August 26, 2023 Dairy Star - 1st section - Zone 1

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DAIRY ST R25

August 26, 2023 Volume

Kuball crowned 70th Princess Kay

Rice County native is ready to educate

By Amy Kyllo amy.k@star-pub.com

FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn.— Excitement matched the heat index the evening of Aug. 23 as the Minnesota dairy industry gathered to crown the 70th Princess Kay of the Milky Way at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in Falcon Heights.

Little did Emma Kuball know, as she said from the stage that the cool temperature of the butter booth was going to feel like paradise, that the very next day she would be escaping the heat as the new Princess Kay of the Milky Way.

After being crowned the goodwill ambassador to the state’s dairy farm families, Kuball’s initial remarks were lled with gratitude.

“You have all made me who I am today, and you’re the reason that I’m up on this stage,” she said. “Thank you so much.”

A stanchion barn transformed Baseball takes center stage for NDSU herdsman

Molden

coaches at Little League World Series

By Maria Bichler maria.b@dairystar.com

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa.

From the crack of the baseball bat to the pulsating of a milking unit, Todd Molden has traversed the world of baseball and that of a dairy farmer.

The two have collided recently for Molden, who is the herdsman of the North Dakota State University Animal Sciences

Wickenhausers

install parlor in existing facility

By Amy Kyllo amy.k@star-pub.com

COLOGNE, Minn.

Growing up, Caleb Wickenhauser always wanted to head to the barn after school, and to this day, he can recognize a cow by looking at its udder.

“Dad always said if I had paid as much attention in school as I did to the cows, I would have been on the honor roll,” Caleb said.

Caleb was not alone in his passion; his brother Jared also liked the cows. Recently, the

AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR

Caleb (from le ), Allen and Jared Wickenhauser stand Aug. 2 on their dairy farm near Cologne, Minnesota. The Wickenhausers milk 100 cows, farm 350 acres and raise 35 to 40 dairy steers. Turn

The

“All dairy, all the time”™

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Jackson Molden stands with his father, Todd, at the Li le League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Todd, herdsman of the North Dakota State University dairy herd, helped lead a group of 12 players from Fargo, North Dakota, to the tournament for the state’s rst-ever appearance.

brothers, alongside their dad Allen, have made a big change to their dairy by installing a parlor in their former stanchion barn.

Wickenhaus-

ers milk 100 cows, farm 350 acres and raise 35 to 40 dairy steers.

ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR

Emma Kuball, of Rice County, is crowned the 70th Princess Kay of the Milky Way Aug. 23 at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. Makenzie Alberts (center), of Dodge County, and Megan Ratka, of Stearns County, were selected as runners-up.

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Deadlines

Star

House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson said he has thousands of objectives but a single goal for the farm bill. “The one goal is to get this done in a bipartisan, bicameral way on time and highly effective,” Thompson said. With only a dozen days on the congressional calendar before the expiration of the current law, the deadline is looming. “I only have control of the House Agriculture Committee, and we’re going to do our job,” Thompson said. “When we can do markup and go to the oor really depends on leadership; I’m still hoping and praying it is before the end of September, but the ag committee will be ready to go.”

Dairy disaster

A handful of dairy leaders testied during the farm bill listening session at Farmfest. Ron Behounek, who farms with his sons at Hayeld, Minnesota, described the current dairy program as a disaster. “In 2022, we were paid $22.23 per hundredweight; our last check we got was $11.80,” Behounek said. “Can any of you guys cut your wage in half and make it? By December or maybe January, you’re going to see dairy farmers going bankrupt and being foreclosed on. It’s as simple as that.”

‘Sensible people in the middle’ needed to write new farm bill

Former House Agriculture Committee Chair Collin Peterson said the House and Senate committee leaders are saying the right things, but there are some problems with the new farm bill. “In this debate, you’ve got people saying they won’t support a farm bill unless there’s more money in it for reference prices or whatever, and you’ve got other people saying they want cuts in spending in the farm bill,” Peterson said. In the House, the GOP has a four-seat majority. “There’s at least 20 of these Freedom Caucus people

that will never vote for a farm bill, and you’ve got folks that aren’t going to vote for the bill anyway demanding things that will drive Democrats away from the bill,” Peterson said. “They’ve got to get to a place where the sensible people in the middle come together, and in this climate, that’s tough.” Peterson has met with staff from both sides of the aisle and will be available to provide input on writing the farm bill.

Get the farm bill done right

The current farm bill expires Sept. 30, but it is unlikely a new farm program will be in place by that time. “The goal is now to get it done by the rst of the year, but that is still a massive lift,” said Gary Wertish, president of Minnesota Farmers Union. “We really want the farm bill done right rather than just getting it done.” He cites consolidation as having a signicant impact on agriculture, and it should be addressed in the new farm bill.

Klobuchar looks to the future

Before attending Farmfest, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar spent three days visiting farms in the southwestern corner of the state. In an interview with the Red River Farm Network, Klobuchar said the drought was a chief concern. “The second thing is the workforce continues to be an issue, and I’m a big believer of a combination

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of incentives for young people to take over the farm as well as immigration reform,” Klobuchar said. Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow is not seeking reelection. Klobuchar is the second-ranking Democrat on that committee and is the likely next chair. “We always like to have someone in that role from the Midwest,” Klobuchar said. “We know the many years when Collin (Peterson) was chair and ranking member and how helpful that was; it is exciting for me personally, but also for the state.”

Margins at lowest level since DMC’s authorization

In June, the Farm Service Agency reported a margin of $3.65 per hundredweight above feed costs. That’s the smallest level since the Dairy Margin Coverage program was authorized in the 2018 farm bill. American Farm Bureau Federation economist Danny Munch said it is the sixth straight month of margins below the $9.50 per hundredweight trigger. “That’s the rst time the program’s catastrophic $4 protection level had been breached,” Munch said. Feed costs, he said, are continuing to chip away at the bottom-line for dairy farmers.

SNAP nutrition incentives

Legislation has been introduced in both the House and the Senate to expand the incentives for dairy product purchases for the participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The 2018 farm bill included inducements for uid milk purchases. The new bills call for incentives for additional dairy products, including cheese and yogurt.

Butter market rallies

Cash butter reached a 2023 record high price at mid-month. It was also the day with the highest volume of trades for a single session since 2004. DairyVisor President Joe Spader said the butter supplies are short, causing the market to rally. “With cow numbers declining and the heat stress on cows, I think butter production has dropped a bit,” Spader said. Additionally, butter in cold storage is depleting quicker than normal. Class III milk is in a similar situation with a drawdown in milk production driving the markets.

A.I. rms merge

The four individual cooperatives that make up Select Sires have voted to

merge. The new Select Sires Member Cooperative will be operational Oct. 1. Chris Sigurdson, who is the current general manager for COBA/Select Sires and Minnesota/Select Sires, will serve as the CEO for the merged A.I. rm.

Losses for Beyond Meat

For the rst six months of the scal year, Beyond Meat suffered a loss of $112.5 million. That compares to a loss of nearly $198 million in the same period one year ago. During the second quarter, sales for the plant-based protein products declined 24%. U.S. retail sales dropped 34%, but international foodservice business rose 19%.

Hoefs to lead MBOAH

Dr. Brian Hoefs is the new executive director of the Minnesota Board of Animal Health and the state veterinarian. Hoefs succeeds Dr. Mario Garcia, who served the agency until April of this year. Hoefs has been in an interim role since that time. Hoefs joined MBOAH in 2019 and oversaw swine, equine and livestock concentration points. Hoefs is the 11th executive director in MBOAH’s 120-year history.

Hall of fame honors for DeVelder

Donn DeVelder has been inducted into the South Dakota Co-op Hall of Fame. Born and raised in South Dakota, DeVelder began his career with Associated Milk Producers Inc. in 1984 as a eld representative and served in several roles focused on milk marketing, human resources and member services. In 2015, DeVelder was named AMPI’s copresident and CEO with Sheryl Meshke. DeVelder retired at the end of 2022.

Trivia challenge

Michael Dykes is the president and chief executive director of the International Dairy Foods Association. That answers our last trivia question. For this week’s trivia, how many servings of dairy products do Americans consume every day? 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.

Caleb said he and Jared have liked the parlor concept from the time they were kids visiting an uncle who had a parlor.

Previously, the Wickenhausers were milking in a 38-stall stanchion barn. In it, they had to make 2.5 switches per milking, and the whole process took three hours.

The stanchions were worn out, so the Wickenhausers priced a new parlor but found the cost to be high. Their solution was buying a parlor on auction.

After purchasing the parlor, they had it pulled from its old barn in 2021, and then everything paused as it sat in a shed for a year. In July 2022, the Wickenhausers began demolition of half of their stanchion barn. They cut the number of stanchions down to less than half and work began on installing the parlor.

By October 2022, the parlor was installed. The cows adjusted quickly and were transitioned within a week.

Once the parlor was complete, work began on ripping the stanchions out, which the Wickenhausers had milked in while the parlor was being installed to create the new holding area. While they did this, they had the challenge of continuing to milk the cows in the new parlor setup with no area to hold the cows.

“When the parlor was done and the holding area wasn’t, getting the cows in there to get milked, that was the worst,” Caleb said.

By December 2022, the holding area was complete, and by January, the palpation rail, which was the last piece of the project, was installed.

The nished setup has the barn divided in two. The back is a holding area. A wall down the middle of the barn has two doorways for cows to enter the front of the barn, which has a double-8 parabone pit parlor. Originally, the parlor they bought was a double-10, but the previous owners milked Jerseys, so the Wickenhausers had to remove units.

They also decided to update the computer systems on the parlor.

The Wickenhausers used multiple contractors for aspects of the project and had a good experience with each of them.

“(We’re) just thankful everybody got here to do their work when they

were supposed to,” Jared said.

Because they installed a used parlor, the Wickenhausers were able to save signicantly. Another cost saving factor was that they did not need new buildings. They were able to keep everything, including the milkhouse, and only the interior of the stanchion barn changed.

“We weren’t sure what we would use this existing barn for,” Jared said. “(We) didn’t want to have a new building and then have this sit empty.”

Milking time in the new setup only takes two hours, including cleanup. The Wickenhausers have also seen a reduction in mastitis.

If they were to do it again, the Wickenhausers said, they know of some things they would change. They would add more slope to the holding area and add a drain in front of the wall dividing the holding area from the parlor, which tends to get a pool of water. They also would have raised the ceiling.

For chores, Jared is the main milker each day. Caleb starts chores with scraping and moving cows and then joins Jared in the parlor. Allen works on feeding calves and heifers as well as mixing and feeding the total mixed ration.

Allen started on the farm in 1977, and Caleb and Jared are the fth generation of their family to be dairy farmers. Their grandpa is tending to youngstock on a different farm at 87 years of age.

Both brothers have spent their full careers on the farm.

“It’s all I know,” Jared said. “I like the cows.”

Caleb agreed.

“I always liked the cows,” he said. “(I like) being able to be outside and work outside instead of looking at a computer screen or papers all day.”

The Wickenhausers said they appreciate that dairy farming allows them to have their own schedule and experience something different each day.

Although the Wickenhausers are unsure of the exact future of their farm, they said they want to expand some aspect of it whether it is the cows, cash crops or nishing more steers. Caleb said the new parlor gives them the option to milk more cows if they want to.

AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR

Stainless steel gleams Aug. 2 on the Wickenhauser dairy farm near Cologne, Minnesota. The Wickenhausers installed a double-8 parabone pit parlor in their former stanchion barn.

Kuball is the daughter of dairy farmers Nate and Shannon Kuball of Waterville.

“It was just a dream come true,” Kuball said. “Right now, I’m just so grateful for all the amazing people I’ve been able to meet.”

Makenzie Alberts, representing Dodge County, and Megan Ratka, representing Stearns County, were runners-up.

Kuball is a sophomore studying agriculture education at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. With her major, she recognizes how the school visits that are part of Princess Kay’s role will affect her.

