June 24, 2023 Dairy Star - 1st section - Zone 2

Read our Past, Present Future feature starting on page 13 of the 2nd section!

Drought threatens Wisconsin

Rain needed across state as dry weather continues

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

Following the wettest winter on record, Wisconsin experienced the fourth driest May in its history. June continued with the same dry pattern as the land got thirstier, pushing Wisconsin into what is known as a ash drought.

“Flash drought comes on very rapidly,” said Steve Vavrus, Wisconsin state climatologist. “It shocked me how quick the state transformed from not having any dry conditions on May 23 to about 90% of the state being abnormally dry and a quarter of the state in moderate drought by June 8. It’s remarkable.”

January through April marked the wettest start of any in Wisconsin. Therefore, an abundance of soil moisture helps to explain why crops are still looking decent.

“Subsoil conditions are in pretty good shape due to earlier

Sisters use dairy promotion to honor father’s legacy

By Abby Wiedmeyer abby.w@dairystar.com

MAUSTON, Wis. – When sisters Heidi Finucan and Abbie Erickson lost their father due to complications from a stroke 10 years ago, they were determined to honor his legacy somehow.

Then, they remembered he had been worried about the future of the dairy barn at Veteran’s Memorial Park where the Juneau County fair is held.

They decided to raise funds for a new building in his honor.

wetness percolating down to the soil,” Vavrus said. “If roots have tapped into that wet layer, they’re doing pretty well. But it’s not great if you’re talking about the top layer. Three-quarters of Wisconsin topsoil is rated short or very short. The closer you get to the surface, the drier the soil is.”

According to Vavrus, solar energy was high in May, and exceptionally dry air masses dried the soil out quickly. Relative humidity has been extremely low for this time of year, helping to suck moisture from the soil.

“A combination of not getting enough rainfall into the soil and dry air causing evaporation caused this ash drought we’re experiencing in Wisconsin,” Vavrus said.

The average statewide rainfall this May was 1.59 inches. From 1901 to 2000, May in Wisconsin averaged 3.54 inches of rainfall.

“To nd a drier May, you

have to go back to 1988,” Vavrus said. “Before that, the driest May occurred during the Dust Bowl of 1934.”

June started off as dry as May and was slightly worse up until recently. According to the Midwestern Regional Climate Center, from June 1 to June 16, Wisconsin received 40% of normal rainfall, as did May. Averaged across Wisconsin, June rainfall has been a meager 0.82 inches, even though June is typically Wisconsin’s wettest month, Vavrus said.

Last year at this time, the statewide rainfall average was 10% higher than normal.

“Precipitation was pretty typical last

PHOTO SUBMITTED

“We were looking for something to do as a tribute to his passing,” Heidi said. “We already had a pot started, and this was a way to keep raising that and have maintenance funds.”

The rst year they did the promotion, the funds were used toward building the Robert Holig Memorial Dairy Pavilion, a dairy building at the fairgrounds named after their father.

The sisters come from Cattail Dairy, where their family milks 350 cows near Wonewoc.

The average statewide rainfall for Wisconsin this May was 1.59 inches. From 1901 to 2000, May in Wisconsin averaged 3.54 inches of rainfall.

ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR

Abbie Erickson (le�) and her sister, Heidi Finucan, show off their farm’s cutout cow June 2 at Lion’s Park in Mauston, Wisconsin. The sisters are part of the Juneau County Dairy Promo�ons Council and use the cows to promote the dairy industry throughout the month of June.

To achieve their nancial goal, the sisters used a creative promotion idea. By making plywood cows, local businesses could then sponsor and decorate the cows however

they liked. The cows were then lined up in downtown Mauston from Memorial Day through the Fourth of July as a way to honor June Dairy Month and their father’s legacy as a dairyman.

Future. Pr esent, Past, Future. Past,Present,

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Letters

Class III milk prices have slipped into the high $15 level, causing problems for the entire dairy industry. AgResource Company President Dan Basse said it is a demand issue: “It’s really a problem in the whey market; China has not shown up for whey and that’s been leaning on price.” European butter imports into the United States have also surged. The combination has brought milk prices to their lowest level in a year and a half. Basse said the dairy industry is not in a good place. “The big problem would be if feed prices rocket to the upside due to a weather problem,” Basse said. “The only helpful aspect is that the price of beef is at a record high. That’s giving the cull cow market some opportunity.”

USDA drops milk production forecast

According to the June U.S. Department of Agriculture supply demand report, the 2023 milk production forecast is down from the previous month due to slower than previously expected growth in the amount of milk per cow. The annual production estimate is 228.4 billion pounds, down 200 million pounds from the May report. The forecast for 2024 milk production was left unchanged.

Dairy industry quanties its economic impact

The International Dairy Food Association has released its latest economic impact study. The report said the U.S. dairy industry’s economic impact totaled nearly $794 billion and is responsible for 3.2 million jobs. An additional 60,000 new jobs were created in the past two years.

Changes proposed for DMC update

Improvements are being recommended for the Dairy Margin Coverage program in a bill titled the Dairy Farm Resiliency Act. This bill would require the USDA to

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Ag Insider

update the production history calculation every ve years and be based on the higher production year out of the last three years. The proposal also increases the Tier 1 threshold from 5 million pounds to 6 million pounds to reect how the average herd size has risen since the 2018 farm bill.

New York Republican Marc Molinaro introduced this bill.

Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden is a co-sponsor.

Wolf delisting bill introduced

Legislation has been introduced in the Senate to delist the gray wolf from the endangered species list. This plan would create a region-specic plan to delist the wolf in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It would create an advisory committee to create the nal delisting rule for the region.

Dairy leaders travel to Singapore

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Con nued from AG INSIDER | Page 2 dairy ingredients through training and customer engagement.

Dairy innovation grants available

USDA is making $23 million in grant funds available for the Dairy Business Innovation program. This program supports the expansion of processing capacity, on-farm improvements and technical assistance for dairy farmers. The application process continues until Aug. 10.

Governor visits cheese plants

In recognition of June Dairy Month, Gov. Tony Evers toured two Wisconsin cheese processing plants June 14, Chalet Cheese of Monroe and Arena Cheese of Arena. Both facilities have received dairy processor grants from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

Doud to succeed Mulhern at NMPF

The National Milk Producers Federation board of directors has unanimously voted to name Gregg Doud as its next president and CEO. Doud will succeed Jim Mulhern, who is retiring at the end of the year. Doud was the chief agricultural trade negotiator during the Trump administration. Doud is now with Aimpoint Research. Previously, the Kansas native was president of the Commodity Markets Council, chief economist for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee professional staff.

Wagner moves to IDFA

The International Dairy Foods Association has named Roberta Wagner as its senior vice president of regulatory and scientic affairs. Wagner succeeds Joseph Scimeca, who announced his retirement earlier this year. Wagner comes to IDFA from Consumer Brands Association, formerly known as the Grocery Manufacturers Association.

Dairy checkoff election results announced

On July 1, nine dairy farmers will begin a new three-year term on the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin board. The producers elected are Brenda Schloneger of Shell Lake, Andrew Christenson of Amery, David Bangart of Glenwood, Tasha Schleis of Kewaunee, Jonathon

Hallock of Mondovi, Janet Clark of Rosendale, Mark Crave of Watertown, Ann Kieler of Plattville and Kristen Metcalf of Milton.

FFA ofcer team elected Mary Schreiber of East Troy FFA is the new Wisconsin state FFA president. The balance of the state ofcer team includes Section 1 representative Brooke Wittrock of Bloomer, Section 2 representative Sophie Koehler of Chippewa Falls, Section 3 representative Jescey Thompson of GalesvilleEttrick-Trempealeau, Section 4 representative Stevie Cobb of Black Hawk FFA and Section 5 representative Linsey Mueller. Julie Lenz of Markesan represents Section 6, joined by Elizabeth Reinart of Granton for Section 7, Amber Bunnell of Seymour for Section 8, Amy Jentges of Random Lake for Section 9 and Henry Koerner of Big Foot for Section 10.

Record membership

At the state convention, the Wisconsin FFA announced it has a membership of 25,245 statewide. That is a new record.

Compeer donates to UW-Platteville pilot dairy project

The Compeer Financial Fund for Rural America has made a $1 million gift to the University of WisconsinPlatteville for its proposed dairy pilot plant and training center. The $10 million project will bring in researchers and students to develop new valueadded dairy products. This is the largest ever grant made by the Compeer Financial fund.

Trivia challenge

It takes 10 pounds of milk to make 1 pound of cheese. That answers our last trivia question. For this week’s trivia, how many pounds of whole milk are needed to produce 1 pound of ice cream? We will have the answer in our next edition of Dairy Star.

Don Wick is owner/broadcaster for the Red River Farm Network, based in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Wick has been recognized as the National Farm Broadcaster of the Year and served as president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. Don and his wife, Kolleen, have two adult sons, Tony and Sam, and ve grandchildren, Aiden, Piper, Adrienne, Aurora and Sterling.

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Con nued from DROUGHT | Page 1 year and very atypical this year,” Vavrus said. “However, there are indications we’re going to see more normal rainfall typical of the June weather map coming up for the rest of the month. But it can’t just be normal. We need a surplus to make up for what we lost in the last six weeks.”

Vavrus said the real culprit for this dry period is the persistent dome of high pressure sitting over Canada.

“It created really dry northeasterly wind ow into Wisconsin and northeast U.S., also bringing in the wildre smoke we’ve been experiencing in the northeast,” Vavrus said. “Until that big dome moves away, it’s going to be difcult to get more rainfall. We need a southernly ow from the Gulf to break this pattern.”

Vavrus said the driest band can be found in the southern third of the state. An area close to the Wisconsin/ Minnesota border near Minneapolis is also under drought conditions. Drought is measured on a scale from 1 to 5, and Vavrus said the southern part of the state is currently a category 2. Considerable rain fell June 18 in parts of western Wisconsin, including areas in La Crosse and Trempealeau counties that received in excess of 2 inches.

“Illinois transitioned into a ash drought even earlier than Wisconsin, and Missouri is even harder hit,” Vavrus said. “Parts of Illinois look similar to Wisconsin, but Missouri is suffering more.”

Higher pressure dominating over the middle of the U.S. is contributing to hotter weather. As temperatures rise, the effects of drought are amplied.

“It looks like it’s going to heat up which is not good news as it would mean more evaporation from the soils,” Vavrus said. “It’s easier to predict temperature than precipitation. Summer rainfall is especially hard to predict as conditions have to be just right for a good rainfall.”

For now, crops continue to hang on through the dryness but are in great need of rain. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Crop Progress & Condition Report for Wisconsin as of June 20, 50% of corn was considered to be in good to excellent condition. All hay condition was reported as 43% good to excellent, while 52% of soybeans were in good to excellent condition. Oats were 48% good to excellent, and winter wheat was 48% good to excellent. Pasture conditions were rated 39% good to excellent.

The rain that fell the week of June 11 provided relief to only certain areas of the state. Brian Huenink, who milks 75 cows and farms about 500 acres near Cedar Grove in Sheboygan County, was grateful for the inch of rain he received June 11-13.

The precipitation was long awaited for Huenink, who only received 0.2-inch of rain during the month of May. His farm saw no rain in June until the 11th when he was happy to get a half inch. On June 13, he received another half inch.

“We’re feeling blessed at the moment,” Huenink said. “It was almost like you could hear the corn growing when we got that rst rain.”

A portion of Huenink’s acreage is dedicated to the dairy while the rest is used for growing certied seeds. Huenink is a Wisconsin certied seed grower of small grains and soybeans. Now, Huenink is waiting to see if the crops that did not come up before will make an appearance.

“An agronomist told me that if moisture doesn’t increase a seed’s volume more than 10%, it can stay viable for up to four weeks, waiting for that moisture to come,” Huenink said. “If it goes past that, it might not develop.”

His soybean eld is emerging but not so much on the higher ground.

“Is the seed still viable or will it fail to come out of the ground?” Huenink

said. “If it doesn’t come up, we will have lots of different maturity levels in the same eld, which we’ll have to manage, but the bigger concern is that we’ll have bare spots in the eld.”

Huenink said the same thing happened with corn but to a lesser extent.

“The corn came up and got 3 to 4 inches tall and then stopped until we got that last rainfall,” Huenink said.

The rain came at just the right point for Huenink’s alfalfa.

“We were starting to get some nice regrowth from the moisture still carrying in the soil from a wet spring, but there were pretty big cracks in the ground, and it needed a shot of rain,” he said.

Huenink planted his small grains in April – a month earlier than normal –during a small window where he said it was dry enough to no till them into the ground.

“They were also waiting for rain,” Huenink said. “It was up but not going crazy yet. The rain will allow them to take off. Our winter rye and winter wheat look really good. There’s maybe not quite as much straw or height as a normal year, but overall they look pretty tolerant for lack of moisture.”

