September 24, 2022 Dairy Star - 1st section - Zone 1

USDA announces historical investment in agriculture

Projects to receive $2.8B for climatesmart production practices

By Abby Wiedmeyer abby.w@dairystar.com

ARKANSAW, Wis. – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced details of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program Sept. 14. The program is investing up to $2.8 billion in 70 selected projects under the rst pool of funding.

“It’s a tremendous opportunity for American agriculture to not only improve the bottom line but to improve conditions on the planet,” Vilsack said. “(We want to be) in a position where internationally we can say to the rest of the world, ‘Follow us. We’re leading.’”

Vilsack was joined by representatives from Organic Valley, Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative and The DeLong Co. Inc., who are participating in the program, at a press conference Sept. 15 at the Anibas family farm near Arkansaw.

The purpose of the program is to fund pilot projects that will create market opportunities for American commodities produced using climate-smart production practices. The program comes in response to the challenges facing producers today and a growing demand for sustainably produced products from the export market.

Recipients of the program were selected from more than 1,000 applications from food companies. Originally, $1 billion was allocated from the Commodity Credit Corporation to the project. After receiving so many applications, however, additional funding was set aside for the program.

“Basically, we have a $3.5 billion initiative,” Vilsack said. “What we are announcing is 70 projects in the larger grant pool,

Fresh, local, delicious

Milk dispensary provides better product for Eden Valley-Watkins High School

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

EDEN VALLEY, Minn.

– The rst day of school can bring excitement for many students and dread for others, but the school year at Eden Valley-Watkins High School in Eden Valley began with a popular change for most students.

Gone were the familiar half-pint cartons of milk that have been placed on student trays since the 1940s and in was a new dairy dispenser, delivering cold, fresh milk into glasses.

“The rst day I asked a

Waupun State Farm, dairy processing plant offer opportunity to prisoners

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

WAUPUN, Wis. – From the road, it looks like any other farm. White barns and buildings sit wide open to the world at the end of a long, tree-lined drive. There is nothing to indicate that much of the labor on this farm near Waupun is supplied by men in state custody.

Waupun State Farm is part of the Bureau of Correctional Enterprises. The 360-cow, 1,700-acre dairy farm employs prisoners from the John C. Burke Correctional Center – a minimum security facility in the city of Waupun.

There are no wire fences here. The prisoners get a taste

few kids if they wanted some milk, and they didn’t really react,” said Jessica Heying,

food service manager at the Eden Valley-Watkins School District. “Then I said, ‘It’s fresh,’ and they were all excited

Outside the fence

and said, ‘Yeah!’”

The milk dispensary was

of freedom when they work on the farm.

“Most of the men working here are toward the end

of their sentence,” said Jason Hensel, farm supervisor. “This is a chance for them to prove themselves.”

Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Secretary Randy Romanski and Wisconsin Department of Corrections Secretary Kevin Carr toured farm and dairy Sept. 8. BCE director Wes Ray led the tour.

“From growing crops to maintaining livestock to producing milk, we’re doing a tremendous job with helping people change their lives and gain meaningful employment when they leave our care,” Ray said.

Forty men from the center work on the farm – 28 on day shift and 12 on night shift. This work release program is designed to help reformed prisoners successfully transition back into their community one day.

Craig, from Washington County, has been working on the farm for four months. He started out scraping manure and moving cows and is now a milker. He starts his shift at 4

“All dairy, all the time”™

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR

Ryan Wirz and Cody Kipf grab a glass of milk from their school’s new dispenser Sept. 9 at Eden Valley-Watkins High School in Eden Valley, Minnesota. The dispenser has been a hit with students.

Turn to EVW MILK

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

Wes Ray, director of the Bureau of Correc onal Enterprises, (le ) and Jason Hensel, supervisor of Waupun State Farm, led a tour Sept. 8 at the Waupun State Farm located near Waupun, Wisconsin. The 360-cow, 1,700-acre dairy farm employs prisoners from the John C. Burke Correc onal Center.

Published by Star Publications LLC

General Manager/Editor

Mark Klaphake - mark.k@dairystar.com 320-352-6303 (ofce) 320-248-3196 (cell) 320-352-0062 (home)

Ad Composition - 320-352-6303

Nancy Powell • nancy.p@dairystar.com

Karen Knoblach • karen.k@star-pub.com

Annika Gunderson • annika@star-pub.com

Editorial Staff

Tiffany Klaphake - Assistant Editor (320) 352-6303

• tiffany.k@dairystar.com

Danielle Nauman - Staff Writer (608) 487-1101

danielle.n@dairystar.com

Stacey Smart - Staff Writer (262) 442-6666

• stacey.s@dairystar.com

Abby Wiedmeyer - Staff Writer 608-487-4812

• abby.w@dairystar.com

Grace Jeurissen - Staff Writer 320-352-6303

• grace.j@star-pub.com

Jan Lefevbvre - Staff Writer 320-290-5980 • jan.l@star-pub.com

Maria Bichler - Copy Editor 320-352-6303

Consultant Jerry Jennissen 320-346-2292

Advertising Sales

Main Ofce: 320-352-6303

Fax: 320-352-5647

Deadline is 5 p.m. of the Friday the week before publication Sales Manager - Joyce Frericks 320-352-6303

• joyce@dairystar.com

Mark Klaphake (Western MN) 320-352-6303 (ofce) 320-248-3196 (cell)

Laura Seljan (National Advertising, SE MN) 507-250-2217 • fax: 507-634-4413 laura.s@dairystar.com

Jerry Nelson (SW MN, NW Iowa, South Dakota) 605-690-6260

• jerry.n@dairystar.com

Mike Schafer (Central, South Central MN) 320-894-7825

• mike.s@dairystar.com

U.S. milk output is continuing to grow but at a slower pace compared to what was expected one month ago. U.S. Department of Agriculture Outlook Board Chairman Mark Jekanowski said his group has knocked 300 million pounds off this year’s milk production forecast based on smaller cow inventories. USDA is projecting next year’s milk output at 228.8 billion pounds. That’s up 1% from this year. “Dairy product demand is relatively strong, especially for cheese,” Jekanowski said.

Consumer dairy prices rise

Retail dairy prices are on the rise. According to CoBank, August butter prices were nearly 25% higher year over year. Milk prices at the supermarket are up 17%, and yogurt is 16.1% higher. Ice cream prices rose 14%, and cheese is up 13.5%. The prices for all food consumed at home were up 13.5%.

Record farm income

The Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute expects U.S. net farm income to reach a record $148 billion this year. That’s twice the level seen just ve years ago. FAPRI said the high commodity prices will buffer the largest ever year-to-year increase in farm production costs.

Ag economy barometer gets boost in August

Farmer sentiment increased slightly in the August Ag Economy Barometer. According to the survey presented by Purdue University and the CME Group,

farmers were less worried about their farm’s nancial situation. Center for Commercial Agriculture Director

Jim Mintert said commodity prices improved from midJuly to mid-August. Since then, there has been some weakness in prices. Mintert said there are still concerns about what ination could bring to the farm in 2023.

“People are uneasy when considering what margins will look like going into 2023,” Mintert said. “We asked more specically about ination.

Amanda Hoeer (Eastern Iowa, Southwest Wisconsin) 320-250-2884

• amanda.h@dairystar.com

Megan Stuessel (Western Wisconsin) 608-387-1202

• megan.s@dairystar.com

Kati Kindschuh (Northeast WI and Upper MI) 920-979-5284 • kati.k@dairystar.com

Julia Mullenbach (Southeast MN and Northeast IA) 507-438-7739

• julia.m@star-pub.com

Bob Leukam (Northern MN, East Central MN) 320-260-1248 (cell) bob.l@star-pub.com

By Don Wick Columnist Centre, MN 56378.

Advertising

Our ad takers have no authority to bind this newspaper and only publication of an advertisement shall constitute nal acceptance of the advertiser's order.

Letters

Letters and articles of opinion are welcomed. Letters must be signed and include address and phone number. We reserve the right to edit lengthy letters.

The views and opinions expressed by Dairy Star columnists and writers are not necessarily those of the Dairy Star / Star Publications LLC.

The Dairy Star is published semi-monthly by Star Publications LLC, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378-1246. Periodicals Postage Paid at Sauk Centre, MN and additional mailing ofces.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Dairy Star, 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave., Sauk Centre, MN 56378-1246.

More producers in this survey are expecting a higher rate of ination than previously.”

The calm before the real storm Global strategist Jacob Shapiro kicked off the Next Five Years executive conference, saying it will be a time of great volatility. That is not necessarily a bad thing.

“I’m actually pretty optimistic about the next ve years,” Shapiro said. “When you get beyond the next ve years, I get a little bit scared.” While there is opportunity in the short-term for U.S. agriculture, it is not coming from China. Shapiro sees more prospects from Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America. “It looks like the U.S. and China are on a collision course,” Shapiro production in

(2) N-H 499, 12’ Haybine ..............Starting at $3,450

‘97 N-H 1465, 9’ Haybine...............................$9,500

N-H 790, 824 Cornhead, Hayhead .................$7,950

H&S 7+4, 14’ Forage Box and Wagon............$3,750

Meyer 4516 Forage Box .................................$7,500

‘16 N-H 460 Rd Baler, CropCutter ................$28,500

‘12 N-H BR-7080 Rd Baler, Net & Twine

‘95 N-H 660 Rd Baler

‘20 N-H BC-5060 Baler w/thrower

‘07 H&S HDX-17, 17 Wheel Rake

Tonutti V14, 14 Wheel Rake

New Idea 402 Rake N-H 144 Invertor............................................$2,500

USED MISC

‘14 H&S 550 Hydra Push Spreader

‘16 N-H 185 Spreader

(2) H&S 270 Spreaders at $7,500.00 Gleaner R-60 Case IH 1660 Case IH 1660

said. “When you look at previous eras where you have rising and falling powers like we have right now, it usually ends in some kind of cataclysmic conict. The last true multipolar era was the 1890s that ended with World War I and World War II; unfortunately, that is the trajectory we’re on.” Shapiro said the next two years will be “the time to buckle your seatbelts” for higher energy prices.

Putin, Xi collaborate

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met for a face-to-face meeting in Uzbekistan. In addition to security issues, the two leaders agreed to cooperate more on trade and agriculture.

NFU represented on Capitol Hill

More than 220 National Farmers Union members were in Washington, D.C., for their annual legislative yin. In addition to time on Capitol Hill and with the USDA, Farmers Union members met with the top antitrust ofcial at the Justice Department. Minnesota Farmers Union President Gary Wertish said competition is a serious issue for farmers. “With the supply chain shortages, the high price of fuel and fertilizer, a lot of that goes back to the consolidation within those industries and that must be addressed,” Wertish said. Wertish said farm bill priorities were also discussed. “We think there should be a permanent disaster program so when you get into the various disasters around the country you’d have a policy in place for funding,” he said.

USDA invests in climate-smart projects

USDA is investing up to $2.8 billion for 70 projects in the rst Partnerships for ClimateSmart Commodities funding pool.

Climate Scaling Mechanisms for Agriculture’s Regenerative Transformation projects include a market-based program with Truterra to increase adoption of climatesmart farming practices to produce grain and dairy products. Another example would be a Dairy Farmers of America pilot project using the cooperative business model to capture the nancial benets at the farm level. South Dakota State University received $80 million to create marketing opportunities for bison and beef producers who

use climate smart grazing and land management practices.

Entrepreneur in Residence Program launched Minnesota’s Agricultural Utilization Research Institute is accepting applications for its Entrepreneur in Residence Program. Program participants will have access to AURI labs and scientic expertise. This program can also open the door for research and development grant funds.

CHS shares prots with ownermembers

CHS plans to return $1 billion in cash patronage and equity redemptions in calendar year 2023. This will be the largest cash distribution in CHS history.

Northeast organic dairies nd new markets

Nearly 90 organic dairy farms in the northeastern United States received termination notices last year from Horizon Organic. Sixty of those farms have joined Organic Valley and eight have joined Stonyeld. Thirteen dairy farms left the business and at least one shifted to a conventional milk market.

Digital tickets available for WDE World Dairy Expo is introducing new digital admission passes. The digital tickets can be purchased before Expo. WDE General Manager Laura Herschleb said this is a move toward efciency. “Expo recognizes that attendees only have so much time to spend at the event and they want that time spent on the grounds not waiting in line,” Herschleb said. WDE will be held Oct. 2-7.

