September 9, 2023 Dairy Star - 1st section - Zone 1

DAIRY ST R25

Volume 25, No. 14

The difference 2 cents can make

Dairy Checkoff Reform Proposal seeks to divert portion of dollars to food banks

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

Coming full circle

Socha, Volden return to local farm after college

By Alex Middendorf Staff Intern

ST. MICHAEL, Minn.

September 9, 2023

As high school students, Maggie Socha and Grace Volden spent time working together at Green Waves Dairy near St. Michael. Socha, being a year older, soon ventured to South Dakota State University to obtain a degree in dairy production. Volden followed in her footsteps, also attending SDSU to major in animal science.

While at college, the two young agriculture enthusiasts again found themselves immersed in the dairy industry, working together at a dairy farm near their college campus.

Today, having both

graduated with their respective degrees, the two young women have come full circle and returned to the dairy farm they worked at in high school, this time as full-time

employees.

Green Waves Dairy is owned by Mark and David Berning, a father-son duo who milk 480 cows and farm 750 acres. Together with

Pa�ence pays off

Tom Olson Dairy farmer

TAYLOR, Wis. — Tom Olson has an idea. He believes his idea will move a lot of dairy product while putting dairy checkoff dollars to good use. As a result, he is seeking a 2-cent slice of the dairy checkoff. In the Dairy Checkoff Reform Proposal, Olson is asking Congress to amend the Dairy Product Stabilization Act of 1983 to allow dairy producers to divert 2 cents out of the 15 cents per hundredweight they pay to a parent food bank in their state.

Two cents can add up quickly. In 2019, the U.S. produced 218 billion pounds of milk, Olson said. The total checkoff of 15 cents per hundredweight equaled $327 million that was paid in by dairy farmers. Two cents per hundredweight would equal $43.6 million per year that could be spent on dairy products for food banks.

“The checkoff was supposed to help the farmer keep farming,” Olson said. “But when you look at the declin-

Socha and Volden, the four make up the staff of full-time employees.

Turn to SOCHA/VOLDEN | Page 6

Mellgrens named Wabasha County Farm Family of the Year

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

ZUMBRO FALLS, Minn.

— Patience has been a dening characteristic of Adam and Sarah Mellgren’s farm from the beginning of their career until today.

Adam and Sarah and their three children milk 70 cows and manage 350 acres of crops on their farm near Zumbro Falls. This year, they are being honored as the Wabasha County Farm Family of the Year.

“All dairy, all the time”™

ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR Grace Volden (le�) and Maggie Socha show off one of the cows July 25 at Green Waves Dairy near St. Michael, Minnesota. Volden and Socha work as full-�me employees alongside Mark and David Berning, the owners of Green Waves Dairy.

AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR

The Mellgren family — Adam (from le�), Emily, Roger, Ashley and Sarah — gathers Aug. 4 at their dairy, Higher Ground Holsteins, near Zumbro Falls, Minnesota. The Mellgrens milk 70 cows and manage 350 acres. Turn to MELLGRENS

Print: 2834-619X •

Online: 2834-6203

Published by Star Publications LLC

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

Jan Lefebvre - Assistant Editor

320-290-5980 • jan.l@star-pub.com

Maria Bichler - Assistant Editor

maria.b@dairystar.com • 320-352-6303

Stacey Smart - Assistant Editor

262-442-6666 • stacey.s@dairystar.com

Danielle Nauman - Staff Writer

608-487-1101 • danielle.n@dairystar.com

Abby Wiedmeyer - Staff Writer

608-487-4812 • abby.w@dairystar.com

Tiffany Klaphake - Staff Writer

320-352-6303 • tiffany.k@dairystar.com

Amy Kyllo - Staff Writer amy.k@star-pub.com

Consultant

Jerry Jennissen 320-346-2292

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

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

Dairy Prole brought to you by your North America dealers.

Federal Milk Marketing Order reform

A hearing on possible reform of the Federal Milk Marketing Orders is underway near Indianapolis. “The last time we had a big process like this was about 20 years ago,” said Stephen Cain, director of economic research and analysis, National Milk Producers Federation.

“We’ve developed a big package that we think will help the U.S. dairy farmer, but we’re not the only kids on the block; there’s other groups in there that will have different opinions.” This hearing process is expected to last a few weeks. A recommendation from this hearing will likely happen in February or March, and a nal decision is expected next summer.

Common ground in FMMO hearings

The Federal Milk Marketing Order hearings are a drawn-out process. Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative Public Affairs Director Travis Senn is not surprised, saying there is a lot of ground to cover. “There’s discussion on milk composition, looking at component levels in how milk is priced,” Senn said. “There are also discussions on Class III and IV pricing factors; that’s primarily going to discuss the make allowance.” There are numerous ideas being proposed, but Senn said there are a lot of commonalities. “I think everyone involved in this is looking for a modernization of the system we have currently and how can we make what we have better,” he said.

EPA, Corps issue new WOTUS denition

Farm bill faces hurdles

According to Russell Group President Randy Russell, the farm bill is facing a few hurdles before it can cross the nish line. Nutrition programs will likely be a point of contention, especially with House Republicans only holding a four-seat margin. “As you pick up Republicans because you make changes to SNAP, you likely lose Democrats, so it’s a real balancing act,” Russell said. Food security is considered national security, and Russell sees that coming up in the farm bill debate.

Helping to ll the gap

Ag Insider

CoBank released a study that considers how beef on dairy genetics is affecting the supply chain and the beef market. CoBank Lead Animal Protein Analyst Brian Earnest said beef-dairy crosses are helping to ll gaps left by the shrinking U.S. beef herd. “We wanted to explore what it means to utilize more common beef genetics in the dairy industry and the effects on the beef supply chain from the cattle feeders to the packing community,” Earnest said. Earnest is seeing more beef-dairy genetics adopted in recent years.

Turn

MOST COMPLETE HAY LINE Cut Dry Harvest

Mower Conditioners

Mowers

Mergers Rotary Rakes Wheel

Repair Hills, MN

Isaacson Sales & Service Lafayette, MN

Fluegge’s Ag Mora, MN

Northland

Farm Systems

Owatonna, MN

Lake Henry Implement Paynesville, MN

Miller-Sellner-Slayton Slayton, MN

KuhnNorthAmerica.com rthAm Visit your local KUHN Hay and Forage Dealer today! INVEST IN QUALITY ® www.kuhn.com Van-Wall Equipment Albia, IA Indianola, IA Knoxville, IA Woodbine, IA Roeder Bros. Bellevue, IA Maquoketa, IA Vetter Equipment Clarinda, IA Denison, IA Indianola, IA Mt. Ayr, IA Shenandoah, IA Kunau Implement DeWitt, IA Preston, IA Diagonal Truck & Tractor Diagonal, IA Bodensteiner Implement Elkader, IA Rexco Equipment Farley, IA Burco Sales Independence, IA Helmuth Repair Kalona, IA Graber Services Lockridge, IA Carroll Implement LuVerne, IA Greiner Implement Ottumwa, IA Engel Agri-Sales Sac City, IA Dee Implement of Waukon Waukon, IA Lindell Sales & Service Cannon Falls, MN Beck Implement Elgin, MN St. Joseph Equipment Eyota, MN Arnold's Glencoe, MN Kimball, MN Sauk Rapids, MN St. Martin, MN Dave’s

Woller Equipment Swanville, MN

A & P Service Wells, MN

Pfeifer Implement Sioux Falls, SD

Grossenburg Implement Winner, SD

Mark's Machinery Yankton, SD

General Manager/Editor

Save time, money and improve hay quality with KUHN.

Nominal change in milk production

Milk production in the 24 major dairy states totaled just over 18 billion pounds in July. That’s down 0.6% from one year ago. In South Dakota, milk production rose 7.5% with an additional 14,000 cows added to the state herd. Minnesota milk output is up 0.3% despite a downward trend in cow numbers.

Hastings Creamery reverberates through dairy community

The closure of the Hastings Creamery has left dairy farmers on both sides of the river without a place to sell their milk. “About 14 or 15 producers that are involved with Hastings are from Minnesota, but the majority, 25 or 26, are from Wisconsin,” said Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture and Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection are trying to nd a home for the milk displaced by the closure, but most dairy processors are already operating at capacity.

Interest rate hikes likely

The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index rose 3.3% in July. That’s up from 3% in the June report. This rate is down from the peak of 7% last summer, but it remains well below the 2% growth rate sought by the Federal Reserve Bank. The ination rate is being monitored closely as the Fed considers additional interest rate increases.

Hurricane impacts butter market

As Hurricane Idalia hit the Southeast, cream volumes were redirected away from the southern states. As a result, Total Farm Marketing’s market update suggests cream is more readily available. That could keep short term pressure on the butter market.

Trade advisory committees appointed

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced the members of its Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee. The list includes Michael Dykes of the International Dairy Foods Association and Jim Mulhern of the National Milk Producers Federation. The Agricultural Trade Advisory Committee in Animals and Animal Products mem-

2X8

bership includes Jaime Castaneda of the National Milk Producers Federation, Cassandra Kuball of Edge Dairy Cooperative, Michael Lichte of Dairy Farmers of America, Ken Meyers of MCT Dairies, Patricia Smith of Dairy America and Chad Vincent of Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin.

Sustainably produced

Canola is grown primarily for the oil, but the Canola Council of Canada is also advocating canola meal as part of the dairy ration. CCC Canola Utilization Director Brittany Wood said cows fed canola meal as the primary protein source produce more milk. Canola meal is also promoted as a sustainably produced dairy feed. “We have done some research to look at methane emission when cows are fed canola meal, and we have ndings that support that canola meal-fed cows are producing less methane than when fed other protein ingredients, say soybean meal, for example,” Wood said.

Jones picked for FDA post

Jim Jones has been appointed as the rst deputy commissioner for human foods at the Food and Drug Administration. Most recently, Jones has led his own environmental consulting rm. He previously spent more than 30 years at the EPA.

Honors for Rugg

Minnesota Milk Producers Association presented its Bruce Cottington Friend of Dairy Award to Brad Rugg Rugg was recognized during the State Fair Open Class Dairy Show for his career of service to the dairy industry and 4-H youth.