Huenink’s biggest concern remains his corn and soybeans, but with the recent precipitation he received, Huenink is feeling optimistic.

“If you look at the whole year up to this point, we’re really not that far off,” he said. “Our November through April was really wet with more precipitation than usual. Then in May, we had a dry out. We went from one extreme to the other in a short period of time. Overall, we’re still behind on moisture as far as what crops need, but the inch of rain we got recently was a big revival for it.”

Having received less than an inch of rain in the last month and a half, things are pretty dry at Donovan Huebner’s farm in Columbia County. Huebner received 0.4inch of rain June 10.

“That is the only rain we’ve had since the end of May,” he said. “It’s dry, and there is no rain in the immediate forecast.”

Huebner milks 700 cows and farms 3,000 acres near Columbus. He said the last time it was wet was when he planted beans May 7.

“All in all, the crops are doing OK, but our corn that was planted later is not even out of the ground yet on the hills,” Huebner said. “Some of our ground is a little sandy, and that doesn’t look as good, but a lot of our ground is clay, and with the manure on it, it’s doing all right.”

Huebner said his pre-emergence spray was not effective because there was no rain to activate it, and he will have to spray again.

“We already sprayed our alfalfa because we have bug pressure right now since it’s so dry,” Huebner said.

The last time Huebner saw conditions this dry was in 2021. Vavrus said there was a widespread drought that year, and some places reached severe drought. Prior to that, 2012 was the driest with parts of the state rated a category 4, and at times 50% of the state was in a category 3 drought.

“It was an exceptionally hot and dry summer that year – not just in Wisconsin but in the entire Midwest – and there were a lot of crop losses,” Vavrus said. “Some places even had extreme drought.”

Vavrus said 1994 produced a dry spring and early summer that bounced back and ended up being a bumper crop year that was one of the best in history. The same could hold true for 2023 unless dry conditions persist.

“The question is, are we transitioning into something bigger?” Vavrus said. “Things could take a turn for the worse pretty quickly if we don’t get some rainfall soon.”

Steve Vavrus Climatologist

Their mom, Joan Holig-McCormick, remains the owner/operator of the dairy, while Abbie is the herd and calf manager and also manages the personnel department. Abbie’s husband, Andrew, runs the heifer facility, which is on a separate site from the dairy.

Heidi works as the emergency room director in Mauston while her husband, Craig, manages herd health at the dairy. The girls’ brother, Cory Holig, is the crop and eld manager and also manages the custom farming operations they provide. Cory’s wife, Cassie, works off the farm as a dietitian.

Abbie and Heidi operate through the Juneau County Dairy Promotions Council to execute the promotion.

The council is a derivative of the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and uses checkoff dollars to promote the dairy industry throughout the year. Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin is a non-prot organization funded by Wisconsin dairy farmers. It was created to increase the sale and consumption of Wisconsin dairy products. Funds from the council are used for supplies, and any money earned is reinvested in Veteran’s Memorial Park.

So far, the group has helped install both a sound system – so that all the buildings are connected with speakers

and a security system with cameras. Also, concrete work has been done, and tables and chairs have been purchased to keep in the hall to enhance the fair experience.

Area businesses who participate purchase a cow for $125, while nonprot or youth organizations purchase a cow for $50. The sponsors paint the cows however they want, and Abbie and Heidi, along with the rest of their dairy promotions committee, display the cows in town. For the past several years, the cows have been displayed in Lions Park in Mauston.

“The excitement that builds around it is great,” Abbie said. “It brings the community together, and, being at the park, it’s interesting to look at.”

The rst year of the promotion, there were approximately 45 plywood cows lined up in downtown Mauston. The promotion had such a positive response that the tradition has continued for the last decade with more continually being added. This year there are over 80 cows on display.

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the promotion, a theme was used for the rst time – Udder Nonsense. The sisters made a contest of it, with the person or business having the winning use of the theme being awarded $50 and a bag of dairy products. The siblings used

the theme themselves, decorating a cow for their own farm with milk alternatives labeled as nonsense.

Photos of each individual cow are posted on the council’s Facebook page where people can vote for their favorite cow. The cow with the most likes is deemed the winner, and the business is awarded $100 and free sponsorship for the following year.

The cutout cows are the council’s biggest fundraiser, Abbie said. Each year, two people from each promotion committee meet in person to share ideas and report to Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin how the funds were used. They were able to use the cutout cow promotion to apply for additional funding, which they received.

Abbie and Heidi head their council, along with their mother and another area farmer, Sandy Madland. The four have worked together to keep the council going over the last decade and are working hard to include more people from surrounding areas.

“We’re hoping to get some more ideas going and some more help,” Abbie said. “These funds come from checkoff dollars, so it’s really valuable for dairy farmers in the area to bring it back to their own community.”

Heidi agreed.

“Raising awareness of the dairy industry and agriculture, and what the community and the county have to offer, makes an impact,” Heidi said. “Just 80 cows along a fence does a lot.”

ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR

Plywood painted cows line the fence at Lions Park in Mauston, Wisconsin, as part of a dairy promo on. Abbie Erickson and Heidi Finucan spearheaded the promo on 10 years ago.

Expanding the dairy market in Southeast Asia

Krause visits Singapore through USDEC

By Jan Lefebvre jan.l@star-pub.com

BUFFALO, Minn. – Until this spring, Charles Krause had never left his dairy farm near Buffalo for more than six days in a row. However, June 1 he traveled for two days to reach Southeast Asia with seven dairy farmers from across the U.S.

The group was on a weeklong learning mission to see what the Center for Dairy Excellence in Singapore was doing to promote U.S. dairy exports. The center is part of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, funded primarily through checkoff dollars through Dairy Management Inc.

Krause, who milks 350 cows and farms 500 acres near Buffalo, said the trip had been in the making ever since the center rst opened its doors.

“The center actually opened up through (the coronavirus pandemic), and we’ve tried for three years to arrange this,” Krause said. “We nally were able to get some farmers over there to see it in person. The center had been running for those three years – about a dozen people work out of the ofce there or call it their homebase.”

Krause, chair of Midwest Dairy’s corporate board, serves as secretary on the national board of dairy farmers through United Dairy Industries Association of which Midwest Dairy has six seats. The board makes up part of the larger national board for DMI.

Having an exports promotion center in Singapore offers several benets for promoting dairy.

“Sixty-ve percent of the world’s population is in the Pacic rim – going

from China, India and Southeast Asia –so we thought that would be a good place to start to have a presence on the ground,” Krause said. “Four of our top 10 export markets are in Southeast Asia for U.S. dairy.”

In Southeast Asia, the USDEC currently focuses on the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia out of the Singapore site. In that market, Krause said, the Philippines accounts for the biggest share of U.S. dairy exports at 31%, followed by Indonesia at 27%, Vietnam at 17% and Malaysia at 12%.

“With a large population base there and a growing economy, people have money, and they want to buy good protein and dairy products,” Krause said. “In Southeast Asia alone, there are 600 million people – consumers – very much a growing demographic that we want to reach with U.S. dairy.”

A goal for U.S. dairy exporters is to compete with New Zealand and Australia, which have historically garnered the lion’s share of dairy export business in that area.

“The U.S. has always played second ddle to Australia and New Zealand,” Krause said. “One-third of the population in Southeast Asia is 14 years old and younger. If we can get (U.S. dairy) in their lives when they are younger, hopefully it will follow them through their lives. We want them to not buy from Australia, New Zealand or even the European Union.”

The USDEC was formed around 26 years ago and has since found gradual success in increasing exports.

“At that point, we were basically exporting nothing – 3% – and now last year

we were at 18%,” Krause said. “Nearly one out of every ve days of milk is exported out of this country.”

The Center for Dairy Excellence was built in Singapore for a reason. It is the biggest shipping-container port in the world, largely because of its location and its free-trade status.

“We spent a whole day touring (Port Singapore Authority), and it’s amazing the number of ships and amount of cargo that comes in and out of that country every day,” Krause said. “Thirty-seven million containers a year go through that port. It’s a free-trade zone, so it’s very attractive for businesses to avoid paying

tariffs on some things and to move their product in and out. The port is very business-friendly.”

Krause compared the large ship trafc there to the few 1,000-foot cargo ships he has seen at Lake Superior in Duluth on a given day.

“As far as you can see (in the port of Singapore), you can’t see the end of the ships coming,” Krause said. “It’s hundreds and hundreds of ships all along the whole coast, coming and going all day long.”

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Julian Cardona of DFA (from le ), dairy farmer Charles Krause, Victor Kan of DFA, and dairy farmers Larry Hancock, Alex Peterson and Kate Fogler gather June 5 at the Dairy Farmers of America Inc. Singapore headquarters. DFA hosted a weeklong learning tour to showcase its Center for Dairy Excellence in Singapore, which works to promote and increase U.S. dairy exports in Southeast Asia.

Turn to KRAUSE | Page 9

Con nued from HASTINGS | Page 8

Center for Dairy Excellence staff hope to increase the amount of U.S. dairy coming to port on those ships. The building offers three prongs for achieving this.

The rst is a test kitchen where products are developed, tailored to taste preferences of Southeast Asian consumers.

“We got to sample some of those,” Krause said. “A lot of the things we are exporting are powder products – whole milk, skim milk powder, whey protein isolates. One of the things they are exploring is using milk permeate, which we never really knew existed 15 years ago. They’re using this as a replacement for salt in a lot of the foods.”

Krause said Southeast Asian government entities and consumers, especially in Singapore where the population is older, are salt-conscious with their diets.

“They are able to use permeate and eliminate a lot of the salt but still maintain that same taste prole,” Krause said.

As products are developed, the second prong of the center, a product-feedback lab, is utilized. There consumers are brought in to try the products, recording their assessments of taste, appearance, texture and other aspects of each product.

Some of the products receiving good feedback are three-in-one foods and beverages that are popular now in Asia. Consumers seem to favor a balance of taste and health, especially valuing added protein, so the center is trying to add more of that to products.

Two such products Krause and his group sampled were a honey-ginger-milky beverage and a proteinmalty-hot chocolate. Krause said, although they were not necessarily to his taste, he still liked them.

The third prong of the center is its offering of meeting spaces for bringing in buyers and other groups to experience the center’s product developments and make connections with the center’s team.

“You can’t just have a great dairy product and expect people to buy it unless there is human interaction and you have a relationship,” Krause said. “That’s why we found importance in getting the Center for Dairy Excellence open and having people work on our behalf, being a voice for the American dairy farmers.”

The center even brings in members of the Southeast Asian culinary communities and demonstrates to them how to use U.S. dairy products in various dishes and cuisine.

“Having the Center for Dairy Excellence over there gives the ability to bring in all kinds of different customers,” Krause said. “It could be restaurants, hotels, suppliers to grocery stores and others. We want to reach them and show them the capabilities that U.S. dairy has and show them how we can be an assistance to them, giving them the technical backing that they need and answering their questions.”

Krause and his group also visited a few grocery stores there and saw U.S. cheese on the shelves, primarily from California and the West Coast.

The center’s team has been working to change the old image of U.S. dairy as being too inconsistent in product ow, making it risky for overseas buyers to contract with.

“It used to be 10 to 15 years ago, whenever we had too much milk, we’d dump all this powder on the world,” Krause said. “We were known as an unreliable source as to consistent export markets, and some people were leery about teaming with us because we would only sell stuff if we had too much. That is not who we are anymore; now we are a consistent supplier of sustainably produced dairy products.”

Even if dairy is exported from areas not in the Midwest, Krause said it is a benet for all U.S. dairy farmers.

“If California doesn’t export the majority of their product, it gets put on the domestic market, and we can’t consume all that,” Krause said. “It clears the way for our

(Midwest) products to go to other parts of the country.”

Krause said the overall goal is for steady, continuous growth in the export market.

“Ninety-six percent of the world’s population is not in the United States, so we have to go beyond and access the people around the world,” Krause said. “Dairy farm-

ers are very good at what we do. We produce a sustainable, nutritious product, and every year we produce a little bit more. It’s almost a linear line, 1% to 2% more every year, and we need to nd value-added markets and to move that.”

Buying? Selling? Check the classieds!

Adding unique value to cheese byproduct

Eight bolts later, it will look like it was born there. Legendary kernel processors for pull-type forage harvesters. Legendary dairy nutrition and profits. Turn a wrench and turn it loose.

Copper Crow Distillery creates whey-based spirits in Wisconsin

By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

BAYFIELD, Wis. – When an injury brought forth the time for Curtis Basina to retire from his law enforcement career with the Wisconsin State Patrol, he was ready to look for a new place to direct his energy and interest. He found that in what would become the Copper Crow Distillery LLC near Bayeld.

“I have always enjoyed math and science,” Basina said of how he became interested in distilling. “Looking at it from a business standpoint, no one in the immediate area was doing any distillation. The Greater Bayeld Area is very highly visited with the national park.”

