owner/broadcaster for the Red River Farm Network, based in Minnesotan takes dairy policy role in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Wick has DC been recognized as the National Farm Kenyon, Minnesota, native Emily Broadcaster of the Year and served as Pliscott has joined the House Agricul- president of the National Association of ture Committee as a dairy policy assis- Farm Broadcasting. Don and his wife, tant. Pliscott is a graduate of the Uni- Kolleen, have two adult sons, Tony and versity of Minnesota and is pursuing her Sam, and five grandchildren, Aiden, Pipmasters at the University of Missouri. er, Adrienne, Aurora and Sterling. Pliscott is a former intern for the United

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Julie and Jeﬀ Boesl place their named leaves on a mural at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis. The tree represents organ donors and recipients. “I could see it in him,” Julie said. “He had no energy, no appetite and his immune system was weak. A cold would take a normal person two days to recover from. For Jeff, it was two weeks.” Jeff agreed. “It got to the point that I had to force myself to eat just so I had the strength to keep working,” he said. Soon after, the Boesls made a plan to get Jeff on the organ donor list, and Julie underwent testing to see if she could be a possible match. Both Julie and the Boesls’ son were the perfect fit for Jeff’s transplant needs. “That was hard to accept,” Jeff said. “My uncle once told me that there are givers and takers in this world, and you want to be known as a giver.” At the very least, Jeff could go on dialysis and not risk the surgery on his family members. “I knew it would be OK,” said Julie, who has undergone two other surgeries near that incision site. “My doctor said I have numbers like a triathlete. My body can take care of me with one kidney.” The Boesls quickly moved forward with their plan and adjusted farm chores accordingly. They moved breeding around so there would be minimal calving while the couple was recovering, lessening the burden of chores on family and friends who were going to help. “It was like going on vacation,” Julie said. “That was the benefit of working with a living donor. We could plan.” On the day of the surgery, the couple – while having to follow hospital procedures of operating and recovering in separate rooms – did prepare for the operation together. The Boesls were also the first patients at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis to use

Zoom to connect to each other following the surgery. “The staff was very accommodating of our wishes to be together,” Jeff said. “The first thing I asked about after surgery was how Julie was doing. Then, I could see her over the video stream.” The couple spent four days in the Twin Cities before being released to recover at home. Six months following surgery, both Boesls show little signs of being an organ donor and recipient. Jeff continues to have checkups with his doctor, and he is on anti-rejection medication to protect the new-to-him kidney. In the future, Jeff will need to have surgery to remove the infected kidneys which are no longer functioning in his body. Nothing compares to what Julie’s selflessness means to Jeff. “Because of her, I’m able to do what I love again: working. I love my job,” Jeff said. “And, there’s nothing better now than when Julie makes an awesome supper, and I look at it and want to eat it. I can enjoy eating again.” Even the Boesls’ children have commented on Jeff’s better health, having the ability to play with their 13 grandchildren. “Before, I would go into the play room and the kids would play around me as I napped,” Jeff said. “Now, I can be right there doing stuff with them.” In sickness and in health, the Boesls promised themselves to each other – and that promise could not be upheld any better than through the actions of Julie this past year. “He’s back,” she said. “We’re a team again.”

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Con nued from CURRIER | Page 1 Ben joined the operation after ter conservation district, they he graduated from high school decided to look into the cost in 1981. Over the years, the sharing options. “When we contacted them, brothers have updated other areas of the farm, including there were no cost sharing doltheir first freestall barn in the lars for county or state but there 1980s, other outbuildings and was for federal,” Ben said. The Curriers had meetings a heated shop for machinery storage. They have also remod- with the Dodge County feedlot eled sheds for heifers and add- officer and the local SWCD ed onto the original freestall representative to discuss their barn. But manure storage has plan and goal to have longnot evolved as much until now. term manure storage. “We told them whatever Although they did add a small space to allow for 10 days of happens make sure when it’s storage, most of the manure engineered out that if us or gathered on their dairy was anyone after us wanted to they hauled on the same day. The could easily add on,” Ben said. The feedlot officer and Curriers wanted to change that. “Our finances were decent SWCD helped the brothers so we figured we would make draw out the plan and subanother investment on the mit the application for federal funding in early 2019. farm,” Ben said. “It’s simple for the land After receiving a flyer from their local soil and wa- owner,” Ben said. “They walk

KRISTA KUZMA/DAIRY STAR

Ben (le ) and Jay Currier look over the new manure pit on their dairy near Mantorville, Minnesota. The brothers applied for a federal cost sharing program, which paid for most of the project.

KRISTA KUZMA/DAIRY STAR

Concrete connects animal housing buildings and slopes toward the 1.4-million-gallon pit to collect any runoﬀ at the Curriers’ farm near Mantorville, Minnesota. you right through it. Everyone’s really nice and cordial, and not stuffy.” Although their initial application was not accepted, they tried again a year later and received a cost share program that would pay 90% of the bill. “We went into this thinking we would at most get 50/50 because it’s a big investment,” Ben said. After working with the engineers, the Curriers were given a budget amount for the project. They found contractors and began work on the pit in August 2020 and wrapped up in December. In the end, the project cost $572,000. The Curriers paid $66,900. “Don’t be intimidated or scared to work with the government,” Ben said. “Every county has a feedlot officer. That’s going to be your contact point. They always have differ-

ent (cost sharing) programs going on. If no one contacts them, then the money that could be devoted to these cost shares is going to go other places. … Then, the government knows there’s a need and give money to these programs.” The Curriers have not yet had to haul manure out of their pit; however, to complete the project, they had to have an official manure management plan done. “We grid sample, and they look at the soil sample and that dictates how much manure you can put on per acre,” Ben said. “The big thing with NRCS is they don’t want you overapplying nutrients according to crop removal.” Although they have 200 acres of owned and rented land, the Curriers had to find more acres for their manure. “Our ground is so high

in phosphorus, so in our manure management plan, we have to transfer to neighboring ground,” Ben said. They now have agreements with neighboring crop farmers. “We basically give manure away as long as they pay for getting it applied to their crop ground,” Ben said. “It’s a good deal for them because for every $1 spent they’re going to get $3 back in fertilizer so it’s a no brainer for them.” Jay agreed. “That dairy manure really helps their soil,” he said. When the time comes to haul this year, the Curriers will be thankful it will be a job that can be custom hired and only done once a year rather than every day. “That got really old,” Ben said. “This new pit is nice to have.”

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Page 8 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

An up-and-coming farm currency

Mergen aims for sustainability with carbon credits program By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com

ALBANY, Minn. – As a fifth-generation farmer, Ben Mergen is always looking for ways that will keep his farm viable for the generations after him. In Mergen’s latest venture, he is looking toward a new method of farming – one that will not only provide his family with another stream of income but protect the soil at the same time. “I look at my farm and ask myself what I have to do to be here in the future, because I plan on being here for a long time,” Mergen said. “With normally razor thin margins of traditional commodities, I’m hoping to reach the finish line a different way.” Mergen and his family – wife, Alicia, and daughters, Olivia, 8, Ella, 7, and Annie, 4 – milk 50 cows and raise 25 cow-calf pairs on their farm in Stearns County near Albany. They also operate a chicken barn and farm about 450 acres of corn, soybean and alfalfa. The dairyman is one of the first farmers in central Min-

nesota to enroll in a carbon credit pilot program with the nonprofit Ecosystem Services Marketplace Consortium. When Mergen enrolled, a soil sample was collected on the 50-acre soybean field that was a part of the program. In the next five years, Mergen will monitor and report on his farming practices of that field and then another soil sample will be taken at the end of the program. Confirming the amount of carbon sequestered from those soils and water quality improvements should position Mergen to sell carbon credits on a national market. “It’s happening up in Canada and down in Texas, and now we have the chance to do it here,” Mergen said. “This is an opportunity to capture profits and farm more efficiently. From a sustainability standpoint, everything should be better in the end.” ESMC and The Nature Conservancy developed the pilot program, which will officially begin in 2022, to help farmers improve soil health, reduce runoff and sequester carbon. The program is also an opportunity for the organi-

zations to modify testing protocols for verifying credits. In total, Stearns County has about 500 acres enrolled, according to the Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District. By the start of the program, the goal is to monitor 50,000 acres within the Sauk River watershed. “Based on what we might find out from the data, this could make farming less strenuous,” Mergen said. “And, there should be an environmental benefit, too, with less trips across the fields, capturing more nutrients with our cover crops.” A Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources press release stated that the data from the pilot program can be used for third-party valuation of carbon reduction and water quality improvements, or it can generate credits that can be sold. “Once the market is launched, you’ll be able to sell your carbon credit, you’ll be able to sell a water quality credit, and potentially even inside that water quality credit, you’ll be able to sell your nitrogen credit, your phosphorus credit and your total suspended solids credit,” said Leif Fixen, of The Nature Conservancy, in the press re-

JENNIFER COYNE/DAIRY STAR

Ben Mergen and his daughters – (from le ) Olivia and Ella – milk 50 cows on their dairy farm near Albany, Minnesota. The Mergens recently enrolled in a carbon credit pilot program. Not pictured are Ben’s wife, Alicia, and daughter, Annie.

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Con nued from MERGEN | Page 8

“It allows us to preg check animals without sending the animals through the chute.” What do you like about the DHIA Pregnancy Tests? It allows us to preg check animals without sending the animals through the chute. The amount of time that the vet has to be here is reduced, as well as employee time. The SCR monitors also help us to later conÀrm the DHIA test. How long have you been using the DHIA pregnancy test? About 2 years. Why did you choose to use it? To save time and money. What are some other tests you use through DHIA? SCC, butterfat, protein, MUN.

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Ben Mergen describes his strip- ller July 30 at his dairy in Stearns County near Albany, Minnesota. Strip lling is one of several sustainable prac ces Mergen is implemen ng on his farm. lease. Mergen returned to his family’s farm in 2011. At the time, the Mergens were working the fields in a conventional manner. Almost by happenstance, the family began incorporating no-till and cover cropping practices. “There was one field of beans that is on lighter, sandier soils,” Mergen said. “I tried no tilling beans into it because I thought we could save money not picking rocks. Then I messed up

“People can see farmers are doing a good job and being responsible. I wish I would’ve started earlier.” BEN MERGEN, DAIRY FARMER

with herbicide and it didn’t work out how it was supposed to.” The yields were only five bushels an acre less than his conventional fields, so Mergen thought that was a respectable result to try the practice again. In 2017, Mergen started using cover crops, and in 2020 began transitioning most of his soybean fields to no till. Last fall, 90 acres were in cover crops; this fall, 300 acres are planned to be in cover crops. The first few years of planting cover crops, Mergen chose something that would winter

kill, making it less risky to deal with in the spring. In the fall of 2020, he planted a few fields with cover crops that would over winter and then was able to plant green in them this spring. “We don’t have quite the washouts we used to and the plants look just as good,” Mergen said. “One day, I hope to graze the cover crops and feed the cattle a little bit. I’m looking forward to that.” With such success of cover cropping and no-till practices, Mergen is planning to strip till his corn this fall. “Last year, those fields were all managed conventionally,” Mergen said. “This will be our first year strip tilling, and I’m looking forward to it.” These conservation practices have lent Mergen and his family the opportunity to become Water Quality Certified through the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program. Mergen applied for the certification a couple years ago but was denied because of the farm’s heavy fall tillage work at the time. Mergen anticipates the benefits of these practices and the carbon credits pilot program to be long lasting for his farm. More so, he hopes it creates awareness of the practices farmers are taking on to be good stewards of the land. “Yes, this is all helping us both financially and in creating healthier, more productive soils, but it is also creating awareness,” Mergen said. “People can see farmers are doing a good job and being responsible. I wish I would’ve started earlier.”