Trivia challenge

Grilled cheese is the most popular cheese recipe in the United States. That answers our last trivia question. For this week’s trivia, who invented chocolate milk? We will have the answer in the 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

made possible through a grant from Midwest Dairy that local dairy farmers applied for in an effort to bring better, local milk to students in their area.

NexGen Dairy LLC near Eden Valley and Kuechle Dairy near Watkins combined efforts to complete the grant.

Students have access to the dispensary during breakfast and lunch, the same way they did with cartons, only now the milk is fresh from Stony Creek Dairy in Melrose.

Staff at the high school said the milk dispensary was well received by students.

“The kids were super excited about it this (rst) week,” said Tyler Warren, teacher and FFA advisor for the high school. “A lot of the positive comments I’ve heard from students is that the milk is a lot better than what the cartons had.”

Around the school, students said good things about the change. Cody Kipf, a junior from Eden Valley, likes the dispenser and the better portions a glass provides.

“We all like it,” Kipf said. “You don’t just get a little carton and two sips and you have to go.”

A number of students commented on how the carton milk sometimes was lumpy or frozen.

“The milk is more consistant than the carton milk,” said Aiden Kuechle, a senior from Eden Valley. “It’s always cold, but it’s not frozen.”

Kuechle said the dispensary might encourage more kids to drink milk.

“It’s a great thing,” he said. “We need to be strong to represent Eden Valley-Watkins well.”

Ryan Wirz, a junior from Watkins, said fresh milk from the dispensary tops that from cartons.

“It’s fresh milk,” Wirz said. “You don’t have to shake it. It just comes out.”

Warren said he likes the aspect of better milk leading to more students drinking the healthy beverage.

“Milk is very nutritious, especially for teenagers who are growing,” he said. “Just to give them access to fresh, cold milk – to increase their access to a healthy local food source – is a good step.”

Besides providing a healthy, local product, there is another benet that the use of a milk dispenser is creating. Waste reduction during meals at the high school has been signicant due to less wasted milk and no cartons now that kids are using glasses. The glasses are washed along with trays and utensils.

“We went from having four big

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR Tyler Warren, ag teacher and FFA advisor at Eden Valley-Watkins High School, sits at his desk Sept. 9 during the rst week of school. Warren has heard posi ve feedback from his students about the milk dispensary added to the school’s cafeteria this year.

garbage cans each lunch period to one and a half,” Heying said. “It’s huge, and I can see that there is less wasted milk. We could tell that kids were throwing away milk in the carton. You could just tell by lifting the cans. They are drinking all their milk before dumping their cup in. It’s a huge reduction in waste.”

Students are noticing less waste as well.

“Milk is there for people who want to drink it and not given to those who don’t want it,” said Sam Nistler, a senior from Eden Valley. “Then, they don’t just throw it away.”

Heying said she appreciates what less trash and lighter garbage cans means for her staff.

“Not only is it good to see less waste, but it’s also healthier for my staff,” she said. “When you are lifting four of those really heavy garbage cans every day, it gets to be a lot.”

With the milk dispensary bringing better taste, more consumption and less waste, Heying thinks the idea will catch on.

“Litcheld is doing it; they started it last year and it’s going really well,” Heying said. “Maple Lake is going to implement it, but they are waiting for their coolers. They haven’t arrived yet.”

Heyring said fresh milk dispensaries at schools makes good sense, especially at Eden Valley-Watkins High School.

“Afterall, we live in dairy country,” she said.

JAN LEFEBVRE /DAIRY STAR

Sam Nistler (le ) and Aiden Kuechle ll cups with fresh milk Sept. 9 from the milk dispensary at Eden Valley-Watkins High School in Eden Valley, Minnesota. The dispensary was purchased with a grant through Midwest Dairy.

Producers in all 50 states will participate in the program including an array of commodities. The USDA expects more than 50,000 farmers to participate in the effort and up to 25 million acres of land across the U.S. to be impacted with climate-smart practices. Vilsack said he expects 100 new market opportunities to become available. It is also anticipated the program will bring the agriculture sector’s carbon footprint closer to neutral.

“We are hopeful that by the time it’s all said and done, roughly 50 million metric tons of greenhouse gas, or CO2 equivalent, is either prevented, eliminated or stored,” Vilsack said.

The program is voluntary, provides incentives for participation without penalizing early adopters, educates the markets to get a higher value for products produced and also encourages partnerships.

Universities, environmental groups, farm groups, processors, retailers and energy companies are just some of the groups forming partnerships in the program. The partnerships are encouraged so data can be accurately collected and analyzed, thus ensuring appropriate value to the outcomes.

Nicole Rakobitsch, sustainability manager at Organic Valley, said the funding will take the company’s carbon insetting program from a one-year pilot program to a multi-year program. Within ve years, she anticipates there will be more trees planted, solar energy systems on farms, increased use of diverse cover crops, increased intensity of grazing and use of feed supplements to reduce entire emissions on dairy farms.

Tim Trotter, CEO of Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative, said the funding will allow farmers to be innovative with their on-farm practices, which should allow the next generation to carry on within the dairy industry.

Matthew Woods, of The DeLong

ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack speaks at a press conference Sept. 15 at the Anibas family farm near Arkansaw, Wisconsin, about the U.S. Department of Agriculture Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodi es program that was announced Sept. 14.

Co., said the funding will be used to offer per acre direct incentives for farmers who use climate-smart practices on those acres.

“It’s going to cover things like cover crops, nutrient management programs, no till and windbreak establishments,” Woods said. “We are going to be recording on-farm data from those acres that they enroll.”

Vilsack said when he came back to the department, one of the rst things that landed on his desk was a report that indicated 89.6% of farms in the country do not generate the majority income for the family on the farm.

“This means that those farms, somebody’s working off the farm,” Vilsack said. “We can’t say that we’ve got a completely successful model if only 10% of the folks in agriculture are able to make a living off of what they do and what they love to do. So, our task at USDA is to gure out more and better markets.”

GRAPHIC SUBMITTED

a.m. and is done at 11 a.m. In custody since 2018, Craig is scheduled for release October 2024.

“This is hard work,” he said. “I did construction my whole life, but it’s eye opening all that goes into farming. I grew up in rural Wisconsin with farms all around me, but I was never on a farm before here. I’ve learned a lot about cows, and I’ve learned to be patient.”

Craig said time spent working on the farm helps with his rehabilitation.

“I like being able to get away and feel like a normal person a little,” he said. “You have a lot of time out here to reect on yourself. When you’ve been in prison and come to the farm, you realize what you’re missing. It’s wide open here, and I think it makes you feel better about yourself.”

The recent completion of a $6.5 million investment in Waupun State Farm is propelling the operation into the future. A transition barn built in 2021 houses dry and pre-fresh cows as well as the herd’s highest producing animals.

“This barn is focused on cow comfort and a healthy environment, offering superior ventilation,” Hensel said.

The 170-stall barn contains sand and straw bed pack areas. One side is for highproduction animals milking 90 to 130 pounds per day. The

other side of the barn houses dry cows pens for cattle one to two weeks away from calving.

In addition, the facility project included increasing manure pit capacity from 1 million gallons to 4 million gallons.

“The bigger manure pit allows us to more carefully and

cost efciently manage manure and its placement on our acres,” Ray said. “We have to take good care of the land.”

Cow comfort and highquality animal care are top priorities at Waupun State Farm. DATCP inspects the farm every other year, and the facility regularly receives high marks

and awards for farm operations and quality milk production, Romanski said.

Cows are milked twice a day in the farm’s double-10 herringbone parlor and average 90 pounds of milk per cow per day. All cattle on the farm are bred with A.I.

“Genetics are important to

us,” Ray said. “We breed for the quality replacement heifers.”

Eleven state employees, including Hensel, work at Waupun State Farm alongside the prisoners.

Hensel grew up on a dairy farm near Fond du Lac and has worked at Waupun State Farm for 20 years; he has been the farm supervisor for six years. Each employee is a security position. For example, Hensel is a lieutenant, and the BCE’s agriculture manager is a captain. All staff have a security background and are equipped with the training and experience necessary to diffuse a potential negative situation.

The privilege to work outside the fence depends on where a person is at in their sentence and when their return home is scheduled. Each one is reviewed by the center superintendent and warden. Offsite approval is earned through a record of good behavior, compliance and rule following. The prisoners are workers on the BCE farm, which makes starting pay is $0.55 an hour with the potential to earn $1.65 per hour.

Donald, from Dunn County, takes care of calves and has been working on the Waupun State Farm for nine months. He works 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and his responsibilities include newborn calf care, clean-

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

Donald, a prisoner from the John C. Burke Correc onal Center, bo lefeeds a calf Sept. 8 at Waupun State Farm near Waupun, Wisconsin. Donald has been working on the farm for nine months and typically works 12-hour days caring for the calves.

ing and bedding hutches, and feeding calves. Calves are fed pasteurized milk out of treated and fresh animals that is distributed through a portable milk dispenser.

“There’s more to farming than I thought,” said Donald, whose rst job on the farm was a second shift milker. “I had never been on a farm before I came here, and I’ve learned a lot about cattle and calves. I don’t mind the long, 12-hour day. I’m grateful to be out here and be part of a team.”

Donald has been with the Department of Corrections for two years and is scheduled for release September 2023.

“This is my fourth incarceration, but the worst is behind me,” he said. “I’ve done a lot of changing, and it’s all for the better. I like being out here and being productive rather than sitting and dwelling on what I don’t have. I’m thankful for this opportunity. The freedom to be here all day and work with the calves is awesome.”

Anthony, from Cincinnati, Ohio, has been on the farm team for three months. He started as a scraper and now works at the equipment operator level mixing feed and feeding cows.

“I was a carpenter for 20 years, and that’s hard work in itself,” he said. “And, then I come here and have a whole new respect for farmers.”

Anthony has spent eight years with the department and is scheduled to be released next June.

“I put myself in this position,” he said. “It’s my fault. But, I like it here on the farm. I’m not behind a fence. When you’re in prison, you have lots of time to reect on your past. Hours

and days in a room changes how you think and feel. I’ve learned a lot of patience and learned it’s possible to work with others and accept people for who they are.”

The BCE also operates a dairy farm near Oregon, Wisconsin, that milks 180 cows. Milk from both farms is shipped to Waupun Dairy, which is also part of BCE. The dairy processing plant opened in 1994 and is located adjacent to the John C. Burke Correctional Center. Twenty-six inmates work at Waupun Dairy as well as ve civilians.

Waupun Dairy produces skim milk, vanilla and chocolate ice cream, and sherbet in orange and lime avors which they supply to correctional and mental institutions in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Working on the farm or at the dairy is a form of rehabilitation and an opportunity to learn work skills and life skills, increasing the likelihood of one’s success when reentering society. Many return to their community and never misstep again. However, some will nd their way back to prison more than once.

“We work as well as we can to closely replicate private sector job selection and employment,” Ray said. “We want to get persons in our care thinking, feeling and behaving like they’ll need to in order to succeed when they go home. We are focused on these men’s successful futures. If working at the farm or dairy is an advantage to them, then it’s an advantage to their family and the whole community when they return home.”

HARD DEMANDS HARD-WORKING DIESEL.

Partying with pizza

Winghaven Pizza Farm celebrates ve years in business

By Abby Wiedmeyer abby.w@dairystar.com

GALESVILLE, Wis. – Among the emerging craft beer and wine scene developing through southern Trempealeau County sits Winghaven Pizza Farm. The land that the Grover family claimed in 1852 near Galesville has seen a lot of changes during the last 170 years, most recently emerging as a rural venue to offer pizza.

Rob Grover, along with business partner and friend Greg Roskos, opened Winghaven Pizza Farm in 2017 as a way to utilize the land that was so dear to the Grover family and honor the love of food that Roskos’ late mother instilled in him. This combination produced a special place where local residents can enjoy a stone-red pizza, live music, drinks and a sense of community.

“With our heritage and knowing that there are so many farmers that have long legacies, we really wanted to be a part of supporting that,” Grover said. “To support the people in our community (who) have supported us is important.”

Winghaven cooks homemade, stone-red pizzas in a food truck on the property. On a busy night, Grover and Roskos, along with their staff which includes Grover’s sister, Sarah, will cook as many as 130 pizzas and host close to 300 people.

Recipes for the pizzas are developed by Roskos and Sarah. During a three-day weekend, the farm will typically go through 75 pounds of cheese. They use a three-cheese blend and mozzarella.

“We are pretty committed to getting the cheese from Wisconsin if we can,” Grover said. “We are kind of chasing prices right now like a lot of people.”