“I’m really excited to see how my major and what I’m learning in school will pay off in the classroom visits that I do,” Kuball said. “Also, I can see how the classroom visits will pay off in my schoolwork because it’ll be a really cool meshing experience.”

Kuball’s goal as Princess Kay is education.

“I really hope to educate people about the importance of dairy farming — the importance of the dairy community, how dairy products really affect consumers’ health and how many amazing nutrients are in dairy products,” she said.

Kuball and her family milk 240 cows on their farm in Rice County. Kuball said she has learned integrity through the farm and that the animals need to be cared for regardless of the weather extremes of cold or heat.

“I really learned the value of hard work,” Kuball said. “It doesn’t matter how many things you have to do in a day, there’s always time to do the important things.”

Kuball’s father, Nate, was planning to bale hay on the days immediately following coronation. His plans changed.

Kuball’s mother, Shannon, said having her daughter honored is meaningful.

“When you put your whole life into something like the dairy industry, to

know that your daughter is going to be representing all of the hard-working people all across the state; I don’t even know if words could be there,” she said. Other honors included Gracie Ash, of Mille Lacs County, being appreciated by her fellow nalists with the title of Miss Congeniality.

This year, the scholarship winners were Alberts, Kuball and Ratka.

At the coronation, the rst Princess Kay of the Milky Way Eleanor Maley Thatcher, who passed away since the last coronation, was honored.

To celebrate the Princess Kay program entering its seventh decade, all of the past Princess Kays in attendance were welcomed on stage in the order of their reigns.

Kuball will spend all 12 days at the Minnesota State Fair, representing the dairy community. Her rst two days will include many hours spent in a 40-degree rotating glass cooler as she has her likeness sculpted into a 90-pound block of butter by Minnesota artist and butter sculptor Gerry Kulzer.

“I’m really looking for-

ward to meeting the people who come into the butter booth,” Kuball said. Throughout the fair, Princess Kay will be joined by the nine nalists, visiting

with attendees in the Dairy Building, spending time at the Moo Booth, appearing in the daily parade and doing media interviews with television, radio and print.

ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR

Judy Beaudry (front, from le ), Marie Shovelain, Jim Shovelain, Isabella Stevens and Gianna Beaudry; (back, from le ) Ben Anderson, Evan Beaudry, Ethan Beaudry, Leah Beaudry and Jeanne Fehn gather together Aug. 23 for the Princess Kay of the Milk Way corona on at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. The group wore T-shirts suppor ng Jalyssa Beaudry, a nalist represen ng Wright County.

Emma Kuball 70th Princess Kay of the Milky Way

Dairy Cattle Research and Teaching Center in Fargo, North Dakota.

As an assistant coach, Molden helped lead a group of 12 talented youth to appear in the Little League World Series Aug. 16-27 in South Williamsport.

The Fargo 12U All-Stars is the rst North Dakota team to reach the pinnacle appearance in the tournament’s seven-decade history.

Molden and his wife Tania’s oldest son, Jackson, is the catcher on the team. Siblings Amelia and Christian have been cheering on the team during their journey to Little League headquarters.

Molden, who oversees the 100cow dairy farm at NDSU in addition to student employees, has been juggling the three roles of coach, father and herdsman throughout the season.

When it came time for the league’s state tournament in July, Fargo 12U All-Stars was the lone team that entered.

“Little League is not super huge in North Dakota, although I have a feeling it’s going to get a lot bigger now, but it’s not huge by any stretch,” Molden said. “Usually, there’s only about three teams in the state tournament.”

The squad then departed Aug. 2 to travel to the eight-team Midwest Region Tournament Aug. 4-11 in Whitestone, Indiana.

After defeating Kansas 15-1 Aug. 4 in the quarternals, Fargo

12U All-Stars faced Wisconsin Aug. 5 and won 16-2. A loss to South Dakota followed Aug. 9 by a score of 7-3. The team was not deterred and came back to win the next day over Iowa 12-7.

The win set up a championship game of neighboring states Aug. 11. In the end, North Dakota was the victor 9-7 to secure their spot in the world series.

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“The last play was a ground out to our shortstop, and he made a nice play,” Molden said. “It was so much fun to watch the celebration, knowing how hard these kids worked. They do anything we ask them to, and it’s just so fun to see that emotion in them come out.”

With no time to relax, and with a ood of local support behind them, the team and their three coaches set

off on a bus at 7 a.m. the next day.

“There was no time,” Molden said. “Basically, as soon as we won it, we had a meeting with the parents to explain what was about to happen. And then from there, they put you on a bus.”

Upon arriving at Little League headquarters, the team has navigated once-in-a-lifetime experiences, with media requests, events and opportunities tailored to the 20 national and international teams in attendance. A parade was held for all the teams through the streets of Williamsport. Molden said thousands of spectators were in attendance.

“It’s pretty amazing what they do for these kids,” Molden said. “They treat them like rock stars.”

Fargo 12U All-Stars, referred to as Midwest in the world series, drew a bye for the opening round Aug. 16 and fell to Southwest 6-2 Aug. 18 at Howard J. Lamade Stadium.

The double-elimination tournament bracket set up a MidwestMountain game Aug. 20. Ultimately, Midwest exited the world series when the game ended 7-1.

“When it became clear we wouldn’t win, I was still just so proud of them and all that they accomplished,” Molden said. “Nobody will ever be able to take away those accomplishments from them. I am sad that we are done with this group, but I hope many of them continue to play together, because this is a special group of players.”

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Players of the Midwest team, of Fargo, North Dakota, process onto the eld of Li le League Volunteer Stadium Aug. 16 for the opening ceremony of the Li le League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Midwest lost to Southwest and Mountain in the double-elimina on tournament.

Molden grew up on a dairy farm near Appleton, Minnesota, and, from a young age, learned and excelled at the sport of baseball. Molden traded a player’s jersey for a coaching spot in the dugout of an American Legion team while he was still attending Ridgewater College in Willmar, Minnesota.

When Molden moved to Fargo, North Dakota, and his oldest son began with Fargo Youth Base-

ball, Molden once again assumed a coaching role.

With so many memories wrapped in a baseball glove, Molden was quick to admit this latest experience will forever be at the forefront.

“The moment it hit me was when we came up from underneath Lamade Stadium onto the ineld

and you walk up the steps and you see it,” Molden said. “If you’re a baseball fan, you’ve watched the games, and now you get to see rsthand. You’re right on the eld where all these games have been played all these years. It was pretty special.”

The signicance of this milestone may be muddled by the excitement for the 12 players, but this time will be etched in their memories for years to come. From Molden’s perspective as a father and a coach, he is proud of not only his son but the 11 young men on the team.

“To be able to be there with Jackson is incredible,” Molden said.

“I know how hard he works at it and how much he wanted this. But you know, I’ve spent so much time with all these boys, you almost feel like you have 12 sons out there. It’s really fun to be able to be a part of that.”

While Molden has been occupied with all things baseball, the academic year at NDSU has begun. Molden said he is grateful for his assistant herdsman, Bob Brown.

“He’s great with the students, and he works his tail off,” Molden said. “He loves the cows, and luckily, Bob is a sports fan too and knows how important family is.”

Molden said he sees similarities

in the values instilled on a dairy farm and those learned on the diamond.

“As anyone who has dairy farmed knows, you have to work hard, and you are going to get out of it what you put into it,” Molden said. “These kids have bought into that mentality. Dairy farmers will do anything for their cattle and for their family as they’re trying to handle the day-to-day stuff on a dairy farm. These kids work super hard and play hard for each other, and they know that they have to put in a lot of work, and they do that. They’ve been rewarded with success because they work so hard.”

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Players of the Midwest team of Fargo, North Dakota, wait in the dugout Aug. 18 during their opening game against Southwest in the Li le League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. One of the team’s coaches, Todd Molden, grew up on a dairy farm near Appleton, Minnesota.

“As anyone who has dairy farmed knows, you have to work hard, and you are going to get out of it what you put into it. These kids have bought into that mentality.”

TODD MOLDEN, NDSU HERDSMAN AND ASSISTANT COACH

Well-tuned family farm

49th Annual Threshing Show

BY SMITH’S OF WI LLC

Funks display operation at eld day

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

MELROSE, Minn. — When brothers Greg, Carl and Jeff Funk chose to follow in the footsteps of their parents, John and Dorothy, and make dairy farming their career, they also began a line of expansions and upgrades to the family’s farm.

Today, Funk’s Midway Dairy near Melrose milks 700 cows — 560 in a double-12 parlor three times a day and 140 with two Lely A5 robotic milking systems. The Funks raise their own heifers and crops and manage the farm’s manure.

The processes on their dairy farm were shared Aug. 8 during the Central Dairy Field Day coordinated by University of Minnesota Extension.

Carl explained the roles each brother plays in the day-to-day operations. Jeff handles cow reproduction and calves, Greg manages forages and maintains equipment, and Carl oversees milking. Their father, John, helps with farm work wherever needed.

Assistant herdsman Juan Rocha, who has been employed at Funk’s Midway Dairy for six years, also helps with human resources. The farm has 13 fulltime employees.

“(Rocha) helps us manage our employees,” Carl said. “He translates and has been able to nd some of our employees. He’s been a great asset.”

Carl also gave a short history of the farm’s expansions.

In 2002, the Funks added onto their freestall barn to include 388 stalls. In 2015, a bedding pack barn was built for special needs cows and calving. Also that year, a parlor addition helped the Funks milk three times a day more comfortably. Then, in 2016, the Funks purchased a neighboring farm and installed a robotic milking system.

Greg talked about the farm’s emphasis on quality silage in their bunkers.

“We have two layers of plastic on top of all our feed — oxygen barrier and the black and white plastic — and we put tire on tire; there’s no exception,” he said. “If we don’t have enough tires, we go get some more. We believe you cannot space your tires out and still get good quality on top.”

Corn silage quality, Greg said, also includes other considerations.

“What we’re going to harvest this fall will not get fed for at least three months so that it has time to ferment,” he said. “With our dual-purpose hybrid corn, we’re focusing on digestibility.”

Since the farm does not have enough manure storage, the Funks direct pump about 2 million gallons of manure in the spring.

“We do drag line all our manure,” Greg said. “We

can pump direct anywhere 2 miles around here. We have land that’s up to 5 miles away, and for that (the manure) has to hit wheels. We can run that distance with ve trucks and still keep the system up and running.”

Their trucking of manure takes place in the fall.

“We put on anywhere from 7,000 to 12,000 gallons (of manure) per acre,” Greg said. … “Our concern with manure is that we’re going to build phosphorous, but we test our soils every three years, and we’ve proven that we can actually maintain or even drop the phosphorous levels in our soils even with those manure rates.”

The Funks also raise soybeans and alfalfa. Trucks haul the soybeans to Mankato to be sold and then return with soybean meal.

The Funks harvest their hay between 48% and 60% moisture. Greg said their ideal is in the low 50s. They also harvest corn silage at 62%-67% moisture.

There are a number of meadows around their two sites, and the Funks chop rst-crop meadow hay, which they feed from December to April. Greg said, since they do not own their own baler, it is cheaper to chop it.

“It’s been a real plus for us,” Greg said. “Our cows have told us that it’s worth our time to try to get those forage boxes in our meadows and get that product off of there in a chopped manner.”

At the milking parlor, Carl described the milking procedures used at the parlor and at the farm’s other site where the robotic milking system is located. There, 140 milking cows are housed along with 60 dry cows. The site has two robots with the option to add one more.

At the parlor, the Funks installed cow brushes about four years ago.

“It wasn’t really the silver bullet that we wanted, but it helped and made things easier,” Carl said. “We had a double-8 parlor then, and the stalls were narrower, so in 2015, we added four stalls and went bigger. We never had to check for stray voltage since that change, and the only reason was that (the cows became more) comfortable.”