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this dry. “It’s dry,” Mike Roers said. “The rain is hit or miss, all while we’re seeing record high markets for corn and soybeans. We’re going to be missing out on that around here.” The Roers couple and their five children – Claire, By Jennifer Coyne 10, Ella, 8, Wesley, 7, Eve, 6, and Alayna, 3 – milk jenn@dairystar.com 130 cows with robots on their farm site. The family works in partnership with Mike’s dad, Kevin, and his BRANDON, Minn. – Farmers across the state brother, Jacob. An additional 45 cows are milked by recognize the harsh consequences of the drought on Kevin and Jacob on the home farm. their livelihood. With a haze settled in the air from the Canadian So, when Mike Roers gave Minnesota Gov. Tim wildfires, a somber tone was set as Roers explained Walz a tour of his bleak corn fields, the state’s leader how his family has been affected by the dry condisaw first-hand the unforgiving challenges livestock tions. and crop farmers are faced with because of the lack of “Usually, we have soybeans that are this high, and rain. this is corn. We’re standing in corn that should be 10“This is insidious,” Walz said. “Unlike a tornado, 12 feet high. It’s knee high with no cobs,” said Roers you see it, you hear it; even flooding. Droughts are dif- showing Walz a corn field with stalks standing only a ficult. We have to make the case for things we can do few feet tall. “Rain won’t make a difference in terms to help.” of growing an ear of corn. This (part of the field) is Walz was joined by Minnesota Department of nothing.” Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen July 29 at In a typical year, the Roers family chops up to 120 Mike and Britney Roers dairy farm in Douglas County acres of corn for silage and the remainder of the acrenear Brandon. age is used for cash crops. The lack of rainfall during The purpose of the visit was to hear from area this growing season is forcing the Roers family to use livestock and crop farmers and county and state rep- their cash crop acres for forage. resentatives about the drought conditions and discuss “We’re going to be chopping a lot of corn,” said options for assistance from state and federal govern- Roers, who is planning to take up to 250 acres for corn ments. silage. “We’re fortunate enough we have a dairy and In Roers’ time farming, he has never seen the land crop operation, but the profits from the soybeans or corn were to supplement buying soybean meal or hay back. The cattle are going to eat, but it’s going to be survival this year.” Walz agreed in understanding. “When it’s sunny and dry, people in the metro want to go boating. The only worry is that their yards are brown. Well, in a year like this, that’s the least of your worries,” he said. “It’s a cascading effect. … You do things to get by. I worry about the folks that aren’t as established.” The Roers family and other area farmers expressed their concerns with current indemnity programs, and their lack of inclusion JENNIFER COYNE/DAIRY STAR for livestock producers. “The safety nets not extendMike Roers’ corn field suﬀers from the drought at his farm near Brandon, Minnesota. Roers and his family typically have corn standing 10Turn to DROUGHT | Page 11 12 feet high.

Politicians to take insight to U.S. Capitol

Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 11

Con nued from DROUGHT | Page 10 ing to livestock have always been a real problem,” Mike said. “We’ve done some things on dairy, but it’s a challenge.” Farmers also pushed for the right to hay and graze on protected state and federal lands. For instance, Gov. Walz mentioned

“It’s true, farmers are looking for forage not a check.” THOM PETERSON, MDA COMMISSIONER

being in contact with Pheasants Forever to use habitat acres for forage production. “We need CRP land but we also need these other lands too. We don’t want to ruin habitats; we’re just asking for them to give us an opportunity here,” Walz said. “It’s about being a good neighbor. These groups have been very understanding about the situation and trying to work with us to understand the bigger picture for cattle and land.” Petersen agreed. “It’s true, farmers are looking for forage not a check,” he said. “In communicating to the (United States Department of Agriculture), we’re asking what can farmers do. What are their options?” At the time of writing, Petersen and Walz were scheduled to speak with

President Joe Biden and United States Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack about options for Minnesota farmers pressured with the drought conditions. On the morning of the tour, the USDA released an updated drought monitor for the state. On July 27, 22% of Minnesota was under extreme drought conditions (noted as D3); 4% more than a week prior. Much of Douglas County is a part of the D3 region. “This is my livelihood,” Roers said. “I’m here for the long haul, milking cows during the good and bad times. But, you’re at the mercy of Mother Nature.” Petersen agreed. “The drought has been a one-two gut punch,” he said. “It’s the rain, the continued high temp days and humidity have wreaked havoc across our state.” On July 28, Walz signed an executive order that waives trucking regulations pertaining to hours of service for those drivers assisting emergency relief efforts by transporting forages. The executive order is effective for 30 days. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture also has resources for farmers on their website, including zero interest loans and hay accessibility among other programs. “Family farms are the backbone of what we do as a state,” Walz said. “These people feed the world. … This drought matters to them. And for what farmers provide us, it matters to everyone.”

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We are all experiencing this widespread drought in most of Minnesota. For Stearns, Benton, and Morrison Counties we range from being labeled in a moderate drought warning all the way to severe drought. Looking at the dryland acres of corn, soybeans, and alfalfa in the area you can see the effects of this drought. From field visits and phone calls the primary concern at this moment is on corn silage. Here are some tips on harvesting drought stressed corn silage. First you want to test the moisture level of the corn silage field in question. Silage moisture is an important factor in the ensiling process and using a rule of thumb method when dealing with drought damaged corn is not a great idea. Even if the corn looks fired up and dry it may still contain over 70 percent moisture. By properly testing your corn silage for moisture you can allow the plant to continue growing and maximize yields while still harvesting at the proper time. When testing for moisture it is important to get a representative sample from the field. You can use a koster tester or microwave to get the exact moisture level of the corn. You will want to do this often because once it becomes too dry silage will not pack well which of course increases the potential for air pockets and mold. While you can add moisture to dry corn silage it may take a large amount to bring back to a level that allows for ensiling. Keep in mind that it takes 7 gallons of water per 1 ton of silage to raise the moisture level 1 point. The recommended moisture levels for the different storage options of corn silage are stated below. – 55-60% for upright oxygen-limit-

ing silos – 60-65% for upright stave silos – 60-70% for bags – 65-70% for bunkers Another concern for harvesting drought-stressed corn silage is the level of nitrates in the corn silage. In drought conditions, nitrates accumulate in the lower one-third of the stalk. While you can raise the cutting deck to a height of 10-12 inches to avoid that accumulation, yields will drop. The entire plant nitrate concentration should factor into the decision of cutting height. Harvest should also be delayed following a rainfall event as a flush of nitrates will enter the plant temporarily increasing nitrate concerns. The end goal should be to ensile it. If ensiled properly, you should lose anywhere from one-third to one-half of the nitrates as a gas. However, testing the feed after being ensiled is a good idea so you know what you are dealing with. Green chopping drought stressed corn is not recommended as nitrates will be higher in that material. Chopping length also plays a role in the ensiling process. The theoretical length of cut for processed corn silage is 3/4 inch and if not processed the length should be 1/4 to 1/2 inch. If harvesting corn silage that is drier than recommended, decreasing the cutting size may help with packing. Using a proven inoculant may also increase the chances of successful ensiling. With reduced yields our margin of error is smaller this year than most, meaning that we need to squeeze as much out of each acre as we can. Finally, on the safety front, remember to be cautious around silage gasses, it is very toxic to people and animals. Follow the pre-harvest interval for grazing restrictions listed for any pesticides used on the field.

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Page 12 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

Dairy Experience Forum gives floor to consumers Generation Z panel expresses support, concerns for food group By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com

In the fourth annual Dairy Experience Forum, the day was all about those who consume dairy – and those who do not. “This event is unapologetically consumer centric to get us shaking in our boots,” Bob Lefebvre said. “We have some of the best cooperatives and processors in the world who attend this event, and when we focus on the consumer, that’s when real innovation happens.” Lefebvre is the vice president of agricultural affairs at Midwest Dairy. The Dairy Experience Forum, created by Midwest Dairy in 2018, was hosted by New England Dairy in a virtual format July 13. Kicking off the event was a focus group of Generation Z consumers, providing explanation to both their trust and skepticism for dairy. “We want to start off the day with raw consumer input,” Lefebvre said. “We want to hear that interesting insight.” The focus group was comprised of five individuals in their early 20s from across the United States – Minnesota, Michigan, Nebraska, New York and Texas. They began by stating how they incorporate dairy into their diets and then were asked to respond to topics about the industry, such as its environmental impact, corporate and social responsibility, and communicating with the young generation. Each individual consumed dairy regu-

larly, but all had some reservations about how the foods were produced. “Gen Z is questioning the logic of dairy,” said focus group moderator Rosemary Sundin. “They’re looking at the alternatives, experimenting with them and questioning the processing and nutrition of dairy.” Sundin is the president of Orman Guidance which conducted the market research for the forum. Panelists expressed their hesitations to consume dairy not fully knowing the environmental benefits of how milk is produced. And while they may associate dairy and the environment negatively, they also could not imagine a world in which dairy was not a part of consumers’ food choices. “I’ve seen on social media that dairy is more harmful than plant-based alternatives, but you can’t take dairy away forever,” said panelist Brian of Texas. “Its impact is not as harmful as other parts of our nation where we could reduce carbon emissions. There are more feasible ways to improve the environment.” Sundin spoke of Brian’s comment following the panel discussion. “Gen Z desires more transparency,” she said. “There are two notions at odds with them, that dairy farming is not great but dairy products are great, and trying to reconcile those two things.” This generation also has a desire to hear from third parties about the goodness of dairy, such as social media influencers on Instagram and TikTok. Many of the panelists said they receive their information about farming practices and food production through social media. And while those media outlets provide an array of information, one panelist commented on the sources’ potential prejudices in regards to dairy’s sustainability efforts.

“Usually, we’re seeing negative connotations because of social media algorithms,” said Bernice of New York City. “Inherently, dairy is perceived a little worse. But, there’s no alternative that is going to be 100% better. Dairy should stress that and the underlying benefits of that.” Brian agreed. “There’s a huge audience in Gen Z to reach,” he said. “Use advertising campaigns on social media to talk about the environment. You’ll have to pump money into it at first, but then it spreads like wildfire and it works so well.”

share those messages and which are most important for consumers to hear. To date, the organization is already partnering with social media influencers, bloggers and even science museums to show how dairy is sustainably and responsibly produced. Although the panelists stated they trust third parties more so than farmers, those on the farms have a place in those conversations, Lefebvre said. “From an environmental standpoint, there are others who have more weight than a farmer. But in terms of animal care and other things such as caring for the land, the

“... there’s no alternative that is going to be 100% better. Dairy should stress that and the underlying benefits of that.” BERNICE, GEN Z PANELIST

In general, this generation wants to protect the world’s valuable food source, and they are willing to make compromises to reduce the environmental impact, Sundin reported. “They want to take responsibility for their part,” she said. The panelists’ comments were not surprising for Lefebvre as he and his coworkers have spent years understanding this growing consumer group. “Their skepticism may be disheartening, but they’re intelligent and they can get access to knowledge which is good,” Lefebvre said. “We have to bridge that gap and meet them where they’re at. It’s a big, heavy task, but once you have them, they’re going to engage.” With insight from the panel, Midwest Dairy will create ideas to share the industry’s messages, focusing on who should

farmers’ voice is respectable,” Lefebvre said. “Every day, farmers are busting their behinds, taking care of animals and natural resources. They should be loud and proud, sharing that every opportunity they have.”

In its infancy, the Dairy Experience Forum was an idea to gather farmer leaders and hear from consumers in the Midwest. Four years later, the event holds that same principal but with further reach across the nation. “The ideation and networking that moves from that is transformational,” Lefebvre said. “Events like this show us that we have to continue to skate to where the puck is going to be. We have to get to the consumers before they realize they are there.”

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Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 15

From Our Side Of The Fence

4H’ers: What is your favorite part about exhibiting at the fair?