The top selling pizza is what they refer to

as the local classic, which includes pepperoni, sausage, green peppers and mushrooms. The group will also have specialty pizzas on occasion, such as the loaded mac and cheese pizza which is the September feature. Toppings include macaroni and cheese, pulled pork and barbecue sauce.

“We love our specialty pizzas,” Grover said. “But, we also know that especially in a rural area, you need the every-man’s pizza.”

Pizzas are cooked in a commercial food trailer that houses ve stations. A garlic butter is brushed on the crust before moving to the pizza maker, who assembles the sauce and toppings. Next, the pizza is put in an electric stone oven to bake. Baking takes about three minutes. Once nished, the expediter boxes the pizza and announces the name of the customer to come pick it up.

The oven cooks the 14-inch pizzas at 650 degrees.

“It makes a really crispy, aky crust,” Grover said. “We really like it. The electric oven is nice because it doesn’t put off any smoke.”

Guests eat on picnic tables in the renovated, three-sided barn and listen to a live band while they wait for their orders. They can enjoy drinks from the bar and fresh cheese curds from Ellsworth Creamery while they wait.

A lot of times, as many as 50 people show up at once when they open at 4 p.m. This sometimes creates over an hour wait for pizza.

“That’s why we have a band and a bar,” Grover said. “We’re not fast food, but it is good food and a great experience.”

Grover said that part of the experience people enjoy is the scenic farmland.

“It’s been a lot of dairy farmers that have held these elds together through generations,” Grover said. “One of the things that make people want to come out here is we’ve held on to our rural character and that wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for

ABBY WIEDMEYER/DAIRY STAR

The Grover siblings, Rob and Sarah, stand outside their pizza farm Sept. 14 near Galesville, Wisconsin. The siblings run an outdoor pizza venue with Rob’s business partner, Greg Roskos.

“One of the things that make people want to come out here is we’ve held on to our rural character and that wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for local dairy farmers.”

ROB GROVER, WINGHAVEN PIZZA

local dairy farmers.”

The connection to the dairy industry is also evident when neighboring farmers come for a pizza after chores. Grover said he considers dairy farmers to be partners in the pizza business.

“Without dairy farmers putting out a consistent product that people want to use, and having proximity to those products, we wouldn’t have a business,” Grover said. “We’re a pizza farm not a potato soup farm.”

Grover said purchasing trends of consumers in his area have evolved to

supporting more local vendors over the last couple years.

“The impulse to support local got so intense when (the coronavirus pandemic) hit,” Grover said. “People more than ever want a story and to know where their food comes from.”

Grover and Roskos hope to increase production as demand increases. Possibilities include upgrading the food trailer to accommodate cooking more pizzas. They also hope to add more frozen ice cream products and diversify the cheese curd avors.

Which favorite The SCC our favorite because it use it to ensure quality of milk. The too so those are

How does testing with DHIA bene t your dairy operation? It helps us monitor production and assists us in keeping our SCC low. It also aids in our breeding program.

Tell us about your farm. Brian’s parents, years ago, rented/or did shares on this farm and milked here for a period of time before they found their forever farm. Many years later, in 2000, Brian found himself here purchasing the farm. He started milking in 2002. I joined him in 2012 and a perfect farming match was made. It warms our hearts that we are milking in the same barn his parents once did.

Sauk Centre, MN Buffalo, MN 763.682.1091

What are some of the DHIA tests you use?

“It helps us monitor production and assists us in keeping our SCC low.”

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Guests enjoy pizza at Winghaven Pizza Farm near Galesville, Wisconsin. On a busy night they will serve 130 pizzas.

Keeping dairy in the cards

Ninnemann Enterprises embraces robotic retrotted tiestall barn

By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

WAUSAU, Wis. –

The Ninnemann family of Wausau wanted to continue dairying on their Marathon County farm; but they knew in order to do so, they would have to make some changes.

Ninnemann Enterprises is a fth-generation family dairy farm operated by brothers Herb and Fred Ninnemann, along with Fred’s three sons, Aaron, Adam and Alex. They recently retrotted their 115-cow tiestall barn into a 125-cow freestall barn equipped with two Lely A5 robotic milking systems.

The Ninnemanns shared their retrotted barn during an open house Sept. 8.

“My dad and my uncle are getting older, and we needed to reduce the amount of physical labor they were putting in,” Aaron said. “My brothers didn’t want to milk cows for the rest of their lives, and I work full-time off the farm too.”

Automation has

intrigued the Ninnemanns for a few years, but they said investing in a new facility to make that transition was not possible for their family farm.

“I called up Seehafer and asked them if they had ever successfully put robots into a tiestall barn,” Aaron said. “I was surprised to learn they had, and he gave me some places to go tour. Adam and I went to one, and we were sold. We knew how we were going to move the farm forward as a dairy.”

Retrotting their existing facility made nancial sense for the Ninnemanns.

“We had a nice barn that was in good, solid shape,” Adam said. “We have a stationary mixer upstairs in the barn. Our manure lagoon was connected to the barn and in excellent condition.

Retrotting allowed us to work with what we had rather than take on the debt that would come with a new building.”

An addition to the tiestall barn was made to house the robots and add

extra stalls.

In order to complete the renovation, the Ninnemanns sold their herd of cows in May 2021, keeping only a handful of dry cows. The family spent the next three months working on turning their tiestall barn into a

freestall barn.

Aug. 22, 2021, marked the startup of the new system for the Ninnemanns. The brothers agreed the transition went well.

“The rst week the hours were long, but it wasn’t really hard,” Adam

said. “The cows adjusted and settled in pretty well, all things considered.”

To restock their herd, the Ninnemanns purchased 75 cows from one herd

PHOTO SUBMITTED

The Ninnemann family – (from le ) Alex, Aaron, Adam, Herb and Fred – converted their 115-cow estall barn into a 125-cow robo c freestall barn on their Wausau, Wisconsin dairy.

Turn to NINNEMANN

to add to their own dry cows that were calving back in. Once those initial cows became accustomed to the routine of robotic milking, they lled out the remainder of the herd with cows purchased at livestock sales.

The cows exit the robots through a foot bath, which Aaron said runs each day from morning until the afternoon.

“We might run it too much, but we have also seen zero foot issues,” Aaron said. “The cows are now only trimmed after dry off. Running the foot bath has just become part of the routine.”

Cows are fed a total mixed ration three times daily using carts. Along with the milking robots, the Ninnemanns also purchased an automatic feed pusher.

“We run the Juno every hour on the hour,” Aaron said. “It’s maybe a little more often than it needs to be, but we found it was complicated keeping track of where it was in its schedule and knowing when we could go through with the carts to

put out more feed.”

To convert the stalls in the tiestall barn, they installed exible stall dividers and placed mats in each of the stalls.

“We really liked the exibility of the dividers but also how sturdy they are,” Adam said. “The cows really aren’t able to get themselves caught under the stalls, and they seem very comfortable laying in them.”

Stalls are bedded by hand daily. The Ninnemanns bed with a paper byproduct. That byproduct is then mixed with lime to make a bedding that the Ninnemanns have been happy with thus far.

“We weren’t interested in the wear and tear on the equipment that comes with sand, and we have an earthen lagoon,” Aaron said. “This is heavy enough it stays up in the stalls, there isn’t a lot of dust, and it absorbs really well.”

Because of the single-row setup, an alley scraper was installed that runs continuously to keep the freestall walkway clean.

“Taking care of the herd is easily a one-person job even with feeding and bedding by hand,” Adam said. “Everything just works out very efciently.”

Despite the jobs that require manual labor, Aaron said they could not be happier with their choice to install the robotic milking system.

“You learn so much about the cows from the robots,” he said. “The data is astounding, and I really enjoy looking at and analyzing it.”

Fetch cows have not presented much of an issue for the Ninnemanns. When cows that are late in their lactation start stretching out their robot visits, the Ninnemanns let them go as long as 14 to 16 hours before seeking those cows out.

Considering the added technology has allowed his family’s dairy farm to continue, Adam said others should consider changing the way they farm as well.

“If someone is thinking about robots, I would encourage them to just pull the trigger and do it,” Adam said. “We have no regrets looking back. It really changes your life in the best possible way.”

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

The Ninnemann family used exible stall dividers to convert their estall barn into a freestall barn. They milk 125 cows.

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Cows at Ninnemann Enterprises eat a total mixed ra on Sept. 8 during an open house at the Marathon County farm near Wausau, Wisconsin.

F r o m O u r S i d eFrom Our Side

O f T h e F e n c eOf The Fence

Troy DeRosier Osceola, Wisconsin 160 cows

Is there certain equipment maintenance that you believe is vital to ensure farm safety? Power take-off shields as well as any other shield covering a moving part are vital.

What are some of the biggest safety concerns farmers need to consider? Manure pits are deadly. Make sure people, pets, animals, etc., can’t get into them. Silo gases are also deadly. A neighbor recently suffered complications from silo gas from a pile he had packed the day after lling; it was a totally calm morning.

What are some words you try to live by with farm safety? Take your time, and be alert to your surroundings. We have one life to live. Don’t cut it short. Your family needs you.

What is the worst accident or near accident that happened on your farm? After that accident, how did that change your protocols? I fell into our under-barn manure pit and lived. Now, all accesses are completely covered at all times, and we take no short cuts that are at all risky. When I was much younger, I witnessed a farmer I was helping get caught in a PTO; it totally destroyed his leg, but he lived. It only took a second, and his life was changed forever.

Tell us about your farm. We milk 160 cows and are a non-GMO dairy with a creamery on the farm. We process about one-third of our production into uid milk, cheese and butter. We have a slatted oor barn with tunnel ventilation. We milk in a double-12 parallel parlor. We farm 750 acres.

Danny Hengemuhle Long Prairie, Minnesota 215 cows

Is there certain equipment maintenance that you believe is vital to ensure farm safety?

Leave the shields on things, and x power take-off shields.

What are some of the biggest safety concerns farmers need to consider?

With long hours day after day, we do get complacent. Sometimes farmers need to learn to slow down and take in the surroundings. It only takes a split second for something to happen.

What are some words you try to live by with farm safety? Preventive maintenance. It seems when one thing goes wrong, it starts a snowball of other things going wrong.

What is the worst accident or near accident that happened on your farm? After that accident, how did that change your protocols? I was crushed between the front wheel of a tractor tire and the frame when I was unhooking a chain after pulling them out of the mud. The operator thought I was in the clear and turned the wheel, crushing my ribs. After that, we double check to make sure all is clear.

Tell us about your farm. We are a century family farm near Long Prairie. In 1984, my folks took over the farm milking 30 cows and slowly built it up. In 2014, we moved out of our 96-year-old barn into a freestall barn and parlor to invest in the future. We started milking 155 cows. Since then, we have slowly increased to over 200 cows. anything from a custom pre-mix to complete feed, in balancing diets, your private nutritionist or dairy consultant.

Contact Star Blends at: 800-462-4125 or StarBlends.com own

Cody Bode (holding his son, Rhett)

Gibbon, Minnesota 600 cows

Is there certain equipment maintenance that you believe is vital to ensure farm safety?

If you keep up on maintenance, you will have less accidents.

What are some of the biggest safety concerns farmers need to consider? When working with livestock, you always need to be careful. Animals can be unpredictable. And, anytime you work with tractors or skid loaders, the operator has to be mindful of their surroundings.

What are some words you try to live by with farm safety? Stop and look.

What is the worst accident or near accident that happened on your farm? After that accident, how did that change your protocols? My father got his ankle in a silo unloader, and thankfully, it shut off right away because it wasn’t working properly. He survived, but, we have since eliminated silo storage.

Tell us about your farm. We milk 600 cows with my uncle, father, myself and about 20 employees. We raise our youngstock and harvest our own feed.

Turn to OUR SIDE | Page 16

Information at your ngertips. Easy, clean, fast. When you are looking for resources, you’ll nd them on our site. Our clean, easyto-navigate site makes it simple to locate the information you are searching for.

What are some of the biggest safety concerns farmers need to consider?

Tom Gregory

Kimball, Minnesota

670 cows

Is there certain equipment maintenance that you believe is vital to ensure farm safety?

Keep the power take-off shaft shields in proper condition, and clean windows in cabs to see people and equipment around you. Keep re extinguishers where needed.

What are some of the biggest safety concerns farmers need to consider? Be aware of your surroundings. People become distracted by walking, talking and not paying attention.