Trivia challenge

On average, Americans consume 1.4 servings of dairy products every day. That answers our last trivia question. For this week’s trivia, what is a turophile? We will have the answer in our next edition of Dairy Star.

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

Repair vs. Replace

“The timing for me was perfect,” Socha said. “They were looking; I was looking.”

Socha reected back to her time searching for her dream job after college and said she appreciates her connection that remained with the Berning family.

“I knew what I was getting into here,” Socha said. “I worked here throughout high school and during my college breaks. I had worked with David and Mark before and got along with them; I liked how they managed things, making the position here just a good t overall.”

After Socha had been employed at Green Waves Dairy for roughly a year following her college graduation, Volden graduated and was also seeking employment.

“Our other full-time employee was in the process of leaving, and we were trying to ll the position,” Socha said. “I knew Grace was looking for a job, so I told Grace to talk to David about lling that position.”

Although the open position was not exactly what Volden was looking for, the Bernings were willing to adapt the role and shufe responsibilities and job duties in order for the role to t Volden’s passions.

“They were looking for full-time help, so I came back,” Volden said. “Knowing who I was going to be working with was a huge deal for me and was one of the reasons I ended up back here.”

Today, both Socha and Volden work alongside each other on the farm, performing their different responsibilities. Socha manages the cows, milking and the robotic milking system while Volden focuses on calf care and feeding.

“Another reason I came back to this dairy is the size,” Socha said. “The number of cows I get to work with is big enough that I get to work with a variety of cows, but I still get to know all of them.”

The cattle at Green Waves Dairy are milked on eight Lely robots. The youngstock are raised on the farm from birth until roughly 6 months of age. From there, the farm utilizes a local heifer-growing facility where their calves are raised until they are conrmed pregnant at which time they return to the farm.

Volden oversees the care of the young calves up until the point where they are sent to the raising facility.

“Right now, we are kind of on an overll with heifer calves; we have 25 heifer calves this month so far,” Volden said. “They all stay up in the robot barn for about a week, and then they move to the calf barn where they are on automatic feeders.”

Outside of their responsibilities on the farm, the two women have grown a friendship throughout their years of working together.

“We work together, but we are also best friends,” Socha said. “Not many people get the opportunity to work with their best friend every day.”

After having worked together for so many years, Socha and Volden said they truly have grown their friendship alongside their careers.

“Our situation is unique in the aspect that we have worked together in high school, then college and now again after we have graduated,” Socha said.

With big bales getting bigger and heavier, the 2660 has been made even more durable than previous models. Featuring an increased diameter of the rotor shaft and bearing, as well as the conveyor shaft. The chain attachment to the slats is more durable. Also, the width of the table has been increased to eliminate dead spots where material can build up. The loader forks have been moved over to help center the bale while loading in the bale chamber.

circuit boards, Mueller milk tank circuit boards.

ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR

Grace Volden places an ear tag on a calf July 25 at Green Waves Dairy near St. Michael, Minnesota. Volden cares for the calves on the farm up un l they reach 6 months of age when they are transferred to a heifer-raising facility.

Volden agreed.

“We truly know each other, maybe even a little bit too well,” Volden said.

Both women are planning to continue their employment at Green Waves Dairy for the foreseeable future and said they are excited to see the continued growth and improvement of the dairy. Socha said she can see the progress the farm has made since she started working there at the age of 15.

“Coming back, it has been so rewarding to see that progress,” Socha said. “When I started, we did not

have any robots, and we milked in a parlor in an old brick barn.”

Socha looks back at that time and remembers the farm’s transition into a robot facility, starting with four units and adding an additional four.

“They have also made a lot of improvements on the calf barn,” Socha said. “They have also made genetic improvements on the cows as well. Watching the herd get better and nding ways to improve and push things to become more efcient and progressive has been truly

David Berning (from le ), Grace Volden and Maggie Socha gather together June 28 at Green Waves Dairy near St. Michael, Minnesota. The women worked together at Berning’s farm in high school and now work there full me a er gradua ng from college.

rewarding.”

In addition to seeing the progression the farm has made, Volden said she appreciates the opportunities the farm has given her after college.

“The most rewarding aspect of coming back to this farm is being able to apply things that I learned,” Volden

said. “Going to college, sometimes we kind of think we will never use this again, but I have been able to apply a lot of what I learned in school here on the farm.”

In the future, Socha and Volden said they hope to continue to see the farm progress in different aspects.

“We are working to continue improving things on the cows and the calves to raise a more productive and efcient herd,” Socha said. “We hope to continue to be the ones who make the management decisions that would inuence that and keep improving from there.”

ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR

Maggie Socha sorts through computer data July 25 at Green Waves Dairy near St. Michael, Minnesota. Socha’s responsibili es on the farm include managing the cows and the robo c milking system.

ALEX MIDDENDORF/DAIRY STAR

Adam moved to their farm with his parents when he was 7. A few years later, his dad passed away, and Adam and his siblings farmed with their mom until 1995. Ten years later, Adam and Sarah purchased the farm.

In 2007, they started milking their cows at Sarah’s parents’, Vince and Sheri Sexton’s, farm because their barn was too outdated.

“We wanted to pay our cows off,” Adam said. “Then we were able to start saving money and nd someone who would work with us who would help us build a parlor and freestall. ... Nobody wanted to loan money to somebody who wanted to milk 70 cows. They thought we were crazy.”

The Mellgrens worked with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency, and in 2012, they moved their cows home.

Like many other farmers, a low milk price has been the biggest challenge they have encountered. They said they have learned how to ride out price variability.

“It taught us not to borrow money,” Sarah said.

Adam agreed.

“Save, save, save and pay cash,” he said. “Just be patient.”

Daily chores are a family activity at the Mellgren farm. Adam does milking, feeding cows and eldwork. Sarah also does milking. She works with

herd health, oversees calves and does bookwork in addition to her part-time job as a milk inspector for the state of Minnesota.

Emily and Ashley, the Mellgrens’ two daughters, are an integral part of their calf feeding program. They feed calves every day and have developed a keen sense of calf health. Once, when the farm accidentally received incorrect calf feed, it was the girls who identied that multiple calves were sick and that there was a greater problem. Roger, the Mellgrens’ son, also helps feed calves.

Adam said calf care is one of the most important things they do on their farm.

“You don’t take care of your calves right, they are not going to produce for you when they get older,” he said.

The Mellgren daughters have also started becoming involved with sire selection and mating decisions.

“I get them picking out bulls and saying we need this one or that one,” Adam said. “They know how to read a bull book.”

The Mellgrens focus on high-type animals, specically looking at feet and legs and udder as well as making sure the sire’s milk is rated +1,000 pounds or more.

Their herd average for the past seven months has been over 100 pounds of milk per day on two milkings. Through years of focus-

ing on bettering their genetics, Adam said they are starting to see a difference.

“We’ve got some of the best heifers right now that we’ve ever had,” he said. “They look good. They milk good.”

The Mellgrens own Holsteins, which Adam and Sarah grew up showing. Now, their children are carrying on the tradition. Adam said one his favorite things is to relive his showing days through his daughters.

Adam said as soon as the ice is gone from the yard, they may begin walking their animals.

The girls do all their own tting and are good enough that they know their parents are teasing them if they offer to help with a topline. Ashley and Emily even started their own business partnership and own two dairy animals together.

The Mellgrens have extended their delight in showing to lease to other kids as well. Their rst lessee was a teenage employee, and over time, the group has grown. Not only do the Mellgrens lease animals, they also train their lessees with mock cattle shows in their drive-

way complete with cows and a judge. Cattle shows, mock or otherwise, are not the only things the family does together. Adam installed a LED light on the shop by the basketball hoop, so the girls can shoot hoops as long as the weather is above freezing. Many summer evenings nd the family playing catch after chores, driving a mile into town to play baseball in the park or shooting hoops.

“We eat supper late a lot of nights because we’re outside after chores doing something fun instead of working,” Adam said. Adam would like to have the farm acquire more land to set up the children if they would like to farm someday. Currently, the Mellgrens own about 51 acres and rent the rest of the 350 acres they manage.

The girls have dreams of eventually having a show barn and want to take their cows to World Dairy Expo. Adam said their genetics are getting close to the point where they could begin to see a prot from the investments they have made.

Though growth for the show side of their operation is on their minds, Adam also remains committed to the same nancially sustainable, slow growth that has dened the Mellgrens’ career up to this point.

I don’t want to just jump in, borrow money,” he said. “We’re doing it a little bit at a time.”

AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR

Ashley (from le ), Emily and Roger Mellgren stand with a show heifer Aug. 4 on their family’s dairy farm near Zumbro Falls, Minnesota. The girls dream of someday having a show barn.

ing dairy farm numbers since 1983 when the checkoff was started, it is impossible to say this program helped the dairy industry.”

Olson milks 30 cows near Black River Falls and is the president of the Dairy Pricing Association. His proposal is an extension of what DPA does on a regular basis. Based in Taylor, DPA has been buying and donating dairy products since 2011. The money raised by this dairy farmer-funded group comes from approximately 200 members in 10 states.

DPA is a grassroots, voluntary dairy farmer organization that uses producer assessments to purchase excess dairy products from the marketplace. These products are then donated to humanitarian causes that do not displace existing sales. DPA is a regular, active buyer in the daily cash-traded block cheddar cheese market, which the group sees as a benet to milk checks across the nation.

DPA’s mission is to promote domestically produced dairy products and establish the minimum price the dairy industry receives for its production. At the same time, they maintain a level of milk production to meet the needs of the consumer.

“The need for dairy products for use in food banks across the nation is unbelievably large,” Olson said. “The dairy donation program that started during (the pandemic) has ended and left a lot of low-income people struggling to keep dairy in their family’s diet.”

After the program ended, Olson received a call from the Jackson County housing and urban development program which was looking for more donations of dairy products.

“Some of the people they serve are handicapped or elderly, and all are low income,” Olson said. “They’re all on a real tight budget and have to choose how to spend money, whether it be on food or medicine.”

As a result, DPA bought and sent 534 pounds of cheddar cheese to Jackson County in July. The county has 90 recipients who qualify for the HUD program.

“They were really happy to get the cheese,” Olson said. “It made these people’s day.”

When stores remove dated products from the dairy case, Olson said low-fat and non-fat milk is what does not sell and is then donated. Under his proposal, farmers would have the ability to donate 11 million gallons of whole milk or a whole array of dairy products to food banks and soup kitchens annually.