He said the change did not improve somatic cell count numbers like they had thought. What did make a change in those numbers, he said, surprised him. Three years ago, they stopped using a crowd gate at the entry to the parlor. They had thought it was helping them avoid having to chase cows.

“We were wrong,” Carl said. “Now, the cow gate is just used as guide. It’s been night and day since we made that one change.”

Since eliminating the crowd gate, both farm sites have had a SCC under 100,000 this year.

The Funks dairy herd averages 4.3% butterfat. Milking visits to the robots average 2.8 to 2.9 visits per day, which is an improvement Carl attributed to switching feed used to guide cows to the robots.

TIFFANY KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Jeff (from le�), Greg, Carl and John Funk gather in June at Funk’s Midway Dairy near Melrose, Minnesota. The Funks hosted the Central Dairy Field Day coordinated by University of Minnesota Extension.

Sprinklers cool cows Aug. 8 at Funk’s Midway Dairy

The sprinklers are set to turn on automa cally at about 65 degrees, and as the temperature goes up, they spray longer and more o en.

“In April, we decided to switch to cracked corn and soybean meal as one of our feeding ingredients there — before that, we just used two different kinds of pellets — and it was like a light switch went on,” Carl said.

At that site, the Funks have an automatic feed pusher, and manure is vacuumed up by two collectors. At the parlor, they have scrapers. Although the robots have added in labor savings, the best benet, Carl said, is exibility of time.

“How do you put a dollar value on exibility?” he said. “Man, that’s been rewarding.”

To milk 550 cows at the parlor takes six hours, three times each day, with an extra hour each time for cleanup. At the robot barn, workers spend 2.5 hours in

the morning and 1.5 hours in the evening, but that includes taking care of the dry cows.

Jeff said the farm has ve types of bedding being used across its sites. In the freestall barn in which he spoke, there are two types of bedding: water beds and a bed pack with shavings. He said he personally likes the 3-inch foam mattresses best for overall durability and cow comfort but prefers waterbeds for cows with sore legs.

The Funks incorporate sprinkler systems and fans for cow comfort. For y control, the Funks have a spray system on the ceiling with nozzle heads.

Turn to FUNKS | Page 12

DHIA PROFILE

Tell us about your farm. Our farming operation, Little Valley Dairy, is managed by myself and my husband Donny, along with two of our children. Nick works full time for CHS but works alongside us evenings and weekends. Nick also takes time off during chopping and in the fall during harvest. Our daughter Clara is a full-time student at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities majoring in animal science. Whenever Clara is home, she participates in milking, youngstock chores, calf feeding and eldwork. Besides operating the 180-cow dairy, we also farm 600 acres of cropland we own, 380 acres of cropland we rent and about another 370 acres of pasture and woodland.

How many years have you been a director for DHIA? I have been a Minnesota DHIA director since 2006. This hardly seems true as I have enjoyed representing all of Minnesota’s DHIA farmer members on both the state and national level as a delegate to national annual meetings. My children were so young back then but have grown up understanding the importance of DHIA, good record keeping and the value of DHIA test day information.

What are your duties as director? My duties as a DHIA director currently include being the secretary/treasurer, representing Minnesota as a delegate for the national DHIA meetings, serving on the national DHIA scholarship committee and attend meetings (both board meetings and our annual meeting) in person or via Zoom. I have also served on several committees nationally and served as scholarship committee chairman.

What do you like about this role? I enjoy being part of a like-minded group who purposefully keep the importance of DHIA testing alive, keep costs reasonable to farmers and are always looking for ways to improve for Minnesota DHIA and their farmers.

Why is DHIA important to you? Growing up on my family farm, Hinckley Holsteins, we used DHIA testing for as long as I can remember. My parents, Dale and Marlys Hinckley, instilled in me how important it was to have accurate records and know the composition and amounts of milk each cow produced. When I married into another dairy farm family in 1996, DHIA was not being used at that time; though, it had been in the past. I recall our rst test when we purchased the herd and being excited to get results to dissect which cows really were pro table. Cow No. 25 was the one my mother-in-law raved about, but when I received my results, this cow had a high somatic cell count and both low fat and protein tests. Clearly, she wasn’t my best cow. Through the years, we have purchased animals to add to and grow our herd, and each time, we only looked at DHIA herds. Since 2007, we have had daily milk weights in our new parlor, but I’ve always believed there is more to the picture than just pounds of milk per day. Some of your highest producers may not be your most pro table. I also nd value in milk pregnancy testing. I have regular herd checks and a great relationship with our vets, but I nd it very convenient in using the test at busy times for my dairy when I don’t have anyone around to help me sort for ultrasounds or for con rmation checks in later lactation.

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ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR

near Melrose, Minnesota.

Holly Thompson Plainview, MN

“I enjoy being part of a like-minded group who purposefully keep the importance of DHIA testing alive...”

Customized to Your Operation

“It’s a y-mist system; it runs four times a day for about a minute and a half,” Jeff said. “It works well.”

The Funks incorporate regular footbath schedules and do their own hoof trimming. They also raise their calves in a facility a mile away, using a cooling compressor truck to run waste milk to them.

“We love it since we went to that with the calves; they are so much bigger and stronger,” Jeff said.

In the freestall barn next door, Rocha discussed the farm’s breeding system. The farm uses 70% Holstein semen and 30% beef semen.

Rocha said a team of four works together to breed cows.

“We always have 4% difference between each (team member) for conception rates,” Rocha said. “We have a goal on the farm — that’s why we always have over 50% conception. We have a herd check every two weeks, and the boss always pushes us to meet 80% of conception on every herd check. Somebody always says, ‘That’s too high,’ but that’s possible when you do things with passion. If you are always learning, the results show up by themselves.”

To pinpoint best times of day to breed individual cows, the team uses data from activity collars but also keeps track themselves by watching and writing down signs of cows being in heat.

The team also tries to avoid any stress in those cows to increase breeding success.

“We always try to move the cows nice and slow,” Rocha said. “I like to use the scrapers so that we don’t have to use skid loaders. It’s still clean but calmer.”

With many moving parts in the Funks’ large farming operation, Carl said teamwork and communication are key.

Greg Funk shows comparison photographs Aug. 8 illustra�ng how wrapping the sides of bunkers in addi�on to carefully covering silage makes a big difference in quality of that silage on his family’s dairy farm near Melrose, Minnesota. Funk’s presenta�on was part of a eld day coordinated by University of Minnesota Extension.

“We meet almost every morning for breakfast,” Carl said. “We all have our separate areas, but we all kind of help out in all areas. We talk a lot, maybe too much at times, but we usually feel like the end result is what we wanted.”

Inside Every Seed is the Potential for an Incredible Harvest

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Beth Ford, CEO of Land O’Lakes, was interviewed by Time magazine.

When asked about rising grocery prices, Ford said, “You know what could be self-protective for us? To get some immigration reform. If we’re two and a half million workers short, 20% of produce in the Central Valley, bread-basket area didn’t get harvested because we have no labor.”

In June, the unemployment rate was at 3.6%, or 6 million individuals.

The reason Americans don’t do this work is because it doesn’t pay enough.

The cornerstone of the American dream is home ownership. I don’t think Americans harvesting produce in the Central Valley could afford to buy a house on the wages their employers are paying.

In the May 13 Dairy Star, Cole Hoscheit, of Caledonia, Minnesota, said that his farm is improving lives in Mexico. His employees are building houses in ve years. Most people in the United States borrow money from a bank on a 30-year mortgage. I don’t know of anyone who can afford to build a house in ve years.

I wonder if Americans could build houses in ve years on the wages dairy farmers are paying. Looks like the cornerstone of the Mexican dream is home ownership also. Hoscheit is making the Mexi-

can dream happen for his employees. The adage, “Hard work pays off,” does not apply to Americans working agricultural jobs.

Ford also said, “(Immigrants) don’t take jobs (from Americans). These jobs are hard.”

I agree with Ford that these are hard jobs, but saying that Americans won’t do hard work is simply not true.

According to National Milk Producers Federation, after World War II, there were 3.5 million dairy farms. Now, there are under 30,000 in the United States, according to a USDA release in 2022.

Hard-working dairy farmers have been forced out of business by dairy farmers who, for decades, have been breaking federal immigration laws to hire illegal immigrants who will work for less money than Americans, giving them an unfair advantage over people who abide by the law.

Working with cattle is not only a hard job, but it’s dangerous. It should be a high-paying job and, quite frankly, should pay better than a CEO.

I do agree with Ford that grocery prices are too expensive. Large food companies are to blame; some are making a prot of billions of dollars a year.

Joe Schindler Red Lake Falls, Minnesota

from our side our side OF THE FENCE THE

Of all the tractors you’ve owned, what is your favorite?

90 cows

Of all the tractors you’ve owned, what is your favorite? I can’t pick just one; I like them all. We’ve got all John Deere equipment, but the most used one is our 7930. The engine puts out around 220 horsepower.

Why is it your favorite tractor? I really like the tractor for how smooth it is. The 7930 is maneuverable and versatile. We use it for a lot of different jobs. It’s easy for me to drive because it is all a simple hand lever, and I don’t have to do as much gear shifting.

What kind of work do you use it for on the farm? It’s on the baler right now, but we also use it for cutting hay and chopping. It does all our planting.

What is your favorite task to do with the tractor? I like working on chopping silage with it. It makes the job easier.

If money was no object, what tractor would you purchase? It would be a John Deere, of course. We have all we need right now, and I haven’t looked at new tractors in quite some time. I’m not sure what I would get.

During the year, what is your favorite job involving a tractor? Baling. It’s not difcult with the new balers. They tell you when it is full, and you pull the lever to release the hatch on the back.

Tell us about your family and farm. I farm with my wife, Jenny, and son, Jason, and his wife, Kari. Jason and Kari’s children often come to help on the farm as well. We milk 90 cows in a double-3 tandem parlor. The parlor has been replaced twice, and it’s been on the farm for around 50 years. The cows are housed in a tiestall barn and bedded with chopped bean straw. We also farm 800 acres of cropland, consisting of a corn, soybean and alfalfa rotation.

Of all the tractors you've owned, what is your favorite? The International Harvester 706. I bought the tractor in 1985, and the sales person let me try it for a week. Then, I bought it. It has 80 horsepower, and I don’t know the hours because the gauge doesn’t work. I put a cab on the tractor ve years after I had it.

Why is it your favorite tractor? The memories of the way I bought it and all the work it has done on the farm. I always like when I get on the tractor. I remember picking corn after we put the cab on and thought that was so nice.

What kind of work do you use it for on the farm? I use it for raking hay and hauling hay wagons. The hydraulics is not working now, but when I get it xed, I will put it on the manure spreader.

What was your favorite task to do with the tractor? I used to moldboard plow and disc with the 706.

If money was no object, what tractor would you purchase? An IH tractor with front-wheel assist because it would get you through the muddy conditions.

During the year, what is your favorite job involving a tractor? Chopping silage. I really enjoy seeing the silage blown into the boxes and clearing the eld. It’s nice knowing you have feed for the next year.

Tell us about your family and farm. I milk with my son, Nicholas, and Sally. We milk in a tiestall barn. Nicholas does the milking, and I feed the cows and the calves. Sally cleans the milkhouse when he is done milking. We also farm 152 acres, 80 of which is open. We raise corn and alfalfa. We ship our milk to Bongards.

Tom Fuechtmann

New Munich, Minnesota

Stearns County

70 cows

Of all the tractors you've owned, what is your favorite? I have three White 2-105 tractors. I bought two with the farm in 2000, and then I bought the other one at an auction in St. Nicholas. They have 14,000, 8,100 and 5,600 hours on them and have around 115 horsepower.

Why is it your favorite tractor? I like the Perkins motors in them. I never have issues with the Perkins motor.

What kind of work do you use it for on the farm? I use them for everything: cutting and raking hay, hauling forages and gravity boxes, and anything that comes up. I have one on our 430-bushel spreader, and it doesn’t even fuss.