For several years, Basina and his wife, Linda, attended conferences on the topic of distilling and toured distilleries, wineries and breweries as they traveled.

“After a while, I told Linda no one was doing distillation here, and we saw it as an opportunity,” Basina said. “So, we made the investment, and six years later, here we are.”

For Basina, uniqueness is part of the intrigue in operating the distillery.

At a conference Basina attended in Seattle, Washington, Basina connected with course leader Rusty Figgins, who encouraged him to try something new and different in his distillations: creating spirits distilled from whey.

“Rusty grabbed me and took me off to the side and said, ‘You’re from Wisconsin, the dairy state; you need to look at doing something from dairy,’” Basina said. “He told me I needed to look at working specically with whey. He told me it wasn’t easy, and that it involved a lot of math and science, but he offered to get me going in a general direction. It wasn’t necessarily my rst choice, but I decided to give it a whirl.”

Distilling with whey is a complicated process, Basina said, because lactose sugar does not ferment well.

According to Basina, there are two ways to make lactose sugar ferment.

“There is a really expensive yeast that should be able to ferment all the available sugars; lactose

is composed of glucose and galactose,” Basina said. “The way we chose to do it is to hit that lactose sugar real hard with an enzyme and bust those sugars apart.”

Through a series of small-scale experiments, Basina determined what enzyme would most efciently accomplish the result he wished to achieve.

“We soon determined we could readily ferment the glucose, but the galactose did not want to ferment very well,” Basina said. “We accepted that and started up the experimentation to the point where we’re at now.”

To create the whey spirits, Basina procures his whey from Burnett Dairy in Grantsburg. He travels to the plant at least once a month and picks up three totes of whey on a trailer. The whey is pasteurized again by Burnett Dairy, eliminating a step for Basina.

Once the whey arrives at the distillery, Basina processes it, preparing it for fermentation.

“We cut it down slightly with water and heat it just to a temperature that the yeast likes,” Basina said. “The whey comes out of Burnett Dairy at about 48 degrees Fahrenheit, and the yeast doesn’t like to grow at that temperature. We heat it up to between 80 to 85 degrees, adjust the pH, add the enzymes. We separate three totes into four totes to allow for expansion from the fermentation. Then, we add the yeast.”

Once the whey goes through the rst segment of the distillation process, Basina said about 50 gallons will remain.

“Once we save enough from the stripping runs to charge the big still, then we will do the nish run and make very big cuts, keeping only the very best,” Basina said.

Currently, Basina is producing a whey gin and a whey vodka.

“By denition, vodka is supposed to be neutral –no smell, no taste – and it needs to come out of that still at 190-proof,” Basina said. “Gin is essentially the original avored vodka. We do a little bit different process to make gin than others do, but essentially, you are adding a bunch of botanicals and juniper because gin is supposed to have a juniper forward.”

Basina received a Dairy Business Builder Grant from the Dairy Business Innovation Alliance to help increase his whey-based distillation efforts into new products.

717.354.5040 | New Holland, PA

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Cur s Basina displays a batch of bi ers he is working on developing May 10 in Bayeld, Wisconsin. Basina is developing the bi ers as part of the Dairy Business Builder grant he received.

“The grant doesn’t cover our existing whey-based products, but we can use it to develop new products,” Basina said. “That is where we came up with the idea of aging some of the vodka and gin. We are producing an amaretto that uses whey and an aquavit. We are maybe going to try and do an absinthe and a coffee liqueur. One of the things we’re really excited about is using whey as a base spirit to make bitters.”

The Copper Crow Distillery is the rst Native American-owned distillery in the U.S., and the rst distillery to be located on tribal land, Basina said.

Basina grew up in nearby Washburn where his father was a teacher. Basina’s father, a tribal member, grew up on the Red Cliff Indian Reservation near Bayeld and was one of the rst tribal members to attend college. His wife is also an enrolled tribal member from Red Cliff and grew up in nearby Bayeld proper.

“We were living in Superior, and when I retired, we bought a house in Bayeld and some property in Red Cliff,” Basina said of how the distillery came to be located on tribal land. “We sold the house in town and built one in Red Cliff.”

When naming the newly launched distillery, Basina said he chose the name Copper Crow for a variety of reasons.

“Copper is a very useful metal

Val Schumann

35 years with DHIA

in the distilling process,” he said. … “It is also somewhat native to this area. Finally, it’s a little bit of a play on words, being I used to be a cop. If you know about crows and watch them for a while, they are extremely smart and very family-oriented. In our culture, they help us nd our way. The building was designed to somewhat resemble a crow, if you get back away from it. There is some really great lore that goes along with native culture and crows.”

DHIA PROFILE

What has been key to your longevity with DHIA? An appreciation for the members that we serve at Minnesota DHIA. I love working with them and the cows.

What is your current title and some of the jobs you do? I am the data ow manager. During my time with DHIA, I have done just about everything to do with the service to our members. Quality control, software support, putting data together for our annual summary, day-to-day processing of records, working with DairyComp 305 programmers to implement improvements and upgrades, relief testing and training. Currently, I am the main trainer for new eld techs.

What do you like about your role for DHIA? Getting on your farms and having that one-on-one interaction. When I have helped one of our members, and they tell me, “You’ve just made my day or my job easier.” Sharing what we offer to eld techs and members so they can implement changes or improvements.

What message would you like to send to the dairy farmers you work with? Thank you for allowing me to serve you. It’s been a fun, challenging, sometimes frustrating but always interesting job.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? We enjoy getting away to property up north to relax. I enjoy deer hunting, gardening, reading, spending time with my grandkids, kids and other family members and napping; naps are good.

DHIA: Now MORE than ever

“Thank you for allowing me to serve you.”

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Cur s Basina explains the rst-run dis lla on process May 10 at Copper Crow Dis llery in Bayeld, Wisconsin. Basina has been producing a whey gin and a whey vodka.

Going once, going twice … sold

Live auctions, cattle show highlights of Dane County Breakfast on the Farm

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

VERONA, Wis. – Hosting a breakfast on the farm is something Riley Kahl always wanted to do. As a result, this auctioneer and former dairy farmer began planning the day’s festivities years in advance. Kahl wanted to give people the opportunity to witness things he felt most had probably not seen before – a dairy show and a live auction.

“I’ve been thinking about this for ve years,” Kahl said. “In order to keep people coming, you have to do different things. I like to do things no one else would do, and I wanted to have a dairy show just like at the fair.”

Featuring 15 calves and heifers, the show ended up being one of the biggest attractions of the breakfast. Various breeds including Brown Swiss, Guernsey, Holstein, Red and White Holstein and Jersey were shown by local 4-H youth.

“The cattle show exceeded my expectations,” Kahl said. “It was packed.”

The 44th annual Dane

County Breakfast on the Farm took place June 10 from 7-11:30 a.m. at the Kahl Family Farm near Verona. Purchased by his parents in 1959, the farm is Kahl’s childhood home. Kahl milked cows until 1998 and continues to farm 300 acres of corn and soybeans.

“Dairy is in my blood,” Kahl said. “I miss the cows every day.”

Educating others about agriculture and the dairy industry remain passions of Kahl.

“Too many people have a false idea about what dairy is, and they form an opinion,” Kahl said. “The breakfast is an opportunity to educate people who live in town about dairy. Many farmers and volunteers were here to help provide that education. It was a great day.”

Mike Marean, member of the Dane County Dairy Promotion Committee, has helped coordinate the breakfast for more than 20 years.

“It’s becoming harder and harder to nd true operating dairy farms that are willing to host breakfast on the farm,” Marean said. “That’s why we made a special point to bring in heifers and other animals.

Riley is a long-time supporter of the breakfast. Every year, he donates tents and brings his auction trailers for selling tickets. He’s done a lot for the event over the years.”

Show animals spent the night before the breakfast at Kahl’s farm, and kids used his wash rack to prepare their

animals for the show, which was judged by Ryan Smith of Monticello. After the show, the exhibitors walked their cattle among the crowds of people, answering questions and offering kids in the audience an opportunity to show in the future.

“A farmer who had open

heart surgery still came to the breakfast and brought Guernseys from his farm for the show,” Kahl said. “That’s the kind of people farmers are. They keep their word no matter what.”

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

Riley Kahl, auc oneer and former dairy farmer, hosted Dane County Breakfast on the Farm June 10 on his farm near Verona, Wisconsin. Kahl has done a couple thousand auc ons through his business, Imkahlng Auc ons, and remains commi ed to educa ng others about agriculture and the dairy industry.

Guests enjoyed a breakfast of pancakes, cheesy eggs, sausage, cheese, yogurt, milk and ice cream. About 4,900 meals were served. While waiting in line, people could sign an autograph board.

“It’s a great memento for us,” Kahl said.

Guests also took in various auctions while at Kahl’s farm. Excitement lled the air as the rst of two live auctions began at 8:30 a.m. The rst one took place during the breakfast and featured donations from local businesses – nearly 50 items – including gift cards, cheese, toy tractors, car detailing services and more. The proceeds, which totaled $1,500, were donated to the Community Action Coalition which supports Dane County and neighboring counties with food and housing assistance.

At 11:30 a.m., the Kahls transitioned to a live consignment auction, selling everything from owers to machinery. About a dozen auctioneers came to assist Kahl that day. Rotating through various auctioneers offered those in attendance a sampling of different auctioneering styles.

“Some people came for breakfast and stayed for the second auction as well,” Kahl said.

Kahl was also in the midst of a 10-day online auction set up in one of his buildings that breakfast on the farm goers could view and bid on.

“I wanted to bring an awareness to auctions, and people had the chance to learn about different types of auctions that day,” Kahl said. “Post pandemic, many auctions went online when before, they were traditionally live. A lot of people don’t understand how an online auction works unless they visually see one.”

Kahl’s love for auctioneering started at a young age. He grew up as his grandpa’s right-hand man, working on the farm and attending auctions together. Kahl became registered as a licensed auctioneer in 1995 and is the current president of the Wisconsin Auctioneers Association and a member of the National Auctioneers Association. He has a couple thousand auctions under his belt through his business, Imkahlng Auctions.

“I love being able to help people,” Kahl said. “When they have all these

things in their house or garage and they call an auctioneer, they feel better afterward.”

From fair and farm auctions to estate auctions and beyond, Kahl said he will pretty much sell anything.

“It would be boring if I just specialized in one thing,” he said. “Sometimes, you don’t realize how valuable something is and you might start the bidding at $2.50 and it ends up selling for $1,000. Everything is unique in its own way.”

When it comes to bid calling, Kahl said every auctioneer has their own chant.

“To be an auctioneer is way more than just the chant though,” he said. “It’s about marketing and preparing and putting the auction together. There is a lot of preparation involved.”

Kahl did 96 auctions last year, including online, live and benet. He also helps other auctioneers. In September 2021, Kahl did a 24-hour live auction on his farm.

“I’m so busy that I’m booked for at least three years,” he said.

Breakfast on the farm also included a petting zoo, vendor booths, antique tractors and live music. The ice cream booth welcomed a non-stop line, treating people to three avors, including cookies and cream, strawberry and salted caramel. In addition, Yahara Pride Farms piqued curiosity with a water quality demonstration.

Alice in Dairyland Taylor Schaefer and Wisconsin Fairest of the Fairs Sharlene Swedlund were there along with Pam Jahnke from Mid-West Farm Report. The crowning of Dane County Fairest of the Fair Aubrey Schlimgen also took place that day.

“When people asked me, ‘Why would you want to host breakfast on the farm?’, my response was, ‘Why wouldn’t you?’” Kahl said. “I always take the call of another auctioneer, and in life, you have to take the call too.”

Some people skipped the food and came for the other events, and Kahl estimates 7,000 people visited his family’s farm June 10.

Marean and other members of the dairy promotion committee felt the breakfast was a huge success.

“It was an excellent day,” Marean said.

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

Riley Kahl captures bids June 10 while Carol Miller sells items during one of two live auc ons that took place that day at the Dane County Breakfast on the Farm. The proceeds from one of the auc ons, which totaled $1,500, were donated to the Community Ac on Coali on which supports Dane County and neighboring coun es with food and housing assistance.

from our side our side OF THE FENCE THE

How does this year’s first-crop hay harvest compare to previous years?

Jared Taylor Colfax, Wisconsin Dunn County

120 cows

Tell us about your rst-crop hay harvest. We chopped 120 acres of alfalfa May 25-27 and put it in silage bags for the dairy cows. On June 8, we baled 30 acres of grass mix (timothy, brome, fescue, alfalfa and trefoil) as dry hay for the dry cows and bred heifers.

What was the yield? Considering how dry the weather has been, the hay yielded pretty good. The alfalfa was cut at early bud and made 400 feet of a 9-foot bag. The grass hay yielded roughly 3.5 bales (4- by 5-feet) an acre.

How does this year’s rst crop compare to previous years? Compared to the last few years, this year was average or slightly above.