“Food banks have different needs across the nation, but they all have one thing in common and that is the need for dairy products,” Olson said.

“When I look at what food banks receive for donations, the thing I see that is in short supply is whole milk.”

Under Olson’s proposal, the parent food bank would oversee distribution of money to local food banks and soup kitchens with this money earmarked to be used for dairy products only. Producers in every state would choose where the 2 cents is sent and would also have the choice to pull it from their state checkoff or national checkoff.

“Checkoff dollars would be diverted for a better use under my proposal,” Olson said. “It’s going to move a lot of dairy product versus what the money is doing now. Right now, it’s pretty much just advertising. But it’s a form of advertising too when you’re getting milk, cheese, yogurt and ice cream in front of people.”

Olson was invited to the Congressional Agriculture Committee Meeting held in La Crosse Aug. 16. The hearing was a listening session with members of Congress on farm bill priorities to learn what farmers would like to see changed in a farm bill. Olson’s proposal was sent home with members of Congress that day. The proposal is also being sent to all 51 members of the House ag committee.

“This proposal can stand alone,” Olson said. “It doesn’t have to be done through the farm bill.”

DPA is looking for signatures of support for the Dairy Checkoff Reform Proposal to present to Congress. Dairy producers and consumers can sign the proposal on DPA’s website.

“We hope to get as many signatures as we can,” Olson said. “I urge dairy farmers to sign this proposal and help put our checkoff dollars to good use.”

Advanced kernel processing is the secret to a perfect dairy dinner. Experience KP Rolls with square-edged tooth engineering. They serve up the feast—fair and square.

Iowa, North Dakota legalize sales of raw milk

A dairy producer, legislator, veterinarian weigh in

By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com

Editor’s note: Dairy Star aims to provide our readers with a closer look into relevant topics to today’s dairy industry. Through this series, we intend to examine and educate on a variety of topics. If you have an idea for a topic to explore in a future issue, send Stacey an email.

HARLAN, Iowa — After nearly two decades of trying to legalize the sale of raw milk in Iowa, supporters of this legislation nally saw success July 1.

On that day, farm-to-consumer sales of raw milk in liquid form became legal in the Hawkeye State.

“It was high time this type of legislation be passed,” said Esther Arkfeld, who owns and operates De Melkerij micro-dairy near Harlan. “Raw milk has nally become a topic that can be openly discussed. Now that laws have changed, this opens things up for us, and our customers are much happier.”

Working closely with Sen. Jason Schultz, who had been leading the raw milk bill for 17 years, Arkfeld played a role from a grassroots perspective in helping that legislation pass.

717.354.5040

55” Panel Fans

“It’s more of a people’s bill allowing that neighbor-to-neighbor transaction; it wasn’t a producers’ bill,” Arkfeld said. “This bill would not cover larger producers, but the law does allow small farms to be able to meet a niche demand.”

The law in Iowa states that a herd can only have 10 active lactating animals. Arkfeld milks four A2A2 Jerseys and has been running a herdshare program for about 1.5 years. Customers buy shares of a cow, and each share entitles a person to 1 gallon of raw milk each week. Customers can purchase multiple shares or half shares. They also pay a monthly boarding fee for every share to pay for the care of their cow.

Arkfeld has more than 20 customers, and each one buys anywhere from 1 to 3 gallons of milk per week. Arkfeld doubled in size from two to four cows around the time the legislation passed.

“We’re very small in the dairy world, but our biggest objective is quality over quantity,” Arkfeld said. “I have a long waiting list and could add to my herd and be up to 10 cows, but I want to make sure our quality doesn’t suffer. I don’t want to overextend ourselves.”

• The highest air ow in a circulation fan - 33,900 CFM.

• Cast aluminum blades have a lifetime warranty.

• Totally enclosed maintenance free, high ef ciency motors have a full two year warranty.

Model VP CA: Belt Drive, 1 HP, 115/230 volt, 9.6/4.8 amps single phase one speed 587 rpm

To ensure the milk she sells is safe for human consumption, Arkfeld follows strict protocols. Under mentorship of the Raw Milk Institute, she has put a risk analysis plan in place and conducts bacteria testing multiple times per month to ensure her processes are working. Yearly health testing of animals and proper veterinary care are also part of the puzzle, she said.

“The Raw Milk Institute is a wonderful resource whether you’re milking just one cow for your family or milking 600 cows,” Arkfeld said.

Arkfeld’s farm is currently the only Raw Milk Institute-certied dairy in Iowa.

“I comply with their certication and testing requirements,” Arkfeld said. “Our Iowa law has incorporated testing requirements, but mine are a little stricter.”

On Aug. 1, on-farm raw milk sales became legal in North Dakota as well. Like in Iowa, farms are free to sell milk directly to the customer for his or her own personal consumption. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Dawson Holle. Holle and his family milk 900 cows on their fthgeneration dairy farm near St. Anthony. Holle believes the new law presents opportunities to North Dakota’s dairy farmers.

“It opens the area of family farms to be scalable once again,” Holle said. “You don’t have to have a 1,000-cow dairy; you can have a 100-or-less-cow facility.”

Holle said he has seen raw milk sell for $15 to $20 per gallon.

“You don’t need that many cows when producing raw milk,” he said. “It cuts out the middleman and just benets the customer and farmer. The farmer gets as much bang for their buck.”

According to the North Dakota Department of Agriculture, as of July 1, there were 33 Grade A dairy farms in North Dakota.

“The number of dwindling farms in North Dakota is another reason I introduced this bill,” Holle said. “We lose one to two farms every year, and we have to do something about it. That’s one of the reasons I decided to get involved in legislation in the rst place.”

Before raw milk sales were legal in North Dakota, the state offered a herdshare program.

“That idea is not really scalable,” Holle said. “You either do a herdshare program or sell your milk to a processor. There was no area for any of those small-town farmers wanting to milk 10 to 40 cows. There was no way to make money.”

When over 50 people came to testify in favor of raw milk at a hearing, Holle said he knew the demand for this product was large.

“These people drank raw milk and thought it was crazy you can’t buy it unless you own a share,” Holle said. “I saw this raw milk movement taking place. The support it had was amazing.”

Holle also sees the legalization of raw milk as a benet to the small-town community.

“When people realize their food is shipped from out of state or from different parts of the state into their local towns, they want to do their part to support the area surrounding them,” Holle said. “If they are supporting local dairy farms, then hopefully the community as a whole will see a rise in economic activity.”

Drinking raw milk comes with potential risks, and many public health experts discourage its consumption.

“There are many different bacteria and parasites in raw and unpasteurized milk, and some can be very serious, even fatal,” said Dr. Joni Scheftel DVM, MPH, DACVPM. “This is why we recommend milk be pasteurized because it kills all the pathogens that can make you sick.”

Scheftel is the state public health veterinarian at the Minnesota Department of Health and supervisor of their Zoonotic Diseases Unit. Scheftel said the most common bacteria people get from drinking raw milk is Campylobacter, which causes fever and diarrhea. About 20% of people with this infection are hospitalized, but deaths are rare.

The most serious bacteria found in raw milk is E.coli O157, Scheftel said. The effects of this bacteria are often most detrimental to children who encounter it.

About 34% of people with E.coli O157 are hospitalized. Approximately 14% of children less than 5 years of age and 9% of children 5 to 9 years of age go on to develop a serious complication called Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome. HUS results in destruction of red blood cells and kidney failure, potentially requiring blood transfusions, dialysis and kidney transplants. Some children do not survive.

Parents whose children were in the hospital with HUS infections have told Scheftel statements such as, “I thought I did my homework. I thought I understood the risks, but I never knew how sick my child could get from drinking raw milk.”

“I’ve heard those words many times,” Scheftel said. “No matter how clean a farm is or how careful farmers are with their equipment, these germs are a natural part of cow manure and may accidentally get into milk. This is why we pasteurize milk — to make it safe to drink.”

Although she does not recommend people drink raw milk, Scheftel said she is not against the raw milk law in Minnesota which allows on-farm sales.

“If you want raw milk, you can go to a farm and pick it up,” Scheftel said. “This limits the number of people consuming raw milk, and the law is fair, because there is such a strong demand for it. However, I would be totally against the sale of raw milk at the retail level.”

In both Iowa and North Dakota, raw milk may not be sold at the retail level as it is in some states, such as California and Pennsylvania.

In Iowa, Arkfeld plans to continue with her herdshare program rather than selling direct to the consumer.

“Herdshare allows me to know how much milk to produce because I know how much milk my customers need

| New Holland, PA

Esther Arkfeld Dairy farmer

Rep. Dawson Holle North Dakota

Dr. Joni Scheftel DVM, MPH, DACVPM MN Dept. of Health

Shawn Plaff Plaff Public Affairs

each week,” Arkfeld said. “They know it’s going to be as fresh as possible. We always have extra milk, so we might expand and sell a few gallons here and there.”

Arkfeld said many of her customers could not consume pasteurized dairy but found they are able to consume raw dairy.

“By no means is one better or worse than the other,” she said. “I believe there is room for both and a need for both.”

Growing up in Europe, Arkfeld said it was ne to drink raw milk.

“It was no big deal,” she said. “But when we moved to the U.S., we found things are very different.”

In Wisconsin, proposals like those in Iowa and North Dakota have come through over the past 15 years, but they were never passed. Wisconsin does not allow on-farm sales of raw milk, except at the incidental level.

Wisconsin Statute 97.24 prohibits the sale or distribution of non-Grade A milk to consumers, and states that Grade A milk must be pasteurized, which has been the law since 1957.

However, Wisconsin does allow incidental sales of raw milk directly to a consumer at the dairy farm where the milk is produced, for consumption by that consumer (or the consumer’s family or nonpaying guests). But those sales are also illegal if done as regular business or if they involve advertising of any kind.

“Fortunately, lawmakers and governors of two different parties have realized the signicance of Wisconsin’s nearly $50 billion dairy industry and the potential damages a raw milk outbreak could cause that industry,” said Shawn Pfaff, independent contract lobbyist and president of Pfaff Public Affairs.