What is your favorite task to do with the tractor? Cutting hay because they are such smooth-riding tractors.

If money was no object, what tractor would you purchase? I don’t have any interest in new tractors because I am comfortable with these. Too much of the price of new tractors goes into benet packages for CEOs.

During the year, what is your favorite job involving a tractor? Cutting hay. I put in air seats in the 105s. They don’t have the cab-forward design, and they just oat through the elds. I grew up with these. They made this place, and they belong here. Tell us about your family and farm. We milk in a tiestall barn. I farm here with my son, Tanner, and we milk 70 cows. We also have 450 acres, 350 of which are tillable. We raise corn and alfalfa. We have irrigation on 250-275 acres. We ship our milk to Associated Milk Producers Inc.

Melvin Bayerl Winsted, Minnesota McLeod County

Ralph Schleper Bowlus, Minnesota Morrison County 40 cows

Austin Hayeld, Minnesota

Dodge County

50 cows

Of all the tractors you've owned, what is your favorite? My favorite tractor by far is the 2008 John Deere 7230, 135 horsepower with front-wheel assist. It has 6,000 hours, and we bought it in 2010. It has a self-leveling loader which makes it a versatile tractor.

Why is it your favorite tractor? My favorite part of this tractor is the buddy seat which is often occupied by one of our grandchildren, making it the greatest tractor ever. This tractor gives a smooth ride, and the cab is pretty quiet. They have spent countless hours with me doing homework, telling stories and singing songs.

What kind of work do you use it for on the farm? We use it for tillage, harvesting silage, baling hay, cleaning, feeding, mowing, moving round bales and snow removal. It's cool in the summer and warm in the winter, has great visibility, is quiet and has power shifting on the go.

What is your favorite task to do with the tractor? My favorite task is baling. I feel so fortunate to be able to work with our family. It is not uncommon to

Darrel Nyhof

Sioux Center, Iowa

Sioux County

500 cows

Of all the tractors you've owned, what is your favorite? My favorite tractor is the Oliver 1550 that my grandpa bought new in the late 1960s. It has a narrow front, a three-point hitch and a gas engine that produces 53 horsepower. The tach says that it has 3,200 hours on it.

Why is it your favorite tractor? The Oliver 1550 has been a trouble-free tractor for the most part. My nephew from Chicago recently graduated from college and dropped by our farm on a westward road trip he was taking. I put him on the Oliver and had him drive it even though he had never been on a tractor before. Driving his great-grandfather’s tractor was a huge thrill for him and created some great memories.

What kind of work do you use it for on the farm? I put a sprayer on the Oliver’s three-point hitch and use it to spray ies in our barns. The tractor only runs for an hour once a week or so during the warm months. I change the oil every other year to keep its lters and oil fresh,

have four generations working at once. Our daughters have taken off work and made special trips to the farm to help us during this time. Baling requires several hands. We make a big lunch and eat together which provides lots of laughs and problem solving.

If money was no object, what tractor would you purchase? If money were no object, we would probably choose the John Deere 6R 145 with a buddy seat and front-end loader.

During the year, what is your favorite job involving a tractor? My favorite job with a tractor is putting up hay, both bales and chopping, which can be challenging. We want to cut the hay during the right stage of maturation; however, weather can be a big factor as well. Trying to chop it before it dries out too much yet after the dew in the morning and moisture at night requires good planning and patience. It always smells great, and I have the best view from my workstation. I'm pretty lucky.

Tell us about your family and farm. Jeffrey and I truly have a family-operated, sustainable, sixth-generation farm. We have a tiestall barn with comfort stalls and have shipped our milk to Associated Milk Producers Inc. for about 40 years. We milk about 50 registered Holsteins twice a day. We farm about 700 acres of corn, soybeans, sweet corn, alfalfa and sometimes peas. Jeffrey and Bonnie do most of the milking while Jeffrey's father tends to the calves and cats. I spend more time on the tractor than in the barn due to past injuries, and our grandchildren, Lane and Owen, are getting to be good dairymen too.

What is your favorite task to do with the tractor? I don’t really like eldwork. What I enjoy the most is working with and caring for our dairy cattle. Spraying ies with the Oliver is very satisfying because at the end of the process you can see dead ies.

If money was no object, what tractor would you purchase? I would like a John Deere 6155R with short axles and all of the bells and whistles. We are currently using a similar tractor on our feeder wagon, and it’s already got quite a few hours on it. When I was 33 years old, I bought a John Deere 4440 and put it on the feeder wagon. Years later, when I sold the 4440 to a mechanic in central Iowa, it had over 30,000 hours on it.

During the year, what is your favorite job involving a tractor? I own a John Deere 4020 that has an open station. One of my favorite things is giving our ve grandchildren rides on that tractor. It’s a great way to spend time with them and create lasting memories.

Tell us about your family and farm. My wife, Mary, and I farm with her brother and her father. We milk our cows in a double-8 parabone parlor and bed our free stalls with sand. Our fresh cow pen has a bedding pack, and our maternity pen is bedded with sawdust. We trim hooves every other Tuesday and perform herd health checks on alternating Tuesdays. We ship our milk to Associated Milk Producers Inc. in Sanborn, Iowa.

Susie Thoe, pictured with Owen (left) and Lane

Describe your farm and facilities. Our cows are housed in sand-bedded free stalls and milked in a double-8 herringbone parlor. We have modied our existing buildings over the years to get everything how it is today. This farm has been in my family for 111 years, and I was raised here. This is my 51st cropping season. My wife Pat and I are senior partners, and we farm with our daughter, Angie, and her husband, Donald, and our son, Dan, and his wife, Michelle. The grandkids work when their schedule allows. My nephew, Ben Herricks, is the main feeder, and he is invaluable. He has worked here for over 20 years and knows everything going on.

What forages do you harvest? Corn silage, alfalfa, rye and oats.

How many acres of crops do you raise? 1,400 acres.

What quality and quantity do you harvest of each crop?

We raise 300 acres of alfalfa, 100 acres of nurse crops (rye and oats) and 1,000 acres of corn. Half the corn is for si-

FORAGE PROFILE

lage and half is for grain. We raise HarvXtra Alfalfa, which is a low lignin feed, and strive for a relative feed value of 200. We raise brown midrib corn silage, and our goal with that is to harvest as high energy, palatable feed as we can.

Describe the rations for your livestock. We feed a high-forage diet to all of our animals. Rye and oats are fed to the dry cows and heifers. The milk cows are fed alfalfa haylage, BMR corn silage, ne-ground corn, soybean meal and a protein mix. The quantity of each ingredient is adjusted according to production groups.

Describe your harvesting techniques for alfalfa and corn silage. We harvest all of our own crops together with the Brueggen family in Norwalk, Wisconsin. We have worked together to get our crops done for over 40 years. Our No. 1 rule for working together is, if a decision is not good for both of us, then we need to rethink it. They also milk close to 600 cows, so we are working together to feed 1,200 cows, which justi-

Jack Herricks takes a break Aug. 16 at his farm near Cashton, Wisconsin. Herricks farms 1,400 acres and milks 600 cows with his family, and 2023 is the 51st cropping season of his farming career.

es having larger equipment. We harvest our alfalfa every 28-30 days and get it done in three days. It’s important

to get it done in a short time frame to achieve consistent feed. Corn silage takes about a week.

What techniques do you use to store, manage and feed your forages? We store our forages in bunkers. We store half of our shelled corn in a bunker and the other half in Harvestore silos. When we are harvesting, we make sure feed is packed tightly in the bunker. The single biggest factor in management is taking monthly inventory of our feed. We know when our feed is going to run out, and we are able to plan better that way.

Throughout your career, have you changed the forages you plant, and how has that decision helped your operation? We raise the same crops, but the genetics have changed dramatically. We have also changed the soil health of our land. Most of our land has over 4% organic matter. Each percentage increase of organic matter gives the soil the capacity to hold another inch of rain. So, on a year like this, we can hold 2 more inches of rain than a lot of land.

Jack Herricks Cashton, Wisconsin | Monroe County | 600 cows

ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR

“Only Udder Comfort™ will do! We love it for swelling and for fresh cows. We never want to use anything else because this works so well,” says Kevin Stoltzfus of Warwick Manor Guernseys, the herd in East Earl, Pennsylvania that produces the Golden Guernsey Milk for Yoder’s Country Market in New Holland.

Kevin and Dina and children Kolby, Karli and Kaila are all involved in the dairy. Karli and Kolby brought 4 homebred Guernseys to the 2022 World Dairy Expo. ‘Peachey’ was bred-and-owned champion of the junior show, ‘Scotch’ (pictured above) was res. int. champion of the junior show, and ‘Senora’ top lifetime production cow of the open show. Of their 50 milking Guernseys, 12 made the 2022 Top-100 Component Queen Cows of the breed, averaging 25,110M 5.9F 3.3P; with 89-pt average score, 5 nominated AA in milking form.

“When something works, we stick with it. We use Udder Comfort on all fresh cows 2x/day for a week after calving. We start heifers prefresh, 1x/day for a week before calving,” says Kevin. “We also use it before, during and after showing.”

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Jack Herricks inspects corn silage Aug. 16 on his farm near Cashton, Wisconsin. Feed inventory is taken monthly, which allows the family to plan for carryover; this way, the feed has enough me to ferment and cows never have to eat green corn silage.

Fine-ground corn is stored in Harvestore silos and bunkers at the Herricks farm near Cashton, Wisconsin. Milk cows are fed corn silage, alfalfa haylage, ne-ground corn and a protein mix.

How do quality forages play a part in the production goals for your herd? It helps us be low-cost producers because high-quality forage means less purchased feed. Approximately 80% of our feed is home grown.

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What are management or harvesting techniques you have changed that have made a notable difference in forage quality? I started farming by making 12,000 to 14,000 small square bales a year and using a onerow, pull-type chopper. So there have been big changes in my career. Now, we can harvest more acres and feed more cows per manhour than we once did.

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SPECIALTY

Read family leases dairy cattle for 28 years

By Amy Kyllo amy.k@star-pub.com

AUSTIN, Minn. — One Mower County dairy farm is enabling kids to experience dairy. Roger and Lori Read, alongside their son and daughter-in-law, Greg and Heather, are in their 28th year of leasing dairy animals to their local 4-H dairy project.

“Most of our 4-H leases are kids who live in town,” Lori said. “They have no opportunity to take a dairy animal otherwise.”

The Reads milk 125 mostly Brown Swiss cows with a couple of Holsteins on their 320-acre farm near Austin. They began leasing in 1995 after a local family who was no longer dairying still wanted to be part of the dairy project.

Since then, every year they have somewhere from ve to 13 kids lease animals from their farm.

Fueled by friendship

This year, the Reads had eight or nine lessees who took 19 animals to their county fair during the second week of August. Roger and Lori own the animals, but Heather has managed the lease program since 2016 when she married Greg.

For the Reads, their motivation comes from the relationships built through leasing.

“The reward is the fun that we have with (the kids),” Lori said. “They always come back and talk to us.”

The Reads have even been invited to weddings of former lessees.

Lori said her proudest moment leasing came when one of their lessees, Julia (Mullenbach) Merten, walked across the stage at the Princess Kay of the Milky Way coronation.

Merten, who grew up in town, had begged her parents to let her lease a cow, and when she was in sixth grade, they decided to let her. Through the Reads, Merten experienced the dairy community and went on to become a Mower County Dairy Princess and Princess Kay

nalist, majored in dairy science and now has a job in the greater agricultural community.

“She’s almost like a summer daughter,” Lori said.

“We’ve had a few of those where they just t in so well.”

Lori said that Merten’s show cow, Burner, remembers Merten, who occasionally shows her in an open class

but has not shown her for 4-H in ve years.

AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR

Lori and Roger Read stand together Aug. 1 on their dairy farm near Aus n, Minnesota. The Reads are in their 28th year of leasing dairy animals.