What challenges have you had and how did you manage to work through them? The weather window was huge, and no hay was rained on. Some did get slightly drier then we prefer, due to mild breakdowns, but it is all nice feed. There was mild winter kill in some of the older stands. Ten acres got killed and planted in corn before harvest while another 30 acres was thinner or had random dead spots. However, it still yielded OK. It has been very dry, but the regrowth seems to be OK.

How are you planning to manage your hayelds through the rest of the season? Three days ago, we noticed the second crop that is coming has a major bug problem. The plan is to spray for bugs this week. Weed pressure seems mild. Some older stands (30 acres) will get manure spread on them through the summer. We won’t cut it once we do that; we will just leave it for corn next year. Our cutting interval is 30 days with alfalfa (four cuttings). Our second-crop grass hay will get cut the middle to the end of July and will be dry hay for youngstock. We make three cuttings of that; the third is also for youngstock. We also have 20 acres of new-seeding alfalfa with oats and peas planted with it that will be harvested as silage in two weeks.

Tell us about your farm. Our farm is home to 120 Holsteins housed in a freestall barn and milked in a parlor. We do some grazing with the milk cows, and all heifers are pastured in the summer. I farm along with my dad, Jeff, and brother, Phil. Corn silage and hay are the only crops we commonly grow.

Joe Nickelotti La Crescent, Minnesota Winona County 80 cows

Tell us about your rst-crop hay harvest. I’m by myself, so harvesting is slow. I started May 24 and nished June 15. I’m harvesting 150 acres for haylage.

What was the yield? The yield was good because most of my hay was new seeding from the past two years, but is there going to be a second crop because of the drought? It will all be fed to the dairy cows.

How does this year’s rst crop compare to previous years? The rst crop is comparable to other years, but how do we know if we will get a second crop with as dry as it is out here on the farm? The acres are the same as other years.

What challenges have you had and how did you manage to work through them? My problem is nding help. I have three wagons, so I chop three loads, unload three loads, then chop three loads. When you are milking cows morning and night too, you don’t get much done in a day.

How are you planning to manage your hayelds through the rest of the season? I was hoping to get four cuttings on the early stuff, but with the drought, I’m thinking I might just get three cuttings. I might have to wait longer on cutting second crop, hope for a rain and hopefully get a third crop. The interval will depend on what is there in the eld.

Tell us about your farm. I have a stall barn that holds 68 and a freestall barn that holds 40, so I have to switch cows for milking. I sell to Elba Creamery. It’s a three-hour process for chores morning and night between switching and feeding cows. I used to have 100 cows, but I went to the hospital in February with several herniated discs, so I cut back my cows to 80. I breed all my cows to beef, sell the calves and purchase my replacements.

Scott Demulling New Richmond, Wisconsin St. Croix County 65 cows

Tell us about your rst-crop hay harvest. We did 85 acres of alfalfa hay. We started cutting rst crop May 28 and cut the last of it June 1.

What was the yield? I don’t know precise tonnage numbers, but I was extremely pleased with the amount of rst crop we harvested. We lled an 18- by 70-foot silo and made 90, 3- by 3- by 8-foot big squares off those acres. This will primarily be fed to milking cows.

How does this year’s rst crop compare to previous years? I would say this year’s crop is very comparable to other years’ rst-crop alfalfa hay. Winter kill wasn’t a factor this year since we had so much snow cover this past winter. There was little to no frost where the snow cover was undisturbed. Most of our snow melt went into the ground because of this.

What challenges have you had and how did you manage to work through them? Weevils have been a major problem in our area since cutting, the worst we have seen in years. We have sprayed for them on all of our alfalfa acres.

How are you planning to manage your hayelds through the rest of the season? Despite our current drought situation, our second crop is coming back pretty well even though we really haven’t received substantial rain since Mother’s Day weekend. Rain has been very sporadic and spotty, and for the most part, we are extremely dry. We are planning for four cuttings for the year and try to cut every 28 days through the summer.

Tell us about your farm. My wife, Jessica, and I farm along with my mother, who is a huge help, and with our three children: Reecelyn, Macie and Grifn. We milk 65 cows in a tiestall barn. We have 85 acres of alfalfa, 35 acres of new seeding, 300 acres of corn and 200 acres of soybeans.

Rebecca and Scott Klitzke Rock Springs, Wisconsin

Sauk County

50 cows

Tell us about your rstcrop hay harvest. We chopped 90 acres of rstcrop hay. We got it done in six days the second week in June.

What was the yield? It was better than I expected. We put it all in the silo and came up with 6.6 tons of 60% haylage per acre. All of our rst crop this year was chopped for haylage.

How does this year’s rst crop compare to previous years? It was down a little bit, and the quality was not as good. Our alfalfa in the stands was injured a little over the winter, and we are not sure why because there was no ice or bitter cold. There seemed to be more grass in the mix this year.

What challenges have you had and how did you manage to work through them? I would have liked to cut a little earlier, but we had silo work to do and had to get the silo empty enough to get it done. Dry weather held us back also and hurt the yield, but there is not much we can do about that. The biggest challenge so far

Luke Gartman Sheboygan, Wisconsin Sheboygan County

70

cows

Tell us about your rst-crop hay harvest. We currently manage about 125 acres of hay ground. Half are pure alfalfa elds, and the other half are alfalfa/grass elds. We started rstcrop hay Memorial Day weekend and nished up at the end of the following week. We started doing baleage in 2004, and in 2007, we cut out haylage and went strictly with baleage. We are primarily all baleage now, and it’s working out great. It’s a tighter window to capture that moisture when you have less help. Also, our farm is a mile from Lake Michigan, and weather can play a part. We can be almost ready to harvest, and then we get a lake breeze, and the hay gets damp from moisture off the lake, which makes it tough. Doing baleage opens up a wider range to be able to harvest high-quality feed.

What was the yield? I don’t know exact tonnage as we didn’t weigh any bales. The cutting was not a heavy crop this year. It was uneven – kind of like a heavy second crop. Being along the lake, we were always cooler and didn’t get some of the heat they had inland, so we were denitely down from past years. We captured some very good feed values at 215 to 220 RFV. It was nice stuff. We feed baleage to our breeding-age animals and on up through the milking herd.

How does this year’s rst crop compare to previous years? With the winter we had, I was a little leery. The frost came out very early in February, and the weather was quite wet. Rain in winter is a concern for alfalfa, and I didn’t know how it was

this year has been the lack of rain which hurt our yield and continues to be a major problem. We also had some winter damage to older stands. The stands seeded in spring of 2022 looked perfect, but anything older showed some thinning of the alfalfa with some grass lling in.

How are you planning to manage your hayelds through the rest of the season? We usually go for three to four cuts. We don’t push the last cut because it helps with winter survival. I spread fertilizer after the rst crop was off. I also sprayed for potato leafhoppers, which seem to be coming on strong. After chopping, I noticed a lot of them on the chopper. Bug pressure is up probably due to dry weather. We have a 30-32 day cut interval. We use this interval to try to achieve a little more yield while still maintaining very good quality. We are a three- to fourcut operation. Because of this, our stand longevity is improved. We also fertilize not only after rst crop but also after the third crop to keep our stand as healthy as possible.

Tell us about your farm. We ship to Scenic Central Milk Producers Co-op. My wife and I have 65 Holsteins and are milking about 50 right now. We get a little help from my wife’s father when it’s time to chop. We raise all of our bull calves and feed out about 25-30 head of Holstein steers each year. We cash crop a little soybeans and corn. We raise all of our heifers and sell about 15-20 springers each year after we select our replacements. I took over from my dad in 1991. We farm 270 tillable acres. We raise and feed out all of our bull calves and also raise all of our heifer calves. We pick our replacements and sell the remainder as springers. We raise alfalfa, corn, soybeans and winter wheat. Most of the corn is for silage and grain for the cattle, but we do have a small amount of corn along with the wheat and soybeans as a cash crop.

going to come through. The alfalfa came through great, but the spring was just that cold that we didn’t have the growth we were hoping for. This year is denitely less than in prior years.

What challenges have you had and how did you manage to work through them? The cold weather and our close proximity to Lake Michigan were challenges we had to deal with. You can’t be sleeping at the wheel or the moisture will get away from you. The hay was getting dry within one day because it was drying from the ground side and the top side due to the dry weather and not having a lot of quantity. Harvest happened quickly, and you had to keep tabs on it.

How are you planning to manage your hayelds through the rest of the season? We hope to get four cuttings on a few select elds – mostly our alfalfa elds – but the weather and our lakeshore location will dictate if that happens. On our grassier elds, we hope to get three cuttings. The second cutting is coming back and looking quite well. The top is dry, but there is moisture in the ground yet underneath. It’s lush green with grass and alfalfa coming through. Even though we are dry, it’s looking like we’ll have somewhat of a second crop. We shoot for cutting every 28 to 30 days. Quality drives the cutting more than the date. Spraying is done on a year-to-year basis, depending on what pests spring up. Will this be a year for leafhoppers? We’re not sure yet. Around the end of August or September when the last cutting is taken, we fertilize alfalfa to make sure it goes into dormancy healthy with a good daily vitamin.

Tell us about your farm. I am the sixth generation at Phil-Mar-Ru Farm. My parents, Mark and Carol, are still part of the day-to-day operations. My wife, Liz, and our children – Alison, Leo and Brianna – are also an intricate part of the operation. We milk 70 registered Holsteins that are housed in sand-bedded free stalls and milked in a double-6 atbarn parlor. We ship our milk to Cascade Cheese. We farm about 600 acres, which includes 200 acres of corn, 200 acres of soybeans, 125 acres of alfalfa, 70 acres of wheat and 10 acres of oats.

Building soil structure for the future

Creating systems that foster stability against weather events

By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

COLBY, Wis. – For most of the past month, central Wisconsin has been dealing with drought-like conditions, and while rain has fallen to relieve the pressures, crops and farmers alike may be feeling the strain.

“Tracking weather trends, we have been due for a drought for several years,” said Matthew Oehmichen, of Short Lane Ag Supply in Colby.

By utilizing certain conservation farming practices, Oehmichen said, a system can be created within soil to mitigate the impact of future drought ev ents.

“There are certain practices that can be implemented to build a system that will help your soils react to the conditions brought on by both too much and too little rain,” Oehmichen said. “Some practices can show a benet quickly, while others take time to build, but together they will create stability for the long term.”

Practices such as minimal tillage, no-till, adding small grains into rotations and using cover crops can all work in tandem to create consistency in the soil prole and the surface of the soil.

“One practice can help, but stacking practices can create that system that allows better water management,” Oehmichen said. “Not only will it allow for the conservation of water during periods of extended dryness, it will allow the soil to more easily remove excess

water during periods of too much rain.”

One key to creating that system, Oehmichen said, is to employ a manageable residue program.

“Residue left on the eld can look like a mess, but when you really get to looking at it, it does so much,” Oehmichen said. “The key is keeping it manageable.”

Leaving a manageable residue intact helps keep the soil and surface temperatures more consistent, Oehmichen said. Residue allows for moisture retention and increased microbial growth as well as helps prevent soil erosion.

“The way we look at our soil has changed greatly over the last century; farmers used to look at a eld and see an empty vessel, like a sandbox, that needed them to create something,” Oehmichen said. “Now we see the soil as a living entity, something complex with all this great stuff happening, and we see that what we do adds value.”

Oehmichen said unprotected soil has little to no natural protection against the elements.

“When a rain drop hits the soil, it is traveling anywhere from 50 to 70 mph, and it hits the ground with great force,” Oehmichen said. “Soil that has no structure is decimated. Then when the sun beats on that soil, it basically bakes it.”

A cover crop slows down the impact of the water droplets and also slows the evaporation of the water.

“The Dust Bowl early in the last century happened when that structure was destroyed as the prairies were tilled up,” Oehmichen said. “The soil structure became unstable, and one dry season created a huge problem of erosion.”

Implementing conservation practices does not only make environmental sense, Oehmichen said. It also has agronomic advantages.

“Most of the soil fertility and agronomic needs of crops happen in the

top 4-5 inches of the soil,” Oehmichen said. “That is the highest zone of fertility.”

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Ma� Oehmichen of Short Lane Ag Supply displays how cover crops can affect soil structure at a Professional Dairy Producer’s workshop Sept. 21, 2021, at Miltrim

Describe your farm and facilities. We milk in a newly renovated tiestall barn.

What forages do you harvest? The cows’ main forage source May through October is typically fresh pasture using intensive rotational grazing. Over winter, we usually feed corn silage and dry hay in round bales.

How many acres of crops do you raise? We have over 100 acres of alfalfa-grass mix hay, over 50 acres corn for both grain and silage, and nearly 50 acres of pasture.

What quality and quantity do you harvest of each crop? We cut hay and rotate pastures to maximize quality of the grasses. It took several years to realize the grass was ready long before the alfalfa. Rest on the pastures is key to maximize regrowth, and leaving a 5- to 8-inch grass stubble greatly increases how fast it regrows. Corn silage is harvested when moisture is below 65% for our upright silos.