A former spokesperson for the previously active Wisconsin Safe Milk Coalition, Pfaff was part of the effort to defeat proposed raw milk legislation in the state in 2015. Prior to that, Gov. Jim Doyle vetoed legislation to legalize the sale of raw milk in 2010, which was shot down again in 2013 by Gov. Scott Walker.

“It’s impossible to make an unsafe product safe,” Pfaff said. “There’s a reason we have pasteurization. It kills the bacteria found in milk, making it a safe product to drink.”

Scheftel said that bacteria in milk today is more virulent and resistant to antibiotics compared to bacteria of the past, increasing the likelihood that it will cause serious illness in people. An example is E.coli O157, which did not exist before 1982.

Every year, 60 to 80 cases of sickness caused from consuming raw milk pop up in Minnesota. But Scheftel said this is a gross undercount and only includes people who went to the doctor, had the organism cultured, reported they drank raw milk and agreed to be interviewed.

“The number of people who get sick each day from drinking raw milk is much higher than those we can identify,” Scheftel said.

Of the people interviewed, Scheftel said nearly 40% are less than 10 years of age. Among children less than 5 years of age who got sick from drinking raw milk, she said 76% receive the milk from their own farm or a relative’s farm.

“There is no safe raw milk,” Scheftel said. “My recommendation is to drink pasteurized milk on and off the farm.”

For Arkfeld, her journey into milking cows and drinking their raw milk began six years ago when she discovered her daughter could not consume pasteurized milk.

“Dairy products have wonderful nutritional benets, and when we found that raw milk outlet, we were able to provide my daughter with good nutrition,” Arkfeld said.

Despite the possible dangers that drinking raw milk can present, a demand for this beverage does exist, and Arkfeld said she goes above and beyond to ensure its quality.

“Your end customer is going to consume raw milk the way you produce it, and you have to make sure you do it in the best, most proper and caring way possible,” Arkfeld said.

DHIA believers for over 50 years!

What are some of the DHIA tests you use?

We utilize the Johnes test, standard plate count, somatic cell count, and mastitis culture tests.

Which is your favorite and why? I like the somatic cell count test to see if there are certain cows that have a chronic high

How does testing with DHIA bene t your dairy operation? DHIA bene ts the dairy by being an independent source helping us make decisions regarding herd health and productivity.

Tell us about your farm. I farm here with my brother, Perry, and my sisters, Brenda and Becky. We are a second generation family farm. We raise our youngstock, nish out our dairy steers, and farm about 900 acres.

Opening the door to his dairy career

Goebel chooses to milk cows

By Maria Bichler & Mark Klaphake Staff Writers

FREEPORT, Minn.

father, Melvin; and his father before him.

“I don’t want to give the farm up to somebody else,” Goebel said. “It’s always been in the family name. I’m hoping to hit 100 years here.”

The determined teenager has plans to someday erect a freestall barn with a robotic milking system to expand the herd to include 120 cows.

—

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Tanner Goebel was posed the question as a kindergarten student. His answer — a dairy farmer — has never wavered.

“I knew this would be my lifestyle someday,” said the 18-year-old from Freeport. “It gets to be long somedays, but I really enjoy it.”

Goebel, who graduated from Melrose Area High School in June, plans to farm full time alongside his parents, Dale and Brenda, on their 55-cow dairy farm in Stearns County.

While Goebel’s friends from high school might be pursuing a trade in welding or construction, or going off to college, he has found contentment returning as the fourth generation of his family to farm their site. Goebel follows an eight-decade tradition started by his greatgrandfather, Robert; grand-

The Goebels milk in a 55cow tiestall barn. Together, father and son work to complete each day’s tasks. For milking, Goebel washes the teats and applies the pre and post dips, and Dale attaches units. The arrangement has been that way for over a decade.

Afterward, Goebel mixes the herd’s total mixed ration that Dale then feeds. During this time, Goebel cleans the barn and feeds calves. Goebel is also involved with eldwork during the growing season.

“Dad has really taught me to make sure you are keeping up with your cows every day,” Goebel said. “Keep a good milking time schedule, and if you maintain your cows well, they will do good for you. If you don’t comfort them and give them everything they need, they will start going backward.”

Dale’s mentorship has served Goebel well as he plans to work for his parents

before slowly transitioning into ownership of the farm’s livestock and machinery.

“Dad also said don’t

stress out about the crops and the weather,” Goebel said.

“There is nothing you can do about it.”

Currently, the Goebels are upgrading their calf barn. Previously, calves were housed as groups in pens, which were pitched out by hand. This fall, the 56- by 50foot barn will be completed and used to house calves up to 5-6 months old.

Goebel is driven by the family’s cows.

“Going out in the morning to milk the cows, see the milk production and knowing the cows are going to make you money just makes me happy,” he said. “I’m happy being with the cows and seeing how they are improving.”

The Goebels breed for milk production but also focus on butterfat and protein content, teat length and spacing, legs and stature.

“We have a family of cows that will always be sticking around,” Goebel said. “They have been good producers over the years.”

Goebel aspires to learn to A.I. so that he can further put his skills to use on the farm.

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Tanner Goebel stands in the barn door Aug. 14 on his family’s farm near Freeport, Minnesota. The 18-year-old plans to farm full me alongside his parents, Dale and Brenda, on their 55cow dairy.

Turn to GOEBEL |

That mindset to learn has helped shape Goebel’s character.

“I’ve learned a lot in high school with my shop and my ag classes,” he said. “I’ve learned how to build things in woods class and how to weld stuff. I also learned how to identify soil types, how your crops should be rotated and how to put your fertilizers on the eld.”

His main teacher through the years has been his dad. Dale has taught Goebel valuable lessons from a young age, like how to read and balance feed rations as well as analyze feed results. Dale also taught Goebel how to read somatic cell count results, which led to learning how to balance the economics of keeping a cow versus culling those cows that are losing the farm money.

“I check the milk sheet to see if the cows were up or down in milk,” Goebel said. “Usually, I check every other day on my phone to see the butterfat content.”

If Goebel sees numbers going in a negative trend, he monitors the feed in front of the cows to check for moldy corn silage or hay. The inquisitive part of Goebel’s personality helps in his career path as a dairy farmer.

“If I want to get something done, even if it’s going to be a little bit of a struggle, if I put my mind to it, I will get it done,” Goebel said.

Goebel said he is looking forward

to fall on the farm. Hauling boxes full of fresh-cut silage and lling the silo puts a smile on his face.

“It’s rewarding when you are sitting in the tractor relaxing, knowing that you have the harvest done and you can sit back and relax until spring,” Goebel said.

He has also learned to face the challenge of days that do not go as planned.

Last fall, when the Goebels were chopping corn silage, the radiator quit working on a tractor. Goebel was able to repair a few hoses to make it operational. After a time, the fan, belt and all the bearings had to be replaced.

“I told Dad, ‘Let’s see if we can do it ourselves,’” Goebel said. “I put all the new bearings and bolts in, and within four hours, we had the tractor up and going again. That was a really good day, knowing that we xed it and got back to chopping.”

Now, when posed a question about the strenuous workload of a dairy farmer, with work that never quits, Goebel is as enthusiastic as he was as that elementary boy years ago.

“A successful day to me is getting up in the morning to milk cows, then going out in the eld and getting a bunch of work done and coming back to milk the cows and then coming in and eating supper, sitting down with the family and relaxing,” he said. “It’s worth it.”

Health Report

Flags animals falling below optimal health; track condition progress

Breeding Report

IDs animals in heat by Breeding

Window & Heat Index

Tags Maintenance Report Alerts you to tags not read by the system & abnormal readings

Group Routine Report

Provides insight into daily routines & herd activity

Group Heat Stress Report

Displays current status & trends of behavior (panting, ruminating, eating)

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Tanner Goebel and his father, Dale, stand in their yard Aug. 14 on their farm near Freeport, Minnesota. Dale has served as a mentor to Tanner, who is returning to the farm full me a er gradua ng from Melrose Area High School in June.

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Tanner Goebel feeds cows Aug. 14 in his family’s estall barn on their farm near Freeport, Minnesota. Goebel said he has known since he was a child that he wanted a career in dairy farming.

THE

our side our side OF THE

What do you enjoy about your position as a milk hauler?

Jeff Ahrens Buffalo,

Minnesota Ahrens Trucking 23 years of experience

Tell us how you became involved in hauling milk. It is the family business. My great-grandpa started the business, Ahrens Trucking, back in 1938. From there, my grandpa did it, my dad did it, and now I am trucking.

Tell us about a typical day. I typically start between 3:30-4 a.m. and stop at anywhere from ve to nine farms. It takes about an hour to get to the plant; then I unload and go back out and get another truckload. I haul to First District Association. I always get two truckloads a day, and my truck has a 6,500-gallon tank. I get home each day between 4-5 p.m.

What do you enjoy about your occupation? I like getting out to the farms and talking to the farmers. I’ve been with the same families for so long that now these guys are like family. I see them all the time; it’s fun getting to know them and their families.

What are the biggest challenges with hauling milk? The biggest challenge for me is the work-life balance. Just like dairy farming, it’s a very demanding job. You have to be there all the time, and it’s hard to get days off.

What is your favorite time of year to haul milk? I would have to say the fall because of the cooler weather and the roads aren’t bad yet. It’s more comfortable to work in.

Tell us about a unique time when you had trouble hauling and how you overcame it. Nothing specic, but the icy roads in the winter are the worst. I am out before the plows and salt trucks are out and drive in the freezing rain and snow. I take a lot of back roads, and there have been a couple of time I am whiteknuckling it while trying to get to these farms.

What things are essential for you to have when there is a busy day ahead? Coffee is the biggest thing; that is essential. I also listen to podcasts, some trucking podcasts, Joe Rogan or whatever I can nd.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? When I do get spare time, I like to go snowmobiling, hunting and shing. I also try to spend as much time with the family as I can because I am on the road so much. That would be my favorite thing to do — spend time with the family.

Dallas Finseth Fountain, Minnesota Finseth Milk Hauling More than 50 years of experience

Tell us how you became involved in hauling milk. My father hauled can milk, and I grew up in the business. My father had 50-plus years, I have 50-plus years, and my son Chad has 20-plus years in the business.

Tell us about a typical day. I start my day around 3 a.m. and am done between 2-5 p.m. depending on where I deliver to. I haul 6,500 gallons on a load. I have three to ve stops on a load. I haul for nine producers. I drive a 2018 Freightliner truck with a 6,500-gallon tank.