Dana Metzger

Rock Rapids, Iowa

3, 300 cows

People stare at cellphones and are unaware that you might not be able to see them while running equipment.

What are some words you try to live by with farm safety? Always be careful when operating large or small equipment. Be careful of your surroundings, people and so forth. Haste makes waste. Don't fully trust the animals because you never know what they are capable of doing.

What is the worst accident or near accident that happened on your farm? After that accident, how did that change your protocols? My granddaughter sipped some detergent. We were not sure how much. My daughter, after reading the label, called 911 and rescue came. It was decided that she should go to the hospital for further examination. She was observed for half a day at

the hospital; luckily, she was OK. Now, we keep all chemical and detergents out of reach of children.

Tell us about your farm. Mill Creek Dairy is a family-owned dairy. The farm is owned by Ed, Nic, Tom and Donna Gregory. We have around 700 cows. Our dry cows and pregnant heifers are held on a leased farm site. Our heifers at breeding age are kept on another farm site until conrmed pregnant a second time. Our milking herd, barns and feeding site is on the east side of the road. Tom and Donna's home sits on the west side of the road and is where cows calve and calves are kept until breeding age. We have seven full-time employees and seven part-time employees. We farm about 450 owned and rented acres. Extra feed is bought from surrounding farms. All extra manure is used on surrounding farms as well.

you. There is a reason farming is one of the most dangerous jobs. Keeping our children safe is also another area of great concern.

Is there certain equipment maintenance that you believe is vital to ensure farm safety? Overall, we try to keep all equipment in good working order, so it works properly, as much as possible. If things work properly, jobs go as planned, and you are less likely to try to take a shortcut or forget about safety. We also do annual safety training for each person's job tasks. Also at our team meetings, we go over different safety concerns as the seasons change throughout the year. All employees that work outside the parlor are required to wear reective safety vests or neon orange or yellow clothing. This helps make them more visible in their surroundings. Also, employees need to be reminded to put the phone away.

What are some of the biggest safety concerns farmers need to consider? Safety is a broad subject on a farm. It can range from needle safety at vaccination time, cattle handling, facing the silage pile or the manure pit. Machinery is large and powerful, and livestock can be unpredictable at times, so we need to be reminded often. Severe injury can change your life forever, and a death changes the lives of those around

What are some words you try to live by with farm safety? Safety is everyone's responsibility. We all help each other be accountable in this area. It may be as simple as telling someone to put on their safety vest or teaching them to do something a different way if they had a safety concern. We want everyone to go home after performing the job safely.

What is the worst accident or near accident that happened on your farm? After that accident, how did that change your protocols? We have had no major accidents involving people. A number of years back, we pinched a cow and killed her when they reversed the rotary too far, as there are no safety arms to stop it when it reversed. We did more training with the milkers and try not to back it up unless necessary.

Tell us about your farm. Our operation is owned by myself, my dad, Marvin, and my four brothers, Reed, Brett, Evan and Drew. We milk Jerseys twice a day in a 40-stall rotary parlor. Late lactation cows are kept in three 6-row tunnel-ventilated barns over a pit with slats. Fresh and breeding cows are housed in a cross-ventilated barn with headlocks. Manure from this barn is vacuumed and separated to make bedding for all the cows. We also raise wean-to-nish hogs. We grow corn and alfalfa to feed them.

Harvesting Quality Forages

Quality forage maintains production

Dave Stelter Wood Lake, Minnesota 300 cows

Describe your farm and facilities. We have a freestall barn that we bed with sand. Our cows are milked in a double-6 parallel parlor. We farm about 750 acres.

What forages do you harvest? We harvest alfalfa, corn, rye and forage sorghum. We double crop oats, triticale or rye after our wheat is harvested. I sometimes interseed sorghum sudangrass into alfalfa that’s going out of production. We plant cover crops and harvest them as hay that we will feed to our heifers.

How many acres of crops do you raise? We have 400 acres of corn, 200 acres of alfalfa and 150 acres of rye or wheat. With a little luck and a little rain, we will use double cropping to harvest three crops every two years from every acre. We have also been transitioning a couple of farms over to organic crop production.

Describe the rations for your livestock. Our milking herd is fed a total mixed ration of corn silage, earlage, haylage, distillers grains and amino acids. Our youngstock is fed corn silage, grass hay, millet hay and straw. Cover crops make good feed for our youngstock. None of our heifers get a TMR until they are 11-12 months old. We feel this helps with rumen development.

JERRY NELSON/DAIRY STAR

Dave Stelter, his daughter Sadie and their family, farm 750 acres and milk 300 Holsteins in Wood Lake, Minnesota. The Stelters’ number one goal is harves ng quality forages.

“We have been using Udder Comfort™ for 10 years. We use the lotion when we show, but we also use the blue spray at the dairy on all fresh animals after each milking for a week after calving,” says Scott Stempfle in an interview after being notified as one of our World Dairy Expo ‘gallon drawing’ winners.

Scott and parents Paul and Jody have a 750-cow dairy near Maynard, Iowa. As herd health manager, Scott enjoys seeing the progression from a mating that produced the calf to seeing her develop into the milking herd. Many in this registered Holstein herd go back to Butlerview Roy Glamorous.

“Transition at calving is the most important part of a cow’s lactation. Udder Comfort is an important tool to get her through that transition and into her milk faster,” says Scott.

“We stick with what works, and we have always had really good results with Udder Comfort. It brings edema down and softens udders to milk faster and easier so cows get a healthier and faster start in their lactations.”

—

We harvest about 7,000 tons of corn silage, 1,000 tons of earlage and about 1,500 tons of haylage. We usually make more than 600 tons of sorghum silage and 500-600 tons of cover crop silage. We bale a lot of our alfalfa as dry hay and chop the rest.

Describe your harvesting techniques for alfalfa and corn silage. We bought a hay tedder and have found that tedding helps our hay dry faster. We have a large square baler that we use to make hay. I recently purchased a used selfpropelled mower, and that has

done a lot to help speed up hay harvest.

What techniques do you use to store, manage and feed your forages? We store our earlage in the Harvestore silo and bag the rest of our chopped forages. We store our big square bales in our hay shed and keep the big round bales of cover crops outside. Jason Prins, our nutritionist, and Jacob Bierstedt, from Chandler Feed Co., help us stay on top of things by sampling our forages often, especially when we open a new bag. The guy who feeds our cattle with our twin-screw vertical mixer wagon does a great job. He has been with us for 26 years.

How do quality forages play into the production goals of your herd? Harvesting top quality forages is my No. 1 goal. I have my own chopper, so I can chop when the crop is at its peak condition. Our rolling herd average has been holding mostly steady, but our milk components are very high and continue to go up. Quality forages are key to maintaining good milk production. Our pregnancy rate is over 30%, and we try to stay close to 160 days in milk.

What management or harvesting techniques have you changed that have made a notable difference in forage quality? It seems like the windows of harvesting time are getting smaller, but our equipment can go over more acres faster. We focus on the digestibility of our feedstuffs and plant high starch brown midrib corn hybrids for silage.

Describe a challenge you overcame in reaching your forage quality goals. When we ll a bag with haylage, we have found that it’s best to take small bites than large bites. Our goal is to chop 40-60 acres of alfalfa per day, which is about what we can accomplish in three hours. It’s a challenge to merge the windrows at just the right moisture. When we bag corn silage, we shoot for 65% moisture. We can ll three bags per day with corn silage, which works out to about 1,000 tons.

JERRY NELSON/DAIRY STAR

Dave Stelter chops corn silage as his daughter, Sadie, drives alongside with a silage wagon near Wood Lake, Minnesota. Despite a challenging growing season, this eld of corn was es mated to have a yield of 180 bushels per acre.

JERRY NELSON/DAIRY STAR

Sadie Stelter unloads freshly chopped corn silage into a conveyor as bagger operator Sco Hall keeps an eye on things. The Stelters shoot for 65% moisture in their corn silage.

JD 637 2011, 32 ft., 3-Section Folding, 9” Spacing, #546437 $29,000 IH RMX340 2009, 35 ft., 3-Section Folding, 9” Spacing, #181151 $29,400

JD 637 2011, 42 ft., 5-Section Folding, 9” Spacing, #523980 .... $29,500

Landoll 6230-36 2013, 35 ft., 3-Section Folding, 9” Spacing, #532829 $32,000

Case IH 330 2010, 30 ft., 3-Section Folding, #542361 ............. $36,900

JD 2623 2013, 3-Section Folding, 9” Spacing, #546216 $37,500 2011, 30 ft., 3-Section Folding, 11” Spacing, $39,900

JD 3-Section Folding, 11” Spacing, #275921 $39,900 5-Section Folding, 9” Spacing, #523876 $49,900 3-Section

IOWA

Prairie Land Ag Supply Inc. Rock Valley, IA 712-476-9290

United Dairy Systems, Inc. West Union, IA 563-422-5355

WISCONSIN

Advanced Dairy/Bob’s Dairy Supply Spring Valley, WI 715-772-3201

Ederer Dairy Supply Plain, WI 608-546-3713

DeLaval Dairy Service Kaukauna, WI 866-335-2825

Preparing for World Dairy Expo

As the days get a little shorter and mornings start to feel a little crisper, I always think, “It’s starting to feel like Expo weather.” As fast as time ies, we are already near the end of September and ready to ip the calendar to October.

Joe’s Refrigeration Inc. Withee, WI 715-229-2321

Mlsna Dairy Supply Inc. Cashton, WI 608-654-5106

Professional Dairy Services Arlington, WI 608-635-0267

Redeker Dairy Equipment Brandon, WI 920-346-5579

The Scharine Group Inc. Whitewater, WI 800 472-2880 Mt Horeb, WI 800-872-3470

MINNESOTA & SOUTH

DAKOTA

Advanced Dairy of Mora Mora, MN 320-679-1029

Farm Systems Melrose, MN 320-256-3276 Brookings, SD 800-636-5581

S&S Dairy System LLC St. Charles, MN 507-932-4288

Professional Dairy Systems Wadena, MN 218-632-5416

World Dairy Expo, for many, is a family reunion paired with a weeklong celebration of dairy cattle. It’s a time to see people we only see once a year. I love being able to see friends’ babies in person instead of on social media, watch as a young couple always seems to get engaged during Expo, and stop and listen to stories from those who’ve been coming to Expo for longer than I’ve been alive. WDE is a cattle show, but it’s a lot more to so many of us.

By Kati Kindschuh Staff Writer

As a kid growing up only an hour from Madison, Wisconsin, it was always exciting to take a day off of school to go with my parents, walk through the tradeshow, admire the cattle in the barns and eat a grilled cheese sandwich as we watched the show in the coliseum. In my 26 years, I’ve only missed a handful of Expos, and I don’t intend to break that streak anytime soon.

But, before anyone heads to Madison, there’s a lot of work that happens at home. Weeks prior to the show, we are rinsing heifers to ensure they grow enough hair on their topline. Not to mention the countless walks to make sure they are well exercised but also glide seamlessly on the colored shavings. The preparation to get animals ready for WDE is a marathon not a sprint. We are working at it for a long time. As we get a little closer to Expo week, we’ll clip everyone so there isn’t as much to do at the show.

Plus, all summer we’re looking for grassy, longcut, dry hay to feed. This type of grass hay helps heifers build plenty of ll and rib when it comes to show day. As a kid with my dad, I remember opening up a grassy bale months after it’d been put in the mow with that sweet smell still locked inside. He’d say, “This will make great heifer hay for shows.” And, it’s true. At a show, I enjoy catching that smell of the sweet grass hay in the feed cart.

Getting ready for WDE takes a lot of work with the cattle, but there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes tasks that need to be done to make sure the people have everything they need while at the show. It’s packing the trailer with a slow cooker for show day meals to feed everyone, enough coffee cups to supply a small army and red solo cups to enjoy a hard day’s work at night. Not to mention, the last-minute shopping sprees for white pants and shirts because last year’s are too small or badly stained. Every show mom has their own magic recipe to get stains out of show whites. But, it never fails that someone has a wardrobe issue before going to Expo.

As a Dairy Star employee, getting ready for WDE means packing dress clothes for business meetings, plenty of business cards for networking events and, of course, a notebook just in case I run into a great story idea while walking the grounds. For me, it’s a great time to network with some of the best and brightest in the industry, so I prepare to make sure I represent Dairy Star as the premier dairy publication that it is. I’ve enjoyed being part of the World Dairy Expo Daily Edition the last two years. So many of us in the cattle barns look forward to reading the Daily Edition each morning with our coffee, and it’s been special to be part of that paper leading up to the show.