Describe the rations for your livestock. Our summer ration is typically pasture plus a grain mix fed at milking time. Winter ration is corn silage and dry hay plus grain. We hope to add another silo and have corn silage year-round in the future. We also plan to make haylage again like we did in the past.

Describe your harvesting techniques for alfalfa and corn silage. Hay is cut based on the maturity of the grasses to maximize quality. We cut with a pull-type Discbine with steel roller conditioners. The interval is usually under 28 days. We usually either chop it for the silo or make dry round bales. Chopping of hay and corn is done ourselves with a New Holland 900. We hope to add a kernel processor in the future for corn silage. We do our own round baling with a Vermeer 604K.

What techniques do you use to store, manage and feed your forages? We use upright stave silos for corn silage and haylage. Dry hay is usually made as round

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bales and occasionally small square bales. We component feed everything. Corn silage is fed via an electric feed cart or bunk feeder. Round bales are unrolled by hand in the manger or fed outdoors in a feeder. When baleage is made, it is usually fed outside in feeders.

Throughout your career, have you changed the forages you plant, and how has that decision helped your operation? We needed to maximize yield on our home acres after some rented ground was sold. This rst led to intensive rotational grazing of our existing pastures, which simultaneously increased quality and yield compared to what we came to expect from pasture. Pasture is just a hayeld harvested with cows. Corn that would typically have been harvested as high-moisture shell corn was also being chopped to increase tonnage. The milk and milk solids yield seems

Sam Olson | Dallas, Wisconsin | Barron County | 50 cows

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Bri any and Sam Olson and son Titus milk 50 registered Holsteins and Jerseys on their dairy farm near Dallas, Wisconsin. The Olsons rely heavily on rota onal grazing to make the best use of the forages grown on their farm.

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to be better when we are able to feed corn silage. We started planting grasses, primarily festulolium, with our alfalfa. The goal is to increase stand longevity, increase digestibility, and allow for better and faster dry down to make dry hay.

Describe a challenge you overcame in reaching your forage quality goals. I quit watching the weather when deciding to start cutting hay. If it’s ready, get it cut. Having to make baleage out of highquality hay that got rained on once is preferable to having tons and tons of stemmy, full-bloom alfalfa bales.

How do quality forages play a part in the production goals for your herd? Excellent quality pasture has cut protein costs signicantly over the summer months.

What are management or harvesting techniques you have changed that have made a notable difference in forage quality? Adding grasses to our alfalfa stands allows for faster dry down and earlier harvesting, which greatly improves quality. Treating the pastures as another hayeld quickly improved forage yield and quality. We have learned to keep the cows off them for 28 to 35 days between cuts and don’t let pastures turn into golf course greens.

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Building soil structure for the future

Creating systems that foster stability against weather events

By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

COLBY, Wis. – For most of the past month, central Wisconsin has been dealing with drought-like conditions, and while rain has fallen to relieve the pressures, crops and farmers alike may be feeling the strain.

“Tracking weather trends, we have been due for a drought for several years,” said Matthew Oehmichen, of Short Lane Ag Supply in Colby.

By utilizing certain conservation farming practices, Oehmichen said, a system can be created within soil to mitigate the impact of future drought ev ents.

“There are certain practices that can be implemented to build a system that will help your soils react to the conditions brought on by both too much and too little rain,” Oehmichen said. “Some practices can show a benet quickly, while others take time to build, but together they will create stability for the long term.”

Practices such as minimal tillage, no-till, adding small grains into rotations and using cover crops can all work in tandem to create consistency in the soil prole and the surface of the soil.

“One practice can help, but stacking practices can create that system that allows better water management,” Oehmichen said. “Not only will it allow for the conservation of water during periods of extended dryness, it will allow the soil to more easily remove excess

water during periods of too much rain.”

One key to creating that system, Oehmichen said, is to employ a manageable residue program.

“Residue left on the eld can look like a mess, but when you really get to looking at it, it does so much,” Oehmichen said. “The key is keeping it manageable.”

Leaving a manageable residue intact helps keep the soil and surface temperatures more consistent, Oehmichen said. Residue allows for moisture retention and increased microbial growth as well as helps prevent soil erosion.

“The way we look at our soil has changed greatly over the last century; farmers used to look at a eld and see an empty vessel, like a sandbox, that needed them to create something,” Oehmichen said. “Now we see the soil as a living entity, something complex with all this great stuff happening, and we see that what we do adds value.”

Oehmichen said unprotected soil has little to no natural protection against the elements.

“When a rain drop hits the soil, it is traveling anywhere from 50 to 70 mph, and it hits the ground with great force,” Oehmichen said. “Soil that has no structure is decimated. Then when the sun beats on that soil, it basically bakes it.”

A cover crop slows down the impact of the water droplets and also slows the evaporation of the water.

“The Dust Bowl early in the last century happened when that structure was destroyed as the prairies were tilled up,” Oehmichen said. “The soil structure became unstable, and one dry season created a huge problem of erosion.”

Implementing conservation practices does not only make environmental sense, Oehmichen said. It also has agronomic advantages.

“Most of the soil fertility and agronomic needs of crops happen in the

top 4-5 inches of the soil,” Oehmichen said. “That is the highest zone of fertility.”

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Ma� Oehmichen of Short Lane Ag Supply displays how cover crops can affect soil structure at a Professional Dairy Producer’s workshop Sept. 21, 2021, at Miltrim

For that reason, not only protecting but building and developing that level of topsoil should become a paramount concern for farmers, Oehmichen said.

“It takes 10 years to create and develop about the width of a dime’s worth of topsoil,” Oehmichen said. “Not only are you protecting the environment, you are making an investment in future protability and efciency.”

Oehmichen said improving soil structure and consistency is vital economically to future endeavors, and he said dairy farmers are the largest demographic of farmers embracing conservation and soil system-building practices.

“The increased trafcability on their elds is an important benet to dairy farmers; keeping

the elds in stable condition allows for a timelier harvest,” Oehmichen said. “Cover crops help with manure management, whether you broadcast or inject. Having that living root in the soil and the cover on top reduces the risk of manure escaping its target.”

With all of the benets to dairy farmers, Oehmichen offers advice to someone who wants to begin protecting both their soil and themselves from weather events.

“Grab a shovel and start digging – get really active out in your elds (and) see what is out there,” Oehmichen said. “It is easy to say things look good on the surface, but you really need to see what is happening in that fertility layer.”

Farmer-led watershed groups are a great resource,

Oehmichen said, due to the increase in state funding received by these groups. His advice to those starting their journey in building a consistent soil structure is to begin locally.

“In Wisconsin, we are developing a great network of watershed groups, and that local knowledge is the best resource you have,” Oehmichen said. “Those groups are great places for outreach and education, learning locally what works and what doesn’t, from other farmers and from the research data available in that area.”

If local data is unavailable, then Oehmichen recommends nding the nearest expert.

Oehmichen also said not to be afraid to try something new and to start small. Starting out small helps keep the program manageable and easier for detailing the results, he said.

“A grower I work with, who has been interseeding the longest, started out seven years ago interseeding 16 acres,” Oehmichen said. “Now he interseeds between 800 and 900 acres of corn.”

While the desire for instant gratication is common, Oehmichen said the greatest results may not be witnessed immediately.

Interseeded cover crops establish themselves

Marathon County, Wisconsin. Such farming

can help soil maintain its structure through both drought and excessive rains.

“When you try something new, there is no failure, only a learning opportunity,” Oehmichen said. “Start tracking the patterns you see. Monitor the compaction layer you see. Look for changes. Keep that shovel handy and keep digging. That is where you’ll see your results.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHORT LANE AG SUPPLY

in a corneld in

prac ces

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHORT LANE AG SUPPLY

A corn plant emerges in a stand of terminated winter rye in Clark County, Wisconsin. Cover crops protect soil from erosion, keeping the soil healthier.

Conleys protect soil, animal health through grazing

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

NEOSHO, Wis. – For Chris and Brenda Conley, pasturing their cows in a managed grazing system has been a welcome return to simpler times. The Conleys much prefer managing pasture rotations and maintaining fence over harvesting crops.

The Conleys held a pasture walk May 18 on their farm, High-Gem Holsteins and Normandes, near Neosho. Along with their daughters, Mckayla and Paige, the family milks 52 cows on their 174-acre farm that contains 120 acres of workable land. A large crowd gathered at the farm to hear about the Conleys’ grazing practices and see the pastures rsthand.

“Grazing and getting animals on the land brings another aspect to soil health,” Chris said. “We take a little bit less in milk production, but cows are healthier too.”

Pasturing has always been a way of life for the Conley family, who began no tilling and planting cover crops six years ago. Twenty-three acres

The powers of pasture

of pasture Chris’ grandfather set up has been transformed into managed grazing over the past three years.

Instead of pasturing on the same piece for 24 hours, pastures are now broken down into smaller sections with temporary poly wire fencing, and cows are moved every 12 hours. Chris was skeptical of this management philosophy at rst but eventually jumped in with both feet.

“Doing this has made better-quality pastures, extended the pasturing season and trained the cows to either eat everything or trample what they don’t eat,” Chris said. “I used to think a good-looking pasture was supposed to be nice and even and mowed down. Now, with learning more about soil and biology, I know it doesn’t hurt if there’s some long grass over the top.”

Chris said grass comes back better in trampled-down pastures than other areas because there is cover over the soil to help preserve moisture. According to Chris, longer grass also helps support cow trafc during heavy rain events, preventing cows from wrecking the root system or soil structure when it is wet.

Cows peacefully grazed in the background while Chris explained that their pastures contain timothy, brome grass,

June grass, alfalfa and clover. Chris tries to interseed his pastures, but last year, he broadcast clover, alfalfa, Italian ryegrass and brome grass.

“This year, I got my notill drill working decently and interseeded clover, alfalfa, meadow fescue, timothy and rye grass,” Chris said. “I ran cows through all the pastures

to get some of the established grasses down so new seeding could get going.”

The Conleys began pasturing Easter Sunday in an onand-off pattern until pastures took off in growth. Cows will remain on pasture until midNovember. Seventeen acres of pasture are subdivided into one- to 1.5-acre pastures, and

it takes the Conleys 25 days to get through their pasture rotation.

“I’ll subdivide even further this time of year,” Chris said.

In addition to pasture, the Conleys’ cows are fed highmoisture corn, protein pellets

Turn to CONLEY | Page 27

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

The Conley family – Chris (from le ), Mckayla and Brenda – stand next to one of the pastures May 18 on their farm near Neosho, Wisconsin. The Conleys, who milk 52 cows and farm 120 acres, hosted a pasture walk May 18. Not pictured is the Conleys’ daughter, Paige.

and dry baled hale in the barn and haylage and corn silage in the barnyard.

“It’s really hard to follow a ration when cows are on pasture in the summertime,” Chris said. “We watch bunk levels pretty close and adjust accordingly. It’s a juggling act to know how much haylage and corn silage to feed.”

Last year, the Conleys cut protein usage in half when they started grazing third-crop hay. It was a decision that saved the farm $45 per day.

“It was a pretty rich seeding of alfalfa, clover and grass, and those savings make a big difference,” Chris said. “Taking hay ground and pasturing it has given my pastures more time to replenish. It helps rejuvenate them and get better quality feed off for dairy cows.”

The Conleys are using their cover crops as extra forage, and this is their third year of grazing rye as a cover crop. Chris is thinking of changing from rye to triticale for better feed quality and to get more forage out of the eld. After cows are done grazing the rye, he will plant corn but will have to terminate with an herbicide rst.

“Getting more forage off my pasture has helped improve pasture quality,” Chris said.

The Conleys water their cows with a 550-gallon tank on a wagon that they move from pasture to pasture. Chris is exploring the option of running water lines in the future.

“Pasturing is still work, but I would rather be out here with the cows working on fence, listening to the birds and seeing what kind of wildlife is around than sitting in the shop in wintertime busting my knuckles on machinery,” he said. “A lot more birds and insects have come back, and it’s amazing to see all the wildlife that can benet while you’re still able to make a living off your farm.”

Jamie Patton, Wisconsin state soil health coordinator for Natural Resources Conservation Service, did a soil pit demonstration to show people what the ground beneath one of the Conleys’ pastures looks like. Chris dug the pit the day before and said it was hard to get started because the grass roots were so strong.

“The further I went down, the wetter it got,” Chris said. “I was surprised. I thought there would be more moisture on top and it would be drier on the bottom. The soil was glistening like there was water right on the surface of the soil particles.”

Patton said this is because water

from the top inltrates into the soil. The pit was lled with root channels and earth worm channels, which Patton loved to see.