Hannah Klaustermeier Cologne, Minnesota • Carver County 18 years old • 11 years in 4-H Tell us about your family’s farm. My family’s farm is right outside of Cologne where we milk around 140 cows. The farm is owned by my grandma, Juliene. All my family members have either lived or worked on the farm at some point in their lives. My parents, Mark and Nissa, raised my three siblings and me on the farm, and we all love the time we spend there. Tell us about your dairy 4-H projects. This year, at the Carver County Fair, I will be showing four heifers and one cow. A winter calf, fall calf, spring yearling, summer yearling and senior 3-yearold. I will show in the 4-H show and the open show this year. What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? I have always loved being at the fair and showing my cattle. My favorite thing to do in general is to be around animals, and the fair is a great way to spend time with them and show them off to others. I also love when people come ask their questions about cattle because it gives me a chance to explain how the dairy industry works and how the animals are really treated. Describe a highlight of your 4-H dairy career so far. I’ve been lucky enough to get a state fair trip every year I’ve been eligible. My most memorable show at state was when I won best in my class and reserve junior champion. What was your summer routine for preparing your animals? Preparing for the county fair begins as soon as school ends when we sort out the best looking heifers and cows from the pens. Once we decide which ones will be shown, we try to spend as much time as possible with them to tame them. Usually starting in July, I catch and walk them around to get them used to the halter. After they’re used to walking on a show halter, we start washing them a week or two before the fair to tame them more. Lastly, a few days before the fair, we clip off their hair so the judge can better see their bone structure. What is one skill you have gained because of the dairy project, and how will that help you in the future? Having to take care of animals by myself improved my independence from when I was a clover bud until almost my last year as a 4-H’er. Of course, I have people around when I need help, but the animals are mainly my responsibility. What is your favorite way to pass the time at the fair on non-show days? I’m also a Carver County Dairy Princess, so I try to work in the dairy booth as much as possible. Along with serving people ice cream, I love answering any question people have about the cows or the dairy industry in general. Because it’s been such a big part of my life, I enjoy talking about dairy with people. Cloey Kolb Richmond Minnesota • Stearns county 13 years old • Four years in 4-H Tell us about your family’s farm. My dad‘s name is Leon Kolb and my mom’s name is Kimberly Gertken. I have two brothers, Kyle and Colton. At Kolb Dairy, we milk 425 cows in a double-12 parlor. I help take care of the newborn calves. I also feed the 4-5-month-old calves hay and grain. Tell us about your dairy 4-H projects. This year, I showed two Holstein heifers. June is the name of my fall heifer and Joy is the name of my winter heifer. I got champion in intermediate showmanship with Joy. What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? My favorite thing about showing dairy at the fair is creating a bond with my animals. This is my favorite thing because at home when they’re in their pens they will come up to me and I can pet them. Describe a highlight of your 4-H dairy career so far. A highlight of showing dairy in 4-H would have to be showing my cow, Magic, because I showed her two years in a row. What was your summer routine for preparing your animals? To get my dairy animals ready in the summer I take them out of their age group pens and put them in a pen with only show cows. I will tie them up to brush them to get them used to me and the halter. I also wash them and practice walking them around. To finish it all up, I clip them the week before fair. What is one skill you have gained because of the dairy project and how will that help you in the future? One skill I have learned from showing dairy is multitasking while watching the judge and setting up my cow in the show ring. Multitasking will help me get more things done. What is your favorite way to pass the time at the fair on non-show days? My favorite way to pass time on non-show days is to go watch my cousins, Alayna, Kaelynn and Izzy, show their horses when my brother, Kyle, is watching the cows.

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Cadee Vinkemeier Norwood Young America, Minnesota County Carver 17 years old 13 years in 4-H Tell us about your family’s farm. My parents, Jeff and Tina, and my five siblings, Courtney, Carley, Collin, Caleb and Canton, have all helped on my family’s farm. My dad, Collin and I do the everyday chores. We are milking around 120 cows twice a day and are raising up feeder steers. Tell us about your dairy 4-H projects. This year, I am showing seven animals at my county fair. I have a Jersey 5-year-old, Jersey 3-year-old, Guernsey 3-year-old, Milking Shorthorn 3-year-old, Jersey 2-year-old, Jersey summer yearling and a crossbred winter calf. What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? My favorite part about showing dairy animals at the fair is making new connections. I like meeting new people at the state fair and educating the public on the dairy project. Describe a highlight of your 4-H dairy career so far. My biggest highlight of my 4-H dairy career is getting grand champion Jersey at the state fair. What was your summer routine for preparing your animals? My summer routine for preparing my animals usually starts by simply picking out the animals I want to show. I then halter break them and continue to work with them leading up to the fair. I then have to wash and clip them to get them show ready. What is one skill you have gained because of the dairy project, and how will that help you in the future? A skill I have gained from the dairy project is having patience with both people and animals. Having patience with people will help me in any type of job setting in the future. What is your favorite way to pass the time at the fair on non-show days? My favorite way to pass the time on non-show days is to hang out with friends and try new fair foods.

Turn to OUR SIDE | Page 16

Page 16 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

Con nued from OUR SIDE | Page 15 Evelyn Scheffler Zumbrota, Minnesota Goodhue County 16 years old 11 years in 4-H

Tell us about your family’s farm. My parents are Tony and Maizie Scheffler. I have three brothers, Owen, Matthew and Ben. On our farm, we milk 150 cows in a double-8 step-up parlor. My main job on the farm is managing the calf program. I also milk the cows and help with vet checks.

Tell us about your dairy 4-H projects. This year, I will be showing four Holsteins at the Goodhue County Fair: Tropical, an age cow; Betsy Ross, a 4-year-old; Taylor, a fall yearling; and TikTok, a fall calf.

Collin Schulze Holland, Minnesota Pipestone County 11 years old Three years in 4-H

What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? With raising the calves on our farm, it is one of my favorite things to watch my favorite calves grow up and become great cows.

Describe a highlight of your 4-H dairy career so far. The highlight of my 4-H career so far is getting reserve junior champion at the state fair, and my judging team winning reasons at the state contest.

Tell us about your family’s farm. My mom and dad are Becca and Devin. My sister, Kady, is 9; my brother, Cooper, is 7; and my twin sisters, Leah and Lydia, are 4. We milk 750 cows. We farm with my uncle, Chris, and my grandpa and grandma, Rod and Linda Schulze. Our family has been dairy farming here since 1966. Tell us about your dairy 4-H projects. This year I am showing my Holstein heifer, Fergie. She is a Red and White Holstein and will show in the winter heifer class.

What was your summer routine for preparing your animals? I usually pick out my show animals in April or May, then I start working with them around the middle of June. I train my animals by walking them and washing them, and when we get closer to the county fair, I clip them and walk my animals with show halters.

What is one skill you have gained because of the dairy project, and how will that help you in the future? One skill I have gained from the dairy project is my ability of public speaking by doing reasons during dairy judging.

What is your favorite way to pass the time at the fair on non-show days? My favorite way to spend time at the fair on non-show days is sitting by my animals and watching them chew their cud and keeping them happy. Also, visiting with friends and family as they pass by.

What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? My favorite part is being by big animals. It’s fun to work with them, and they are warm. I help take care of the calves on our farm, so I get to know the animals as they grow up. I like working with cattle.

Raymond Kokett Little Falls, Minnesota Morrison County 19 years old 13 years

Describe a highlight of your 4-H dairy career so far. Leading Ernie, a 10-year-old Holstein cow, into the show ring. Ernie belongs to my uncle, Chris, and he has shown her at Louisville and at World Dairy Expo. Chris lets me hold the trophies at the end of the day. What was your summer routine for preparing your animals? I put a halter on Fergie every day and walk her around. I brush her hair and give her baths. If she won’t move, we entice her with horse treats, which are dried apples with molasses on them. If she was good while I was leading her, I will give her a little calf starter as a reward. I have been feeding her a grass hay/oat hay mixture. The oats will help make her coat shiny, and the grass hay will help her stomach develop. I also feed her a little grain mix every day. What is one skill you have gained because of the dairy project, and how will that help you in the future? I have learned patience. At first, Fergie didn’t want to walk, but we got her to go with some teamwork. I have learned that you have to go slow and steady and not to try to make her run. What is your favorite way to pass the time at the fair on non-show days? I like to look at all of the tractors and watch the tractor pull. I also help serve ice cream at the American Dairy Association booth. We have 16 flavors of ice cream. My parents, siblings, cousins, grandpa and grandma, and aunts and uncles all help at the ADA booth. We scoop ice cream out of tubs. We have a contest to see who can stack the most scoops of ice cream on top of a cone.

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Tell us about your family’s farm. My parents are John and Lori Kokett. I come from a family with six siblings. Vince, Martin, Gerard and Carolyn have moved away from the farm. Then it is me and my brother, Daniel, and my sister, Lydia, on the farm yet. We milk about 75 cows and raise chickens as well.

Tell us about your dairy 4-H projects. As a family, we had nine head of cattle at our county fair. I had five: two yearling heifers, two milking cows and one dairy steer calf.

What is your favorite part about exhibiting dairy at the fair? My favorite part about showing cattle at the fair is picking a heifer out that is all shaggy and dirty. Then, cleaning her up and clipping and fitting her at the fair and seeing the transformation.

Describe a highlight of your 4-H dairy career so far. The biggest highlight of my showing career has been this last year. My 3-year-old cow won the Dairy Days show in Brainerd and did well at our county fair including winning showmanship. I also was offered a fitting job which is special to be noticed for the work I put into preparing my cattle for shows.

What was your summer routine for preparing your animals? Unfortunately, I am working full time as an automotive mechanic and didn’t have much time to prepare for the fair so I kind of threw a halter on a show heifer or two whenever I had a chance.

What is one skill you have gained because of the dairy project, and how will that help you in the future? Showing cattle, especially at the county fair, can be stressful, and the days can be pretty long. Dealing with all the stress and being able to put on a smile is a skill that will always stick with me.

What is your favorite way to pass the time at the fair on non-show days? This year, every day was a show day for me, and I didn’t have too much time to kill. When I did, I would usually get caught up in a conversation with another 4-H’er or a stranger just visiting for the day.

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Page 18 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

Breeding Focus

Genetics the foundation of Ryan-Vu Holsteins breeding program Chad Ryan Ryan-Vu Holsteins Fond du Lac, Wisconsin 80 cows Describe your facilities and list your breeding management team. We milk in a 74-stall tiestall barn. I do the matings, my dad does the A.I. work, and everyone is involved in accurate heat detection. What is your current pregnancy rate? Our current pregnancy rate is right about 30%. What is your reproduction program? Do you use a synchronization program? How do you get animals pregnant? We us some ovsynch, and we also ultrasound every four weeks and breed based off that information. We try to breed cows as early as we can. We find we have the best results doing that, sometimes breeding even before they hit peak production. Describe your breeding philosophy. We focus primarily on hightype genetics. We do a lot of marketing of genetics and project calves for shows, so we keep true to breeding

for high type, with great udders and sound feet and legs. Our goal is to breed animals that can be competitive at all levels of shows. I look a lot at cow families when selecting bulls I am going use, and I like to use bulls I see a lot of daughters of at various shows and sales. We also pay attention to daughter pregnancy rate. What guidelines do you follow to reach the goals for your breeding program? We focus on accurate heat detection to get cows bred back in the most timely manner. We also follow a stringent vaccination protocol to keep the cows healthy and performing at their best reproductive efficiency. What are the top traits you look for in breeding your dairy herd, and how has this changed since you started farming? We have always been more focused on type and breeding and developing cow families. Years ago, it was more common to use bulls that are five to 10 years after their peak of popularity. Now to keep up with the genetics and marketing, you are not able to do that. Turn to RYAN-VU | Page 20

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The Ryans – (front, from le ) Dillon and Cameron; (back, from le ) Chad and Amy – operate Ryan-Vu Holsteins with Chad’s parents, Mark and Mary, near Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. The Ryans milk 80 cows.

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EMILY PANKRATZ, herd manager Holtz Ridge Grass Farm, RUDOLPH, WISCONSIN 150 cows, Certified Organic, SCC 200,000 Emily (left) at our Central Plains Dairy Expo booth with her mother Peggy.

“We started using Udder Comfort™ a couple months ago to get better milk quality results. We keep using it because it takes edema out of udders more quickly than anything else,” says Emily Pankratz, herd manager for the 150-cow dairy at Holtz Ridge Grass Farm, Rudolph, Wisconsin, where she loves caring for the cows from calving through dryoff. Emily stopped by our booth at Central Plains Dairy Expo after buying the donated gallon in the Dairy Forward auction. “Our protocol is to put it on after every milking (post-calving), until the cow or heifer is not high in the CMT anymore. This includes cows that may acquire mastitis or high SCC during lactation. “What I like most about this product is how fast it works on edema. It helps blood flow and gets our heifers off to a quick start,” Emily explains.

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Page 20 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

Con nued from RYAN-VU | Page 18

What are certain traits you try to avoid? I try to avoid high pins and poor legs; those are deal breakers in my mind. I also watch milking speed data. I try not to go too extreme on stature. I am a big believer in balance, and those extremely tall cows have a hard time developing balance.

How does your heifer inventory affect your breeding program? Being a smaller farm focused on genetics and marketing, our breeding program is not affected by our heifer inventory. We sell a lot of heifers as project calves, but we always have enough to calve in as replacements.