If you are heading to Madison Oct. 4-7, stop by our Dairy Star booth in the coliseum to say hello or nd me in the barns. It’s truly my favorite week of the year, and I am excited to see all of our hard work with the paper and the cattle pay off.

Tragedy strikes Jefferson County dairy

Plucinskis’ barn destroyed in re

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

JEFFERSON, Wis. – Derek and Meg Plucinskis’ hopes and dreams crumbled to the ground the day their barn caught re. As they helplessly watched smoke and ames engulf the classic red tiestall facility, the couple wondered what the future would hold.

“I cannot believe this happened,” Meg Plucinski said. “It’s all so hard. This is our future, and our kids’ future. Without our milking facility, there’s not much to do. That’s our source of money. But God uses all things for good, so I’m focusing on that.”

The Plucinskis milk 40 cows and farm 300 acres on the organic dairy farm they rent near Jefferson. The young dairy farmers created D&M Family Farm when they began renting the farm July 1, 2018. The farm has been organic since 2006. The Plucinskis’ farm is also home to a variety of other creatures including freerange chickens – 100 meat birds and 60 layers – turkeys, ducks, geese, goats and pigs. The family runs an on-site store where they sell chicken, pork, beef, turkey and eggs grown on their farm.

Sept. 11 was supposed to be a relaxing day away from the farm, but things soon turned tragic. The Plucinskis and their children – Wyatt, Fitzgerald, Eleanor and Elvira – were headed to Wisconsin Dells when they got a call from their landlord saying the barn was on re.

“We don’t ever get away,” Plucinski said. “We do all the work ourselves around here, and all week we planned to take this trip that Sunday.”

The Plucinski family left their house at 8:15 a.m. and by 8:54, they received the dreaded call.

“We only got to Waterloo and made it back to the farm by 9:25 a.m.,” Plucinski said. “We could see the re from the hill when we drove down the road. It was a big re, and the smoke was so thick, it was hard to see

The Plucinskis’ barn s�ll smolders Sept. 14 – three days a�er a re took down the 48-stall �estall barn near Jefferson, Wisconsin. All of the farm’s bedding and dry hay for the winter was lost.

the house. I remember thinking, ‘I can’t believe this is happening; this is our farm.’”

Pieces of their future are now scattered everywhere. But, Plucinski does not view any situation as hopeless. Her undaunted faith is seeing her and her family through this nightmare that life has thrown their way. Thankfully, no people or animals were hurt in the re. Cows were on pasture, and the only animals in the vicinity of the re were seven calves huddled in the back of a nearby hoop barn that started to melt.

“The smoke went in the opposite direction, so all

the calves were ne,” Plucinski said. “Derek was down there all day checking on them. The kids and I were in the house. We just stood and watched in disbelief out the window.”

Numerous re departments worked to extinguish the re that raged persistently on a miserably wet and rainy day. Days later, the remains of the barn still smoldered. The cause of the re is not yet known.

“It was an emotional moment with it being 9/11,”

Turn to PLUCINSKI

STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR

Save money without

The Udder Mister automatically sprays pre and/or post dip on the front or back side of a rotary parlor. The system is compatible with a wide array of GEA teat dips, and interchangable spray tips allow you to increase or decrease dip usage. Now you can reallocate labor to more important tasks, while maintaining milk quality.

Contact Your Local GEA Milking Equipment Dealer:

Central Ag Supply, Inc.

Centre Dairy Equipment and Supply Inc.

Sauk Centre, MN 320-352-5762 • 800-342-2697

Centre Dairy Equipment and Supply Inc. Sauk Centre, MN

•

Fuller’s Milker Center, Inc.

Fuller’s Milker Center, LLC Lancaster, WI • 800-887-4634 Richland Center, WI • 608-647-4488

Leedstone, Inc. Melrose, MN 320-256-3303 • 800-996-3303 Glencoe, MN 320-864-5575 • 877-864-5575 Plainview, MN • 800-548-5240 Menomonie, WI • 715.231.8090

Leedstone, Inc. Melrose, MN Glencoe, MN Midwest Livestock Systems, LLC

Sioux Dairy Equipment, Inc. Rock Valley, IA

Sioux Dairy Equipment, Inc. Rock Valley, IA 712-476-5608 • 800-962-4346 Colton, SD Service 800-944-1217 Edgerton, MN Chemical Sales 507-920-8626

J Gile Dairy Equipment Cuba City, WI • (608) 744-2661

Stanley Schmitz, Inc

Kozlovsky Dairy Equipment Kaukauna, WI •920-759-9223 Weston, WI • 715-298-6256

J Gile Dairy Equipment, Inc. Kozlovsky Dairy Equipment

Midwest Livestock Systems, LLC Zumbrota, MN • 800-233-8937 Menomonie, WI • 715-235-5144 Renner, SD • 800-705-1447

Monroe WestfaliaSurge Monroe, WI • 608-325-2772

Central Ag Supply Inc. Juneau, WI • 920-386-2611 Baraboo, WI • 608-356-8384

Tri-County Dairy Supply

Stanley Schmitz, Inc. Chilton, WI • 920-849-4209

Monroe Westfalia Surge

Preston Dairy Equipment Sparta, WI • (608) 269-3830

Eastern Iowa Dairy Systems Epworth, IA • (563) 876-3087

Preston Dairy Equipment

Tri-County Dairy Supply Janesville, WI • (608) 757-2697

Plucinski said. “That’s signicant to us and seeing all the retrucks here really struck a chord.”

When nding a temporary home for their cows, the Plucinskis had to choose organic. For this reason, they were unable to move the cattle to Plucinski’s parents’ farm. Milk cows are being housed a half hour away at another organic farm that is on the same milk route as the Plucinskis. Derek drives back and forth to help with milking.

“We have to try and get organic feed,” Plucinski said. “All of our bedding and dry hay for the winter was destroyed in the re. It’s a lot of labor to make small square bales, and poof; they’re gone. Lots of people are offering us feed, and I feel bad turning it down, but we can only feed organic. A big chunk of our income comes from being organic.”

None of their equipment was damaged, and Plucinski said they have crops to harvest, which they are thankful for. The Plucinskis recently expanded their herd, buying 25 cows as they work toward their goal of milking 75 head. The couple is transitioning to seasonal calving and is currently in the middle of their calving window.

“The last two months were really tight with milk and money,” Plucinski said. “The cows were just freshening, and now, they’re gone. We needed that money.”

A shamble of dreams lies where the 48-stall tiestall barn once stood. Little treasures are strewn about in the rubble, like the red gate Plucinski recently purchased and the milk cart she bought her husband for his birthday.

“There’s a lot of sentimental value there, but I know what each item costs too, and everything adds up,” she said. “I look at it all and see money that’s gone. It’s tough seeing where the calving pen once was. I always set my kids there to play with the calves.”

The barn is a complete loss as well as a grain bin containing oats and peas that was just harvested by the Plucinskis. One of the silos was lled with ames and will not be used for corn silage this year.

“We loved the beautiful old barn,” Plucinski said. “It was full of nostalgia. I loved that it was handmade by people, not machines. There was so much history here.”

The Plucinskis had removed the stanchions from the barn, and nine months ago, they put in a 6-stall walk-through milking parlor on one end of the barn.

“It was extremely devastating watching an excavator smash what we just built,” Plucinski said.

“It was a homemade system that was really well set up for Derek to milk alone because we couldn’t get help.”

Seeing the generosity of their community has been a bright spot in the darkness, as people reach out with donations of food, money and gift cards.

“People want to help, and we are so grateful,” Plucinski said. “We have complete strangers sending money through Venmo or dropping stuff off at our house. But, there’s also so much power in prayer. We believe in that. We don’t know what our future holds, but we feel a sense of community holding us up.”

On the day of the re, help also came spilling in from every direction.

“There were people everywhere along with cattle trucks lined up to move cattle,” Plucinski said. “It brought me to my knees in gratitude. When something like this happens, you see the amazing people that are out there. From those working in the industry to a neighbor driving by, you see the people who truly care from their heart.”

While smoke continues to billow from the ruins, an eerie silence lls the farm.

“Our goal right now is to rebuild,” Plucinski said.

But, not owning the farm has thrown another wrench into an already bad situation.

“We were getting ready to buy the place on a land contract and were in the process of transferring ownership from our landlord,” Plucinski said. “We had until the end of the year to button everything down. Now, I don’t know what will happen. If we can’t get the cows back here in a reasonable timeframe, we won’t be able to rebuild, and that’s terrifying.

The farm is our everything, but we stand to lose it all.”

Uncertain of the future, the Plucinskis are holding fast to their faith and praying that a new beginning on the farm they have called home for the last four years is in store for their family.

“Please keep praying for us,” Plucinski said. “We can feel the prayers and feel God’s hand working here. We trust his plan.”

PHOTO SUBMITTED

The Plucinski family – (from le�) Meg holding Elvira, Fitzgerald, Wya�, and Derek holding Eleanor – milk 40 cows and farm 300 acres near Jefferson, Wisconsin. The organic farmers’ dairy barn was destroyed in a re Sept. 11.

Fall festival fun on the farm Gatewoods to host corn maze, activities

By Tiffany Klaphake tiffany.k@dairystar.com

WILLMAR, Minn. – Fall is a busy time of year on any farm, but for the Gatewood family, fall comes with a little extra planning and organizing.

Throughout the rst and second weekends of October, the Gatewoods will host Grandpa’s Granary Fall Festival at Gatewood Farm near Willmar.

“We started fall festival because it was something different, something exciting as a community event to get people out to the farm to know who we are,” Jordan Gatewood said.

Jordan is the fourth generation of the Gatewood family to operate Gatewood Farm. Jordan and his wife, Kristi, and his parents, Gene and Shelly, milk 66 cows and farm 200 acres of corn, oat and alfalfa.

The Gatewoods began the festival last year as a way to invite the public to their farm and promote Grandpa’s Granary, their on-farm store.

“We didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into,” Gene said.

Gene said last year’s fes-

tival was successful, and they hope many will attend this year as well.

“It’s exciting to see people come out, and even if they have been here before, they always see or learn something new,” Gene said. “It leaves a huge impact.”

Planning for the festival starts in the winter. Jordan draws the corn maze design on graph paper. Then, in the spring, the eld is planted in a north-south orientation while also being planted again from east to west to make the lines of the maze dened.

Once the corn is waist high, Jordan and Kristi knock the individual plants down to create the design. Then, a lawn mower is used to make the paths of the maze.

Jordan said they are adding a mini maze this year for children to use.

“We want to keep people coming so we need new and different things each year,” Jordan said.

There is something for everyone at fall festival. The event features a petting zoo

comprised of the Gatewoods’ various animals, including calves, sheep, peacocks, chickens, goats, a miniature horse and miniature donkey.

There is also a bouncy house, corn pit, hayride, chainsaw carving and live music from local musicians. The

Gatewoods also serve food during the event.

“We will be grilling hotdogs, burgers and will have the soft serve ice cream machine from our county (American Dairy Association),” Kristi said.

Grandpa’s Granary will be

open, and visitors can purchase various cuts of farm-raised beef and lamb, and whole chickens that are locally processed. They also offer jams, jellies, eggs, ground wheat

Turn to GATEWOODS

TIFFANY KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Gene (from le ), Shelly, Kris and Jordan Gatewood stand on their 66-cow dairy farm Sept. 14 on their dairy farm near Willmar, Minnesota. The Gatewoods host a fall fes val on their farm.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

PHOTO

Stephanie Hammerly Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin County cows

Family: My husband, Joel, and I have two children, Hannah and Hunter.

Tell us about your farm. Dreamstone Dairy was founded in 2015 with the purchase of Ja-Bob Armani Satin P-RC from the rst #PolledPlace Tag Sale. Our focus is on breeding for polled, red and A2A2. We have a small farm at my father-in-law’s located ve minutes outside of the tourist town of Wisconsin Dells where we raise calves, breeding bulls, dairy steers and a few milk cows and dry cows. We also direct market our dairy beef to consumers. Calves are housed in calf hutches, and older animals are on pasture and bedded pack. Our milk cows are cared for by my family in Monroe, and breeding-age heifers are on pasture with one of our partners that we own cattle with in Minnesota.

What is a typical day like for you on the dairy? I begin each morning caring for our young calves. We have a few milk cows that are milked with a portable milk pump, and the milk is used to feed calves. I also work on paperwork for registrations, genomics, polled and A2A2 testing, and manage our farm records. Weekends often involve working on farm projects.