“This is a beautiful root system,” she said. “There’s a really dense root layer, which is why Chris had such a hard time digging through this soil. This is what we love to see in pastures. Creating those channels we see below is also helping to hold the soil in place on this very deep slope.”

Because the pasture is doing so well, Patton said the roots are able to keep penetrating the surface below and take up water. Deep roots allow the plant to access water in a dry year. Patton identied at least four roots in a root channel and also found a rhizosheath in the soil pit which she said is an indicator of good, healthy soil.

“Each one of those roots is providing a different function for the soil and plants,” Patton said. “They’re helping to build the soil, move organic matter down in the soil and grow that topsoil. This system is resilient to intense rainfalls and times of heat. This soil is what we need our agricultural systems to do.”

To preserve the root system, Patton recommends not grazing lower than 6 to 8 inches. Patton said another benet of a taller pasture is that it prevents animals from ingesting larvae, which can lead to internal parasites.

“This is a fantastic pit to show the powers of the pasture and the powers of pasture management,” Patton said.

“When we look at carbon sequestration and resiliency, this soil is not going to erode, even with an intense rainfall.”

Due to their grazing practices and established forages on their hills, Chris said he was amazed last June when they received 5 inches of rain in 1.5 hours but did not have any washouts in the elds and no soil movement.

“I was really happy to see that, especially with the slopes we’re working with,” he said.

Cost-sharing opportunities for grazers were also discussed during the pasture walk.

“We worked closely with the Dodge County Conservation Department to take advantage of cost sharing programs,” Brenda said. “Don’t be afraid to use government funding. There are a lot of great resources out there to help farmers.”

Chris agreed.

“We dragged our feet for a long time,” he said. “I was hesitant, but I’m glad we did it.”

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

Jamie Pa on, Wisconsin state soil health coordinator for Natural Resources Conserva on Service, stands in a soil pit May 18 to highlight the benets grazing is bringing to soil beneath one of the pastures at the Conley farm near Neosho, Wisconsin. The pit was lled with root channels and earth worm channels.

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IN DAIRY women

Tell us about your farm and family. My husband, Shawn Omernik, and I and our children – Brentley and Madison –make up our third-generation farm. We farm over 2,000 acres and milk 850 registered cows in a double-12 parlor. We raise all of our own youngstock.

What is a typical day like for you on the dairy? I am the herd manager on the farm. I focus on the computer every morning, making sure cows are not sick and grabbing any fresh cows that need to be milked with the employees. I look at all the milk weights from the previous shifts, making sure everything is done right. Then, I move any cows around in pens as needed. I take care of our show cows and feed, clean and bed stalls.

What decision have you made in the last year that has beneted your farm? Changing our breeding program has beneted us. I started ushing cattle to high genomic bulls and started increasing our heifer numbers. I look at genomics, high quality milk, good feet and legs, etc. I want a big, quality, sound cow. Comfort is another factor. We bed our cows with sand and can totally see the difference it made.

Tracy Lepak Omernik Custer, Wisconsin Portage County 850 cows

Tell us about your most memorable experience working on the farm. My most memorable experience on the farm was when I was 10 years old. My father put in a tractor to help chop hay, and he left me out in the eld to chop. He would bring me a chopper box when it was empty, and I would hook up and ll it up for him as he ran back to the farm to unload them.

What have you enjoyed most about dairy farming or your tie to the dairy industry? I enjoy showing cattle for our dairy. I like showing people what genetics and high-quality animals our herd has to offer and advertise.

What is your biggest accomplishment in your dairy career? My biggest accomplishment was last year when we took one of our cows to World Dairy Expo as a senior 3-year-old. She was third in the junior Holstein show out of 11 cows. We showed her again in the open show, and she placed 14th of 44 cows that day.

What are things you do to promote your farm or the dairy industry? We held a breakfast on the farm for June Dairy Days last year for people to come

and tour the farm. We also have 4-H kids who show our dairy cattle in the county fair every year. They come help take care of them and learn and build responsibility.

What advice would you give another woman in the dairy industry? I would tell another woman in the industry to always keep her head up high. Girls can do anything we put our minds too. Never give up on your dreams. Dreams really do come true if you work hard at it.

What is a challenge in the dairy industry you have faced and how did you overcome it? The world economy right now and the high price of everything. You always have to be watching what you spend and how you spend it. You have to be very intentional about how you manage things.

When you get a spare moment, what do you do? I enjoy gardening, planting owers and putting them around my yard. I also enjoy making sure the grass is fertilized and green.

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Tracy Lepak Omernik stands in the freestall barn June 16 on her family’s 850cow dairy farm near Custer, Wisconsin. She works as the farm’s herd manager.

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Tracy Lepak Omernik and her daughter Madison shake up hay for the show cows June 16 on their family’s Portage County dairy farm near Custer, Wisconsin. The Omerniks enjoy exhibi ng their cows at shows.

www.extension.umn.edu/dairy

Human heat stress: Signs, symptoms, prevention

Summer is well upon us with some areas seeing some extreme heat early in the season. It is important to be mindful of heat stress and related illnesses while working in hot environments. Heat illness can strike quickly, and learning the symptoms of it could save your life. Staying hydrated and keeping cool are key, but taking breaks and wearing the right clothing, among other things, are important as well.

By Brenda Miller U of M

As farmers and farm workers, it is near impossible for us not to be in hot environments throughout the year. Therefore, we need to protect ourselves and keep an eye on those around us as well while working in the heat. The biggest factor is to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water. Sports drinks are ne as long as they have some electrolytes in them, and chocolate milk is a great re-fueling source too.

when it is not so hot. If you are in the heat doing a job with others, be sure to consistently check in with fellow workers to make sure they are doing OK and take breaks when needed. If working alone, make sure to tell someone where you will be, so if they do not hear from you after a while, they can come check on you.

• Decreased urine output

First Aid

• Rest in a cool area

• Drink plenty of water or other cool beverages

• Take a cool shower, bath or sponge bath

Heat cramps

Heat stress includes a series of conditions where the body is under stress from overheating. Heat-related illnesses can include heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat rash or heat stroke, each with its own symptoms and treatments. Symptoms can range from profuse sweating to dizziness, cessation of sweating and collapse. People of all ages can fall victim to heat stress, especially while partaking in physical activities during hot weather conditions or while in hot environments. Heat rash and heat cramps are not fun to deal with and can be prevented with proper hydration, clothing and other preventative measures.

Whenever possible, stick to shaded areas or out of direct sunlight and heat. Wear light-colored, loose clothing that is breathable and will wick sweat away from the body. However, if working around equipment with moving parts (power take-off, belts, gears, etc.) wear appropriate, close-tting attire so the clothing is not caught in those. There is a happy medium, or clothes can be changed in the required situations.

If there are outside jobs that need to be done in areas without shade, try to do them rst thing in the morning or later in the day when the temperatures are usually cooler. Or, if possible, postpone them for another day

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Heat stress is serious. If you nd yourself feeling off, tell someone and get to a shady place to start cooling down. We, as farmers, take extra actions to keep our cows cool and comfortable in the hot weather, but we must also take care of ourselves and those working with us.

Heat stroke

A condition that occurs when the body becomes unable to control its temperature, and can cause death or permanent disability.

Symptoms

• High body temperature

• Confusion

• Loss of coordination

• Hot, dry skin or profuse sweating

• Seizures, coma

First Aid

Call 911: Request immediate emergency medical assistance

• Move the person to a cool, shaded area

• Remove excess clothing and apply cool water or cold wet cloths to their body

• Circulate air around the person to speed cooling

Heat exhaustion

The body’s response to an excessive loss of water and salt, usually through sweating.

Symptoms

• Rapid heart beat

• Heavy sweating

• Extreme weakness or fatigue

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GREENWALD FARM CENTER FARM

• Dizziness, headache

• Nausea, vomiting

• Irritability

• Fast, shallow breathing

• Slightly elevated body temperature

Dana Adams, adam1744@umn.edu

320-204-2968

Joe Armstrong armst225@umn.edu

612.624.3610

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

Affect workers who sweat a lot during strenuous activity. Sweating depletes the body’s salt and moisture levels.

Symptoms

• Muscle cramps, pain or spasms in the abdomen, arms or legs

First Aid

• Stop all activity and sit in a cool place

• Drink clear juice or a sports beverage, or drink water with food. Chocolate milk is good too.

• Avoid salt tablets

• Do not return to strenuous work for a few hours after the cramps subside

• Seek medical attention if you have the following: heart problems, are on a lowsodium diet or if the cramps do not subside within one hour

Heat rash

Heat rash is a skin irritation caused by excessive sweating during hot, humid weather.

Symptoms

• Red clusters of pimples or small blisters

• Heat rash usually appears on the neck, upper chest, groin, under the breasts and in elbow creases

First Aid

• Keep the rash area dry

• Apply powder or a specially designed anti-chafe, antiblister balm, such as Body Glide®, to increase comfort

• Do not use ointments or creams as they may impair cooling; warm moist skin can make the rash worse

Les Hansen hanse009@umn.edu

612-624-2277

Brad Heins hein0106@umn.edu

320-589-1711

Nathan Hulinsky huli0013@umn.edu

320-203-6104

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

Melissa Wilson mlw@umn.edu

612-625-4276

Isaac Haagen hagge041@umn.edu

612-624-7455

Learning by doing

Glenna’s farm experience contributes to winning FFA dairy prociency

By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

AMERY, Wis. – Courtney

Glenna’s passion for breeding dairy cattle and studying their genetics began to ourish in 2018 when her parents purchased 27 registered Holsteins. They were aiming to increase their milking herd from 70 to 120 cows.

“Genetics make an important contribution to the success of a dairy farm and play an important role in the industry,” Glenna said. “Genetics directly affect both efciency and protability.”

Glenna, a University of Wisconsin-River Falls sophomore and member of the Amery FFA Chapter, captured top honors in the dairy productionplacement prociency and was named the runner-up Star in Agricultural Placement at the Wisconsin FFA Convention & Expo June 12-15 in Madison.

The awards recognize the work Glenna has done on her family’s 120-cow dairy farm. The farm is operated by her parents, Randy and Char Glenna, and her grandparents, Bob and Rita Glenna, in Polk County near Amery.

“I have been very fortunate that my parents and grandparents have been very supportive of my involvement on our farm and in the dairy industry,” Glenna said. “They have let me grow my responsibilities over time until I have been able to become an integral part of our farm. Those experiences have really made me who I am and led me to so many opportunities. I will always be grateful for what they have given me.”

Glenna began establishing herself as part of the labor force on the family farm at a young age with the traditional farmkid chores of feeding calves and manual labor. Over time, she began to learn more about herd health and the management protocols in place on the farm and started lling those roles as well. She is involved in cow-side practices, including herd health checks, monitoring dry and fresh cows, and treating cows as necessary. That work evolved into her taking over many of the breeding decisions.

“I like creating goodlooking animals,” Glenna said. “They have to be made well to be able to stay a long time in the herd as productive, protable cows.”

Glenna has developed a

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Courtney Glenna kneels in front of cows June 16 on her family’s 120-cow dairy farm near Amery, Wisconsin. Glenna won the Wisconsin FFA State Dairy Produc on-Placement Prociency Award and was the runner-up Star in Agricultural Placement at the Wisconsin FFA Conven on & Expo June 12-15 in Madison, Wisconsin.

breeding philosophy that helps her navigate toward that end goal.

“I want to have a balanced combination of type and production; I want cows with welded-on udders and sound, functional feet and legs – the kind of cows that are going to last a long time,” Glenna said. … “I’m looking for a smaller cow with great body capacity, one that is feed-efcient, makes a lot of milk and stays healthy doing it.”

To help identify the best genetics among the herd, Glenna said she began utilizing genomic testing in 2021 and uses data as a tool when it comes to making decisions.

“From my experience, the genomic data I get is pretty accurate,” Glenna said.

giving her the foundation that has driven her success.

A member of her school’s FFA chapter since the seventh grade, Glenna has served in ofcer roles, including a term as president. During her time as an FFA member, she has been involved in both speaking and dairy-handling contests and has been a member of both her chapter’s quiz bowl and dairy

Glenna’s wide array of youth experiences in organizations such as FFA, 4-H and the Wisconsin Junior Holstein Association have served as building blocks, Turn to GLENNA | Page 32

judging teams. In 2019, Glenna’s FFA dairy judging team placed third at the national contest, earning them a trip to judge at the Royal Highland Show in Scotland.

In addition to those FFA successes, Glenna has represented Wisconsin on the national level in 4-H and dairy bowl competitions as well. She was part of the Polk County 4-H Dairy Bowl team that won the national 4-H contest in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2019 and the Polk County Junior Holstein Dairy Bowl team that won the National Holstein Convention Dairy Bowl Contest in 2021.

She has won state and national contests as a Junior Holstein Association member, participating in dairy jeopardy and will be heading to Lexington, Kentucky, this month to take a shot at winning another national award.