Describe the ideal cow for your herd. The ideal cow in our herd is a balanced, dairy and femine cow. She has a great udder and walks on a good set of feet and legs. She is part of a deep cow family that is marketable. What role does genetics have in reaching the goals of your farm? Genetics is 100% responsible for us reaching our goals, because our goals are set around developing our genetics and breeding the best animals we can breed. What percentage of your herd is bred to sexed, conventional and beef semen? We use very little sexed semen, if any; we use primarily conventional semen. We have about 15% of our herd bred to beef, mostly cows that might have a blemished pedigree that we wouldn’t want to sell a daughter from her, or cows

PHOTO COURTESY OF COWSMOPOLITAN DAIRY MAGAZINE

Chad Ryan leads City-Slickers DB Bon Voyage at the North American Open Dairy Ca le Show last October in Circleville, Ohio. Ryan and his family focus on breeding high type ca le and developing cow families on his dairy near Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.

that are maybe at three or more services. We don’t do as much embryo transfer or in vitro fertilization as in the past. We’ll maybe do a certain cow once in a while but on a much smaller scaler. What is your conception rate? How does this differ with different types of semen? Our conception rate

is right around 45% to 50%. Our conception with the beef semen is very high. What is the greatest lesson you have learned through your breeding program? The greatest lesson I have learned is that you will get out of your breeding program what you put into it. Not every bull will work on

every cow. You need to study and determine the best corrective matings for any individual cow.

Tell us about your farm. Ryan-Vu Holsteins is owned by my parents, Mark and Mary Ryan, and operated by them along with myself and my wife, Amy, and our two sons, Dillon, 13, and Cameron, 12. We farm 400 acres outside of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, raising corn, soybeans, alfalfa and some canary grass, all for feed for our herd. We enjoy showing and were the premier breeder of the Wisconsin State Holstein Show in 2016 and 2017. We also sell animals privately and in consignment sales throughout the country. We co-host the Quest For Success sale series with our good friends, Lynn and Sara Harbaugh.

What is the age of your heifers at first service? We like to calve our heifers at about 26 months, so we are breeding them the first time between 16 and 17 months of age.

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Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 21

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10 14 10 1 9 6

JD 6620, 1987, Corn/Bean, 2WD, 3903 hrs., #177388 ............................$15,900 JD 9500, 1991, Corn/Bean, 2WD, Duals, 6500 hrs., 5000 sep hrs., #185458 $22,400 JD 9600, 1996, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 4718 hrs., 3171 sep hrs., #175562 .... $29000 JD 9610, 1998, Corn/Bean, PRWD, Duals, 6160 hrs., #179045 ................$29,900 JD 9610, 1998, Corn/Bean, 2WD, 3535 hrs., 2241 Sep hrs., #185640.....$34,500 JD 9750 STS, 2000, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 4734 hrs., 3102 sep hrs., #185963 ........................................................................................................$36,400 JD 9550, 1999, Corn/Bean, 4982 hrs., 3450 sep hrs., #178638 ...............$43,900 JD S670, 2012, Corn/Bean, 3625 hrs., 2557 sep hrs., #172954 ...............$92,900 JD 9870 STS, 2008, Corn/Bean, 3105 hrs., 2500 sep hrs., #175945 .......$99,900 JD 9670 STS, 2009, Corn/Bean, 2192 hrs., 1263 sep hrs., #185612 .... $110,400 JD S680, 2012, Corn/Bean, 2930 hrs., 2043 sep hrs., #175550 ............ $112,900 JD S680, 2012, Corn/Bean, 2472 hrs., 1739 sep hrs., #154637 ............ $124,900 JD S680, 2013, Corn/Bean, 2907 hrs., 1904 sep hrs., #161858 ............ $129,500

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NH CR8090, 2012, Corn/Bean, 2405 hrs., 1810 sep hrs., #183218...... $136,500 JD S680, 2014, Corn/Bean, 2959 hrs., 2063 sep hrs., #182070 ............ $144,900 JD S680, 2014, Corn/Bean, 2355 hrs., 1703 sep hrs., #178114 ............ $147,900 JD S680, 2012, Corn/Bean, 2365 hrs., 1642 sep hrs., #176788 ............ $149,500 JD S680, 2014, Corn/Bean, 2061 hrs., 1658 sep hrs., #172017 ............ $159,500 JD S690, 2013, Corn/Bean, 2237 hrs., 1588 sep hrs., #177562 ........... $159,500 JD S690, 2012, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 2203 hrs., 1400 sep hrs., #179929 $160,000 JD S680, 2015, Corn/Bean, PRWD, Duals, 2208 hrs., #169577 ............. $169,500 JD S680, 2013, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 2729 hrs.,1800 sep hrs., #176089 . $169,900 JD S680, 2013, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1992 hrs., 1300 sep hrs., #174756 $174,900 JD S690, 2012, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1983 hrs., 1530 Sep hrs., #171923 $179,000 JD S680, 2013, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 2052 hrs., 1638 sep hrs., #166363$185,900 JD S670, 2016, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 2289 hrs., 1453 sep hrs., #176660 $199,500 JD S690, 2013, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1648 hrs., 1161 sep hrs., #167773 $199,900 JD S680, 2015, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1796 hrs., 1233 sep hrs., #167207 $219,500 JD S690, 2016, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 2113 hrs., #176735 ........................ $219,500 JD S770, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD,, 2203 hrs., 1587 sep hrs., #181147$245,000 JD S680, 2016, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1608 hrs., 1107 sep hrs., #184606 $249,900 JD S690, 2016, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1767 hrs., 1248 sep hrs., #176733 $250,000 JD S790, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1535 hrs., 1058 sep hrs., #179097 $315,400 JD S780, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1157 hrs., 800 sep hrs., #175318 .. $319,500 JD S780, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1180 hrs., 850 sep hrs., #183439 .. $337,500 JD S780, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1100 hrs., 755 sep hrs., #183533 .. $355,000 JD S780, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 687 hrs., 475 sep hrs., #154461 .... $359,000 JD S780, 2018, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 1020 hrs., 690 sep hrs., #177549 .. $364,400 JD S790, 2019, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 965 hrs., 683 sep hrs., #171378 .... $389,500 JD S780, 2019, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 726 hrs., 557 sep hrs., #185160 .... $397,000 JD S780, 2019, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 484 hrs., 307 sep hrs., #169507 .... $409,500 JD S780, 2019, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 362 hrs., 234 sep hrs., #171003 .... $419,500 JD S780, 2020, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 521 hrs., 397 sep hrs., #183792 .... $425,400 JD S780, 2020, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 557 hrs., 373 sep hrs., #181757.... $429,900 JD S780, 2020, Corn/Bean, PRWD, 581 hrs., 315 sep hrs., #179653 .... $435,900 JD S780, 2020, Corn/Bean, PRWD, Tracks, 315 hrs., 240 Sep hrs., #182067 .................................................................................................... $509,900 14 JD S790, 2020, Corn/Bean, PRWD, Tracks, 522 hrs., 392 sep hrs., #181663 ..................................................................................................... $514,900

14 JD S790, 2020, Corn/Bean, PRWD, Tracks, 378 hrs., 285 sep hrs., #181664 ..................................................................................................... $524,900 2 11 6 14 17 2 17 9 3 10 7 5 3 3 7 7 16 16 5 8 17 10 10 15 15 15 3 16 15 14 16 16

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Page 22 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

The excitement of show season On May 22, my two daughters, Eleanor, 5, and Charlotte, 2, and I called my mom and dad while we were eating breakfast for our daily morning FaceTime check in. We always like to see what is happening on the farm for the day before dispersing to daycare, school and work. That morning, they had exciting news for Eleanor.

The 2-year-old cow, Astrid, who Eleanor had named and shown as a novice calf in 2019 had a heifer overnight. Eleanor immediately stopped eating and put down her cereal spoon as her eyes grew wide and a smile flashed to her face. She hopped down from her chair and did a little dance from excitement while letting out a few high

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gleeful squeals. The show season had started for her. From that moment, the show season for us progressed in steps. The first step was naming the newborn. When my parents asked Eleanor what they should call the calf, I thought she might need time to think A Little Bit of Sunshine about this important step. Without missing a beat, Eleanor shouted out, “Rainbow.” This is a perfect name for Eleanor to choose. She loves to draw using a variety of colors, with rainbows being one of her favorite items to illustrate. Now that the calf had a name, the excitement for Eleanor grew. Meeting Rainbow By Krista Kuzma was our second step. Staff Writer Since we do not live on the farm, we have to plan when we visit my parents. I love these visits and the girls do, too, so much so that Charlotte calls out, “My farm!” whenever she sees the silos as we drive up. These visits allow us the chance to see the cows and help Grandma with calf chores. Plus, Eleanor always likes the chance of riding with Papa in the tractor or on the side-by-side. The day we met Rainbow came with particular excitement as Eleanor officially claimed Rainbow as her own. We got all the details from my mom, the main calf feeder, on how Rainbow was doing while we helped put fresh bottles of milk in the holders for the calves’ evening feeding. Of course, we then had to take time to pet Rainbow, allow her to suck our fingers and take a few pictures with her. The next step was actually a step back from the farm. This summer, Eleanor participated on her first organized sports team. T-ball took up a few evenings each week, which led to prioritizing learning the game and participating with her team over helping in the calf barn. She liked learning the basics of playing on the ball diamond and had fun playing on the same team as her cousin, Hattie. When we looked at the game schedule, I noticed her last game was the same night as the open show at the county fair when Eleanor would show Rainbow. Wanting her to make her own decision, I asked Eleanor whether she would rather play in her T-ball game or show Rainbow at the fair. “I want to show Rainbow because that is the only time I will get to show her,” Eleanor said excitedly. My dairy-loving heart swelled at her choosing to show her calf. In July, we got back to the barn to start training Rainbow for the fair. As the youngest calf in the Sheeknoll Farms show string (she was weaned just a few days before fair time), Rainbow did well adjusting to the halter and the showing life. Eleanor also did well adjusting to being on the halter of an animal. The last time Eleanor showed a calf two years ago, I did most of the calf maneuvering with Eleanor holding on to the end. This year, we switched. I held the end of the halter, and Eleanor practiced being at the lead. At first, Eleanor was a little scared since she didn’t know how to make Rainbow stop when she wanted her to. When I showed Eleanor how to gently but firmly pull back on the halter, she tried it for the next circle around the lawn. When she successfully made Rainbow stop on the first try, she quickly turned around to share her smile and excitement of being able to handle her animal. The day of the show, going to the fair to show Rainbow is all the girls could talk about. Eleanor and I went early to prepare for the event. We were greeted by Eleanor’s two cousins, Hattie and Elena, who were also showing in the same class as Eleanor. There were so many giggles, smiles and nonstop talking. Although we had to wait a bit outside the ring, the time finally came for Eleanor to debut her skills. She confidently took the halter and paraded Rainbow around the ring with me hanging on to the end. For one circle, Charlotte even joined us. Eleanor proudly answered all the questions the judges and the dairy princesses asked her. And for her efforts after pulling Rainbow into the final lineup, Eleanor received a ribbon. Again, I could see her excitement expressed through her large grin. Maybe to some, the novice calf class is just a cute array of the youngest calves and kids. While it is, I think it’s important to remember the excitement these kids show and experience is a spark that can keep them coming back to the industry. While my kids don’t live on a farm, having the chance to show a calf gives us more accessibility for them to be involved. Even if later in life they are not in the industry, they at least have that experience and excitement first instilled in them when showing a calf at the county fair.

Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 23

PRINCESS KAY FINALIST

A serendipitous experience Lindahl leans on family, community while representing MN dairy By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com

LINDSTROM, Minn. – The Lindahl family’s reach in the dairy industry spans three generations, and with that youngest generation comes the Serendipity prefix. But a couple of Jersey cows is only the start of how Isabelle Lindahl’s time in the dairy industry has been unexpectantly good. “Serendipity means good things happening by chance, luck,” Lindahl said. “That explains a lot about myself and these cows.” Lindahl, the daughter of Kevin and Tara, is one of 10 young women vying for the title of 68th Princess Kay of the Milky Way. The 21-year-old, who grew up on her family’s 100-cow dairy farm in Chisago County near Lindstrom, was humbled when her name was called as the ninth finalist. During the announcement, Lindahl was surrounded by her grandmother, Judy, dad and sister, Madelin. “We gathered around the living room couch after having brunch together,” Lindahl said. “Even though it would’ve been great to have that announcement in person, it was special for

my family because my grandma could attend. That meant a lot for me; it was a blessing in disguise.” Lindahl grew up feeding calves alongside her grandmother. As she got older, Lindahl took on other responsibilities on the farm, such as milking the mostly Holstein herd. While listening to the announcement of the finalists, there were a couple instances when Lindahl thought her name would be called. “When the first finalist was described, they talked about her being the third generation,” Lindahl said. “I got excited and could feel my blood pumping. I was convinced it was me. It was nerve-wracking.” There was one small nugget of information that confirmed Lindahl’s place in the finalist lineup. She was the remaining contestant who was attending the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. “I knew there was only one other woman who attended the U, and she was previously announced,” Lindahl said. “I instantly knew. Then, there were other connectors like the fact that I traveled to Iceland for a spring break.” When Lindahl’s family caught on to who No. 9 was, emotion filled the room.

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Isabelle Lindahl is a Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalist represen ng Chisago County. The 21-year-old grew up on her family’s 100-cow dairy near Lindstrom, Minnesota.

“Seeing my grandma and sister, who was a finalist a few years ago, I couldn’t hold back,” Lindahl said. “There were hugs and tears. It was a really special, intimate moment.” Since being named a finalist, Lindahl has spent the summer promoting dairy consumption and bringing awareness to sustainable farming practices all while embracing the support of her tight-knit community. “This summer has been exciting,” Lindahl said. “It’s great

to see people gather and converse, and it’s been super fun to hear people’s support of dairy farmers and dairy foods.” Amidst the parades, community gatherings and county fairs, Lindahl’s favorite experience so far was when she was the featured speaker for the Women’s Ag Leadership Network event during June Dairy Month. At this event, she presented to industry professionals about how to advocate for agriculture and the importance of telling

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Page 24 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

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The RECAL line of probioƟcs is NOT just another probioƟc on the market. RECAL is a probioƟc heavily weighted towards beƩer digesƟon and uƟlizaƟon, primarily FIBER DIGESTION. There are a lot of nutrients in your forages that can be uƟlized by improving digesƟon. RECAL is also a probioƟc that produces more B-vitamins in the rumen of that cow, mainly vitamin B12. B-vitamins are well known to aide in sƟmulaƟng appeƟte, stress, immune system, reproducƟon and also very important in rumen digesƟon. Not all probioƟcs are the same. There are hundreds of various strains and combinaƟons.

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Ashland, Ohio • 419-962-1913 APRIL 2013 “I started using RECAL Plus in March of 2012. I had been feeding a probioƟc for starch digesƟon and since I feed a high forage diet, it just didn’t make sense to be feeding a starch digester, I needed a Įber digester. So, I decided to try the RECAL Plus probioƟc. I was monitoring my dry maƩer intakes, milk producƟon, buƩerfat, and protein. The Įrst thing I noƟced was a lot less undigested feed passing through the manure. Then I noƟced that the dry maƩer intakes had decreased by about 6%, but milk producƟon, buƩerfat and protein never dropped, I was impressed. I was also feeding a toxin binder and decided to pull it out of my mix. I had my TMR checked for vomitoxin and the level was 5 ppm, very high. The cows showed no signs that the toxins were aīecƟng them aŌer I pulled the binder out. When I starƟng feeding the RECAL Plus my 21-day preg rate was 15%. Then my preg rate started climbing, even during the heat of the summer. I am holding about a 70# milk average with a 4.1% BF, 3.2% Protein, 80,000 SCC and the cows are only eaƟng 45# of dry maƩer, with an eĸciency of 1.71. And my cows are in great body condiƟon. RECAL Plus has been a great aide in feed eĸciency, cow health, and reproducƟon for me. I highly recommend all dairy farmers to start feeding RECAL Plus. Trust me, I know that there are a lot of products out there. But RECAL Plus does in fact work. And Jamie is willing to prove that to you. Some people say that this won’t work or that’s a waste of money. Well folks, cows don’t lie. Let the cows decide whether it works or not!!”

UPDATE ͳ JULY 2021 “I have been feeding the RECAL Plus now for nine years and I must say that I’m very pleased with the product. A few things that I really noƟced shortly aŌer I started feeding the RECAL Plus nine years ago and have conƟnued to see is how well my fresh cows take oī with almost no issues, peak and breed back. The only vet bill I have is basically for preg checking, vaccinaƟons but very liƩle treatments. Another thing is how much more consistent things are from day to day such as milk producƟon, % BF, % PRO, MUN, SCC, manure, and intakes. I used to see a lot more variability. Something else I have noƟced that I see year aŌer year is that in the summer months my components do not drop like they used to. Currently we milk 70-80 cows near Ashland, Ohio and for the year we average about 80#-82# of milk with 4.3% BF and 3.2% Pro on 2X milking. Since feeding the RECAL Plus I have not fed any toxin binder, yeast, or any other probioƟc and recommend all dairymen to contact Jamie, he won’t steer you wrong and comes from a herdsman background so he comes with a lot of knowledge. Feel free to contact me.”

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Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 25

Con nued from LINDAHL | Page 23 “Sustainability is a really big buzz word with parts of society right now,” Lindahl said. “I’ve become a face to that word, sharing how my family farms sustainably so that the farm can be passed down. As the third generation, I’m very much a part of this story.” Aside from sharing positive messages about the dairy industry, Lindahl has also taken this time to give back to her community. She was first involved in her county dairy princess program at the age of 6 as a Little Miss Dairy Princess. “I was a very shy person growing up. I used to hide behind my mom’s legs, and I never thought I’d grow up to be the public speaker I am today,” Lindahl said. “Seeing where I’ve come from and the person I’ve become is really amazing and something that needs to be recognized. I’m doing my best to give back and do the best I can for dairy farmers and a program that gave so much to me.” Lindahl’s time in the advocacy spotlight is not entirely new. She previously served as the Minnesota Jersey Queen after being more involved with the breed because of a National FFA grant. The grant allowed Lindahl to start her herd of Jerseys, which is where the Serendipity prefix originates. “My grandpa maintained a little herd of Jerseys; it was something he enjoyed,” Lindahl said. “Being able to continue on that legacy since he passed is something really special for my grandma to see.” In the weeks ahead, Lindahl is looking forward to connecting with her fellow finalists and sharing her dairy story with attendees at the Minnesota State Fair. “I’m so excited to talk to as many

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Page 26 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

My time with FBM

Welcome to the first edition of From My Perspective. I am Tom Anderson, a Farm Business Management faculty member at Riverland Community College in Austin, Minnesota. I will be writing one From My Perspective column a month for the next year on related topics that I see affecting the dairy industry. I grew up on a dairy farm in the rolling hills of Preston in southeast Minnesota. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, I taught high school agricultural education/FFA for 18 years and then began my work as a FBM faculty in 1998. Having been a FBM faculty member By Tom Anderson for the past couple of decades Columnist or so, I have seen tremendous changes take place. In fact, when I first started in December 1997, the personal computer was just entering the farm office as a tool that might assist with bookkeeping. Little mention was made at that time of DairyComp or Scout, etc. But now, most farms have numerous laptops, handheld devices and GPS. Some interesting comparative herd facts (according to the University of Minnesota database) include: 1999

2020

73 head

256 head

Average pounds per cow

18,588

25,253

Feed cost per cow and replacement

$1,295

$2,568

Average milk price per hundredweight Gross revenue per cow

$15.43

$19.75

$2,621

$5,954

Total direct, overhead cost

$1,989

$4,947

$3.76

$3.98 (with government payments)

Average herd size

Net return per hundredweight

In addition, the recent focus on components (butterfat and protein) has had a significant impact. Only a few years ago, we never discussed pounds of components produced per cow daily. Then all of a sudden, the goal was 6 pounds per cow per day, and now, I have herds exceeding 7 pounds per cow per day of butterfat and protein, creating a great impact on mailbox price. I have seen a mailbox price range of $4.40 per cwt for the first six months of 2021. My original concept, prior to taking this job, was that I would work with a large variety of farm types. Over the course of 22 years, however, I have gravitated heavily toward the dairy industry. Of the 60-plus farms I have the pleasure of working with, only two or three are not a dairy operation. In fact, I have not had a single month in over 20 years where I wasn’t working with one or more dairy operations to plan some form of expansion or improvement. Though it slowed a bit during the past year, it has been exciting to see interest rebound this summer. Often this growth is the result of family farm transitions taking place. Speaking of farm transitions, have you been, or will you be, involved in the transition of your farm operation? I love working with the dairy families and especially with the next generation. Their energy, excitement and enthusiasm are so encouraging. They are well-educated, passionate and ready to hit the ground running. I am proud to say we have had some great success in southeast Minnesota with farm transition. Sure, there have been some bumps (maybe big bumps) along the way. Not all have worked out, but in general, success has been the result when both sides (senior and younger) have a good working relationship, trust in the other side, meet regularly and, most importantly, a willingness to communicate and share expectations of each other. One of the most important aspects of this process is the transition of leadership and responsibility. That involves a two-way street; the younger generation must be willing to take on responsibility, and the senior generation must have the willingness to let go. We have all made mistakes over the years and that part won’t change. But the growth of the next generation will only occur when we provide accolades to success and positive correction to the mistakes. I will address this important topic more in a future column. If you have questions about family farm transition (or the farm management program in general), I suggest you contact a Farm Business Management faculty person at a Minnesota state college. It is nearly impossible to go alone with this multi-year endeavor, so having a neutral party to assist and guide the process is key to success. Tom Anderson is a Farm Business Management faculty member at Riverland Community College.

Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 27

A year of opportunity despite uncertainty

As I reflect on my reign as the 67th Princess Kay of the Milky Way, I cannot help but smile at the incredible journey I have been on. My reign of over 365 days began at a small, private banquet surrounded by the nine other finalists and our closest friends and family. On the Road with We were not walking across the stage at the Princess Kay fairgrounds, and there were no 12 days at the Great Minnesota GetTogether, but it was still a dream come true. I relive the moment of the crown being placed upon my head. The rush of excitement and the eagerness for the year ahead representBy Brenna Connelly ing Minnesota dairy 67th Princess Kay of the farmers. My journey Milky Way has been different from any other Princess Kay, but it has been my own unique journey, and I would not change it for the world. Before running for a finalist, I was beginning my second year as the Olmsted County Dairy Princess. I was so excited to continue sharing my dairy story and helping others find their love of delicious dairy foods. Little did we know how much our lives would change in just a few short months. However, through the uncertainty came an opportunity: to run as a finalist for Princess Kay of the Milky Way. I saw an opportunity ahead of me, one that scared me, but one I knew would push me out of my comfort zone. I had dreamed of becoming a finalist and being like all the girls I had watched as a young girl getting their likenesses sculpted into 90 pounds of butter. I followed my heart, and it was exactly where I was meant to be and what I was supposed to do among the uncertainty of everything. It is incredible to think that I would not be in this role today if it were not for one specific event that happened over 15 years ago. At the age of 6, I was given the opportunity to show my very first registered Holstein calf, Cocoa, at the county fair alongside my cousins. After the judge asked me several questions, he awarded my very first ribbon along with a new rope halter. I was ecstatic. I fell in love with showing cattle and never looked back. This moment sparked the passion for dairy I have today.

a dairy princess will help you grow in ways you never thought imaginable, so share your stories and enjoy every moment. Be patient and creative. The way of doing things may look different than in years past, but sometimes change is good, and it opens the door for new opportunities. Use your unique voice in this role by sharing the passion you have for dairy that is in your heart. People love genuine people, and they can tell when you are passionate and true. Lastly, wherever you go in this world, find what you are passionate about and be brave enough to use your voice. It has been my honor to represent you, the hardworking dairy farmers of Minnesota, for the past year. Thank you for this opportunity, and I will cherish this experience for a lifetime. Princess Kay of the Milky Way, Brenna Con-

nelly serves as the Minnesota dairy community’s goodwill ambassador. Throughout the year, Princess Kay helps people understand the dedication of dairy farmers to wholesome and nutritious food, and the way milk is produced. Princess Kay does many school presentations, represents dairy farmers at the Fuel Up To Play 60 events that are held in conjunction with the Minnesota Vikings, and is very active during June Dairy Month sharing the importance of dairy farming and dairy foods. Brenna grew up in Byron, Minnesota, working on her cousin’s dairy farm. She is a sophomore at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, studying Agricultural Communication and Marketing. When she is not showing cattle or participating in dairy judging, she loves to read and travel.