What decision have you made in the last year that has beneted your farm? Working with friends and family to help us care for our animals has helped us out tremendously. With both of us working off the farm and raising two young kids, we appreciate those who support our dream of owning cows and raising a family around farming.

Tell us about your most memorable experience working on the farm. My most memorable moment has been seeing our daughter, Hannah, enjoy showing and promoting the dairy industry. She showed her rst cow this year, and some of her animals were included in dairy promotion events at Harvard Milk Days and Wisconsin State Fair.

What have you enjoyed most about dairy farming or your tie to the dairy industry? I enjoy being able to share our passion for farming and cows with our children. Growing up on a farm, I also wanted to share this with my family one day. To see their eyes light up with excitement about the farm, cows and tractors means so much. I enjoy each time a new calf is born, especially when they are red and polled. To see cow families improve from one generation to the next is rewarding, and I enjoy researching pedigrees and evaluating bull proofs.

What is your biggest accomplishment in your dairy career? Starting my own business promoting Polled Dairy Cattle has been my biggest accomplishment. With the support and encouragement of several mentors in the dairy industry, I launched the #PolledPlace all-breeds magazine and have managed several sales featuring polled genetics. I also have a booth at World Dairy Expo, which is the highlight of my year to promote and share what is available for polled genetics both from breeders and the A.I. industry.

What are things you do to promote your farm or the dairy industry? I am passionate about dairy promotion and am grateful for the opportunities to share more about dairy farming with consumers. A couple of highlights include providing cows for Dairy Lane and calves for the Discovery Barn at Wisconsin State Fair. I also promote Polled Dairy Cattle through the #PolledPlace all-breeds publication and the #PolledPlace Tag Sale. Dreamstone Dairy is promoted using social media along with a website. We also promote our dairy beef by donating to events or sharing as a donation to silent auctions.

What advice would you give another woman in the dairy industry? Say yes to the opportunities to share your dairy story and promote the industry you love, especially when your family can be involved too.

When you get a spare moment, what do you do? I enjoy spending time with family and friends. I also like to attend dairy and agricultural events.

www.extension.umn.edu/dairy

Is a robotic milking system right for you?

ing dairy industry. If this change is part of a generational transition plan, work with an advisor to determine if the investment provides nancial stability for the retiring generation.

A dairy farmer must also decide how many more years they are going to milk cows. A large investment in a new facility is a long-term commitment to remain in the dairy industry.

saved? The most successful farmers take the time they save milking and re-invest it into better managing the cows, harvesting better forage or another high-value activity. This will manifest itself in higher production.

tems provide lots of data that can assist in herd management.

By Jim Salfer U of M

Robotic milking systems are often touted as the wave of the future, but are they the right choice for you? Most farms are happy with the decision to install robotic milking systems, but other farms with robots struggle and question why they made the change. There is nothing magical about robots. Installing robots is simply an economic decision to trade milking labor for capital invested in a more expensive milking system. Here are some points to ponder when considering a robotic milking system.

Think about what your business and personal goals are, and what you want the business to look like in 5-10 years. Also, determine what the long-term size of your farm is and if that size is right for you. The primary goal of installing robots should be established, whether that be an improved lifestyle, minimized hired labor, expanded potential labor pool, maximized productivity per robot or something else.

Some of these goals have tradeoffs and will affect performance expectations. Decide if the changes allow you to remain competitive in the rapidly chang-

A farm’s cash ow needs to be considered. Robots primarily pay for themselves through high milk production per robot per cow and reduced labor costs. But, many farmers don’t save as much on labor as they hoped.

The three factors that affect the change in milk production when switching to robots are the barn effect, milking frequency effect and labor sparing effect. Older research shows that increasing milking frequency from two times a day to three times a day will increase production about 8 pounds per cow per day. This also assumes cows are milked at eight-hour intervals, and the increase will be less with uneven milking intervals. Getting the right cows milked at the right time is key to robot performance. The barn effect includes factors like less time away from the pen, more comfortable stalls and potentially more stable cow groups.

Reduction in labor takes a number of things into account.

How will you spend the milking time

Will the farm actually realize lower labor costs? If hired labor is reduced, the savings can be used to make robot payments. However, if the entire workforce is family labor, no money from the labor savings can be used to make robot payments unless the family’s standard of living is decreased. This can be a challenge if a new generation is added at the same times as robots are installed unless there is a concurrent increase in herd size. Other options can be that a family member works off the farm, another enterprise is added, the cow herd is expanded or greatly increased cow productivity.

Hybrid systems (milking in a parlor and robot) can have higher milk per robot. If your current milking system is working well, milking fresh, treated or even a salable milk group of cows will improve cash ow, but time exibility will be reduced.

Develop the skills to x the robots. If you have the time and skill to repair the robots yourself, this will keep them running and will decrease repair cost. Service technicians should periodically tune-up the robots to make sure they are running at peak efciency.

Make use of all the data. Robot sys-

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

Kevin Janni kjanni@umn.edu 612-625-3108

Maintenance costs will be higher. You are purchasing equipment that is expected to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Robots contain sensors, lasers, 3D cameras, computer boards, valves and other expensive parts you can’t buy at the hardware store. Feed costs will be higher, especially if a custom pellet is fed. How much depends on amount of pellet fed, formulation and pelleting and delivery costs.

Are you prepared to the challenges of robots? Items to consider before installing robots include:

– Someone always needs to be oncall to respond to phone alarms.

– Managing milk quality can be more challenging, especially contagious organisms. High somatic cell count can be more difcult to troubleshoot.

– Feeding management is trickier. Feeding management must be excellent to keep cows moving in the barn and to keep fetch cow numbers low.

– Training heifers can be a pain.

– Are you ready to give up some control? The most successful robot managers work with the cows’ natural behavior to maximize performance.

Robotic milking is a great choice for many farmers. It is worth thinking about if your goals and management style will lead to success.

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 320-296-1357

Jim

Mike

Emma

Melissa

Musings from conferences on precision dairy, animal behavior

I helped plan and attended the 10th European Conference on Precision Livestock Farming and the third International Conference on Precision Dairy Farming in Vienna, Austria, with attendees from 29 countries.

animal complexity, which inuences productivity, health and welfare.

be implemented, the impact, the value, the return on investment? Some data are interesting but not useful.

Automated animal behavior monitoring is frequently developed using small datasets, which lack sufcient variability in animal morphometric and activities or camera viewpoints and environmental features to be generalizable. Therefore, these monitoring devices or computer vision technology need to be further validated before we can use them satisfactorily on different populations, larger farms or under other conditions.

There is a lot of development of animal and stationary sensors, but the focus has shifted from production and reproduction to animal welfare and health, the environment and biosecurity.

search is developing a digital twin of a dairy farm. A digital twin is a digital equivalent of a real-life object (in this case, a dairy farm) of which it mirrors its behavior and status over its lifetime in a virtual space. Various technological developments are integrated, such as Internet of Things, articial intelligence, machine leaning and software analytics, to develop a digital representation of a real-world living or non-living physical identity. The rst goal of this specic digital twin is to manage the nitrogen cycle of the farm to reduce losses. Additional reports were presented on the use of precision livestock farming to improve environmental sustainability of dairy farms.

I also attended the International Society for Applied Ethology Applied Animal Behavior Congress in Ohrid, North Macedonia, with attendees from 50 countries.

By Marcia Endres U of M

These were great opportunities to share and learn about new research and industry updates on sensors, technologies, automation, robots, data, animal behavior and welfare, and more. In addition, these conferences provided networking time with leading researchers and industry representatives in precision dairy and animal behavior from around the world.

Here are some key highlights from the workshops, plenary talks and abstract presentations:

Living organisms are complex, individual, time-varying and dynamic. Pen averages do not tell the whole story. Engineers, data and animal scientists working together can go further to better understand or explain this individual

It is important to develop strong interdisciplinary and collaborative teams, including academics and researchers as well as public and private organizations. Various presenters indicated that this is not always happening, and multiple groups are working on the same thing separately instead of leveraging resources and working together. In addition, involving system experts like dairy farmers as consultants is valuable for identifying challenges and opportunities.

The main question that precision livestock farming companies need to ask is which technology they need to develop. However, the answer lies in determining which areas farmers are seeking help from technology. Those areas of need should provide the framework for improving the economic, environmental and social sustainability of farming. In the view of the company Datamars SA of Switzerland, there are three areas of need where technology can have a direct impact on farming: improving farmers’ quality of life, improving productivity of the farm and fullling regulatory compliance.

Technology has progressed at a rapid pace, and we can now easily convert images, sound, movement, behavior and physiological measures into data. But, so what? What is the action to be taken, the decision to be made, the change to

The professionals who do not use digital technologies and articial intelligence will be replaced by the ones who make the most out of it.

An increase in the investigation of computer vision technology was clear, with some studies showing over 95% accuracy in identifying cows using cameras in the barns. Again, this was using relatively small datasets (one was a bit larger with 537 cows), but the research shows promise. A couple of studies used this type of technology to explore social dynamics in dairy cows. Social behavior is an area we do not yet know much about but can most likely inuence cow health, welfare and productivity.

There is a need to include precision livestock farming in our training and education for the new generation of professionals. Most veterinary and animal science students are not prepared, and there is a demand for them in industry. We need data scientists who understand farming, and veterinarian and animal scientists who can work with data.

Wageningen University and Re-

Providing concentrate feed outside the automated milking system (20% of the allotment in the robot; 80% outside the robot) did not impact robot visit frequency; in another study, authors found that transitioning from conventional to automatic milking increased fecal cortisol metabolites (stress indicator) during the rst two months after transition.

Do cows use brushes? Yes, and individual cows benet from lower cow-tobrush ratios by increasing the time they spend using the brush compared to higher cow-to-brush ratios. Placing the brush close to the feeding area increased brush use, but it may affect social competition at the feed bunk.

I presented our results on using body weight change collected from AMS as an indicator for productivity in dairy cows; there were two additional studies focusing on body weight change that also showed its relationship with cow health and productivity.

And, there is so much more. This is only some examples of what was discussed at these events. The search and discovery continues.

Data on display

West Central Research and Outreach Center hosts public to share ndings

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

MORRIS, Minn. – Research involving forages, fatty acids, calf housing and calf diets was shared Sept. 15 at the West Central Research and Outreach Center near the University of Minnesota campus in Morris.

Dr. Brad Heins, a faculty member for the University of Minnesota Department of Animal Science, led the informational event and shared his research.

Heins said balancing preformed fatty acids in milk without raising de novo and mixed fatty acids too much is a challenge.

to increase grass and clover for maintaining fatty acids during grazing.

“If I can maintain those levels more with nutrition and balance rations a little better, it’s better for us,” Heins said. “The more I can keep high levels of fat and protein, the higher our milk check is here, especially in the organic herd.”

both a conventional dairy herd of 160 cows and an organic one of 120.

“We’re close to a 300cow dairy here,” Heins said. “Some might be surprised to hear that.”

outcomes, his main concern remains on the lifelong health of cows.

“We strive to have longlasting cows,” he said. “The oldest right now is 10 years old.”

Brad Heins U of M

Research at the WCROC aims to nd ways to help balance and improve most aspects of dairy farming – herd health and longevity, protability, quality of product and climate issues.

Although milk volume is considered, it is not as main a focus as is quality of product.

That is where fatty acids come into play.

“Lots of different things impact fatty acids – diet, season, genetics – that’s where we have been exploring,” Heins said. “All WCROC cows are genomically tested, and we will evaluate genes that contribute to fatty acid proles.”

How much and what kind of grain matters, Heins said.

“A lot of grain (starch) can lead to fewer omega-3 fatty acids,” Heins said. “ Forage can increase it. I’m not saying grain is bad. … If you want to increase preformed, you can still use grain.”

Heins is also researching forage combinations. For instance, a plan is in the works

Heins has worked at WCROC for 12 years and has focused research on crossbreeding in dairy cattle, organic dairy production and renewable energy systems for dairies. His presentation shared ndings from research he did in collaboration with the Minnesota Dairy Herd Improvement Association that looks at fatty acids in milk production across a variety of breeds and diets. Minnesota DHIA manager Bruce Dokkebakken was at the event to answer questions.

“Bruce had talked about fatty acid proles at a DHIA meeting a couple years ago, and that’s where we got the idea,” Heins said. “We’ve been working with Minnesota DHIA with fatty acid proles on our herd.”