Besides participating on those teams, Glenna said she has enjoyed showcasing the fruits of her labor in the show ring at the local, state and national levels and has even fullled a bucket-list item of showing on the famed colored shavings at World Dairy Expo.

Glenna is unsure of where the future will nd her, but she knows it will be connected to the dairy industry.

“Dairy farming in this area of the state can be difcult,” Glenna said. “I’d love nothing more than to take over the farm, but I’m not certain if that will be the path I choose. I would like to work in the area of dairy cattle genetics and reproduction for a while.”

Mentors have played a large role in Glenna’s life, and she said she has been blessed with some of the best.

Lending a hand during times of sorrow

There are many qualities of a dairy farmer I truly admire: hard-working, dedicated and tough are just a few I can mention within these lines.

On the Mark

By Mark Klaphake Editor

Perhaps a trait I admire most is their willingness to help even though they really don’t have the extra time to do so. Think about it. Many farmers consider a 10-hour day an easy day. But if the neighbor’s cattle are out or someone has a at tire near the farm, they will halt what they are doing to help.

It’s the fabric that most farmers are. They are good neighbors willing to adjust their day to help anyone in need.

Just last week, this quality came to forefront on a modest 100-cow dairy near Norwood Young America, Minnesota.

The younger of two brothers, who had been dairying together for more than two decades, suddenly passed.

Dealing with the emotion of losing perhaps his best friend and operating a business as diverse as dairy farming would not be comprehendible.

The farm couldn’t stop because of the vast amount of daily activities that occur on a farm. The animals needed to be fed, the cows needed to be milked, and the constant challenges that each day brings needed to be dealt with.

“My parents and grandparents, their support has always been unwavering,” Glenna said. “I have had wonderful FFA advisors in Amery, and through my work in 4-H and the Junior Holstein Association, I have had gift of guidance from Patti Hurtgen and Gwen Dado. They have all helped mold me into the passionate and determined person I am today.”

Despite the future seeming uncertain at times, Glenna urges other youth to follow their dreams.

“Set goals, and work hard toward those goals; there are very few things in life you can’t achieve through hard work,” Glenna said. “Keep your head down and push forward. Take every opportunity that is presented to you, and if the opportunity you want doesn’t appear, make it happen.”

But the surviving brother needed to halt to process the grief of suddenly losing the other half who was equally committed to doing his best to make their dairy farm journey a success.

They saw each other many times every day. The duo probably had thousands of conversations in the barn, farmyard or elds about the plans for the dairy and the next hurdle to overcome.

But now, that was gone forever.

So, on a warm week in Carver County, while the dairy farmer and his family were accepting condolences for the loss of their brother and a son, uncle and neighbor, the farm was bustling with activity.

First-crop hay was being laid down in the eld, rakes were combining the rows, and, later, big square balers were rolling through the elds, stringing together bales for the animals on the farm.

A nearby dairy farm neighbor was the ringleader to the event. Upon realizing that part of the rst-crop hay wasn’t complete at the time of the passing, he sprang into action. He connected with local farmers, some up to 20 miles away, to bring their equipment to conquer the job. He synchronized the farmers for different roles, whether they would be cutting, raking or baling hay for the dairy farmer in need.

The volunteerism started on a Monday, and by Saturday, around 70 acres of hay were put up to yield 215 big square bales as well as round bales.

This all occurred while operating their own individual farms and dealing with their vast daily challenges and problems that arose from those farms.

The price tag for the good deed was $0. The display of farm equipment on procession for the farmer’s funeral signaled the truth: That’s just what dairy farmers, and farmers in general, do – help when needed.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Courtney Glenna, a member of the Amery FFA Chapter, stands next to her dairy produc onplacement display June 13 a er winning top honors in the prociency area at the Wisconsin FFA Conven on & Expo in Madison, Wisconsin. Glenna’s family milks 120 cows on their farm near Amery, Wisconsin.

DAIRY PROFILE

How did you get into farming? I was born into the family business and really liked the cows, so I decided to stay on the farm.

What are your thoughts and concerns about the dairy industry for the next year? We are very dry and hope to make enough feed this year. We are also concerned about milk prices.

What is a recent change you made on your farm and the reason for it? We added rumination boluses to help keep better track of every cow. It gives us a warning within 15 hours of a cow calving, which is very useful. It also tells us exactly when to breed cows.

Tell us about a skill you possess that makes dairy farming easier for you. I do all of the articial breeding on the farm, so we don’t have to hire someone.

What is the best decision you have made on your farm? The best decisions we made were to add Jersey cows to our herd and also to invest in good cow families. As a result, we have made extra money selling their genetics – whether it is Jerseys or Holsteins.

What are three things on the farm that you cannot live without? Sand: Cow comfort is a must, and they will pay you back faster when they are comfortable. Our own equipment to make all

the nutritious feed so that we don’t have to rely on someone else to make it. Good help: You want people to treat the cows and business like their life depends on it.

What strategies do you use to withstand the volatile milk prices? We update equipment and look for opportunities to diversify while prices are up, so we are prepared for when it drops.

How do you retain a good working relationship with your employees? We try to do something relaxing or fun together that’s not just work.

What do you enjoy most about dairy farming? Although it can be stressful at times, and you don’t get rich, dairy farming is also rewarding. You get to help feed the world with a nutritious product every day.

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What advice would you give other dairy farmers? Try to have extra feed on hand all the time in case of a drought or high feed cost.

What are your plans for your dairy in the next year and ve years? In the next year, we want to add a new barn for our show cows and higher prole cows. In the next ve years, we want to

buy more land, and if the milk prices stay good, we want to build a parlor to make milking a little easier.

How do you or your family like to spend time when you are not doing chores? In our free time, we like to have bonres and go shing at the pond.

Trace Johnson of Johnson-Five Holsteins Poplar Grove, Illinois | Boone County | 200 cows

PHOTO SUBMITTED

The Johnson family – Trace (from le ) holding Crew, Megan holding Kase, Thad, Brandi, Cole, Sarah Fitzgerald and Ty – milk 200 cows on their farm, Johnson-Five Holsteins, near Poplar Grove, Illinois.

Dry conditions during dairy month

By Steve Frericks Stearns County FSA executive director

June is dairy month. Congratulations to all the central Minnesota youth who competed in the Dairy Days Show June 9 at the Stearns County Fairgrounds. The future of the dairy industry is bright seeing all the talented and hardworking youth who have a passion for the dairy industry. We salute all dairy farmers for your dedication in providing such a wholesome and healthy product. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication this month and always.

It’s no secret that central Minnesota is getting extremely dry. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, Stearns County has entered a D1 drought rating. This is not a good sign for early June.

For counties reaching a D2 drought rating for eight consecutive weeks or D3 at any time during the normal grazing period, the Livestock Forage Disaster Program triggers for payments.

The only way we can act upon this potential option is if producers timely certify their pastures by the crop reporting deadline. In 2021, FSA had many producers pay late le fees to report pastures. For this reason and many more, help us by reminding producers to schedule that appointment to certify their crops, report pastures and review eligibility for all current programs.

The last day to complete 2023 acreage reports is Monday, July 17. After this date, there is a charge for this service.

USDA offers assistance to help organic dairy producers cover increased costs

CELEBRATING

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced assistance for dairy producers with the new Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Program.

ODMAP is established to help mitigate market volatility, higher input and transportation costs and unstable feed supply and prices that have created unique hardships in the organic dairy industry. Specically, under ODMAP, USDA’s Farm Service Agency is making $104 million available to organic dairy operations to assist with projected marketing costs in 2023, calculated using their marketing costs in 2022.

“Minnesota organic dairy producers have faced signicant and unique increases in their marketing costs, compounded by increases in feed and transportation costs and the limited availability of organic grain and forage commodities,” said Whitney Place, state executive director for FSA in Minnesota. “Without assistance, many organic dairies, particularly small organic dairies, will cease production, which not only impacts the domestic supply and consumption of organic milk but also the well-being of many rural communities across the country. This program will keep Minnesota small organic dairies in operation as they continue to weather a combination of challenges outside of their control.”

Eligible producers include certied organic dairy operations that produce milk from cows, goats and sheep.

FSA is providing nancial assistance for a producer’s projected marketing costs in 2023 based on their 2022 costs. ODMAP provides a one-time cost-share payment based on marketing costs on pounds of organic milk marketed in the 2022 calendar year.

ODMAP provides nancial assistance that will immediately support certied organic dairy operations during 2023, keeping organic dairy operations sustainable until markets return to more normal conditions.

Minnesota FSA ofces are accepting applications until July 26. To complete the ODMAP application, producers must certify pounds of 2022 milk production, show documentation of their organic certication and submit a completed application form.

Organic dairy operations are required to provide their USDA certication of organic status conrming operation as an organic dairy in 2023 and 2022 along with the certication of 2022 milk production in hundredweight. ODMAP complements other assistance available to dairy producers, including Dairy Margin Coverage and Supplemental DMC, with more than $300 million in benets paid for the 2023 program year to date.

To learn more about USDA programs, producers can contact their local USDA service center. Producers can also prepare maps for acreage reporting as well as manage farm loans and other programs by logging into their farmers.gov account. If you don’t have an account, sign up today.

PROUDLY CELEBRATING JUNE DAIRY MONTH

A true partner is defined by those they support. That’s why at Compeer Financial we’re defined by our longstanding partnership with the dairy industry. We’re proud to work alongside hard-working dairy farmers, processors and others every day to support your hopes for the future as well as your needs today. And as the dairy industry and agriculture continues to evolve, so will we, together.

Farm Service Agency is an Equal Opportunity Lender. Complaints about discrimination should be sent to: Secretary of Agriculture, Washington, D.C., 20250. Visit www.fsa.usda.gov for necessary application forms and updates on USDA programs

Summer fun for everyone

that scholarships were still available to all families. Speaking to Grace Clardy, the new educational director at Kamp Kenwood, I found out she herself had a great experience growing up and attending camp.

Grace said, “My time as a camper was a lifechanging experience, and I would not have been able to attend without a scholarship. We have made our scholarships application open to everyone without requiring personal nancial information. Our goal is to provide a space for all campers to step away from the real world for a few days and just focus on making friends, having fun, learning and being a kid.”

By Tina Hinchley

Summer school is in full swing in our area, giving parents an option to keep their children in a safe and fun place that the kids are familiar with. Fun with reading and math programs are designed to keep the kids progressing forward. The daily programs are limited to just four hours, with school breakfast included, but not lunch. Games, crafts, sports, science, outdoor exploration and more are other options for the families to choose for the four hours. There are three sessions for two weeks each, with July open with no programs. When my children were in elementary and middle school, they loved summer school because they would have other kids who came back to the farm to hang out after. Their parents worked, and they liked that their kids would be at the farm, working, learning and having fun.

They would all run off the bus and rush into the house. There, they would throw their backpacks into a pile and eat lunch together. Once outside again, they would ride bikes, create mazes in the mow with straw bales, build forts in the tree line and anything else they could do with imagination and creativity. Most of what happened was farm mom approved. However, every once in a while, I would need to see what all the laughing was about and nd them all covered in manure.

This year, our herdsman’s children are in summer school and getting picked up and dropped off at the farm. They are running up to my porch with backpacks lled with books and crafts. I am making sure they get a good lunch so that they can ride their bikes and explore the tree lines. We have been busy planting ower and vegetable seeds. We have been making crafts from nature using rocks, sticks, feathers and pinecones. Building a fort is on our list of summer fun things to do. This spring, these children did get chicks and ducklings. I have plans to try to get them into 4-H next year. I am working hard to keep these kids engaged and active, making their imaginations soar.

Summer for my kids was also all about taking animals and projects to the fairs. We had 4-H animal projects walking and sometimes running through the yard. The heifers would get haltered and training would begin. Patience and practice were always the way to bond with the animals. They spent their time washing, clipping and learning the best way to get nice toplines on their heifers. Then, there was carding and tting the sheep, clipping the pigs and goats. The chickens were fairly easy; they just got a bath the day before the fair. So much work, but the pride on their faces when the judges gave them a blue ribbon is priceless.

After the fair season, my kids went to 4-H camp at Upham Woods and also Kamp Kenwood. Getting them off the farm and into nature was my plan. Inviting their friends to go with them was an added bonus. The other campers from all over the state would meet up every summer for a fun-lled week. We would carpool to camp and back. While driving them off the farm or away from home, the conversations in the van were lled with excitement and anxiety. Stories of past summer camps with ticks, spooky stories around the campre, the plays they participated in and silly songs that were learned eased them into comfort zones to prepare for their new year’s adventures at camp. Both camps offer fun activities, crafts, eld games, campres, swimming, nature walks, singing, kayaks, canoes and paddle boards, plays and lessons that are fun. These friends from camp are lifelong connections who follow each other on social media.

I had four kids attend these camps. Some years when milk prices were high, it was an easy commitment to sign them up knowing this was their time to be kids. Other years were a bit tough, but both camps offer scholarships.