“It’s just amazing,” Lori said. “They built such a bond over those years.”

Kids begin asking to lease as early as the Minnesota State Fair, but most kids start looking at calves in October. The real picking begins around Easter time, and by mid-May, the show string is determined.

The Reads have quality animals to choose from and have been honored multiple times for their genetics and accomplishments.

Two things are required from the Reads’ potential lessees. First, the parents must be involved, and second, the kids must take part in showmanship at the fair.

“You don’t become a better show person unless you continue to work at it,” Lori said. “That showmanship class is always good for you.”

Lori said they want the kids who lease to learn responsibility and a work ethic. The kids help to care for their animals and prepare them for the fair. They also help with putting up small square bales of hay used at the fair. She wants them to know that, if they put the work in to prepare, they can also have a lot of fun.

Leadership is another quality Lori has seen the kids learn through leasing.

“The older kids teach the

involved, and the kids must take part in showmanship at the fair.

younger kids,” she said. “My niece brought her daughter over two weeks ago, and here is my granddaughter Jennifer teaching her. ... Jennifer’s 6, teaching the 4-year-old how you approach a cow. ... Pretty soon my 4-year-old niece was brushing and washing that

little heifer calf.”

Lori said they have seen shy kids grow condence through their time of showing.

The Mower County dairy project is not extreme competition, Lori said, which is

something she and her family have strived for. When her children originally started showing in the project, people would not talk to them until after the show was over.

“We swore that we wouldn’t do that and our kids

wouldn’t be that way,” Lori said. “They would help whoever asked.”

Roger said one of the bigger challenges of leasing is keeping the kids from getting discouraged.

“(You) just have to keep encouraging them,” he said. “We’ve never had anybody quit.”

The Reads open their farm for tours. Locally, they host a high school class and 4-H clubs. Because of their high genomics animals, they hosted tours for international guests attending the World Brown Swiss Conference held in conjunction with World Dairy Expo last fall. Within her leasing of animals, Lori especially values the friendships she forms with the kids.

“Even though we’re older, it doesn’t mean that we can’t understand some of the stuff that the kids are going through,” she said.

Lori said the kids keep her and Roger young and that Roger even likes their music. Roger is quick to qualify, however, that he only likes some of their music.

With so many nding fulllment from their lease program, including themselves, the Reads said they will continue leasing as long as they have cows on their farm.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

The Reads and some of their lessees – James Read (front, from le ), Jennifer Read, Jus n Helle and Raylan Hanson; (middle, from le ) Brody Helle, Nathan Mar nson and Heather Read holding Julia Read; (back, from le ) Ryan Irvin, Roger Read and Greg Read – gather at the 2023 Mower County Fair. The Reads require two things from poten al lessees: The parents must be

Unexpected road to the crown

Steele County native reminisces shock of being Princess Kay

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

SPICER, Minn. — When Kari (Schroht) Reuvers signed up in April of 1978 to compete in the dairy princess competition for Steele County, she was a senior at Owatonna High School and living on her family’s dairy farm outside of town. It was the silver anniversary of the program’s existence, having been ofcially launched statewide in 1954 when Eleanor (Maley) Thatcher was crowned as the rst Princess Kay of the Milky Way.

Today, Reuvers lives in Spicer, where she raised her two sons. She has worked at Conway, Deuth & Schmiesing, a certied public accounting rm in Willmar, for the past 34 years.

The spring she decided to vie for a spot as a dairy princess, Reuvers had stiff competition at the county level. Over 20 young women had signed up

as well.

“I guess it was kind of expected from me to run,” Reuvers said. “My mom and dad were really involved in dairy (organizations), and they did a lot through the creamery, so it was always a given that I would run for it. I thought it would be fun. I never expected to win.”

Although Reuvers had no experience in pageant competition, she was familiar with the show ring.

“I was in 4-H; I showed cows and showed pigs,” Reuvers said. “I had a horse, but no one ever let me bring my horse to show. That was kind of a sore subject. She’d get loose and run the cattle through the fence. (My family) said, ‘What a waste of money. We have to make hay for that?’”

Reuvers grew up knowing the value of hard work. Her family’s farm was already a century farm when her parents, Jerry and Berniece, raised her and her three brothers on it. The farm is still in the family today with Reuvers’ nephew at the helm.

“I milked, and I did eldwork,” Reuvers said. “I did whatever we were doing at the time.”

Until second grade, Reuvers even attended the same

country school across one of their farm elds that her father had attended. When the school closed, she had to transfer to the much larger school in Owatonna.

“I remember how terried I was,” Reuvers said. “I thought I needed to be really nice to everybody so that I could t in.”

She said she later wondered if that mindset was good training for being Princess Kay.

In high school, she and her siblings had to schedule school activities around each other so that there were enough hands to help at home. Since her brothers wrestled, she did recreational softball and volleyball instead of school sports.

Then in 1977, their barn burned.

“We saved all the animals and found a barn on the other side of Owatonna to use,” Reuvers said. “It was a 20-mile drive to go milk. Over there, we had to use cans where we at least had had the pipelines in our barn.”

Farm life became more hectic until the Schrohts were able to build a new tiestall barn and begin milking their 75 Holsteins in it.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Kari (Schroht) Reuvers poses for a photo in August of 1978 as the newly crowned Princess Kay of the Milky Way while at the Minnesota State Fair. Reuvers grew up on her family’s dairy farm near Owatonna, Minnesota.

Hot Chocolate: Good drink, great cow

We had one cow in particular that had been with us for most of our dairy career. Her name is Hot Chocolate, and she was born about a week before Thanksgiving in 2017.

That was not a good morning. One of our 3-year-old cows, No. 112, freshened the day before, and we were really excited to see how she turned out. Unfortunately, 112 prolapsed her uterus and died during the night. I discovered her early the next morning when I went out to milk. I was so heartbroken and disgusted at the tragic way that this beautiful animal had suffered before death.

The feeling of failure was strong that morning. It took me a while to get over the shock and be able to go back in the barn to start chores.

By Abby Wiedmeyer Staff Writer

When I nally did drag my sad self back to the barn, I set up the milkhouse and pushed the milker cart down the walk to start milking. The calving pen was down at that end of the barn, and when I approached, I saw that another cow had calved in the night. There was a small, white, fuzzy calf curled up in the corner and a fresh cow who had thankfully already dumped her cleanings and nothing else.

The satisfaction of this new life was buried under the fog of grief and bitter feelings that I was still harboring from the death of 112. I milked the rest of the cows while my husband mixed feed and got 112 out of the barn. By about 8 a.m., I was done milking, and the kids had all made their way out to the barn. They ranged from about 4 to 10 years old at the time.

When I went to get the calf out of the pen, I had a heck of a time catching it because it was so spunky and noisy (always a good sign). As I approached, it took off with a beller. It was a few minutes before I could corner it and get it in the cart to wheel down to the milkhouse. The fog on my heart lifted a little bit as I got a good look at this healthy little calf. It was a heifer out of another great homebred cow, and she was mostly white with a little pink nose.

When I brought her in the warm milkhouse, all the kids fell in love with her right away. She was tted with a calf coat and fed colostrum, which she drank without any problems. A friend of the family had shown up to go hunting in the meantime and was making hot chocolate for the kids. As they crowded around the feed cart, the new calf kept trying to snitch a sip of their drinks.

In a unanimous decision, the calf was named Hot Chocolate. Our oldest daughter wrote out an ear tag with the number 186 and Hot Chocolate.

As Hot Chocolate grew, she held a special place in my heart because taking care of her that morning was like balm on a sore heart. When 112 tragically left our lives, Hot Chocolate entered it and completed the circle of life that keeps so many of us going.

Before Hot Chocolate was a year old, we dispersed our dairy herd. Our rstgeneration farm had hit hard times, and we had to gure out how to cash ow. We sold the cows and kept our heifers and worked jobs off the farm. When the heifers were big enough, we bred them to a beef bull and started milking again in 2020.

Hot Chocolate was one of the rst heifers to calve in when we started shipping milk again. I had looked forward to seeing her calve in since she was born, and for a couple of years, I wasn’t sure if we were ever going to milk again. So, when she did calve in and I was there for it, I was so grateful. I never took one day of milking her for granted.

We have been shipping milk for the second time for three years now, and the industry has continued to evolve. We gured out a way to cash ow a small, rstgeneration farm in today’s day and age, and it is really hard. My husband and I work a lot of hours off the farm to make ends meet, and our half-grown kids carry a lot of the weight. This has developed them into wonderful humans and also saved me from being the hover parent that I probably would have been, but we have still decided that it is not sustainable.

We decided to sell the cows once and for all in June. Hot Chocolate went with them as a healthy, productive, pregnant dairy cow. When the auctioneer came out to look at our herd before the consignment, Hot Chocolate was the rst one he pointed to as who he thought would be our top seller.

It’s bittersweet to receive validation of our efforts at the exact time it is all coming to a close. It seems unfair that people who have done a good job at something should choose to give it up.

I have accepted that we were meant to do this, just not forever. And while I always hoped that I would take care of Hot Chocolate for as long as she lived, now I can only hope she will be a special asset to someone else’s herd.

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Soon after, Reuvers’ pageant experience began, creating a new whirlwind for her. By the time the Steele County pageant took place, Reuvers had accepted a full-time job at the county’s Rural Electric Association, slated to begin immediately after her high school graduation. The REA agreed to allow her time off for pageant events.

“For the county competition, I mostly remember interviewing,” Reuvers said. “They were nding out if you knew about dairy.”

Reuvers said she was shocked when she won, but there was not time to think about it. In 1978, county princesses quickly moved on to regional-level competition, where county princesses competed within 12 regions. The regional winners then became the 12 Princess Kay nalists.

The regional competition was tougher, Reuvers said, but it was structured much like the county one.

Reuvers won again.

“When I won regionals, a new girl was crowned at the county level — the runner up (from the Steele County competition).”

Reuvers headed to the Minnesota State Fair for the Princess Kay competition.

“It was a lot more intense there,” Reuvers said. “We were up there for three days before the competition, and they had lots of events for us to do. They were watching us interact. We did a lot of interviewing with people such as top radio personalities from the Twin Cities.”

She said she remembers needing to give a short speech, answering questions and wearing many dresses.

“We were told we could be at the state fair for up to 12 days, but I didn’t pack for 12 days; I packed for three,” Reuvers said. “I was sure I would be going home.”

Her parents had to drive to the University of Minnesota where the candidates were staying to bring Reuvers more clothes.

“I remember borrowing dresses from people because I had to be in dresses every day,” Reuvers said. “It was kind of crazy. We were on the go all the time, but we were having fun.”

When the night of the pageant arrived, Reuvers said she was sure she would not win, but then a strange moment happened.

“Here’s the weird part — they named me Miss Congeniality,” Reuvers said. “One of the organizers handed me a box when I won that and said to me, ‘What would it be like if you opened this

up and it said you were Princess Kay?’

I just kind of laughed. I thought (since being named Miss Congeniality), ‘I’d probably be lucky to still be named one of the runners up.’”

In the next moment, she was proven wrong. The crown was placed on her head. She was the new Princess Kay, and the whirlwind around her ramped up even more.

“I was in shock,” Reuvers said. “There were parades twice a day, every day, at the fair and other activities. You were really watched. I could hardly go to the bathroom by myself because they were responsible for (the candidates). You kind of gave up your life for those 12 days.”

As she sat for over six hours in the fair’s quiet butter booth the day after being crowned, having her likeness sculpted as people watched through the glass walls, she nally had a moment to slow down.

“I was overwhelmed, a little scared,” Reuvers said. “I mean, I had never left the farm.”

Today, Reuvers’ sculpture, carved from a 65-pound block of butter, is long gone. She brought it home with her after the fair, cut it up and gave the parts away. However, her memories from the competition and the subsequent year of serving across the state as Princess Kay remain, and she said the experiences changed her in ways large and small.