DHIA testers have been collecting data on the WCROC herd once a month for over a year. The center has

WCROC is on 1,100 acres with about 450 acres of pasture. Attendees of the event toured the farm, including a pasture where the organic herd is located. The organic herd gets a total mixed ration at night to ease the transition from the grazing season of mid-May through midOctober. In winter, they receive only a TMR comprised of about 70% corn silage. An average of about 1.25 acres of pasture is needed per cow during the grazing season. During winter months, the herd is conned in an outside lot and compost barn.

“In spring, with new grasses, the organic herd are almost 100% grazing,” Heins said. “Feed cost is less than a dollar a head per day.”

Milking is done twice a day in a double-9 swing parlor. There are 35 full-time employees working at the research center, including high school and college students who help with milking and other chores.

As Heins balances research data and its potential

Animal health is part of Heins’ research in calf housing, which attendees at the event also toured. Heins is researching how housing calves in various ways – in pairs, in groups of six or with their mothers – affects their health.

Calves in all of the housing congurations drink about 4 gallons of milk per day, depending on age and size.

Calves in pairs or groups are growing at the same rate as calves housed individually, about 2.1 pounds per day, but those that stay with mothers grow at a faster rate of 2.6 pounds per day.

Calves receiving more milk are showing fewer health problems on average with a death rate of less than 1%, Heins said.

Heins is excited about what the center’s research has uncovered and what the potential is.

“I want to help dairy farmers improve the protability of their herds through genetics, forages and animal health,” Heins said. “That’s what I’m striving for.”

Sam Radke Wilton, Wisconsin County

How did you get into farming? I was born into it. I am the fourth or fth generation. After high school, I went to Southwest Technical College for the agriculture power technician program. I wanted to get that for a backup and to help myself on the farm by being able to work on equipment.

What are your thoughts and concerns about the dairy industry for the next year? I am a little worried about bigger farms getting a grasp and smaller farms fading.

What is a recent change you made on your farm and the reason for it? Last year, we put ex stalls and mats in half of the freestall barn. We did this to achieve cow comfort and cleanliness. It has worked so well that we are putting them in the other half this year. The cows love it.

Tell us about a skill you possess that makes dairy farming easier for you I have always been mechanically inclined, and I am able to x my own equipment. Any time I can save by not sending something to the implement dealer really helps.

What is the best decision you have made on your farm? Buying an electric feed cart to feed the heifers. I used to feed with poly carts, and it took an hour and a half to feed. It’s a lot easier now.

What are three things on the farm that you cannot live without? My four-wheeler because it’s nice for chasing cattle, fencing and going between elds. My skid loader because it is so easy to pick up and move stuff with it. My pickup truck because I use it every day to go between the two farms, run to town for parts or hauling the skid loader between farms.

What strategies do you use to withstand the volatile milk prices? We watch our spending and plan accordingly. We always gure on low milk prices and try to make a cushion when the price is higher.

How do you maintain family relationships while also working together? I work with my dad, Keith, and my uncle, Kurt. Working with family can be a hassle, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Sometimes you have to pick your battles and hold your tongue. Sometimes things come out anyway.

What do you enjoy most about dairy farming? I like being able to call the shots and be my own boss. Every day is kind of the same, but one little thing can change the whole day.

What advice would you give other dairy farmers? Try not to let the little things tear you up. At the end of the day, you can only do so much. It makes a big difference to take an hour out of the day to do something relaxing even if it’s driving to town for parts or going for lunch.

What are your plans for your dairy in the next year and ve years? In the next year, I want to get a bin up to store shell corn and get away from picking corn. I bought a combine last year to go toward that goal. In the next ve years, I hope to buy at least half the farm and start to make updates.

How do you or your family like to spend time when you are not doing chores? I go tractor pulling with my Ford 9000 in the summer. I go to local pulls and compete in the farm stock classes.

USDA offers support for beginning farmers, ranchers

By Steve Frericks Stearns County FSA Executive Director

Harvest is upon us which brings the opportunity to celebrate the fruits of endless labor throughout the year.

Producer reports in the ofce suggest excellent tonnage on corn silage yields and early soybeans show promising yields. What a difference a year can make. If you are planning to plant a fall-seeded cover or forage crop, visit with the local Farm Service Agency ofce about reporting requirements prior to Nov. 15. If you are interested in learning about the benets of fall-seeded cover crops, visit with the local soil and water conservation district and the Natural Resources Conservation Service about options.

Most importantly, stay safe this fall. We enjoy working with each of you and would like to well into the future. Make safety priority No. 1.

The rst 10 years of a farming or ranching operation are tough. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recognizes the need for dedicated support to help make sense of all the information coming producers’ way. Each state has a beginning farmer and rancher team headed up by a state coordinator. The coordinator helps producers who have operated a farm or ranch for less than 10 years navigate USDA and partner resources. Liz Ludwig is the Minnesota coordinator and can be reached at liz.ludwig@usda. gov or 507-373-7960, ext 2.

FSA’s beginning farmer direct and guaranteed loan programs provide an opportunity for qualied applicants to secure loans from funding set aside for producers who meet the following conditions:

– Has operated a farm for not more than 10 years.

– Will materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm.

– Agrees to participate in a loan assessment, borrower training and nancial management program sponsored by the FSA.

– Does not own a farm in excess of 30% of the county’s average-size farm.

Ensure a farm meets conservation compliance

The term sodbusting is used to identify the conversion of land from native vegetation to commodity crop production after Dec. 23, 1985. As part of the conservation provisions of the Food Security Act of 1985, if you are proposing to produce agricultural commodities (crops that require annual tillage including one pass planting operations and sugar cane) on land that has been determined highly erodible and that has no crop history prior to Dec. 23, 1985, that land must be farmed in accordance with a conservation plan or system that ensures no substantial increase in soil erosion.

Eligibility for many USDA programs requires compliance with a conservation plan or system on highly erodible land used for the production of agricultural commodities. This includes FSA loan, disaster assistance, safety net, price support and conservation programs; NRCS conservation programs; and Risk Management Agency federal crop insurance.

Before you clear or prepare areas not presently under production for crops that require annual tillage, you are required to le Form AD-1026, Highly Erodible Land conservation and wetland conservation certication, with FSA indicating the area to be brought into production. The notication will be referred to Natural Resource Conservation Service to determine if the eld is considered HEL. If the eld is considered HEL, you are required to implement a conservation plan or system that limits the erosion to the tolerable soil loss for the predominant HEL soil on those elds.

In addition, prior to removing trees or conducting any other land manipulations that may affect wetlands, remember to update form AD-1026 to ensure you remain in compliance with the wetland conservation provisions. Prior to purchasing or renting new cropland acres, it is recommended you check with the local USDA Service Center to ensure the activities will comply with the HEL and wetland conservation provisions.

An dairy farmers before me

“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone,” Neale Donald Walsch said.

This quote is written on the front of a mug that has sat on the corner of my desk throughout my summer as the corporate communications intern for Midwest Dairy. When I read this quote and think about how it applies to how I see the dairy industry, the word that then comes to mind is opportunity.

I grew up with the best of both worlds. While it may sound like I am directly quoting Hannah Montana, the opportunity to see both sides of agriculture is how I really found my place as a dairy advocate.

ceive from dairy farmers as we grow through these programs, friendships and experiences are life-changing.

I have been extremely fortunate to share my dairy story with others through opportunities provided by the dairy farmers through Midwest Dairy checkoff programs. This summer I was able to dedicate my time by helping dairy farmers share their stories; I got to have a bird’s eye view on projects happening across Midwest Dairy’s 10-state region; and I even had the

opportunity to share my experiences as a dairy advocate with the next generation of young dairy leaders.

As I near the end of my time as a dairy youth, I want to thank the dairy farmers just one more time for investing in the future of the dairy industry. The opportunities you have provided for young people like me have pushed us out of our comfort zones and have allowed us to grow into passionate advocates for the dairy community, and I look forward to giving back to you any way I can throughout my career.

I hail from a small farm in a suburb of the Twin Cities and have always enjoyed connecting those from my hometown community to the dairy community. Attending one of the largest high schools in the state, I would walk the halls as one of the only students with a direct connection to agriculture. This experience provided me with one of my rst opportunities to serve as an advocate for dairy.

By Kelsey Erf Midwest Dairy Association

I loved taking the opportunity to talk about my cows, sharing how my family and I care for them every day and answering any questions my friends had about the dairy industry. I quickly found that I can continue doing what I loved while also wearing a crown and sash to represent the dairy farmers of Washington County. This opportunity brought me closer to Midwest Dairy, and in 2021, I got to work closely with their staff as a Princess Kay of the Milky Way nalist.

Some of my biggest role models were once butterheads. For as long as I can remember, I found myself at the coronation the night before the Minnesota State Fair watching all the nalists closely. They were all incredibly passionate and involved in the dairy industry, and their leadership and communication skills could be easily seen as they answered questions or talked with the crowd. I admired these dairy advocates for how they jumped at the opportunities in their lives so much that it inspired me to jump at the opportunities in mine.

I challenged myself to become a leader others could look up to one day, and today, I look back on all the opportunities I have taken, the leader I have become, and I realize how I need to thank the dairy farmers for building me into the leader I am.

I have beneted because our dairy farmers created these opportunities for young leaders like myself to grow. They have invested in checkoff, the dairy princess program, the ambassador program and much more. They have provided these experiences that have allowed us to build our condence, think strategically and connect with others in the dairy industry so we can return to help the dairy community.

It was Demosthenes, a Greek orator, who said, “Small opportunities are often the beginning of great achievements.” Opportunities for young people in the dairy industry are plentiful, and the support we re-

Some dad

It’s been 40 years since my wife quietly whispered a certain little something in my ear, two tiny words that caused me to exclaim, “You’re what?”

Life’s biggest changes arrive not with a clap of thunder or a pillar of re but with a soft murmur. That and the sound of your jaw thudding onto the oor.

There are any number of guys out there who could soon be getting the news that they are about to become fathers. As such, I thought it would be good to pass along some fatherly advice regarding the challenges of fatherhood.

– Don’t jump to conclusions.

For example, I clearly recall the rst night our rstborn son spent with us. My wife had placed his crib just outside the doorway of our bedroom. She did this not only to keep the baby close at hand, but mainly because the crib thus sat next to the furnace

vent. This was a highly coveted spot in the cold and drafty old farmhouse we were renting at the time.

Shortly after retiring for the evening, a stream of strange noises began to issue from just outside our bedroom. These noises consisted of random squeaks and squawks intermingled with some weird, otherworldly trilling.

I immediately leapt into action. Grabbing the baseball bat I kept handy for such situations, I said to my wife, “Stay here, it sounds like some varmint got into the house. I’ll handle this.”

But, there was no varmint, only the crib and our sleeping newborn son. Good gosh. All of those hideous noises were coming from him.

“I think the hospital owes us a refund,” I told my wife. “It sounds like they sent us home with a gremlin.”

Good thing I had a rm grip on that baseball bat, or my injuries would likely have been much more serious.

– Give your children the gift of poverty.

Living in poverty is a grand tradition that has been passed down through our family for innumerable generations. Poverty has worked well for us, so we decided to keep the practice going.

Poverty is innitely useful when it comes to raising kids. Say your youngest son has a chum whose father is as rich as Warren Buffett. The friend’s father purchases a fancy new four-wheeler for your son’s pal, and your son is now begging you to buy something similar for him.

By Jerry Nelson Columnist Dear County Agent Guy

Thanks to poverty, you can truthfully tell the lad you can’t afford to buy him any such thing. But, if he wants to work hard and save up the cash to make a purchase of his own, why, he can just go right ahead and do so.

He quickly discovers that few 11-year-olds have the earning capacity to acquire the coveted fourwheeler. By the time he reaches the point where he does make that sort of dough, he will have outgrown his want for the toy. His parents are thus spared a load of worry, they save on their expenses and the boy learns it isn’t much fun to spend willy-nilly when you have to earn the money yourself. Everybody wins.

– Be prepared to have your world completely and utterly transformed.

Nothing – not even installing that atscreen TV in your mancave – changes a guy’s life more than becoming a dad.

For instance, the time will come when you’ll hear an infant crying in the night. As its father, you know you must be a man and do your duty. And so, gathering every last ounce of your strength and fortitude, you wake the child’s mother and alert her to the situation.

Modern dads are expected to change soiled diapers, the most gut-churning and odoriferous task known to mankind. I have two words of advice regarding this loathsome chore: car wash. I have found that the super scrub option works best.