What do you enjoy about your occupation? I always have been involved in agriculture, and I enjoy seeing my farm friends who I haul for.

What are the biggest challenges with hauling milk? The hours have gotten longer and the miles are further. The Department of Transportation has gotten more involved in running the business. Not many people want to do this because of the commitment of time, hours and days, so it is harder to nd help.

What is your favorite time of year to haul milk? Fall is my favorite time to haul. Winter is too harsh, summer is too hot, and spring is too muddy.

Tell us about a unique time when you had trouble hauling and how you overcame it. I left one morning as usual, but I wasn’t feeling 100%. It was not long, and it got worse. I did some early morning calls, and luckily an old retired milk hauler friend was able to take over for me. It turned out that I had appendicitis and had to stay in the hospital a couple of days.

What things are essential for you to have when there is a busy day ahead? I try and nd a radio station that keeps my interest or talk to someone on my headset to keep my mind awake. I always have water and coffee with me and snacks for the day.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? Relaxing and spending time with the family.

Chris Bauer Melrose, Minnesota Millwood Transport

Four years of experience

Tell us how you became involved in hauling milk. Chad Stevens, who also works for Millwood Transport, approached me after I got my CDL in 2019. I’ve been driving ever since.

Tell us about a typical day. I leave for work around 11 p.m. and get home normally around noon. I make an average of 12 stops throughout the day and usually bring three truckloads in the plants, averaging about 52,000 pounds of milk. I drive a seven-axle straight truck that can hold around 56,680 pounds.

What do you enjoy about your occupation? Getting to work by myself. I can set my own schedule and start and end when I need to.

What are the biggest challenges with hauling milk? Winter weather and route changes. Driving in the winter, you never know what you are going to get for road conditions. I drive at night, which adds to the difculty of driving in the winter.

What is your favorite time of the year to haul? Summer because the roads are always good. No ice, no snow; need I say more?

Tell us about a unique time you had trouble hauling and how you overcame it. One winter, I slipped into the ditch while backing into a farmer’s yard. I had to go wake up the farmer in the middle of the night to pull me out.

What things are essential for you to have when there is a busy day ahead? For me, it’s a busy night, but a cell phone and Mountain Dew are a must. A phone to connect to other people, friends, co-workers, family and in case of emergency. Mountain Dew to help me stay awake all night.

What do you enjoy in your spare time? Farming. My dad and I own a herd of 180 beef cattle and farm a few acres of hay for the beef cattle near Melrose. This is my home farm, and similar to trucking, I enjoy farming because you can set your own schedule. Trucking and farming are both things that need to get done every day, but I can adjust my timing if needed.

John Timmons Kerkhoven, Minnesota First District Association

33 years of experience

Tell us how you became involved in hauling milk. Calvin Carls asked me to come and drive, and I told him I would give it a shot. It was a truck and pump trailer that held over 50,000 pounds. I liked it because I was home every night. I had previously worked road construction but was gone from home too often. The milk hauling is good because I am home every night.

Tell us about a typical day. Our trailers will hold 55,000 pounds. When I started, I was hauling two loads a day at 52,000 pounds per load, and I had 12-13 farms on each load. Now I only have 11 farms, and I am hauling 8-10 loads, which is over 300,000 pounds a day. When I rst started, it was 5-5:30 a.m. to 6-7 at night, and it’s roughly about the same now. Sometimes I am up at 1 a.m. and haul until 3 in the afternoon. It jumps around a little bit. Right now, I am using three semitrucks that I own. I also own three trailers, and First District Association owns the rest. We park some of the trailers on the farms. We have six trailers that sit on two farms.

Randy Tiedeman

Flandreau, South Dakota

Leased with Van’t Hof Milk Hauling of Edgerton, Minnesota

Lifetime of experience

Tell us how you became involved in hauling milk. I began to ride in my dad’s milk truck in 1963 when Dad hauled cans of milk for Hull Creamery in Hull, Iowa. We moved from Hull to Lake Benton, Minnesota, in 1973, and I began to drive a can milk truck for Dad when I was a junior in high school. I moved to Flandreau in 1988 and started my own milk hauling business. I now own four trucks and have ve employees including my son, Tyler.

Tell us about a typical day. The time when we start our days can vary quite a bit. The day can begin as early as 6 a.m. or as late as 5 p.m., depending on what we have scheduled. All of our milk pick-ups are one-stop loads. We generally load out of a silo and haul about 7,500 pounds of milk. There are usually about four loads of milk in a silo. I have driven over 3 million miles and have never gone more than 100 miles from home. I am looking forward to breaking in my brand-new Freightliner.

What do you enjoy about your occupation? I have enjoyed making friends with the people we serve. It has been fun seeing dairy farmers’ kids grow up. It seems

What do you enjoy about your occupation? I have always like to truck. I like to talk to the farmers.

What are the biggest challenges with hauling milk? The biggest challenge is the weather in the winter, and nding help is another one. Trying to line up good help is hard now. There are not many guys who will drive weekends. The milk has to be picked up every day, and the young kids don’t want to work the weekends. The state requires you to go to school to get a commercial driver’s license, and it costs $2,000-$6,000. A lot of these kids can’t afford that or don’t want to pay the price.

What is your favorite time of year to haul milk? I like hauling during the summer and the fall because I get to watch the crops grow and be harvested.

Tell us about a unique time when you had trouble hauling and how you overcame it. We tipped a truck over 8-10 years ago. We pumped the milk into another trailer, but it wrecked the whole rig. It totaled out the rig, so I had to go buy a new truck and trailer. Nobody got hurt, so that was the main thing. The driver just got too close to the edge of the road, and the weight pulled the truck in.

What things are essential for you to have when there is a busy day ahead? I listen to the radio and the news, but you have to pay attention to the trafc. The day goes pretty fast. I like coffee, peanuts or Skittles just to stay awake. Skittles are my favorite.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? I like going north to go fourwheeling, and I like to ride my Harley Davidson. I don’t get to do much because we are working so much.

like I’ve spent more time with them than my own kids. There’s nothing like being out on the road on a sunny morning in a nice, shiny truck.

What are the biggest challenges with hauling milk? Winter weather is by far the greatest challenge. I can’t remember my wife’s birthday but can clearly recall every blizzard that I have been in. During my rst 28 years of hauling milk, there were only four days when I wasn’t able to go out. When we see a blizzard in the forecast, we will haul milk from our dairy farms ahead of schedule in an effort to make more room for them.

What is your favorite time of year to haul milk? Every season has its pluses. I like spring because it means that winter is over. I like summer because you can smell curing hay when you drive through the countryside. I like fall because everything is crisp and clean. I can’t say much good about winter.

Tell us about a unique time when you had trouble hauling and how you overcame it. One winter day following a blizzard, I went down an unplowed road, thinking that I could open it. I was wrong; I got stuck about 100 yards from the next intersection. Fortunately for me, a friend happened to come along just then with his payloader and was able to get me out.

What things are essential for you to have when there is a busy day ahead? I couldn’t drive without a radio. I like to listen to classic country and the ‘70s on 7 on Sirius XM radio. A radio and a cold Pepsi are all I need.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? I like to go shing on the Missouri River near Gettysburg, South Dakota. My wife and I also enjoy spending time with our eight grandchildren. We make a point of attending their school programs and sports activities.

Describe your farm and facilities. We are a fourthgeneration dairy farm. We have a 300 cow freestall barn with slatted oors, and we milk in a double-8 parallel parlor. Our herd is comprised of crossbred cows.

What forages do you harvest? We harvest alfalfa and corn silage.

How many acres of crops do you raise? We have 1,400 acres, and we raise

corn, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa.

Describe the rations for your livestock. Our ration includes 50 pounds of corn silage, 14 pounds of a vitamin-mineral mix, which includes 4 pounds of dry corn; 8 pounds of high-moisture corn, 8 pounds of baleage and 7 pounds of dry hay.

What quality and quantity do you harvest of each crop? We raise 195 acres of

The Gjerdes harvest baleage at 25%-40% moisture on their dairy. They have 195 acres of alfalfa.

alfalfa and take four crops per year. We do baleage and try to harvest that at 25%40% moisture. We harvest

4,500 tons of corn silage, and we harvest at 65%-70% moisture. We also harvest 20,000 bushels of high- Turn to FORAGE | Page 20

moisture corn at 25%-35% moisture.

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Obert, Kraig, Paul and Weston Gjerde stand in their freestall barn Sept. 4 on their dairy near Sunburg, Minnesota. The Gjerdes milk 340 crossbred cows.

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

“We have been using Udder ComfortTM a long time. Today, we use the Udder Comfort Battery-Operated Backpack Sprayer to apply it quickly and easily on all animals in our fresh groups daily,” says Britney Hill (above), herd manager and part of the next generation operating Four Hills Dairy, Bristol, Vermont. They milk 2300 cows, calving 10 animals a day, applying Udder Comfort to fresh groups daily for a 5-day course. They also love Udder Comfort for their award-winning show cows.

“With the Udder Comfort Battery-Operated Sprayer, we can do all in our fresh groups without slowing our parlor throughput,” Britney reports.

“It’s convenient, efficient, easy to maneuver, and the battery charge lasts,” she says.

“With Udder Comfort, our fresh cows are more comfortable, and our fresh heifers adjust to milking much faster with better letdown. Doing all in our fresh groups helps keep our SCC around 130,000,” Britney explains.

“Fresh heifers adjust to milking much

- Britney Hill

Congratulations to Sarah and Megan Hill with their bred-and-owned Junior 3-yr-old Four-Hills Lola Guns N Roses, Intermediate and Reserve Grand Champion of the 2022 World Dairy Expo Jersey Junior Show

Describe your harvesting techniques for alfalfa and corn silage. The corn silage is done with a John Deere self-propelled chopper with a kernel processor. The alfalfa is done with a John Deere round baler with a precutter.

What techniques do you use to store, manage and feed your forages? Our corn silage is on a cement pad and covered with a vapor barrier and a 2-mil tarp. Then it’s covered with tire sidewalls. All the corn silage has inoculant applied. The baleage is precut with the baler and wrapped with a bale wrapper. Our highmoisture corn is run through a hammermill and bagged. The feed is fed with a total mixed ration mixer.