“I learned how to drive in the Twin Cities, and we didn’t have GPS; I had never driven there before,” Reuvers said. “I remember my rst speech, it was up north, and I totally blew it. I got up there in front of the people and just froze, but it got easier and easier.”

She remembers later giving one speech where 3,000 people were in attendance and now laughs when she thinks about how normal speaking in front of others became for her.

“After a while I’d think, ‘Oh, I’ll just wing it,’” Reuvers said.

Looking back, one of her favorite memories of that time was immediately after the state fair was over. Reuvers received another big surprise on her return to Owatonna that she said warmed her heart.

“When I came back home after those 12 days at the fair, my town had a big celebration,” Reuvers said. “The police and the retrucks met us coming in. I rode in the car with my mom and dad, and people began escorting us into town. People were lining the streets. The community really supported me.”

She and her parents were escorted to a stage outside of Duffy’s where, after Reuvers received accolades, she gave a short speech, thanking everyone. She said she looked over and saw her dad’s eyes lled with happy tears.

Her dad passed away a few years ago, but her mother lives in Owatonna.

“My dad just cried (that night), and he’s gone now,” Reuvers said. “I knew that he was so proud of me. My parents got married really young and had four kids by the time they were 22 years old. My mom and dad ended up going back to the farm, turned it around — my grandpa had been struggling with the farm after my grandma died — and they became very successful farmers, built the farm up to what it was.”

Thinking of the excitement she was able to give them brings tears to Reuvers’ eyes, and she said her parents’ pride was the best part of being crowned Princess Kay.

“My parents were great parents,” Reuvers said. “They worked hard, and they worked well together. I’m just really grateful and know that (my being Princess Kay) meant a lot to them.”

SUMMER SAVINGS

Teleskid high flow, 2-spd, AC, SRS, Air seat Was $108,900 Now $99,750

Used H&S 1800 rear discharge spreader, 540 pto, 400 bushel Was $3,500 Now $2,250

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR

Kari (Schroht) Reuvers sits at her desk Aug. 2 at Conway, Deuth & Schmiesing in Willmar, Minnesota. In 1978, Reuvers was named dairy princess from Steele County and went on to be crowned that year’s Princess Kay of the Milky Way.

The arched rafters create a more open barn allowing better ventilation. Also since there are no open webs in the trusses, there are no places for birds to nest. • Spans up to 72 ft. • Up to 12’ spacing depending on the load you desire • Bird nesting control • Better ventilation & visability • No feed alley post obstruction • Additional ceiling height Starwood Rafters Lam-Ply Truss ANOTHER QUALITY PRODUCT FROM STARWOOD RAFTERS

www.extension.umn.edu/dairy

Reducing methane emissions of dairy cattle

Ruminant livestock are a source of methane. Enteric fermentation is part of the normal digestive process in ruminants. Decreasing the emissions of enteric methane from dairy cattle is strategic to reduce the carbon footprint of dairy production systems.

The U.S. dairy industry has a goal of achieving greenhouse gas neutrality as part of the U.S. Dairy’s 2050 Environmental Stewardship Goals. Dairy farmers have been reducing the environmental impact of dairy farming by managing their land, air and water resources, but continued efforts will only further improve the dairy industry’s role in sustainable agriculture. Much of the previous work on reducing methane emissions from dairy cows has focused on nutritional strategies, but other factors, such as animal genetics, are likely to play a role. Currently, there is minimal work being done to study the impact of genetics on methane emissions.

sota, and the St. Paul, Minnesota, campus dairy using the GreenFeed methane measuring system from C-Lock Inc. based in Rapid City, South Dakota.

By Brad Heins University of Minnesota

This project will evaluate Holstein and crossbred dairy cattle on the WCROC and St. Paul campus dairies and on commercial Minnesota dairy farms for methane emissions from various production systems. The project will analyze novel nutritional strategies to reduce enteric methane emissions of conventional and grazing dairy cattle. Furthermore, the project will understand nutritional and non-nutritional factors that increase efciency of energy utilization of dairy cows. We will also evaluate feeding strategies and practices in the eld that will help to reduce the release of, and help sequester, greenhouse gases.

to conduct research in challenging areas of nutrition and dairy cattle genetics. The system will monitor an animal’s breath components to estimate the gases emitted by animals on a daily basis. The system is a portable, self-contained system designed to measure emissions from calves, heifers or cows.

We began utilizing the system during mid-July at the dairy in Morris. The gure has early results of methane emissions from our cows as we trained them

to the system. The results are variable depending on the nutrition, genetics and time of day cows eat or visit the GreenFeed. Overall, our cows average around 350 grams of methane emitted per day. This study is the rst step to lower emissions on Minnesota farms and to develop resilient dairy farms. Results will be used to understand how genetic selection has improved sustainability of dairy cows and help improve our estimates of the energy requirements of dairy cows.

Recently, we received a grant from the Minnesota Rapid Agricultural Response Fund, created by the Minnesota Legislature to evaluate methane emissions in cattle at the University of Minnesota. Our objectives are to understand the effect of dairy breeding strategies on enteric emissions in dairy production systems. Baseline emissions will be collected on the West Central Research and Outreach Center dairy in Morris, Minne-

The WCROC dairy in Morris milks between 200 and 275 cows twice daily. The St. Paul campus dairy milks 90 cows twice daily with two Holstein cow genotypes. These University of Minnesota research dairies provide an ideal testing opportunity to evaluate and demonstrate the effect of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We have acquired two portable systems that will be used to evaluate methane emissions for dairy cattle. The systems will allow personnel at the University of Minnesota

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

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

Stationary Vertical TMR Mixer Increase

130-370 cu. ft. capacity

Two largest models will process whole round bales

Twin augers and nearly vertical sidewalls eliminate dead spots

All Stainless Steel mixing chamber for extremely long life

Input power options include electric motor or 540 PTO

Farm knots

Two of the most important knots used on a dairy farm are the quick-release knot and the square knot (Figures 1 and 2). Both knots are simple to learn and can be used in multiple situations. They are also quite useful around the house and at the fair too.

The quick-release knot is fast and easy to tie, but the true value of it lies in its ability to be quickly and easily untied in the event of an emergency. It is sometimes referred to as a safety knot. If a cow gets tangled, goes down or panics, a quick tug on the rope will free her. This knot is to be used every time you tie up an animal, whether working with it on the farm or at the fair. If you do not know how to tie a quick-release knot, then you have no business working with animals that

need to be secured with a halter. It is simple to learn with only six steps.

First, put the lead rope part of your halter around a pole or whatever you are tying your cow to. Second, take the lead rope and throw the end over the cow end so that it makes an “X”.

By Brenda Miller University of Minnesota

Third, take the lead and loop it under the cow end to make a “C”; then, bring it to the top to make a circle. Next, at the top of the circle, start pushing the lead rope through the circle with your thumb. It should kind of look like a pretzel for a little bit. Once you have it through, take one hand and put it around the base of the knot as the other is pulling the loop through. This will secure the knot and make it tight. You can put the tail of the lead rope through the loop — but only once — and don’t

pull it tight. Sometimes people will make multiple loops with the tail, and that’s a big no-no as hooves get caught in those loops. I’ve had to rescue many animals at county and state fairs because of that.

When tying up an animal at the fair, you will want a maximum of 2 feet of rope between your cow’s head and whatever she’s tied to. Any more than that and she will nd a way to get herself in trouble or try to steal her neighbor’s food.

The square knot (or reef knot) is commonly used as a binding knot to secure a rope or line around an object. It is two overhand knots tied right after one another, which results in two interlocking loops with all lines parallel. Although very simple, it is often tied incorrectly.

First, tie the rst overhand knot. Then, start the second one. You have to

make sure the tails of the ropes are going to come out of the same loop. If they are not, you will need to ip the direction of the rope for the second overhand knot. When you pinch the tails together and push toward the center of the knot, the knot loosens and you can undo it. The square knot is especially useful around the farm when securing a gate with twine string, tying a bale of hay back together, xing the clothesline, making an impromptu twine-string belt for your pants, or securing something with a rope or string.

While simple, the square and quickrelease knots are must-know items on any farming operation. If you see someone tying up an animal without using a quick-release knot, say something and teach them how to do it properly. It could save a life, either human or bovine. Happy tying.

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The Lyon legacy continues

Last dairy in family line is producing raw milk

By Sherry Newell

Contributing writer

a decidedly different direction. The last Lyon remaining in Iowa’s dairy industry has begun selling raw milk from 12 cows, capitalizing on the opportunity afforded by the passage of a new law in Iowa that allows its sale.

MECHANICSVILLE,

Iowa

— The Lyon name has been among the best known in Iowa’s dairy industry for close to a century.

G. Joe Lyon was a pioneer in helping establish component pricing in the milk market and led Iowabased Swiss Valley Farms to become the rst cooperative to pay based on components. His leadership within the Jersey breed and the Iowa dairy industry earned him worldwide travel and national accolades. A cow he and his family bred still holds the record for fat in the Jersey breed. G. Joe passed away in 2022.

His wife, Norma “Duffy” Lyon, sculpted Iowa’s butter cow at the state fair for 45 years. She died in 2011; her obituary was carried by newspapers nationwide.

G. Joe’s oldest son, Mark, operated Lyon Odyssey Farm in South Carolina until 2013. The next son, Eric, continued the dairy legacy on the home farm near Toledo in partnership with Stewart Lyon, a cousin still engaged in eldwork there. The third son, Greg, and his family started Cedar Valley Dairy near Wilton, which

Tanner and Lakaya Tenley stand on their farm June 29 near Mechanicsville, Iowa. The Tenleys are con nuing their families’ dairy legacies by selling raw milk under Iowa’s new law which allows its sale.

operated until 2008. Mark and Greg both passed away in 2015.

Each of them continued the Lyon legacy for producing quality milk for sale to their processors, breeding

show winners and sustaining the family’s involvement in the dairy industry.

However, Lakaya (Lyon) Tenley, with her husband, Tanner, is taking

Instead of the modern milking parlors, where her grandfather, G. Joe; father, Greg; and uncles milked, the Tenleys have six stanchions in the bottom of a 100-year-old barn and a pipeline installed in 1975.

“Anyone who looks at my grandfather’s life sees a pioneer,” Lakaya said. “I’d like to see myself as a pioneer for this niche market. We are not hobby farmers. This is a way to make a living. We support all ways to dairy. There is no right or wrong. We need all types to diversify the market.” Her husband agreed.

“This is sustainability for us,” Tanner said. “It’s a legacy. I don’t know how else to raise kids other than on the farm. It will help teach our kids a work ethic.”

Tanner has two girls: Paisley and Oaklee. Baby Stetson joined the family two weeks ago and is settling into the farmhouse built in 1862.

Tanner and Lakaya also have an ag business, Lake Bar Ag Sales, and Tanner works at a local co-op. Their venture into raw milk did not necessarily develop because of Iowa’s new law.

SHERRY NEWELL/DAIRY STAR

“I knew the potential from when I lived in Ankeny,” Lakaya said. “People were consistently asking for it, and here (in eastern Iowa), people were reaching out. People want to be connected to their food. Now we will have the protection offered by the new law. God timed it perfectly.”

Their milk goes directly into the pipeline and is bottled immediately for storage in a commercial refrigerator. It is offered in half-gallon jars.

As of August, the Tenleys are selling about one-third of their milk to consumers.

They also sell beef and pork, processed at a U.S. Department of Agriculture-approved locker, from their farm and that of Tanner’s nearby parents.

Lakaya’s background for the venture comes from more than the dairy farms of the Lyon family. She worked for one of Iowa’s small processors, Picket Fence Creamery of Woodward, for three years after college.

“I learned that you don’t have to do (dairy) in the traditional way of selling commercially,” she said. “The Burkhart family created their own

market, and I really respected that. I learned sanitation best practices and became so much more aware of how processing works.”