One day you will be walking with your child and the tot will reach up for your hand. A tiny paw will wrap itself around one of your ngers and squeeze it tight.

You will realize the child isn’t doing this because he or she needs help walking. Your hand is being held because you are dad, and the child simply wants to be with you.

Several things will happen in this moment. For one, you’ll feel the weight of the entire world settle upon your shoulders. For another, your heart will swell with such happiness that it nearly bursts.

And that’s when you will realize a deep and abiding truth: Any guy can father a child. But, it takes a real man to be a dad.

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

I F A

More milkless feed with uniform ne-grind

Solid cast rolls All belt-electric drive

Single or double mills

USA & International sales

Replacement rolls available for most mills

Used mills and tumble mixers on hand

Hammer Mills

Phone: (319) 634-3849

web: www.ifamill.com

• Toll Free: (800) 426-0261

• email: ifamill@netins.net

Precautions with fall cutting alfalfa

As we welcome the ofcial start of fall this week, alfalfa decision-making is in the rearview mirror for some. However, several farms may be considering a fall cutting. In some cases, this desire is fueled by reduced forage yields throughout the summer or terminal stands leaving production. In other instances, the previous cutting occurred several weeks ago and current alfalfa stands are more than 2 feet tall.

overwinter and regrow in the spring. Unfortunately, this doesn’t allow enough time for the vegetation to regrow and normal dormancy reactions to resume. When to take a fall cutting

Something to Ruminate On

For most regions of Minnesota, a nal summer harvest the rst week of September will allow sufcient time for alfalfa to undergo the dormancy reaction before killing temperatures arrive. We are now past this target date and in the middle of what some would call the critical fall period (Sept. 7 to Oct. 15) when it is risky to cut alfalfa. Note these dates differ for other regions as they are dependent on the date of the killing frost.

forage quality in the next year’s rst cutting, but if it’s harvested early enough, the reduction in quality is minimal.

Leaving the fall growth over winter is benecial because it catches and holds snow cover and moderates soil temperature uctuations during winter and early spring. Alfalfa may break dormancy too early or experience plant heaving due to extreme soil temperature uctuations.

By Barry Visser Nutritionist

This regrowth was a common theme in the fall of 2021 as well. We had plenty of reports of winterkill and poor stands this spring that we don’t want to see repeated. Here are some considerations for fall alfalfa cutting that can affect winter survival and next spring’s vigor. Fall dormancy process

Alfalfa is a perennial plant that depends on fall dormancy to prepare for winter survival. Shortening daylength and declining temperatures in the fall trigger alfalfa to undergo a dormancy reaction that decreases vegetative production and develops crown buds that serve as the source of the rst spring regrowth. Alfalfa metabolism also changes in the fall as it stores energy in the roots in the form of starch and sugars. Starch is converted to sugars, which allows the plant to live during the winter.

Disruption of the dormancy reaction by cutting in September to mid-October (depending on region) affects alfalfa winterhardiness and its survival. Plants cut during this sensitive time stop storing energy and instead expend energy on regrowth. Cutting causes fall regrowth of crown buds that would normally

When nal harvests are delayed until later in October, we can minimize risk. This coincides with the date of the rst alfalfa-killing frosts (23 to 24 degrees) in many regions. Beyond this date, vegetative regrowth will be minimal.

Alfalfa growing degree day research is another method that can be used when considering a fall cutting. Fall alfalfa harvest research is based on a window of 500 to 200 GDD (base 41 degrees). If fall-cut alfalfa accumulates at least 500 GDD before going into the winter, it will have good carbohydrate reserves. This data matches well with the rule-of -thumb to harvest at least ve to six weeks before the killing frost.

A late fall cutting can be taken if the alfalfa does not accumulate more than 200 GDD before a killing frost. This will allow the alfalfa to enter the winter with good carbohydrate reserves. The tricky part is to guess when a killing frost will occur and what dates will fall within 200 GDD prior to the killing frost date. Therefore, if the hay is needed, most will wait until at or after the killing freeze to cut. Advantages of stubble going into winter

Sometimes farmers are concerned that the fall growth will smother and kill the stand over winter. Experts say this does not happen with a legume such as alfalfa. Rather, leaves freeze and eventually drop off the plant. The old, fall stem growth may impact

Harvesting past mid-October removes stubble from the eld. Alfalfa cutting height of 5 to 6 inches is recommended to aid in winter survival as it collects snow, which can insulate the soil. If your equipment cannot be set high, set it as high as you can. Even without snow, this stubble can insulate the soil from the sun’s energy that can warm the soil and expose the plant to excess cycles of thawing and freezing. Stubble can also disrupt ice sheeting and prevent smothering of plants, which all contribute to winter survival. Increasing the mower height to allow for more stubble is one solution. Some producers leave uncut strips within the eld to help catch snow, which may help as well.

Proceed with caution

Taking an alfalfa cutting in the late fall always comes with inherent risk, but that risk may be enhanced if the eld has already been stressed by intensive summer cutting, pest issues, low soil fertility, drought stress or poor soil drainage.

A vigorous, healthy stand is more tolerant of fall cutting than a stressed and weakened stand.

Cutting alfalfa during the critical fall period can be tempting due to the apparent high quality of the forage in the fall and sunny fall conditions. This is especially true if farms are short on feed or trying to reduce expensive non-forage byproducts. If you decide to cut this fall, work with an agronomist or nutritionist to determine the best time for a specic geography.

Barry Visser is a nutritionist for Vita Plus.

Celebrating anniversaries

What do you do when your wedding anniversary falls in the middle of harvest season? You give thanks that on at least one day you outranked all the demands of the cows and farm for him to make it to the church on time to say, “I do.”

We are not always able to celebrate on our anniversary day, but that has become a blessing. If we did something every year, nothing would be special. It would just be another routine. This way, I can remember the different ways we have celebrated over the years.

We chose to get married in September because it seemed to be a family tradition. Both our parents and Mark’s grandparents were married this month. All would eventually celebrate 57 to 63 years together. We gured the odds were in our favor, and we seem to be on the right track as we wrap up our 35th year together and start another silage harvest season.

Some of my favorite anniversary celebrations focus on a meal I didn’t have to cook. We have dressed up (red satin dress and suit) for a romantic dinner at a fancy restaurant in the Twin Cities; we have plopped down on the couch with pizza and cheap wine in sweatpants after milking. One special celebration included a babysitter for the three kids, dinner at a supper club and a tornado traveling through the area. The next year, we celebrated with our four kids.

Despite the special celebrations, most of our anniversary meals have been a quick sandwich between loads of corn silage. We generally don’t even stop to eat together, but we still irt through dusty tractor windows as we pass in the eld. It makes you feel like you’re back in junior high school with the giggles as the cutest boy in the class gives you a wink.

All this anniversary tradition started the year we were married. Mark is the only one who operates the

chopper around here. He wanted to have the silos lled before our wedding regardless if the corn was dry enough or not. He nished lling on Thursday. We were wed on Saturday. We were back from our honeymoon on Wednesday to top off the silos after they had settled. Apparently, the corn wasn’t dry enough. The silos ran all winter and long into the spring. That’s when I knew we would never do that again. The harvest would outrank the anniversary celebration.

Mark and the chopper pulled into the elds on Monday morning, our anniversary day. He is starting in the corn eld on the north side of the driveway. There goes my green privacy fence. Now, we’ll start to hear the trafc whizzing past our place as people go about their lives and new adventures.

By Natalie Schmitt Columnist

When he started in the elds, I started harvesting from the garden. I need to do a better job of planting dates that don’t have harvest conicts. Corn silage time means the grapes and apples are ripe too. So, the rush is on. Luckily, we have Austin home, so I have some spare time to process apples and make grape jelly between chores.

It feels like we’re in the middle of running a marathon which started with the spring eldwork. As with any long race, there comes a point where you hit the wall. You’ve come too far to turn back; yet, you can’t take another step forward. But, you know if you take just one more step, you’ll be closer to nishing the race. You take a deep breath hoping it will lighten your body as you move the next foot forward. You know the end of the harvest race is just around the corner if you keep moving forward.

When we were rst married, Mark promised me things would slow down during the winter months. We could take some time off to celebrate our anniversary then. The only thing I see slowing down during the winter months around here is us. Maybe this winter will be the year when we nally nd a break in the farm routine to reconnect and slow down.

I was able to get a taste of what it is like to take a break. A few of my high school girlfriends and I met in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to celebrate our new decade of life. Three of them were vacation experts. They had their routine of the pool, hot tub, beach and dinner. The other gal and I haven’t vacationed much and didn’t know how to take it easy. So, we walked miles up and down the beach as the ocean tried to tickle our toes. All I could think was how much I needed to get Mark here to hear the roar of the ocean and to soak up the warmth of the sun-dried sand.

We don’t always need to escape to far off places to recharge and reconnect, but we do need to take time to break the daily routine and celebrate the wonders around us. We may not celebrate the anniversary day, but we treasure the years.

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.

“Our

Just

Fairy tales, part one

Once upon a time, there were three dairy farm kids who loved to show their cows at local fairs.

Well, actually there still are three dairy farm kids, but their show season has come to an end for this year.

These are the tales of their season.

not so much.

Monika prefers to show cows (over calves and heifers), so we looked through the barn for another cow to show. It just so happened that one night, Galadriel was standing right next to Cadillac. Galadriel has aged like ne wine. She grew from a moderate, correct 2-year-old into a remarkable 3-year-old. After a couple days of deliberation, we nally took Cadillac and Galadriel out into the yard. I told Monika to forget what she knows about each cow and use her dairy judging skills to decide which cow would place higher.

By Sadie Frericks Columnist

Two and a half years ago, Daphne was the rst kid out to the barn after school and claimed a new red and white heifer calf as hers. She named the calf Daisy and spent many hours in the calf pen with her – petting her, brushing her, and hugging her.

Much to her disappointment, there was no show that summer for Daphne and Daisy. There was no show for Daisy last summer, either, as she was going through what we call the uglyduckling stage.

This year, Daphne nally got to show Daisy. As Daisy got closer and closer to calving, she started blooming into the cow we expect her to be. She was only fresh a couple weeks at our county fair and still milking off some edema, but that didn’t deter Daphne. She walked Daisy around the ring with 2.5 years’ worth of anticipation and pride.

There’s an old country song by The Forester Sisters that croons the line:

“Just in case you ever change your mind/ If you suddenly decide to give me one more try/ I’ll be waiting in the wings, just looking for a sign/ Just in case you change your mind.”

This song is Galadriel’s story. We knew she was a special calf when she was born, but she wasn’t quite big enough to show as a fall calf or a fall senior yearling. When she calved in that fall, our excitement grew even more. But, again, we weren’t sure she was mature enough to show as a 2-year-old. We also had hesitations about showing a later lactation cow. In the end, she was passed up for Cadillac, another 2-year-old

Monika was planning to show Cadillac again this summer. She enjoyed showing Cadillac last year. And, since Cadillac is Cherry’s daughter, there are lots of high expectations for Cadillac in the show ring.

But when Cadillac calved in this summer, she just didn’t look the part. Some cows age like ne wine; some

Galadriel didn’t place as high in her class or the state fair lineup at our county fair as Monika wanted her to, but she did earn Monika a state fair trip, which lead to another decision. Should she show Galadriel as a dry cow, since she was supposed to go dry Aug. 11, or take a chance and show her in milk? Galadriel didn’t look a day past 120 days in milk at our county fair, but there was concern about whether she’d hold that condition until the state fair.

Monika decided to take the chance and keep Galadriel in milk. It turned out to be a decision well made. Galadriel placed second in her class at state fair and earned a purple ribbon. Monika beamed with joy. When the cows came back for overall, Monika and Galadriel were pulled out, and Galadriel was named reserve champion cow of the grade Holstein show. Monika’s smile was mega-watt.

And, then to ice the cake, Galadriel cooperated enough during the preliminary round of showmanship for Monika to advance to the nal round. After Monika’s experience with her heifer and showmanship at the state fair last year, she set a goal of advancing to showmanship nals. Monika thought she had a decent chance with Cadillac, because Cadillac leads like a dream. But, Galadriel is quite a bit more spirited, so when she switched to Galadriel, her condence tempered.

By the time the nal round of showmanship was done, Galadriel was too. But you’ve never seen a girl happier to place last in a round of showmanship. The medal around her neck shone as brightly as her smile.

The end.

Actually, we hope it’s not the end. Daphne and Monika are already making plans to parade Daisy and Galadriel around the ring again next year.

More fairy tales to come in the next chapter.

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