She Can’t Wait To Be Around It.

A ffor my advice As d i to the h next Princess Kay, future finalists and young girls, embrace opportunities and push yyourselves alongg the way. y

This past year has allowed me to make unforgettable memories, travel thousands of miles and meet the most amazing people. I was able to share with people the stories of the kind, passionate, driven and innovative Minnesota dairy farmers that I represent. I attended virtual classroom visits, dairy days, parades, nursing homes, daycares and Fuel Up to Play 60 events. I was able to connect with people in unique ways. In addition to events, I took to social media to reach new audiences in creative ways. I am forever grateful for this opportunity that has been given to me. I like to think about this quote from Walt Disney, “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” If you would have told the shy 6-year-old girl showing her very first calf at the county fair that she would be confident enough and experienced enough to be Princess Kay of the Milky Way, I wouldn’t have believed you. I’ve learned to chase my big dreams and to be bold and brave. As for my advice to the next Princess Kay, future finalists and young girls, embrace opportunities and push yourselves along the way. Being

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Page 28 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 Dana Adams, adam1744@umn.edu 320-204-2968 Joe Armstrong armst225@umn.edu 612.624.3610

www.extension.umn.edu/dairy

Luciano Caixeta lcaixeta@umn.edu 612-625-3130 Gerard Cramer gcramer@umn.edu 612-625-8184 Marcia Endres miendres@umn.edu 612-624-5391 Joleen Hadrich jhadrich@umn.edu 612-626-5620 Les Hansen hanse009@umn.edu 612-624-2277 Brad Heins hein0106@umn.edu 320-589-1711 Nathan Hulinsky huli0013@umn.edu 320-203-6104 Kevin Janni kjanni@umn.edu 612-625-3108 Karen Johnson ande9495@umn.edu 320-484-4334 Emily Krekelberg krek0033@umn.edu 507-280-2863 Claire LaCanne lacanne@umn.edu 507-332-6109 Brenda Miller nels4220@umn.edu 320-732-4435 Erin Royster royster@umn.edu Isaac Salfer ijsalfer@umn.edu 320-296-1357 Jim Salfer salfe001@umn.edu 320-203-6093 Mike Schutz mschutz@umn.edu 612-624-1205 Emma Severns sever575@umn.edu 507-934-7828 Melissa Wison mlw@umn.edu 612-625-4276

Get the most from mastitis lab submissions By Erin Royster, DVM University of Minnesota

Diagnostic testing is a key component of any good mastitis control program. In fact, there are many types of tests that provide valuable information to help dairy producers achieve excellent milk quality. Diagnostic tests like quarter milk culture identify the type of pathogen causing mastitis infections. Screening tests like bulk tank culture monitor the herd for the presence of contagious pathogens and also provide information that can be used to monitor milking time hygiene. Other tests like bedding or towel cultures can identify potential risk factors for mastitis or help monitor management of those areas on the dairy. There are many quality labs that provide mastitis screening and diagnostic testing, including local veterinary clinics and milk processors. The University of Minnesota Laboratory for Udder Health is a fully accredited diagnostic lab with highly trained technicians who specialize in mastitis and milk quality diagnostics. No matter the lab, there are certain steps to make sure a producer is getting the most value out of diagnostic testing. Asking certain questions before submitting samples to the lab can help avoid common mistakes. Select the right test To select the best test for a particular situation, start with a specific question. This will help select a test that best answers the question and will help select the right sample for that test. It is important to consider how the test results will be used. Complete this line of thought: “If the results are …, I will ….” For example, if a mastitis culture is positive for Staph aureus, will a producer try to treat, do not breed and segregate, or cull? If the action is a cow-level action, select a cow-level test. A cow-level test would be a culture of a composite milk sample, where milk from all four quarters of the cow is combined. However, composite samples can be difficult to interpret because it is very common to isolate multiple organisms. Unless one of the organisms is a contagious pathogen, it’s impossible to say whether any of the organisms were truly causing infection or merely contaminants. Composite samples are really only useful for screening for contagious pathogens, when the result of the test would lead to a cow-level action (like culling). In most cases, a quarter milk sample will give the most useful, easy-to-interpret results. In addition, depending on the question, a producer may be able to select a specific screening

test that costs less than a full mastitis culture if they only want to know if certain pathogens are present (like Staph aureus or Mycoplasma). Collect the best sample The key to this step is clean. For any type of microbiological testing, we are attempting to identify bacteria that originated in the sample. But bacteria are everywhere, so it’s easy to accidentally introduce bacteria from elsewhere (like hands, udder skin, collection equipment, etc.) into the sample. When this happens, the results of the test are meaningless. Regardless of the sample type, be aware of possible sources of contamination and use clean or sterile sampling techniques. For example, when collecting a towel for culture, how was the towel grabbed out of the dryer? If hands are dirty, the bacteria from the hands may be cultured. Use clean gloves, or grab the towel with the inside of a clean bag. Another important factor to consider is whether or not the sample is truly representative of what is trying to be assessed. For bedding cultures, we recommend collecting a sample from at least 10 locations (back of 10 stalls, 10 spots in a bedded pack) into a clean bucket, mixing thoroughly and then submitting a smaller sample from the mix. Understand the results It is important to have some idea how test results will be interpreted before samples are submitted to the lab. Know there is some variation in how different labs report test results. When in doubt, call ahead and ask about the testing procedures, how and which results are reported, and if guidelines exist to help interpret the results. In some cases, interpreting results if fairly straightforward, such as a positive Mycoplasma culture. In other cases, there may not be any science-based guidelines for interpreting results, as is the case with bedding and towel cultures. With these tests, it is especially important to understand how test results will be used ahead of time. For bedding culture, can clean or unused bedding be compared to bedding in stalls just before new bedding is added? What management action could be taken to improve things if bacteria counts on bedding or towels are too high? Make use of a herd veterinarian or other knowledgeable dairy advisors who can help design an appropriate testing strategy, select the right test, collect the best sample and interpret test results.

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Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 29

Understanding the revised Net Merit selection index

Genetic evaluations in the U.S. are released three times each year by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding. Updated evaluations were released Aug. 10. This genetic evaluation also includes additional traits of cows as well as changes in the relative emphasis placed on traits in the Net Merit index. The elegance By Les Hansen University of MN of a selection index such as Net Merit is that it combines many important traits of dairy cows into a single number to rank A.I. bulls. Historically, many have recommended Net Merit as the most important tool for selecting A.I. bulls to breed heifers and cows. The continual addition of traits to the Net Merit index may be mostly a good thing, but a downside is that as more traits are selected for at one time, then less progress can be expected for each of the traits individually. The relative emphasis placed on traits in revised Net Merit varies somewhat from breed to breed, so the examples I will review are specific to the Holstein breed. The traits and relative emphasis (rounded to whole numbers) contributing to Net Merit beginning in August are: – Fat (pounds): +29% – Protein (pounds): +20% – Productive life (months lactating): +16%

– Body weight composite (pounds): -9% – Cow fertility: +5% – Cow livability (alive at disposal): +4% – Residual feed intake (dry matter consumed): -4% – Udder composite: +3% – Somatic cell score (lower is better): -3% – Calving ability (ease and stillbirth): +3% – Health cost: +1% – Early first calving (days): +1% – Heifer livability: <1% – Heifer fertility: <1% – Feet and leg composite: <1% Production receives 49% of the relative emphasis in Net Merit, and the emphasis is placed on milk solids rather than milk volume. Much discussion about production of cows continues to revolve around milk volume, but pricing of milk in much of the U.S. is based mostly on milk solids. Cows must remain in herds to cover their replacement cost, so the relative emphasis of 16% on productive life seems fitting. However, one of the most common complaints I hear from commercial dairy producers today is that their Holstein cows are too big. It’s well-documented that Holstein cows are continuing to become taller each year despite lip service by some in the industry to the contrary. I’ve been an advocate to move the Holstein breed to be more balanced with a directional movement away from taller and

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sharper toward somewhat smaller and rounder. However, the trend continues toward taller and sharper (thinner) Holstein cows. The relative emphasis placed on body weight composite in Net Merit is a substantial -9%. Because cows aren’t routinely weighed, type traits are used to estimate body weight. Only 14% of the emphasis in body weight composite is on making cows shorter in stature. Also, 28% of the emphasis in body weight composite is on making cows thinner (less body condition), which seems to be taking us in the wrong direction in order to breed more balanced cows. After body weight composite, cow fertility receives the next highest relative emphasis (5%) in revised Net Merit. However, it’s important to keep in mind that cow fertility has a strong positive relationship with productive life (months lactating). All other traits included in revised Net Merit have a relative emphasis of less than a 5%, so their impact on the ranking of A.I. bulls for Net Merit is small. That is especially true of traits with a relative emphasis of 1% or less. The input I receive from dairy producers is they usually want more production (pounds of fat and protein) from their cows. Also, they want cows with longevity to easily overcome replacement costs, and cow fertility heavily influences longevity. Revised Net Merit prioritizes all of these traits. However, what else do I hear from commercial dairy producers about

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Page 30 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

Old news A friend who lives in an old farmhouse was doing Another article decried the moral decline of some cleaning recently when he ran across old news- 1920s-era juveniles. papers which he then gave to me. I have plumbed the “Just look at any large newsstand and see the dozdepths of the yellowed, century-old newsprint and ens of indecent magazines with their brazen, glaring acquired some fresh insights regarding the good old sex appeal,” fumed the writer. “Whenever you see a days. schoolgirl s frequenting the For instance, one news- Th streets, or vacant lots, or the There are some things hi that h paper squib crows about the movies late in the evening, efficiency of the local high haven’t changed over the past without proper supervision, school: “Home economyou may be sure that some ics and agricultural classes century. mother, or father, is careless have learned to co-operate,” or o negligent.” it said. “The boys recently T The writer connected the rise killed and dressed a hog for a local farmer, and the of such scandalous behavior directly to the decline girls studied the cuts of meat in a practical way.” of the parental application of “the buggy whip or the Wonder how that sort of school-sponsored activ- hard-bottomed slipper.” ity would go over in today’s hypersensitive culture? There are some things that haven’t changed over The hog wouldn’t be the only one to be drawn and the past century. One newsman, pontificating about quartered. the upcoming 1924 race for president, wrote, “There

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is a vast amount of make-believe in an election. ... We shall have, this time, more startling charges of corruption and more attempts to muddy names than any presidential contest has had.” As Yogi Berra would say, it feels like déjà vu Dear County Agent Guy all over again. I also stumbled across a paragraph which said that a man referred to only as La Follette hopes to be our first Progressive president. Ironically, the opposite page has an ad for the movie “Pollyanna” starring Mary Pickford. A story titled “Good News For Taxpayers” By Jerry Nelson states that President Columnist Coolidge foresaw further tax cuts if the federal government could cap its total expenditures at $3 billion. Wow. Nowadays, $3 billion is approximately what Bezos and Branson spent for their seven-minute suborbital rocket rides. Another “spare the rod, spoil the child” story reads, “When Misses Ruth Potter and Molly Luster walked into the Pikeville, Kentucky, police court wearing knickers, Judge Marrs promptly sent them to jail for 10 hours each for contempt of court.” First of all, what, exactly, are knickers? And second, what would happen if the New York Knickerbockers showed up in that particular court? Would the entire team be held in contempt? The editor of a newspaper called Farmer And Breeder noted that at Steen, Minnesota, a team of 2-year-old sorrel grade colts had recently sold for the lofty price of $310. “It doesn’t look as though the tractor was chasing the horse off the farm,” concluded the editor with obvious satisfaction. An article titled “Silos For The Stock Farm” remarked that silos seem to be increasing in popularity, but that “unless one is keeping at least 10 cows, the cost of the silo is usually not justified.” It further states that the expenses associated with producing corn silage – the value of the corn, the cost of hiring of a cutter, extra labor, the whole shebang – could add up to a whopping $2.75 per ton. If you think that is a bargain, in that same publication, the Hotel Lorraine of Chicago placed an ad that trumpeted “250 outside rooms, with shower or tub, $2.50 and up. For reservations, write or wire.” Cool, book me now. The old advertisements are actually my favorite part. I was chuckling over a vintage ad when my wife asked, “What’s so funny?” “Listen to this ad copy,” I replied, stifling a giggle. “‘It will give their systems a spring house-cleaning – loosens up the bowels, tones up the liver and kidneys, enriches the blood, drives out the worms. Will help them shed their winter coat.’ Isn’t that a hoot?” “Not really. Where can I get some of that stuff?” “But this ad is for something called Dr. Hess Horse Tonic. We don’t even own a horse.” “Who’s talking about using it on a horse?” she asked, looking right at me. “You know that old saying: What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. You look a bit wormy, and I’ve noticed that your hair isn’t nearly as shiny as it used to be.” Humph. I hope she gets lost on her way to the Debenham & Freebody Millinery. Jerry is a recovering dairy farmer from Volga, South Dakota. He and his wife, Julie, have two grown sons and live on the farm where Jerry’s great-grandfather homesteaded over 110 years ago. Jerry currently works full time for the Dairy Star as a staff writer/ad salesman. Feel free to E-mail him at: jerry.n@dairystar.com.