Lakaya’s cow knowledge comes from a lifetime that included milking, showing and serving as National Jersey Queen. When she and Tanner married in 2022, she owned cows housed at Bohnert Jerseys. They recently came home to the Tenley farm. She is looking for offspring of cows with her family’s Cedar Valley prex.

Tanner grew up milking cows with his father and grandfather until 2010 brought an end to the dairy that operated for six or seven decades on the farm where the couple now lives.

The Tenleys’ herd consists of six Holsteins and six Jerseys. They have 50 calves on milk, many of them Angus-Holstein crosses, using the raw milk they do not sell.

“The calves are fed very well,” Tanner said. “Let’s just say I haven’t dumped a single bit of milk.”

Despite the safety concerns many organizations raised as the Iowa Legislature debated the raw milk bill, Lakaya is circumspect.

“People need to be aware of the risk versus benet of every consumable product they bring into their home; raw milk is no exception,” she said. “People have come back to raw milk because there are so many testimonials, but we need to make sure they are educated.”

While her dairyman father and grandfather are gone, Lakaya likes to think they would nd her direction interesting.

“My dad was always very futuristic, and he was always thinking about the future of his children,” Lakaya said. “He would be tooling around here, checking everything out and giving his two cents. If my dad was still with us, this would be a dream come to fruition for him. When

our time in dairy came to a close, he exhausted all avenues in trying to market our Jersey milk, but we ran out of options.”

Lakaya’s mother, Kathy, said she is excited for the couple’s new venture.

“I’m sure (her dad) would be all for it,” Kathy said. “He would say

something along the lines of, ‘I’ve been waiting a long time to see this dream come true.’”

As for her grandfather, Lakaya is condent about at least one thing.

“G. Joe would be proud there is a Lyon still involved with Jerseys,” she said. “His life’s work was the Jersey cow.”

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Paisley Tenley (le ) and her sister, Oaklee, are part of Tanner and Lakaya Tenley’s dairy enterprise near Mechanicsville, Iowa. The Tenley family has taken advantage of a new Iowa law that allows raw milk sales.

SHERRY NEWELL/DAIRY STAR Tanner Tenley feeds one of about 50 calves June 29 at the farm where he and his wife, Lakaya, have launched raw milk sales near Mechanicsville, Iowa. Lakaya is the last of a well-known Iowa dairy family, the Lyons, to be milking cows.

The Dairy Experience and Agricultural Leadership Program members met this summer for the nal phase of the 18-month leadership opportunity focusing on leadership opportunities within checkoff and offering media training. The presentations and experiences during this phase helped DEAL members learn more about the Midwest Dairy regional governance structure and have an opportunity to practice their public speaking skills.

On the rst day, Charles Krause, chair of Midwest Dairy, and Molly Pelzer, CEO of Midwest Dairy, welcomed the DEAL members, and the group participated in the Midwest Dairy corporate board meeting.

Because they attended division board meetings last summer, we felt it would be benecial to give them an opportunity to learn more about our corporate board this summer. Following the board meeting, we heard from Abby Kornegay, issues and engagement manager with the Animal Ag Alliance, who discussed animal rights activists, tactics they use to promote their antianimal agriculture agenda, and how farmers can build trust in their community and with consumers. At the end of the day, the DEAL members had the opportunity to network with corporate board members at a supper.

By Jenna Finch Midwest Dairy

On day two, DEAL members participated in media training facilitated by Midwest Dairy’s corporate communications partner, Padilla. Padilla provided tips, tricks and best practices for handling media interviews. The DEAL members then got to practice these new skills through mock newspaper and TV interviews. One farmer said, “I really enjoyed the media training and learning some of the tips for better presentations that Padilla put forward.” The group also participated in a farm tour at Dakota Line Dairy and partook in axe throwing during the evening events.

On the nal day, DEAL members heard about the power of relationships from Aaron Putze, chief ofcer of strategy and brand management for the Iowa Soybean Association. His presentation left the group feeling motivated and inspired. DEAL members Paige Roberts and Kevin Borst also shared more about their families, farms, hobbies and interests. The meeting concluded with a group discussion about the program, and post-survey results show positive feedback from the farmers, with one farmer commenting, “DEAL has given a broader perspective for the ways that checkoff dollars are being used.” Another farmer said, “I really enjoyed not only meeting other young dairy farmers across the Midwest and becoming friends with them but also meeting so many strong leaders within agriculture. It was awesome to have the opportunity to meet and talk with the speakers we had at each phase.”

I want to extend a huge thank you to the graduates from DEAL Class 2. Your willingness to learn and passion for the dairy industry is contagious, and I am incredibly eager to see what these industry leaders and advocates will achieve. We appreciate your time and commitment to the program.

Congratulations to these Class 2 DEAL members: Courtney Lintker and Ray Hildebrandt, of Illinois; James Goldsmith, Dan Venteicher and Nicole Engelken, of Iowa; Paige Roberts, Kevin Borst, Lindsey Borst, Elle Tibor and Natalie Barka, of Minnesota; Stacy Rethman, of Kansas; Jessi Sayers, of Nebraska; and Cole Hoyer, of South Dakota.

The application for DEAL Class 3 will open this fall. If you are interested in our program or would like to suggest this opportunity to young dairy leaders you know, visit MidwestDairy.com/DEAL.

Drought assistance available for livestock producers

By Steve Frericks Stearns County FSA executive director

Where did summer go? Looking at the calendar, it is already late August. No doubt the school buses will be rolling soon. The approaching Minnesota State Fair is a tell-tale sign that fall is near.

We nally received much-needed rain in our area. However, it seems like the potential for violent weather accompanies the rain most of the time. If you have had physical damage to property or buildings from the recent storms, let your local U.S. Department of Agriculture Service Center know. We have a reporting process we use to let folks at a higher level of government know what is happening on the farm.

Emergency haying and grazing of Conservation Reserve Program acreage is open for requests. This availability may change after the U.S. Drought Monitor is released every Thursday morning. If the county is no longer in a D2 (severe drought), emergency haying and grazing may no longer be an option. For those who already have an approved request, remember to conclude haying within 60 days of the approved conservation plan. A nal report of acres hayed or grazed must be received in the ofce before Sept. 30.

Dairy Margin Coverage premiums are due Sept. 1. Failure to pay the DMC premium by the deadline may affect a dairy operation’s ability to participate in the DMC program in future years. Reminder letters have been mailed to all affected producers. We know our dairy producers are struggling right now. The 2024 signup is right around the corner. This risk-management tool has been instrumental this past year as dairy producers dealt with low prices and high input costs.

It is important to note that for the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-raised Fish Program, a notice of loss must be led within 30 days of the date of the disaster or 30 days from when the loss was apparent. Each county is affected by the drought differently based on what the U.S. Drought Monitor indicates weekly.

Payment cycle is right around the corner in October. If you have changed your direct deposit account information, now is an excellent time to notify FSA to prevent any delays in any program payment rollouts.

Make sure farm safety is your No. 1 priority as harvest draws near. We enjoy working with all of you and would like to well into the future. Try to get enough sleep, and do not cut corners.

Drought-impacted producers in Minnesota may be eligible for assistance through the ELAP.

For eligible livestock in qualifying counties, ELAP provides nancial assistance for: the transportation of water to livestock; the above normal cost of mileage for transporting feed to livestock; and the above normal cost of transporting livestock to forage/grazing acres. Hauling livestock both ways starting in 2023, one haul per animal reimbursement and no payment for empty miles.

A county must have had D2 drought intensity on the U.S. Drought Monitor for eight consecutive weeks during the normal grazing period, or D3 or D4 drought intensity at any time during the normal grazing period. Producers must have risk in both eligible livestock and eligible grazing land in an eligible county to qualify for ELAP assistance.

Transporting water

Producers must be transporting water to eligible livestock on eligible grazing land where adequate livestock watering systems or facilities were in place before the drought occurred and where water transportation is not normally required. ELAP covers costs associated with personal labor, equipment, hired labor and contracted water transportation fees. Cost of the water itself is not covered. ELAP covers $0.07 per gallon to transport water.

Transporting feed

ELAP provides nancial assistance to livestock producers who incur above normal expenses for transporting feed to livestock during drought. The payment formula excludes the rst 25 miles and any mileage over 1,000 miles. The reimbursement rate is 60% of the cost above what would normally would have been incurred during the same time period in a normal year.

Livestock feed that is transported to livestock located on land enrolled in CRP is eligible if the producer has an approved conservation plan with acceptable grazing practices developed in coordination with the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

The payment rate to transport feed is $6.60 per loaded mile for expenses above what would have normally been incurred.

Transporting livestock

ELAP provides nancial assistance to livestock producers who are hauling livestock to a new location for feed resources due to insufcient feed or grazing in drought-impacted areas. As with transporting feed, the payment formula for transporting livestock excludes the rst 25 miles and any mileage over 1,000 miles. The reimbursement rate is 60% of the costs above what would normally have been incurred during the same time period in a normal year.

The payment rate to transport livestock is $6.60 per loaded mile for expenses above what would have normally been incurred and covers hauling livestock one-way, one haul per animal reimbursement and no payment for empty miles.

Reporting losses

Producers should contact FSA as soon as the loss of water or feed resources are known.

For ELAP eligibility, documentation of expenses is critical. Producers should maintain records and receipts associated with the costs of transporting water to eligible livestock, the costs of transporting feed to eligible livestock, the costs of additional feed purchases, and the costs of transporting eligible livestock to forage or other grazing acres.

Producers interested in ELAP assistance can contact their local USDA Service Center to learn more or to apply for programs.

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

Lucky August

A summer of muddy cattle yards and swarms of bugs are a fortuitous combination for barn swallows. A vexation for one species can be a lucky break for another.

I recently espied a ock of swallows perched on a powerline. Their numbers were such that the line sagged almost to the ground. The utility poles were pointing at each other instead of the sky.

We have also had a tremendous crop of cicadas at our farm. Our grove is home to approximately 1 billion boisterous bugs. Their chorus rattles the windows and makes it difcult to hear the television. Conversations must be shouted, giving the impression that my wife and I are arguing.

The cicadas that are serenading us have waited

years for August to arrive. They spent most of their lives underground as ugly, slimy slugs. This summer, the nymphs emerged and molted and began to noisily announce that they were ready for love, which is pretty much the story of my life.

August is the month when I suffered my rst major nancial setback.

My uncle Ray had given me a silver dollar when I was 8 years old. That was an era when silver dollars were made of actual silver instead of cheap alloys.

I was extremely proud of my 1921 Morgan dollar. Owning real money meant that I needed a real wallet.

I went to Woolworth’s and purchased a red plastic wallet that featured a cartoon Model T on its cover. The wallet came with a card for important Informa-

Editorial disclaimer: The views expressed by our columnists are the opinions and thoughts of the author and do not reect the opinions and views of Dairy Star staff and ownership.

tion, which I dutifully lled out: name, address and all four digits of our phone number.

I stashed my silver dollar in the wallet’s coin compartment and carried it in my back pocket whenever I went to town. I had no intention of spending that dollar, which I regarded as my good luck charm. Plus, it was there for emergencies such as if I were captured by bloodthirsty privateers. The pirates would be impressed by my appreciation for real silver and let me go.

I went to town with Dad one blazing August afternoon. A street carnival captured my attention and wouldn’t let it go. I begged Dad to let me visit the carnival, arguing that I was old enough to do so unsupervised. He nally relented, probably just to get relief from my incessant begging.

The Tilt-A-Whirl left me feeling tilted, and the Scrambler scrambled my innards. While wandering around the carnival, my eye fell upon a claw machine. I fed the machine a dime and was deeply disappointed when it failed to reward me with a stuffed toy. It had looked like a sure thing.

A small knot of boys formed around me and watched as I wasted several more dimes. When I was done, one of the older boys clapped me on the shoulder and said, “Congratulations, kid. You’ve just been had.”

Dad and I then went to our local welding shop. Dad checked on a welding job and began to jaw with other farmers, so I entertained myself by visiting the scrapyard behind the shop.