How does quality forages play in the production goals for your herd?

The better quality feed we can put up the easier it is to achieve our goals.

What are management or harvesting techniques you have changed that has made a notable difference in forage quality? It was getting hard to put up good dry hay so we switched to baling wet hay.

The Gjerdes chop corn Aug. 31 near their farm by Sunburg, Minnesota. They chop around 4,500 tons of silage at 65%70% moisture.

Describe a challenge you overcame in reaching your forage quality goals. We’re not hiring for chopping hay, which is nice, but we had to buy more hay equipment, a baler with a precutter and a bale wrapper.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR Kraig, Paul, Weston and Obert Gjerde kneels by their forages Sept. 4 on their dairy near Sunburg, Minnesota. The family recently nished chopping corn.

JD

Sep. hrs., #554050 ..................................... $405,000

JD S770 2018, 2261 hrs., 1652 Sep. hrs., #549678 ................................. $259,900

JD S760 2019, 1206 hrs., 871 Sep. hrs., #565714 ................................... $279,900

JD S690 2017, 1433 hrs., 1187 Sep. hrs., #549457 ................................. $280,700

JD S690 2017, 2104 hrs., 1461 Sep. hrs., #552684 ................................. $249,900

JD S690 2017, 2508 hrs., 1605 Sep. hrs., #568113 ................................. $239,000

JD S690 2015, 2400 hrs., 1615 Sep. hrs., #550872 ................................. $232,900

JD S690 2016, 2544 hrs., 1820 Sep. hrs., #547267 ................................. $219,900

JD S690 2012, 2314 hrs., 1645 Sep. hrs., #551148 ................................. $149,000

JD S690 2014, 2280 hrs., 1440 Sep. hrs., #568112 ................................. $139,000

JD S680 2017, 1516 hrs., 1053 Sep. hrs., #273646 ................................. $219,900

JD S680 2014, 2349 hrs., 1668 Sep. hrs., #531966 ................................. $195,000

JD S680 2014, 2328 hrs., 1575 Sep. hrs., #555096 ................................. $169,900

JD S680 2013, 2485 hrs., 1604 Sep. hrs., #551147 ................................. $165,000

JD S680 2013, 2575 hrs., 1906 Sep. hrs., #563909 ................................. $160,000

JD S680 2012, 1493

JD S660 2012, 1643 hrs., 1188 Sep. hrs., #554132 ................................. $179,900

JD 9870 STS 2011, 3650 hrs., 1750 Sep. hrs., #567383 .......................... $109,900

JD 9870 STS 2008, 3261 hrs., 2494 Sep. hrs., #566621 ............................ $97,500

JD 9870 STS 2009, 3579 hrs., 2579 Sep. hrs., #563914 ............................ $94,500

JD 9860 STS 2005, 4528 hrs., 3240 Sep. hrs., #564977 ............................ $59,900

JD 9860 STS 2004, 3924 hrs., 2537 Sep. hrs., #559820 ............................ $55,000

JD 9770 STS 2010, 2058 hrs., 1558 Sep. hrs., #567790 .......................... $120,800

JD 9770 STS 2009, 3095 hrs., 2350 Sep. hrs., #568125 ............................ $99,900

JD 9750 STS 2003, 5105 hrs., 3367 Sep. hrs., #565004 ............................ $37,500

JD 9670 STS 2010, 2525 hrs., 1667 Sep. hrs., #566916 .......................... $114,900

JD 9650W 2000, 3680 hrs., 2665 Sep. hrs., #568122 ................................ $45,000

JD 9570 STS 2011, 2019 hrs., 1231 Sep. hrs., #555820 .......................... $132,500

JD 9570 STS 2009, 2367 hrs., 1597 Sep. hrs., #556547 .......................... $104,900

JD 9560 STS 2004, 4638 hrs., 2982 Sep. hrs., #567094 ............................ $52,500

JD 9600 1995, 4000 hrs., #568110 ........................................................... $28,900

JD 9600 1991, 5313 hrs., 3614 Sep. hrs., #567724 ................................... $24,900

Case IH 2388 1998, 3876 hrs., 2943 Sep. hrs., #549406........................... $34,900

SPECIALTY HARVESTING

Pickett Twin-Master 2019, #553918 ................................................... $187,000

Bongards’ Creameries

Has been a quality market for MN dairy farmers for over 100 years. MN producers provide one of the country’s most distinctive brands of cheese that is still made using the same Old World craftsmanship and has been combined with cutting-edge technology to produce cheese that delivers unforgettable taste with unparalleled quality. MN Dairy farmers and Bongards, quality that stands the test of time. We offer a competitive base price, premiums, and the best eld representatives in the industry.

United

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

Monticello, IA 319-465-5931

WISCONSIN

Advanced Dairy Spring Valley, WI 715-772-3201

Ederer Dairy Supply Plain, WI 608-546-3713

DeLaval Dairy Service

Kaukauna, WI 866-335-2825

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

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

Professional Dairy Services Arlington, WI 608-635-0268

Redeker Dairy Equipment Brandon, WI 920-346-5579

The Scharine Group Inc. Whitewater, WI 800 472-2880

Mt Horeb, WI 800-872-3470

MINNESOTA & SOUTH DAKOTA

Farm Systems

Melrose, MN 320-256-3276

Brookings, SD 800-636-5581

Advanced Dairy Mora, MN

320-679-1029

Pierz, MN

320-468-2494

St. Charles, MN

507-932-4288

Wadena, MN 218-632-5416

Side by side in the barn for over four decades

Pohlmanns retire from dairy farming

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

GREY EAGLE, Minn.

Jerry Pohlmann said it nally hit him when he closed the tiestall barn door after the last of his cows left the farm. He was truly retired from dairy farming.

“For the last couple years, I’d been telling myself that I’d milk one more year,” Jerry said. “I’ve had friends tell me, ‘You’ll know when the time is right.’ And, you know, the time was right.”

Jerry and his wife, Bev, have been milking 60 to 75 Holsteins in a tiestall barn since 1982 at their farm near Grey Eagle. They sold their cows Aug. 11.

“It’s been three weeks now, and it just feels good,” Jerry said. “We want to spend more time with our grandkids.”

The previous night, instead of milking cows, Jerry attended a high school varsity volleyball game in which

three of his granddaughters were playing. Bev had spent the day at a college visit with another grandchild. With ve children and 14 grandchildren, the couple will remain busy in different ways.

“I’m not watching the clock anymore,” Bev said.

“I can go somewhere and not have to think, ‘Ok, I’ve got to be back by 3:30 (p.m.).”

Jerry had planned to retire four years ago, when he was 60. Then he realized the barn would turn 50 years old in 2021. Cows would have been milked there for half a

century. He decided to stick it out until then so that he could hold a celebration to mark the anniversary.

Six months before the party, his dad passed away, but his mother was there to cut a big red ribbon Jerry had tied across front of the barn.

“With 14 kids, 68 grandchildren and many greatgrandchildren that Mom and Dad had at the time, it was a big party,” Jerry said. “The yard was full of cars with just family.”

However, Jerry did not retire.

“A lot of my friends retired at 62 and told me I was nuts (if I’d continue working after that),” Jerry said. “But when I got to 62, I thought, ‘I’m still feeling so good and my cows are smoking guns right now, so I’m going to keep going.”

In addition to milking cows and farm work, Bev began working at a school kitchen and loved it. When sale prices for cows became good, she said the timing seemed right. Jerry agreed. At 64, they sold the cows.

Looking back, both said dairy farming brought rewards to their lives, especially while raising a family. They taught their kids the importance of working hard and being responsible.

“Just the value of doing a good job — our kids have a good work ethic even now (in their current professions),”

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Jerry and Bev Pohlmann milk cows together Aug. 9 in their estall barn near Grey Eagle, Minnesota. The dairy herd le the farm Aug. 11 a er the Pohlmanns decided to re re to allow more me to spend with their 14 grandchildren.

Bev said. “We had our meals with the kids. We got up extra early to milk in the morning so that I could get them something to eat and onto the bus.”

The family adjusted times for chores, even milking cows at 4 a.m., to allow the kids to participate in sports but also keep them involved in the aspects of the farm.

“Even our grandchildren are going to have grown up having known the dairy farm because the youngest two are 8 years old,” Jerry said. “They were out here many times, many weekends.”

Still, letting go of dairy farming is hard. One of the Pohlmanns’ sons, Aaron, will continue running the farm as a crop farm. Jerry and Bev are considering raising youngstock with him. Aaron might remodel the tiestall barn into a machine shed, but not yet.

“I want the barn to stay empty for a year,” Jerry said. “We have plenty to do for the rest of this year anyway, so we will gure it out next year. It all started in 1971 when my parents built this barn.”

Jerry is the second generation on the farm. His parents purchased the farm in 1958.

“When Mom and Dad married, they got three cows from my dad’s sister and four cows from my mom’s dad,” Jerry said. “Then they bought a couple more. When they started milking, they had 15

cows.”

Jerry was 12 years old when they built the current tiestall barn with 48 stalls. Before that, his dad worked off the farm, and Jerry and his siblings milked cows with their mom. When the new barn was built, Jerry’s dad began dairy farming full time with the herd size increased to 40 cows.

“I milked cows before school and after school, but my parents let me play all the sports I wanted,” Jerry said. “I came from a family of 14 kids, so we had enough help.”

When Jerry started dating Bev, she lived 20 miles away in the town of Greenwald, but she spent time helping on her aunt and uncle’s farm.

Although Bev had not thought about becoming a dairy farmer, it t into what she wanted in a career.

“I wanted to do something outside, an outdoor occupation,” Bev said.

When the couple married in 1982, she t right into the dairy lifestyle.

“Bev and I milked side by side morning and night since we moved to the farm,” Jerry said.

Both said they enjoyed the feeling of accomplishing something through hard work.

“I liked to be busy all the time, and I liked taking care of calves,” Bev said. “I like to

see them raised from a calf to a cow and to know that I did good work.”

The couple ofcially took over the farm in 1987. It was then that a three-year drought began, the height of it being in 1988.

“The technology of crops, the hybrids we have now, didn’t exist (in 1988),” Jerry

said. “We’ve hardly had any rain this year, and the corn still looks good. If it were the drought year of 1988, 90% of the corn would probably be only knee high.”