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You need to do this Most of the time, we veterinarians, being scientists, are careful to make recommendations that do not imply certainty. For example, we might say using a particular vaccine is a good idea or that Veterinary Wisdom a particular management practice has been shown to be helpful. We are not trying to be wishy-washy; science just works that way. Certainty is rare in biology. However, sometimes the evidence is so overwhelming that we might say, “You need to do this.” The other day, while By Jim Bennett reading an article about Columnist feeding a second dose of colostrum (Cullens & Abuelo) in Hoard’s Dairyman, I had a you-need-todo-this moment. The article was about a study comparing calves fed one meal of colostrum with calves fed a second meal a few hours later. The study was done on a large dairy in Michigan and included over 4,000 calves. It was published in a peer reviewed journal named Animals in 2021. What caught my eye in the article was that calves receiving a second dose of colostrum 5-6 hours after the initial meal gained 0.24 pounds more per day through weaning and produced 2,165 pounds more milk in their first lactation than calves receiving one 3-liter meal at birth. That is around $400 more gross income in first lactation milk sales for feeding 3 liters of free colostrum. It is also highly likely, based on studies of calf growth rates and later milk production, that this production effect carries over into future lactations. That is a remarkable return on investment. So yes, if you are not feeding an additional dose of colostrum at the next feeding now, you need to do this. There were other benefits too. Calves getting an additional dose were two times less likely to get respiratory disease, three times less likely to get diarrhea and 2.3 times less likely to get any disease before

ing the onset of respiratory disease until after weaning is likely also important. Calves were housed in individual pens in a barn until day No. 7 when most of them were moved to an automatic feeder barn. Some calves remained in individual pens and were fed with buckets. Calves in the auto feeder barn were 2.7 times more likely to be diagnosed with respiratory disease than the individual penned calves. This is interesting because the comparison was between groups of calves that were both housed in a building. This suggests that group housing, or sharing a nipple or waterer, likely is a significant risk factor for pneumonia, not just air quality. In contrast, group fed calves were only 1.3 times more likely to experience diarrhea than individuallyhoused calves. This may seem counterintuitive, but

we have seen similar results on farms in our practice. Auto feeder barns typically result in a much greater prevalence of pneumonia but less so for diarrhea. Our practice has seen great results on farms that feed a second dose of colostrum. Such farms can achieve total serum proteins of over six in nearly all calves tested. That additional dose is clearly important, so if you are not doing it now, you need to do this. Bennett is one of four dairy veterinarians at Northern Valley Dairy Production Medicine Center in Plainview, Minnesota. He also consults on dairy farms in other states. He and his wife, Pam, have four children. Jim can be reached at bennettnvac@gmail. com with comments or questions.

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B Because we k know that h pre-weaning growth is important to maximize future milk production, delaying the onset of respiratory disease until after weaning is likely also important. weaning. Mortality was not lower for calves getting three doses, but the overall mortality before weaning was very low (1.6%), so it is likely that excellent calf management may have prevented any effects on mortality. What are the reasons for better performance? Some may be due to less failure of passive transfer in calves fed two meals (9.4% failure for two meals versus 22% failure for one meal), but this is not the whole picture. The authors speculate that other bioactive compounds in colostrum may play a role. In addition, a previous study showed the optimal range for total protein in calves was 6 to 8.5 and higher in Jerseys. In that study, FPT prevalence was very low, so FPT was not likely the cause of differences. Clearly, there are other reasons for better health and performance than just the prevalence of FPT. Here are some other findings from this study. Calves fed one feeding that developed diarrhea developed it on an average age of 2 weeks compared to an average of 4 weeks for calves supplemented with two meals. Calves that develop diarrhea in the first two weeks of life are often more difficult to cure than older calves, so this is an important finding. For calves developing respiratory disease, one meal fed calves were first diagnosed at 5 weeks versus a diagnosis at 10 weeks for the two meal fed calves. Because we know that pre-weaning growth is important to maximize future milk production, delay-

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Page 32 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

The county fair Many county fairs have taken place already, and growing up, there’s no motivation to get something 4-H kids are getting excited to bring their animals or done like it needing to be completed and in front of projects they have worked hard on all summer. They the judge the next morning. You certainly can’t wait have been preuntil u the last moment to work with aniparing for the M mals but you can put off fitting them until My wife if and d I are obviously b i l state fair or pretty close to the last minute. Although, I planning their no longer fitting cattle or strongly discourage that kind of procrastiperfect cham- running pigs around dreaming nation. pion project Growing up, the county fair projects for next year. of trips to the state fair, but I put the most time and effort into were, as Our county you might guess, my dairy cattle but also fair is just get- our kids are. It’s so much fun a woodworking project and either chickting started watching them. ens, pigs or sheep. If the fair runs a whole as I write this week, w one better show multiple species column which so s there is an excuse to spend every last is a terrible time to be squeezing in a creative proj- minute of time your parents don’t need a hand with ect like writing an article. I hope others will enjoy chores at the fair with 4-H friends. Some of my best the column, but just like most of my 4-H projects friends in the farming world were made at the coun-

ty and state fairs showing animals. I met my wife, Emily, showing chickens, of all things, so it was a pretty good use of time as a young man. My wife and I are obviously no longer fitting cattle or running pigs around dreaming of trips to the state fair, but our kids are. It’s so much fun watching them. Of course, like any 4-H parents, we are involved because that trailer load of cattle doesn’t get itself to the fair, and someone has to teach From the Zweber Farm the next generation how to clip the perfect topline even if it takes years to master. Watching that process is so very frustrating when you could just grab the clippers yourself and knock it out in a couple minutes. Our oldest child is now 14. By Tim Zweber In a few years, that trailer load of cattle Farmer & Columnist might not get there on its own, but he might be driving it instead of me. That prospect is sad, as I won’t need to be as involved, but at the same time will make me proud to see the kids growing into responsible young adults. One of my favorite parts of the county fair is watching my kids and the kids of all those 4-H’ers I grew up with learning the same life skills we did and making lifelong relationships of their own, even if they don’t know it now. There’s a lot to be learned when Mom and Dad step away and pretend to be busy talking with all the other adults or when they have to go home and do chores. Those skills just aren’t learned in the same way while being home at the farm when there are hundreds or more animals that need tending to and many people responsible for that. At the fair, those few animals the kids picked out as theirs are their responsibility. They get that first taste of knowing they really are the one who cares for those animals. They have to balance the desire to have fun with friends with the responsibility of feeding, watering and keeping their critters clean and happy, because a hungry and dirty cow sure isn’t going to win grand champion. Life really doesn’t change much no matter how many of them you someday are in charge of or how old you get. A happy animal is a profitable animal and one you can take pride in milking or taking to market. Here’s hoping you all had a wonderful time at your county fair if you are a 4-H’er or the parent of one. Maybe we’ll see you at the state fair. I should also mention FFA, although I never showed animals through FFA. It is another fine organization to build skills and relationships. Until next time, keep living the dream and shooting for that grand champion project. Tim Zweber farms with his wife Emily, their three children and his parents Jon and Lisa by Elko, Minnesota.

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Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 33

Small things count up

Sometimes the endless, seemingly inconsequential details of running a dairy operation can be overwhelming. There are so many steps involved in twice or more daily tasks that we do that explaining it to others is tricky. When our family took a recent Saturday away to see my family at my brother and sister-in-law’s lake cabin, I asked a friend to feed calves. I made a detailed list so she would know what to do. It included how to cool the milk in the pasteurizer, how much milk each calf receives, watering instructions, how much calf feed, which calf might not be eating well and what Come Full Dairy Circle bedding, to do about that, which ones get hay, how to clean and sanitize bottles and buckets, and setting the pasteurizer for the next feeding, etc. Calf feeding went well for my substitute. She knows calves and replied to my text about how things went with, “Calves are happy and full.” The work I do on our farm and in our farmhouse can feel like many small tasks that don’t have a lot of value when I have finished each day. And what isn’t done is still there to try and get to in the days ahead. The tasks fill my days, especially in the summer when By Jean Annexstad there’s more to take care of outside. It can be frustrating and a bit disheartening if you let your attitude Columnist defeat you. No doubt people everywhere, no matter the type of work they do, feel the pressure of the long line up of items to accomplish. This is likely why there are so many materials available to help us get more done in more efficient ways. I’m guessing there are people who profit by selling the self-help concept of better organization, time management and the key steps in doing more with less, for example. This type of inspiration can help, although keeping a larger goal at the forefront is also needed. I never look at my horoscope, though for some reason I read it one day when glancing at the comics in the paper on our table. It said, “Virgo: The work feels like a grind because it is. But at least it’s a grind that matters, as it feeds and fortifies you and others. This gets harder before it gets easier, but heavenly forces will come to your aid.” That one certainly hit close to home with the thoughts I had been having lately. I had been discouraged with no time to plan for big picture changes that we might possibly want to pursue for our operation in the years to come. There aren’t enough hours in the day to get all of the cow, calf, heifer, crop and business management chores done, much less try to have a meeting to ponder what we may want to consider to make our dairy farm suitable for future owners to operate. This horoscope tidbit gave me some hope that all of these small endless tasks are not for naught. Every tiny task that goes on in our farming, household and business management day adds up. We can do small things to improve what we have, and it keeps the operation going for now. What we do each day contributes to healthy and delicious food to ultimately sustain others. W We can d do small ll thi things tto The work and the lifestyle also sustains us because it is improve what we have, and it our calling. Honestly, it has keeps the operation going taken me a lifetime to figure that out, and I often forget. I for now. have to do a lot of praying, positive self-talk and deep thinking to remember what the larger picture is when mired in work. It is best to focus on doing the humble, kind, necessary things to make animals and people happy. Just doing small things every day can bring us closer to the larger goals. It’s important to keep that in mind and be content. It is also good to take short mental breaks to appreciate the place where I am. I can notice the cows grazing on the grass outside the calf barn, the line up of young cows with full, beautiful udders, and the recently planted field of sorghum and pearl millet that is pushing up lush and green having had just enough rain. There are tomatoes ripening in the garden and maybe a few pole beans to pick and potatoes to dig in the late summer. Some of my most favorite perennials are blooming now in the patch of flowers between the house and barn. I can admire them when I go past and maybe tug a couple of weeds out as well. Here goes trying not to be overwhelmed with all there is to do and realizing it is OK to accomplish only what is essential. If I do that, maybe I can take a tiny step toward a larger goal each day as well. Jean dairy farms with her husband, Rolf, and brother-in-law, Mike, and children Emily, Matthias and Leif. They farm near St. Peter, Minnesota, in Norseland, where she is still trying to fit in with the Norwegians and Swedes. They milk 200 cows and farm 650 acres. She can be reached at jeanannexstad@ gmail.com.

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Page 34 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

PRINCESS KAY FINALIST

Dairy is home for Leonard Carver County woman promotes industry as Princess Kay finalist By Sue Gully

Contributing Writer

NORWOOD YOUNG AMERICA, Minn. – In the middle of Carver County, Emily Leonard spent her childhood days surrounded by farm animals. “They were always there,” the 21-year-old said. “I spent a lot of time outside with the animals.” Animals on the 180-acre farm in Norwood Young America included chickens, sheep, dogs, cats, rabbits and cows. But, when Leonard drives home from college, it is her family’s cows that strike a sense of familiarity in her heart. “The cows always make home feel like home,” Leonard said. With a love for animals and the dairy industry, Leonard captured a dairy princess title for Carver County and is one of 10 Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalists. If crowned Princess Kay, Leonard hopes to foster connections between consumers and farmers.