I looked into Kamp Kenwood for our herdsman’s children and was very happy to see

There are a variety of camps offered for different ages and dates and even a family camp, so even the little ones can attend camp with older siblings and stay with a parent in the cabin.

I’ve got it covered so our herdsman can take all four of his children, ages 5 to 13, to camp together. I am certain this will be the highlight of their summer.

Tina Hinchley, her husband Duane and daughter Anna milk 240 registered Holsteins with robots. They also farm 2,300 acres near Cambridge, Wisconsin. The Hinchleys have been hosting farm tours for over 25 years.

Farmer & Columnist

D is for dairy; F is for farmers

D is for dairy, a delight to work in and to eat

We are a dynamic, devoted and determined eet

A is for awestruck, although we see new arrivals most days

The astonishing act of animal birth is amazing, always

I is for the ingenious ideas we possess

Quite incredible, innovative, impressive – no less

R is for remarkable, and rare not to see on a rural drive

We reinvent, we restore ourselves, we continue to thrive

Y is for yoked to this farming way of life, and yet Young or old, we yearn to learn, on that you can bet

F is for farmers, a fabulous, rst-rate crew Faithful friends to the furry, a bit like family too

A is for abundance; of things of all sizes to appreciate

We attempt to remain ambitious, active, agile (as we hop a gate)

R is for resilient, of that you can be sure We aim to be real, responsible and to keep our product pure

M is for marvel, at the miraculous moments in which we partake

And for the majestic milking mothers we greet as we wake

E is for efcient, a smidge of energy and effort can get it done

We educate, as we eagerly empower younger ones

R is for routine, we rise and ready ourselves once more

We know we can be seen as ridiculous, as our feet hit the oor

Ramblings

from the Ridge

By Jacqui Davison Columnist

S is for signicant, though society is not always so sweet

We are simply satised, smart, strong-willed and smile as we greet

Happy June Dairy Month to all. I hope you nd ways to appreciate yourselves and fellow farmers.

Jacqui and her family milk 800 cows and farm 1,200 acres in the northeastern corner of Vernon County, Wisconsin. Her children, Ira, Dane, Henry and Cora, help her on the farm while her husband, Keith, works on a grain farm. If she’s not in the barn, she’s probably in the kitchen, trailing after little ones or sharing her passion of reading with someone. Her life is best described as organized chaos, and if it wasn’t, she’d be bored.

Improve alfalfa quality, protability with wide-swath hay

In an era of higher feed prices and lower milk prices, it is hard to argue the value of high-quality forages. The idea of wide-swath cutting is not a new concept. However, it seems questions arise as producers ne-tune this process, upgrade hay equipment and consider the return on what can be a substantial investment, depending on current machinery inventory.

When alfalfa is cut, it usually has a moisture content of 75% to 80%. This freshly cut forage needs to be dried to approximately 55% to 60% moisture for haylage and closer to 15% for dry hay. Exact numbers vary depending on storage structure and harvest method.

Something to Ruminate On

By Barry Visser Nutritionist

Plants continue to respire during the wilting and drying process. This respiration process consumes plant sugars within the plant cell and produces oxygen and water. Respiration rate is the highest at cutting and gradually declines until the plant moisture content has fallen below 60%.

The longer it takes forage to dry to the ideal moisture content for harvest, the longer the forage is respiring in the eld. Therefore, rapid initial drying to remove the rst 15% of moisture from the plant reduces the loss of fermentable carbohydrates and preserves more total digestible nutrients in the harvested forage.

The concept of “hay in a day” has gained widespread popularity over the past several years to shorten harvest windows and ensure maximum retention of nutrients.

Once alfalfa is cut, the largest portion of the initial water loss is through the leaf surface openings called stomata. These gas-and-moistureexchange sites open in daylight and close in darkness. By laying forage in a wide swath, the amount of forage exposed to the sunlight is maximized, thus keeping the maximum number of stomata open. Many more stomata will close if put into a narrow, denser windrow where it is darker. Research at Penn State University showed that wide-swath cutting increases the drying surface of the swath by 2.8 times. In many trials, it has been shown that moisture reduction from 85% to 60% can be reached in as little as ve to seven hours.

Some producers may be reluctant to go to a wide swath because they do not want to drive one or both wheels on the cut hay. Research has shown that this causes less loss than making a swath narrow enough to t between the wheels. Another concern is that driving over a swath will increase ash content in the forage. In most cases, the opposite is true. One theory for lower ash content with wide swath is that that material tends to remain on top of the cut stubble whereas narrow windrows are heavier and result in closer ground contact.

When possible, avoid conditioning on a haylage crop. Conditioning crimps plant stems and disrupts the natural moisture transportation within

the plant, reducing the drying rate. If the stems are left intact, the leaves of the plant can pull more moisture out the stems and the hay will dry more quickly to the ideal moisture for haylage (55% to 60%).

Conditioning is important for making dry hay, as the crimping allows additional moisture to leave the stems at moisture below 60%.

Drying forage to the ideal moisture content as quickly as possible is the single most important factor in preserving the harvested forage quality. Wide-swathing allows for fast drying, and the shorter harvest window also reduces the risk of rain damage, further enhancing the opportunity to feed topquality forage.

Barry Visser is a nutritionist for Vita Plus.

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50 years and counting

The rst time I heard the letter combination of DHIA was in Sherry Newell’s ofce at WJON radio station during June Dairy Month in 1985. I was the new hire to the station’s farm department. I came from an Illinois beef farm and moved to the heart of dairy country in Minnesota. I was facing a steep learning curve. Sherry called me to her ofce to chat. She said if I was going to date Mark Schmitt, I better learn how to read a DHIA test sheet. Her advice turned out to be prophetic.

Sherry almost giggled as she recalled a childhood memory of racing her siblings to the mail-box at the end of the driveway a few days after the tester had been in their barn. I could see Sherry tracing the lines of her favorite cows to study the latest test results and records in progress as she slowly walked back to the house. Many years later, I would witness my own children walking back from the mailbox enthralled with the latest test results as they traced the lines of their favorite cows. Today, nobody races to the mailbox. I just click on the latest report to download the in-formation to my

computer. It is amazing how things have evolved over what feels like just a few years. Despite all the changes, there is also a sense of consistency and dependability.

Mark was serving on the Benton County DHIA board when we were rst married. I can’t remember how many testers came through our barn in those early years. The turnaround was on the verge of frustrating. We would get a tester trained to where and how information was to be hand printed in our DHIA book, and then they would decide they didn’t like the job or the hours. Eventually the board found two perfect guys to do the job of collecting information and milk samples. Ron and Bruce have been testing for Benton County for over 35 years each. Bruce eventually became our tester and a part of our family.

Our connection with DHIA started 50 years ago when Mark’s dad began testing his cows. We have tested cows almost every month since then, and I have every test sheet to boot. I don’t know why I have kept all the printouts and individual cow pages of special cows, but

it is nice to ip through the old books like a photo album bringing back memories of where these favorite girls stood or the list of their progeny throughout our farm’s history.

Just Thinking Out Loud

By Natalie Schmitt Columnist

In the beginning, we tested both morning and night. We received little notice of when the tester would show up in our yard to test cows, but there was always a general time of the month when we could expect a visit. It was thought that this unannounced testing helped protect the validity of the test results. Farmers weren’t able to juggle milking time or milking order to help boost a cow’s production. We depended upon the accuracy of our production records to support the value and sale of our registered animals. Really, if that was happening, it only hurt the dairyman in the long run.

I remember hearing about one tester showing up in a farmer’s yard to test cows one night. The only problem was that the farmer was at a family event and planned to take the evening off. Needless to say, his plans were turned upside down.

We would have an unannounced state tester appear in our yard every once in a while. It was policy to have spot checks when a cow was producing “too much” milk or a herd was testing “too high.” The state would send a tester in right behind the county tester to verify the accuracy of the previous tests. We had nothing to hide, but it meant extra work and added fees. We would also have to put the state tester up for the night as well as feed him supper and breakfast just to prove our county test results were accurate and true.

It is amazing how many things have changed with testing cows, and yet, there is still the same goal of providing accurate production records to help dairymen make informed management decisions based on facts. The integrity of the records is at the heart of testing.

Changes in DHIA are a reection of the changes in the dairy industry. There are fewer farmers and fewer testers but more animals on individual farms. There is no more morning and evening testing. Production records are based on a single milking. There are no more spot checks or unannounced testing. When our landline rings in the evening at the beginning of the month, we know Bruce is calling to schedule a morning test.

Why am I remembering all this history with DHIA? Bruce was here last week for our monthly morning test. Once all the samples were collected, the date entered and reports printed, we headed to the house for breakfast. Mark and Austin nished up the feeding while I started whip-ping up breakfast and Bruce set the table. He is such a part of our family that he knows our kitchen twostep. He pulls down the plates, grabs some glasses, pulls out the drawer for silverware and sets everything out on the counter. He even knows where the jams and syrups are to top off the pancakes.

Bruce is such a part of our dairy routine that it was quite a shock when he quietly said in passing that he was stepping back. His body couldn’t handle testing the large herds any more. He is nearing the magic age of Medicare and thought he would give up the big herds but still help test the smaller herds. At one time our herd was considered a large herd with 100 cows. Now we’re just a little herd and the right size to keep Bruce coming every month to test our cows and eat breakfast with the family.

As their four children pursue dairy careers off the family farm, Natalie and Mark are starting a new adventure of milking registered Holsteins just because they like good cows on their farm north of Rice, Minnesota.

Grounded in gratitude at take off

By the time these words are inked on a page of newsprint, I’ll be at The Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh, Scotland. As I wrote in my column last

Dairy Good Life

can think of only a couple other cases where you truly only get one chance.

Dairy judging isn’t easy. Competitive dairy judges need good time management, observation, critical thinking, and note-taking skills. There’s a lot to keep track of while placing a class and 12 minutes goes by mighty quick.

And then there’s the subjectivity. There’s no time clock or tally of touchdowns to decide who wins. Dairy judging scores are all subjective. Every ofcial judge evaluates classes differently. Placing a contest well comes down to which 4-H’ers saw the class most like the ofcial. Reasons scores are even more subjective.

By

fall, Dan and three of his fellow Stearns County 4-H’ers earned a berth in the International Dairy Judging Contest. What seemed so far away back in October is now just days away.

As I make nal plans and pack my suitcase, lots of feelings are owing through me.

Excitement is bubbling over the top.

I love to travel – the adventures, the sights, meeting new people, experiencing different cultures – all of it.

I’m also really excited to share this experience with Dan. I try not to think about it, because it makes me cry, but he’ll be spreading his wings in a few short years. Time together now is precious.

Anxiety is simmering beneath the surface.

Every time I travel, there’s always a bit of angst to temper the joy. I worry about leaving Glen and the girls and the farm. I worry a little about the travel itself.

Relief is seeping in.

Since October, Scotland planning and correspondence have been permanent items on my to-do list. I told Dan I’ll be ofcially excited once our plane takes off, but I’m already starting to feel relief that everything has come together.

Pride is constant.

Every time I try to imagine what Scotland and The Royal Highland show will be like I am reminded how proud I am of Dan and his teammates: Megan, Tyler, and Lanna.

4-H’ers get one opportunity to compete in the national dairy judging contest during their years in 4-H. That means this team from Stearns County had just one chance to earn a spot in the international contest. In all of 4-H and youth activities, there are lots of last chances due to aging out, but I

Dairy judging practice isn’t any easier. Every set of reasons kids give is followed with, “Good job. But here’s how you can do it better.”

It’s never just, “Good job.” There is always feedback on how to improve.

Dan and his teammates embraced that constructive criticism last fall while preparing for the national contest. Each set of reasons they delivered was better than the last.

Their preparation – and a little luck – helped them make the most of the opportunity. Again, I couldn’t be more proud.

Gratitude is keeping me grounded.

There are so many people to thank for making this experience possible.

To Glen, Monika, Daphne, our families, and employees: Thank you for keeping everything going while we’re gone.

To Dan, Megan, Tyler, and Lanna: Thank you for taking on the challenge of dairy judging and for committing to reaching your goals.

To my fellow dairy judging coaches, parents, and 4-H staff: Thank you for helping with the many, many details this trip entailed.

To all of our families, friends, and business owners who signed on as sponsors: Thank you, thank you, thank you. This opportunity would not have been possible without your nancial support.

When we rst started talking about accepting the invitation to the international contest, we reached out to the companies with whom we do business to ask for their support. I have been overcome with gratitude by everyone’s generosity and belief in supporting youth experiences. We are so fortunate to be part of this incredible business community. Thank you, again.

Sadie and her husband, Glen, milk 100 cows near Melrose, Minnesota. They have three children – Dan, Monika, and Daphne. Sadie also writes a blog at www.dairygoodlife.com. She can be reached at sadiefrericks@gmail.com.

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