In 1988, they received 0.2 inches of rain the morning of Mother’s Day.

“That was it from when the snow melted all the way

to the rst week of August,” Jerry said. “Then, we got 4 inches of rain and had one crop of hay, but it was a nice crop.”

He said it was probably the toughest year of farming he and Bev experienced.

Turn to POHLMANNS | Page 27

MARK KLAPHAKE/DAIRY STAR

Bev Pohlmann milks cows Aug. 9 on her family’s dairy farm near Grey Eagle, Minnesota. Bev and her husband Jerry milked cows together since 1982 and raised their ve children on the farm.

CO2 reduction: The invisible new asset

Midwest Forage Association talks carbon credits at eld day

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

SPRING VALLEY,

Minn. — Carbon credits could be one way for farmers to make more money on cash crop elds. This relatively new marketplace creates opportunities to be paid for incorporation of environmentally friendly practices.

“Carbon Credit Talk” was led by Ryan Stockwell of Indigo Ag and Matt Kruger of Truterra. The seminar was part of Midwest Forage Association’s forage eld day and dairy tour Aug. 8, the afternoon portion of which was hosted at Nate Heusinkveld’s dairy near Spring Valley.

A carbon credit represents 1 ton of sequestered carbon dioxide or avoided carbon dioxide emissions. These credits have value in today’s increasingly climate-aware business culture.

“This a tradeable asset,” Stockwell said. “This is a representation of something that we cannot see.”

Stockwell said carbon credits are important for companies trying to reach environmental goals, especially for those with emissions which are

difcult or costly to eliminate.

Carbon credit buyers include companies like Walmart, Anheuser-Busch, The North Face, Nestlé and Shopify. Stockwell said that products with a sustainability attribute grow 2.7 times faster in market share than their peers.

“This is a market-driven reality, and they are trying to keep up and be competitive in their market spaces,” Stockwell said. “They have emissions that they can’t get rid of, and that’s where carbon credits come into play.”

Though the buyers’ actual emissions may remain the same, their overall balance sheet of carbon emissions is closer to equilibrium thanks to carbon credits purchased from a eld which may be hundreds or even thousands of miles away from their operation.

The value of the carbon credits on a eld depends on individual factors. Stockwell said a carbon credit’s worth on the market is $30 to $50 dollars.

“This is the cherry on top” Stockwell said. “This isn’t the ice cream when it comes to income.”

Kruger said farmers in Minnesota last year made $1.50 per acre to $36 per acre because of carbon credits with an average of $12 per acre.

“Are you going to get rich?” Kruger said. “No, you’re not getting rich off this. ... Is the price going up? Yes, every year the price per metric ton has been going up.”

There are two ways to earn money off of carbon sequestration and avoided carbon emissions: carbon credits and supply chain inset.

Carbon credits function by establishing a baseline of cropping practices on a piece of property. Then, carbon credits can be created by farmers additionally incorporating practices which increase carbon sequestration or avoidance compared to earlier practices.

Supply chain inset is a newer market which gives farmers a premium on crops grown in a way which incorporates carbon sequestration and avoidance management practices. Supply chain inset is a way for farmers who have

established carbon reduction practices to be paid for their efforts.

In the carbon credit sphere, there are two main ways to create additionality to carbon reduction after a baseline has been established. The rst is incorporating cover crops and the second is reducing tillage.

Stockwell said carbon sequestration practices are benecial to a farm beyond the money gained by carbon credits.

“You’re increasing water holding capacity and inltration, and improving your drainage,” he said. “There are so many agronomic values, so this should make agronomic sense for your farm.” Carbon credits are veried through registries. Stockwell said these registries ll a role similar to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s certied organic seal to help buyers understand that they are getting a legitimate product.

Stockwell gave several items to consider when choosing a carbon credit company. First, he said it is important to make sure the company chosen has an adequate customer base so that there will be a market for the carbon credits.

The second thing Stockwell said to consider when choosing a carbon credit company is their prot structure. Some companies buy carbon credits wholesale and sell them at retail while other companies structure it so that the more money a farmer makes the more money the company makes. Choosing a company with the latter structure helps ensure the company has a farmer’s best interest in mind.

The nal three factors to consider, Stockwell said, are a company’s payment rates, making sure that the crop grown and land is eligible, and ensuring that the carbon credits the company issues are registryissued credits.

Kruger, who has family members who dairy farm, said that, currently, carbon credit systems do not function well on dairy farmland. Corn silage elds end up scoring low for carbon credits because of the amount of biomass being removed from the elds. Manure incorporation, depending on how it is done, can also create additional tillage, which is negative for creating additionality.

Ryan Stockwell Indigo Ag

Matt Kruger Truterra

“But, we were dug in,” Jerry said. “I thought, ‘I’m not giving up; I love dairy farming, so we are doing this thing.’ You go back to my parents’ or my grandparents’ tough times to what we considered our tough times — and Aaron will have something that is a tough time — but you just battle it out.”

Mostly, Jerry said, times have been good on the farm. They are also proud of improvements they were able to make to their herd.

“I took A.I. school and started breeding our own cows to top bulls,” Jerry said.

That led to a lot of change in 41 years. In 1982, their herd was at a 17,500 rolling herd average. In 2023, their herd was at 29,000.

“It was sad to see them go,” Jerry said. “They paved a lot of highway on this farm.”

He said the cows allowed them to buy land, remodel the house, put in tiling and buy farm equipment.

“When it was time (to retire), it was the right herd to sell,” Jerry said. “They were some awesome cows.

The sale was good.”

With their herd gone, Jerry has found a way to maintain freedom with his schedule but still work with cows. His neighbor milks cows in a parlor and needed help. Jerry now milks for him — mornings only, on weekdays and some weekends, but at Jerry’s discretion.

“A lot of my family think I’m nuts, but I love it,” Jerry said.

Both Jerry and Bev said they feel busy but with more freedom. The tiestall barn stands pristinely clean and empty, but Jerry said he sees hope that young families on small farms will nd ways to keep barns like his full, most likely by adapting them with technology.

“The one good thing about robots is, if you want to stay small, you can have one robot and milk your 60 cows, which is nice for a small family, or you can get two robots and milk what might be more nancially (viable), such as 100 to 120 cows,” Jerry said. “That’s going to save a lot of these dairy farms.”

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR

Jerry Pohlmann shuts the door to the estall barn Aug. 30 on his farm near Grey Eagle, Minnesota. He and his wife Bev re red from dairy farming a er milking cows together for 41 years.

one-stop-shop for all agricultural building, welding, barn parts & equipment needs!

IN DAIRY women

Tell us about your family and farm. I work as the herd manager for a 350-cow dairy in Fennimore, Wisconsin, where my small herd of Brown Swiss cows reside. I currently have eight head of registered Brown Swiss that are expanding graciously this year through my extensive in vitro fertilization program. All of my cows are from elite dairy show families with deep pedigrees. I started by purchasing a single cow online in 2017 that got my feet wet in the national show ring and introduced me to some of the best cow people in the country. My goal has never been to have a large herd but rather to have a few elite females that can produce calves to market and show.

What is a typical day like for you on the dairy? The fun part about my job is there really is no typical day for me. Some might call that a negative, but it denitely keeps things interesting. I have a small group of employees to manage and have the responsibility of ensuring cows are healthy, treating problems, delivering calves, running shot protocols for heats, vaccinations, breeding and parlor management. We also have an extensive IVF program on the farm that I am responsible for, so a lot of planning is done to initiate that. It always is something different each day. My work is never boring.

What decision have you made in the last year that has beneted your farm? The best decision I’ve made all year was to invest heavily in my IVF program. Working with Trans Ova Genetics, I’ve been able to produce additional calves from elite females that have signicant value. I take a lot of pride in my ability to produce fertile embryos that turn into healthy calves and currently run a 90% conception on my Brown Swiss embryos with a 0% death loss in the calves.

Tell us your most memorable experience working on the farm. My most memorable experience isn’t related to just working on the farm but rather developing Arthurst Kade Panda-NP, a 3-year old Brown Swiss cow I pur-

Bridget Achterberg Fennimore, Wisconsin Grant County

8 cows

chased as a yearling heifer, into the rst All-American nominated polled Brown Swiss animal. We truly didn’t expect her to get to Madison last fall, much less do as well as she did. After three days on the bedding pack, it was clear that she belonged there. Foreign interest in the cow has certainly made her more fun to deal with as well. Matings by multiple different bulls this year have allowed me to produce more daughters from her.

What have you enjoyed most about dairy farming or your tie to the dairy industry? The most enjoyable part of farming for me is watching a healthy calf be born from our IVF program. Be it an embryo we produce or an embryo we purchased, the anticipation of the calves and the delivery is especially fun. I’ve never been one to desire the average, and this program allows me to stay excited for what’s to come.

What is your biggest accomplishment in your dairy career? My biggest accomplishment goes back to the most memorable one, developing my beloved Panda into an All-American nominated cow. Some strive to develop these elite females their whole lives, and I’ve been fortunate enough to do so in the short ve years I’ve been building my genetics. What’s more exciting is knowing the backstory on Panda and the family that bred her. They have been her biggest fans these past three years, and being able to make them proud is an accomplishment in itself.

What are things you do to promote your farm or the dairy industry? Onfarm promotion is truly done through my Facebook page and just getting the genetics out to shows. Selling calves to other exhibitors has been a huge asset to my breeding program as well. The goal is always to sell the best and watch them succeed for others.

What advice would you give another woman in the dairy industry? My biggest advice for other women in this industry is to not let the idea of being a woman hold you back. I’ve had numer-

ous people doubt my abilities to successfully do my job, and I’ve always just proved them wrong. It took a long time for me to differentiate between condence and arrogance in myself, but knowing your worth and knowing that your knowledge and intelligence has value is worth more than anybody else’s opinion.

When you get a spare moment, what do you do? In my spare time, I enjoy visiting with my niece and nephews, helping youth at the county fairs, kayaking and working on a small hobby sidebusiness making T-shirts and graphics for other producers.

www.extension.umn.edu/dairy

A better you for a better farm

As tasks, bills and everything else pile up on the farm, prioritization is important. As you set those priorities, where do you fall on that list? Is your care and well-being even considered a priority?