“You get to speak to a wide variety of people and make connections you never expected,” she said about Princess Kay. “You’re a familiar face in the dairy community but not just a face in a magazine. You’re making connections and having conversations with consumers on where their food comes from.” Leonard, the daughter of Tim and Amy Leonard, grew up on the dairy farm that was homesteaded by her ancestors in 1871 and has remained in the family since. The farm was passed down maternally for the last three generations, to Leonard’s grandmother, then mother and now sister, Christine Leonard, who was a Princess Kay finalist in 2014. “The women felt like they were the ones who wanted to settle on the farm,” Leonard said. Leonard’s responsibilities on their 45-cow tiestall dairy farm included milking cows with her dad, cleaning the barn, feeding cows and heifers, and occasionally feeding calves. At age 5, she started showing cattle at the Carver County Fair and later participated in dairy

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Emily Leonard is a Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalist. Leonard is the daughter of Tim and Amy who milk 45 cows in Carver County near Norwood Young America, Minnesota. judging for 4-H and FFA, 4-H dairy knowledge bowl and was a dairy ambassador for Carver County. Currently a senior at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Leonard is majoring in biology and minoring in animal science. She plans to at-

tend graduate school to continue studies in dairy research. At the university, she holds an executive position in the Lambda Delta Phi Sorority, is a member of the Gopher Dairy Club and enjoys talking about the dairy industry with fellow classmates. Her computer screen

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with a photo of her cows has inspired many conversations with fellow students on farming. “When I put that as my background, I didn’t think it would get a lot of attention,”

Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 35

Con nued from LEONARD | Page 34

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Emily Leonard scoops feed on her family’s 45-cow dairy near Norwood Young America, Minnesota. This summer, Leonard is working with the University of Minnesota dairy research team. she said. “I just thought, ‘I love this picture and it reminds me of home.’ But many other people enjoy that picture, and they like that it provides them with a story about dairy farming. It’s a good way to start a conversation and make connections.” This summer, Leonard is working with the University of Minnesota dairy research team. One of her projects includes studying selective dry cow therapy to control mastitis and reduce the use of antibiotics. She visits dairies to collect milk samples for the study. Some of the farms she visits milk up to 2,000 cows, so she is able to observe how large dairies operate. She also learns about several methods of milking, feeding, bedding and housing cows. She feels this understanding of different types of dairy farms is im-

“As dairy princesses and ambassadors for the dairy community, we represent all shapes and sizes of dairy farms.” EMILY LEONARD, PRINCESS KAY FINALIST

portant for a dairy princess. “As dairy princesses and ambassadors for the dairy community, we represent all shapes and sizes of dairy farms,” Leonard said. “Each farm may differ in the methods they use, but they all have the same goal: to make a responsibly produced product in a way

that keeps animals and consumers in mind. The product comes from local farms. It is safe and nutritious to eat and drink, and the animals that create that product are well taken care of by farmers.” Representing the dairy industry in Carver County, Leonard speaks at libraries about dairy, hands out ice cream at banks, attends events and gives children dairy related items, visits nursing homes to distribute root beer or purple cow floats and play games, hands out ribbons at dairy shows and participates in the Carver County Breakfast on the Farm. Leonard said she enjoys educating people on milk’s many nutritional benefits for the body and mind. Leonard explains how dairy farmers take care of their cows and ensure the milk is safe. She likes talking about the breeds of cattle and explaining the differences between them. If crowned Princess Kay, Leonard would attend numerous events to support the dairy industry. She would give speeches, write articles and participate in parades. Leonard would also like to educate through social media and publish a variety of content, such as pictures of events, videos, information, and questions or contests that involve the readers. Support for the dairy industry, Leonard said, allows the farmers to continue to pass on their livelihood to future generations. “Living on a farm, you grow alongside the land and where the food supply is,” she said. “It grounds you. You appreciate the things around you.”

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Page 36 • Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021

PRINCESS KAY FINALIST

Vying to be a dairy influencer Erf represents Washington County in Princess Kay contest By Krista Kuzma

krista.k@dairystar.com

OAKDALE, Minn. – If crowned Princess Kay the night before the opening of the Minnesota State Fair in August, Kelsey Erf is ready to be in the spotlight in front of her peers. “I really want Princess Kay to be more of an influencer for people in her own age group so they can make that decision and be consumers for the rest of their lives,” said the 20-year-old soon-tobe junior at South Dakota State University where she is studying dairy science with a minor in communications. Erf is one of the 10 Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalists vying for the crown that represents the dairy farmers in Minnesota. She is the daughter of Dave and Kathy, who raise 20 dairy heifers on their farm in Washington County near Oakdale. Raising the Brown Swiss heifers for a southern Minnesota dairy farm has always been a part of Erf’s upbringing. Chores include feeding the animals, cleaning pens and helping with breeding schedules. Erf’s favorite chore, however, is helping prepare the animals for shows across the country during the summer. “That’s the piece I love the most because when I’m at the fairs, especially

LAURA HINTZEN/DAIRY STAR

Kelsey Erf is a Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalist represen ng Washington County. Erf and her family raise Brown Swiss heifers for a southern Minnesota dairy farm near Oakdale, Minnesota. the state fair, a lot of people come up and ask questions about our brown cows and that’s a great place for me to do some interaction with the public and make a difference that way,” Erf said. Answering questions about cows is

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routine for Erf, having attended school in the Stillwater school district with a graduating class of 701 people. “People definitely knew I was the girl who had the cows,” Erf said. “My friends had questions about how we raise our animals, especially toward the end of high school.” Other concerns the high schoolers talked about was being lactose intolerant. “I really enjoyed those conversations because I could talk to them about products dairy and how they could include dairy in their diet,” Erf said. Hard cheeses, lactose free dairy products and A2 milk are all products Erf suggested to her peers. “(These products) all can be easily digested by our bodies and still enjoy the nutrients in them,” she said. “(Lactose intolerant) people can have delicious dairy products without the discomfort. I like to talk about the science side especially with my dad being big into genomics talking about A2A2 milk.” She continued informing people while wearing the crown as a county

dairy princess starting in 2019. Erf likes to share how farmers are sustainable. “Dairy farmers are the ultimate recyclers,” Erf said. “They cut tires and weigh them down to secure their feed pile covering; cow manure is collected and taken to the fields as nutrients for crops that cows later consume. … Water is used to clean the parlor and later used to irrigate crops which are used to feed cows. I love sharing the little facts and tidbits with consumers because they just don’t know.” Prior to 2019, Erf did not qualify to be a dairy princess; however, that year the rules changed to include heifer raisers. “When the opportunity came up, I jumped at the chance,” Erf said. “Especially in a county where dairies are not as common as they used to be, it’s really good experience for me to go to events and be an advocate for dairy.” Prior to having the option to be a dairy princess, Erf had always dreamed of being a Princess Kay finalist. “It’s always been tradition for me and my siblings and parents to go watch the Princess Kay coronation even though we weren’t able to be dairy princesses ourselves,” she said. “I remember sitting there as a little kid, looking at Princess Kay getting crowned and all the girls being excited for her. I thought, ‘Yes, that’s something I want to do.’ My mom always told us, ‘Maybe one day.’” One day has come for Erf. If the crown is placed on her head on coronation night, Erf hopes to make the most of her year-long reign. “I want Princess Kay to be that trusted source on social media that consumers can consistently learn more and more how dairy is responsibly produced, nutrient rich, locally driven and how it offers real enjoyment,” she said. Social media is a good way to reach a wider audience, she said. “I don’t have thousands of followers, but I do love using social media as a tool,” Erf said. “Social media is becoming one of the most popular sources for people to get their information so I think now more than ever we need to be able to catch people’s eyes and be what is helping them influence their decisions when going to the grocery store.” However, nothing can beat an authentic in-person exchange, she said. “If crowned Princess Kay, I would want to have as many face-to-face conversations with consumers as possible from all walks of life,” Erf said. “I would look forward to doing as many of those as I could with consumers now that we’re getting back to in-person things.”

Oh-lah, kyeh-roh ah-prehn-dehr ehs-pah-nyohl

› Thanks for the work you do

Gracias por el trabajo que hace Grah-syahs pohr ehl trah-bah-hoh keh ah-seh

› God bless you Dios te bendiga

Dyohs teh behn-dee-gah

Have a phrase you want to learn? Submit your request to Jorge.

Jorge Delgado Talent Development Expert jdelgado@alltech.com

www.alltech.com/dairy-on-farm-support

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Kelsey Erf washes a Brown Swiss heifer Aug. 1 at her family’s farm near Oakdale, Minnesota.

Dairy Star • Saturday, August 14, 2021 • Page 37

Women In Dairy Rebecca Hilby Hazel Green, Wisconsin Grant County 18 milking cows of my own kept on a 350-cow dairy

Family: My husband, Joey, and I live on his grandparents’ farm where we raise bottle calves and Brown Swiss steers. We sell the meat at farmers markets and in our local community. We also raise feeder cattle, chickens and an embarrassing amount of cats. We have three children: Sophia, 4, Joe, 2, and Jackson, 1 month.

Tell us about your farm. I have been working at Weigel Dairy for over 12 years now. My roll on the farm changes, but ultimately I am the calf and heifer manager. We milk around 350 cows three times a day. The herd consists of mainly Holsteins, sprinkled in with my Brown Swiss cows and a few Jerseys, Milking Shorthorns and Ayrshires. I was blessed to be able to start my own herd on the farm and have enjoyed growing it.

What is the busiest time of day for you? The morning. When I head in to feed calves at the dairy in the morning, I never really know what awaits. New calves can always throw a curveball into my morning plans. I focus on getting new calves taken care of and milk fed. The rest can get done as I have the time. Afternoon is busy, too, but I’m more in mom mode at that point, so taking care of the kids and getting chores done at our farm keeps us busy. But, we can take our time with that.

When you get a spare moment what do you do? My husband and I both love to hunt when we’re able to. I also enjoy showing my dairy cattle, spending time with the kids, and enjoy vegging out on the couch every now and then.

Tell us about your most memorable experience working on the farm. My first cow that I owned was named Ellie May. She had calved when she came to the farm and had gotten her foot wrapped up in some barbed wire where she was previously housed. Her foot was kind of a mess. When she got to the farm, I made a little pen for her, and we put a calf on her. She was babied pretty heavily as her foot healed. With all the extra care she took, my boss gifted her to me. That was the start of my herd. She always had a bit of a limp, but went on to be a beautiful high-producing cow that gave me many heifers. What have you enjoyed most about dairy farming or your tie to the dairy industry? The people; in agriculture, you’ll find some of the most kind-hearted, hardworking people.

If you could give a tour of your farm to a prominent woman in today’s society, who would it be and why? I’m having a hard time thinking of anyone, but honestly, any mother with influence would be someone I’d love to give a tour to. So often people are misinformed about what happens on a dairy farm. While mothers are just trying to do what’s best for their kids, I love to connect with them to let them know that dairy is a great, healthy addition to any diet. To show them how well our animals are cared for and explain all the health benefits would in turn allow them to understand the importance of dairy in their child’s diet and spread the word to those who follow them and trust what they say. What is the best vacation you have ever taken? Explain. We don’t go on vacation very much, or ever really, but when we have a free day, we love to take the kids up to the cabin where we hunt. They get to fish and swim, and we get to escape for the day and enjoy the woods. It refreshes and resets us. What are some words you like to live by? “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail,” Ralph Waldo Emerson.

How do you stay connected with others in the industry? I stay connected mostly through social media. I love going to conferences and connecting in person, but with young kids, it is hard during this season of life. Social media allows me to connect with farmers on my own time and from the comfort of home, or wherever my phone may be. Who is someone in the industry who has inspired you? Why? Because I wasn’t raised on a farm, I have had so many people help me along the way and allow me to grow this passion for dairy. One woman who comes to mind is Shelly Mayer. She was always one of my biggest cheerleaders growing up. She encouraged me to get involved with different things, was our dairy judging coach, introduced me to people and always had my back and best interest in mind.

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