Wandering aimlessly through the fascinating odds and ends, I wondered if a carnival ride could be constructed from the rusted scraps. It certainly seemed possible, although safety might be an issue. But then again, it would be a carnival ride.

Upon arriving at home, I reached for my wallet only to discover that it was missing. I scoured the car. Nothing. We returned to the welding shop, and I searched the scrapheap but couldn’t nd anything that vaguely resembled a red plastic wallet.

A metal detector is usually deployed to nd lost coinage, but it wouldn’t have been much use in this case. Imagine all the false alarms.

It was eventually concluded that my wallet and my lucky silver dollar were irrevocably lost. Maybe it whirled out in the Tilt-A-Whirl or scrambled away in the Scrambler. It’s also possible that I was pickpocketed by that boy at the claw machine. The more I thought about it, the more he seemed like a “carny” kid.

I recently related this tragic story to my wife. She wordlessly went to her dresser drawer and retrieved an old coin purse. She opened the purse and drew out a 1921 Morgan silver dollar.

Was it my silver dollar? There could be no doubt. It has the same date, the same Lady Liberty in her frumpy cap staring vacantly off to the left.

This claries many things, including why I wasn’t able to nd my lucky silver dollar all those years ago. But above all, it explains why I’ve been so fortunate ever since I met my wife.

Jerry is a recovering dairy farmer from Volga, South Dakota. He and his wife, Julie, have two grown sons and live on the farm where Jerry’s great-grandfather homesteaded over 110 years ago. Jerry works full time for Dairy Star as a staff writer and ad salesman. Feel free to email him at jerry.n@dairystar. com.

Height considerations for corn silage cutting

Corn silage harvest is at the doorstep for many dairy farms across the Midwest. The growing season has been nearly ideal for some while others have dealt with drought and, more recently, hail damage. These growing differences, and other management considerations, make it difcult to have one common recommendation for corn silage cutting height. There is a tradeoff between reduced yields and higher quality as more stalk residue is left in the eld.

results showed the neutral detergent

Something to Ruminate On

ber concentration ranged only from 48.8% to 50.1%, showing that tissue composition is not exceptionally different at different heights. Their results also showed that NDF digestibility improved by 4.3 percentage units with higher cutting height, which is different but not extreme.

tonnage as a low-cut silage. This can present some challenges agronomically.

Raising the cutting height when harvesting corn silage is sometimes recommended to improve the quality of corn silage. By leaving the lower portion of the stalk in the eld, ber digestibility will intuitively improve as lignication is greater in the lower portion of the stalk. The percentage of starch content of the feed also increases, but this is simply due to less ber being harvested.

By Barry Visser Nutritionist

As you think about the quality differences, keep in mind what your total diet composition entails and ask what the additional ber in lowcut silage is worth. For example, if you have plenty of haylage, but its quality is lower than ideal, the benets of higher-cut corn silage might be worth considering.

The bottom couple feet of a corn plant contain not only higher levels of lignin but also higher moisture levels. In addition, the ear represents a larger proportion of the tonnage in higher cuttings, and the grain is drier than stover at harvest time. The PSU summary showed an average of 6% higher DM content with higher-cut corn silage.

In addition to moisture, the lower stalk also contains the highest concentration of plant nitrates. Highcutting corn silage can help reduce

nitrate levels if this is a concern. The dilemma is that the corn that is at highest risk for nitrates is often the drought-stressed, shortest corn where every inch of plant is critical to maximizing yields.

High-chopped corn silage is not for every farm. The term “high-cut” also implies that we need to get to a nite 20-24 inches of cutting height. Moderately increasing cutting height will move the needle on forage quality. Work with your nutritionist to decide what cutting height works for your dairy.

Barry Visser is a nutritionist for Vita Plus.

While these quality differences are real and logical, recent research from Virginia Tech challenges conventional thinking that the differences are extremely signicant. They analyzed tissue samples at the rst internode above the nodal roots (lower height), the third internode above the nodal roots (upper height) and the rst internode above the insertion of the ear of the corn plants. These

Raising the cutting bar height will certainly result in lower yields. Dr. Greg Roth from Penn State University summarized results of 11 peer-reviewed articles that compare yield and nutritional value of regular-cut corn silage averaging 7 inches to high-cut corn silage averaging 19 inches. Corn silage yields averaged 7.4% lower with this higher cutting range. This yield reduction equates to about 0.5 tons of dry matter per acre or approximately 1.4 tons per acre on a wet basis (35% DM).

If high-chop corn silage is being considered, more acres of silage will need to be planted to realize the same

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Summer chic

Fashions come. Fashions go. Then some fashions are recycled back into style without understanding how bad the original idea was.

Fairgrounds are a wonderful place to study the different styles people wear. Some people use fashion to proclaim an idea, an identity or even an indifferent attitude. Walking around the state fairgrounds is like a master’s class in anthropology as you witness the people, cultures and fashion styles on display.

Even our county fair offered me a different view of style. This was my rst year of working in the American Dairy Association malt stand with our county princesses and other volunteers. The malt wagon is just outside the 4-H lunch stand building. It marked the end of where our kids could explore independently. Past that point was a very different and sometimes strange world to

someone who hasn’t been off the farm for awhile. Being outside the 4-H end zone was an eye-opening experience.

On the rst day, as I watched people walk between our two worlds, I just shook my head and smiled. I couldn’t believe what some people considered fashionable. It felt like I was sitting ringside to a fashion show runway as people strutted by the malt wagon. Our young ladies cautioned me to wait — the real show would come later. As the temperatures rose and the sun started to set, the clothing would start to shrink. I couldn’t believe they were right. I didn’t realize tube tops and short shorts were a thing again. One of those fashion recycles.

What really made me chuckle was the idea that people will actually walk out of their homes wearing holey jeans. I understand a few holes, but

there were so many holes that it left nothing for the imagination as to what’s underneath the remaining denim. I would never wear those jeans in the barn let alone in town. It is just one of those fashion statements I still haven’t deciphered.

Just Thinking Out Loud

By Natalie Schmitt

We tend to have our own fashion statements here on the farm too. To me, fashion is all about being comfortable in what you’re wearing or in some cases what you’re not wearing. Safety is another factor in what we wear around the farm. We make sure nothing is so baggy or loose that it can catch on moving machinery parts or power take-off shafts. Droopy baggy pants is one fashion statement that didn’t take off around here.

Clothing also tends to be a form of protection. Let’s face it. Those holey jeans would be horrible to wear while stacking bales in the shed. Nothing to protect your thighs from getting scratched up from the sharp ends of stems or dusty leaves slipping between the denim and your skin. I just itch thinking about it.

Clothing also helps to keep the sun’s ultraviolet rays at bay while we work outside, creating the farmer’s three tan lines. Everyone notices the midbicep line on a farmer’s bronzed forearm where the T-shirt sleeve stops. Some will even notice the pale forehead of where the seed cap sits upon his head. However, very few have witnessed the neon white legs. The only colors visible are the bruises from the latest round with a quick footed, stubborn, fresh 2-year-old.

Layering is the only consistent fashion statement on the farm. Trying to balance the layers to the temperatures is like trying to balance a teetertotter with a bunch of trained circus dogs. It is a funny site to watch as the dogs gure out the right combination of big and little dogs to balance the board. As temperatures shift between seasons, so do the number of clothes I nd across the farm as we scramble to nd the comfortable balance between layers and temperatures.

I actually think it is easier to dress for cold weather than for hot. You can always build layer upon layer as the temperatures plummet. You’re limited to the number of layers you can drop as the temperature rises.

I’m sure I would have made some fairgoers laugh and wonder at my fashion gear for a night in a hot, muggy barn while milking cows. My favorite fashion statement is white socks peaking out of the top of my lace up work boots while I’m wearing a pair of the boys’ old mesh football shorts. My hair is all tucked up under a mesh seed hat to keep the heat off of the back of my neck. I’m wearing the most worn-out T-shirt I can nd. You know, the one that has been washed so many times that it is see-through yet has enough fabric to keep the ies and some dirt off of you while allowing the slightest breeze to slip through. Now that is a vision of summer chic on the farm.

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.

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4-H dairy dreams coming true

I continue to be amazed by all of the ways the 4-H dairy project positively affects young peoples’ lives.

Megan, a young woman in our club, made her debut showing dairy cattle at our county fair last month. Megan’s dairy story makes my heart swell with pride and brings back many fond memories.

Megan’s story parallels my own. I didn’t start showing until I was in high school. My parents didn’t have any experience with showing, so I relied on an adult leader in our club to help me get started.

As an adult leader now myself, 4-H is about giving back. Helping Megan get started in the dairy project has been one of my most meaningful opportunities to pay it forward.

Unlike me, Megan doesn’t live on a dairy farm with countless calves and heifers to pick from. Megan bought her heifer as a bottle calf, housed her on her family’s small farm, and raised her up to become a beautiful Holstein spring yearling.

By Sadie Frericks

I answered Megan’s questions about what gear and supplies she needed to bring along to the fair. We stall by clubs in Stearns County, so, thankfully, she didn’t need to invest in all of the equipment required for showing.

Monika and I also helped Megan clip her heifer and set her topline. Megan’s dad joked that Megan had worked so hard to get her heifer’s anks white — and they were pretty darn white — but when she clipped the hair off, the heifer was super white. “Who knew it was so white underneath,” he said.

By the time Megan’s heifer was ready for the ring, she looked great. But, being a May calf, she was a little smaller than the other heifers in her class and ended up with a red ribbon.

My rst show heifer was a Holstein spring yearling who earned a red ribbon as well. I told Megan that the experience mattered more than the color of the ribbon. Megan’s smile told me she understood.

Later, when the judge was talking about the highlights of the day, he mentioned Megan’s mega-watt smile and how she told him about everything she’d learned this year.

Megan’s future in dairy is as bright as her smile. In addition to 4-H, Megan works on two dairy farms and is involved in FFA. She’s already making plans for showing next year, and I can’t wait to see how those plans unfold.

One of Monika’s dairy dreams will be coming true later this week. Since she was a little girl, Monika has dreamed of showing one of her beloved Jerseys at the state fair. At our county fair, she earned a trip with Sunlight, her aged Jersey cow.

Monika didn’t just earn a trip with Sunlight. They won the whole 4-H show. When both Sunlight and Monika’s 4-year-old Holstein, Galadriel, were named senior champions of their breeds, Glen and I were fairly certain the overall senior champion title would go to Galadriel. We were wrong. Sunlight took the banner and went on to be named rst in state fair lineup — the rst Jersey to win the 4-H show in as long as I’ve been present. Placing rst in state fair lineup was a dream-come-true of its own for Monika. The best description of her joy that day would be overowing.

I’m as happy for Monika as she is. Monika showed Sunlight has a spring calf, spring yearling, 2-year-old, 3-year-old (virtually, during the pandemic), 4-year-old, and now as a 6-year-old. Showing cows year after year is as much about good luck as it is good care and hard work, but it’s so rewarding when it does.

What makes it even more special is that Sunlight is Star’s daughter. Star was the very rst Jersey calf Monika showed when she made her show ring debut 11 years ago. Monika developed a special bond with Star and now has a similar bond with Sunlight. Just like Star did, Sunlight waits to leave her stall until you’ve scratched her poll and neck. She’ll nd you in the pasture for a dose of affection.

I’m excited to see Monika take Sunlight to the state fair. For me, this is the best of 4-H: watching your daughter achieve her dream with a cow who’s been with her for the better half of her 4-H experience.

If you, or a young person you know, are interested in showing dairy cattle in 4-H, send me an email and I would be delighted to connect you with a dairy project leader in your area. You don’t have to live on a farm or own dairy cattle. Minnesota has a great dairy lease program.

P.S. Thank you to the nice couple who stopped by our cattle at the county fair to ask Monika about Casa Verde. You made her day. And, yes, the air conditioner we added to Casa Verde saved the week.

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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