In farming and in our culture, in general, we value long work hours and putting our bodies through extremes to get the job done. There is something to be admired in that, but it also takes a toll. I hear far too often of farmers feeling guilty about taking vacations or even getting off the farm for a couple of days to go to a trade show or conference. Taking care of ourselves is not selsh. The well-being of the farm depends on the well-being of the farmer.

By Emily Krekelberg University of Minnesota

When thinking about well-being, I like to harken back to an earlier time in dairy farming and picture a threelegged milking stool.

A stool has two major components: the seat and the legs. Think of the seat as you: your responsibilities, your health, your job, your family, etc. The seat is supported by the legs. In this example, the legs represent three areas of health or well-being: physical, mental and emotional.

Your physical health is the general well-being of your body: sleeping

7-9 hours each night, eating balanced meals and snacks, and being active. Mental health and emotional health can be a little tricky to tell apart, but think of them like a tag team. Mental health refers to your ability to process information. Emotional health refers to your ability to express feelings which are based upon the information you have processed. We need to attend to all three legs equally in order to ensure we are properly supported. If you neglect one area, imagine cutting an inch off of one of the legs. You’ll still be upright, but it will be uncomfortable and more difcult to support yourself. Taking care of yourself is critical because it allows you to then take care of others. It is in the nature of all farmers to want to rush to help someone in need and to make sure everyone is comfortable and cared for before caring for themselves. You have likely heard me or someone else say, “Adjust your own oxygen mask rst.” When you y, this is always a key part of the safety message shared pre-ight. You cannot give 100% of yourself to others if you are not at 100% to begin with. You cannot pour from an empty cup. So, what are you doing to ll your cup? What recharges you to 100%?

Think back to the three-legged

stool. It is important that we are using a combination of strategies to promote physical, mental and emotional health. Some strategies I like to use and encourage others to try are deep breathing, meditation or reection, positive self-talk, physical activity, hobbies, connecting with people in your social network and speaking with a mental health professional.

Deep breathing is a great way to reset your brain and regroup your thoughts. It is quick, free and easy. In deep breathing, the only thing you need to focus on is the air going in and out of your lungs. My favorite deep breathing exercise is box breathing: inhale for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 4 seconds, exhale for 4 seconds, and rest for 4 seconds. Repeat this cycle a few times and see how refreshed you can feel.

Meditation and reection are similar practices that focus on clearing your mind of competing thoughts and focusing your attention on one major thing.

Meditation is a great way to clear your mind and examine your thoughts from an outside perspective. There are several meditation apps and YouTube videos out there; it can feel a little weird at rst, but it can really have an impact on how you feel mentally and emotionally. Reection is similar, as it is about observing your thoughts in a specic way. Some great ways to reect include journaling, writing down three things you’re grateful for every day, or savoring a moment of awe, serenity or joy.

A positive mindset has been proven to improve people’s moods and how they feel about themselves. Positive self-talk focuses on the way you view yourself and your day. A great exercise to try is replacing all the times you think about what you “have to” do with what you “get to” do. “I have to pick up the kids after school” becomes “I get to pick up the kids after school.” As you think about yourself and your abilities, it can be easy to get negative and think the worst of ourselves. If you would not say negative phrases to your closest friend or family member, you should not be saying them to yourself.

Physical activity plays a crucial role in supporting all three areas of our well-being. Whether it is exercising at the gym, going for a run, taking the dog for a walk or playing with the kids outside, doing physical activity each day

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

The demands of dairy farming can lead to farmers forge ng to take care of themselves. Thinking of a threelegged stool — where physical health, mental health and emo onal health support overall wellness — can be a quick visual reminder of the components of important self-care.

will help promote a healthy body and a healthy mind. Similarly, hobbies can support our physical, mental and emotional health. Sports, cooking, reading, hunting and shing are all great ways to enjoy something you are passionate about and to take care of yourself.

One of the easiest and best ways to support emotional health is through connecting with your social network. When we are under a lot of stress or in a mental health crisis, we tend to isolate ourselves from others. Being social and talking to people we trust is imperative to emotional and mental well-being. Sometimes, we may nd it is benecial to talk to someone who does not know our entire life. Mental health professionals are not just for people in a mental health crisis or with a mental illness. They are for everyone.

It can be far too easy to put ourselves low on the priority list. Self-care is not selsh; taking care of your physical, mental and emotional health ensures you are at your best for your farm, family and friends.

Les Hansen hanse009@umn.edu

612-624-2277

Brad Heins hein0106@umn.edu

320-589-1711

Nathan Hulinsky huli0013@umn.edu

320-203-6104

Karen Johnson ande9495@umn.edu

320-484-4334

Emily Krekelberg krek0033@umn.edu

507-280-2863

Claire LaCanne lacanne@umn.edu

507-332-6109

Brenda Miller nels4220@umn.edu

320-732-4435

Erin Royster royster@umn.edu

Isaac Salfer ijsalfer@umn.edu

320-296-1357

Jim Salfer salfe001@umn.edu

320-203-6093

Mike Schutz mschutz@umn.edu

612-624-1205

Melissa Wilson mlw@umn.edu

612-625-4276

Isaac Haagen hagge041@umn.edu

612-624-7455

GRAPHIC SUBMITTED

In June, we hosted the Precision Dairy Conference in Bloomington, Minnesota. We have had this event every other year since 2013. The format has changed; the most recent two conferences have been more producer and industry focused with only a few research presentations.

The rst day included presentations related to sustainability, automation, labor management and a start-up spotlight of nine companies. The 30-minute question-and-answer sessions after each topic were interesting and enlightening.

friendly initiatives. It is very likely that we will be seeing growth on various technologies that help to further reduce and better monitor dairy farming’s environmental footprint.

Labor management is one of the greatest challenges we face in dairy farming today.

By Marcia Endres University of Minnesota

Tim Taylor, with Vyla, shared the seven zones of acceleration for dairy technology: the internet of things; genomics; automation; computer vision/articial intelligence; regenerative agriculture; generative articial intelligence, which includes things like ChatGPT; and integration and collaboration in the ecosystem.

Mike Jerred, with Cargill, shared information about how technology can help reduce methane emissions from cattle, and producer Dennis Haubenschild shared their family’s long-term experience with manure digesters and other environment-

Dairy business consultant Matt Lange told us that “technology is labor in a different form.” He suggested an AEIOU approach when deciding whether to invest in or keep using a particular technology.

— Assessment: Does if t my operation?

— Economics: How does it pay?

— Implementation: How do we make it happen?

— Output: Is it achieving expectations?

— U (You): Where am I in this?

A panel of three producers, Nathan Brandt, Chad Carlson and Jared Feltz, who are using robotic milking systems, shared their management approach with automation and other technologies and how it inuenced their labor requirements. For the most part, labor exibility and efciency of production

improved, but it takes time to get the system working well.

A recurring theme — which was rst mentioned by dairy producer Dr. Don Niles — was to let cows be cows. Technology can help producers identify and sort cows that need attention, leaving the rest of the herd to go about their daily routine without being disrupted. He shared some of the computer vision technologies used at their dairies, which can help monitor employees’ adherence to protocol in the parlor, monitor pens for feed availability and cow comfort, and detect lameness as cows exit the parlor.

Dairy producer Steve Abel pointed out the benets of dairy management software, cow sorting, a system that allows them to more efciently vaccinate and treat cows, and so on. Technology is helping improve labor efciency.

Andy Lenkaitis, with GEA, demonstrated how to use equipment and cow data to improve parlor performance. He suggested working with the system and cows to minimize basic tasks and watch for time-saving techniques.

Walt Cooley, from Progressive Dairy, presented an updated version of the dairy farm tech poster, which in-

cludes technologies used on dairy farms around the world. These technologies will not completely replace human labor and herd management. However, technology can provide data for making the right decisions, help with labor challenges, make farm management easier, help improve animal health and welfare, demonstrate sustainable practices, and more.

The dairy tech spotlight included different types of newer technology in the U.S. market. One technology that is becoming more common is computer vision. Cameras have become more affordable, and articial intelligence techniques are making it possible to detect and analyze for various things on the farm.

At this session, we heard from three companies that are using this type of technology. One of the companies uses computer vision for monitoring employees in the parlor and checking for protocol compliance. Another one uses computer vision to detect lameness and to record body condition score automatically as each cow leaves the parlor. Lameness continues to be one of the most important animal welfare problems on dairy farms, and early, objective detection will certainly help reduce lameness incidence,

which improves not only animal welfare with less pain but also improves farm protability with greater milk production. In addition, consumers want good animal care and less animal pain and suffering. The third company uses computer vision to detect mastitis automatically with current installations in rotary parlors.

Other startups included a mastitis diagnostics tool that can test the milk for mastitis pathogens and provide suggestions for treatment; an internal rumen bolus that can monitor cow temperature, activity, pH and rumination; a platform that helps producers to monetize their sustainability efforts; an integrated app and weighing system for easier feed management; a dairy herd management software; and a data-integration platform.

Producers in the program and the audience expressed concerns about the lack of data integration for more effective and easier decision making every day on the farm. Companies need to continue working to reduce the time producers spend in front of a computer or their phones looking at data in order to make decisions.

A day at the Minnesota State Fair

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR

Princess Kay Finalist Josie Sutherland was dressed for the cold Aug. 29 as Gerry Kulzer carved her likeness in the chilly bu er booth at the Minnesota State Fair in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. Each of the 10 princess carvings takes six to eight hours to complete.

JAN LEFEBVRE/ DAIRY STAR Jill Traut of Cold Spring, Minnesota, walks her heifer, Brave, Aug. 29 at the Minnesota State Fair. Traut had just given Brave a snack, and the pair were checking out the ac on in the dairy barn.

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR

Joe Lenzmeier and Grace Jeurissen work the All You Can Drink Milk Booth Aug. 29 at the Minnesota State Fair. The two were part of a crew of 12 who sold milk for $2.

Cora Foss (le ) and Clara Benrud, both of Goodhue County, clean out stalls Aug. 29 at the Minnesota State Fair. They worked together to make the job easier and more fun.

JAN LEFEBVRE/DAIRY STAR

Cloe Lien of New London, Minnesota, beau es the tail of Spritzer Aug. 29 at the Minnesota State Fair. Spritzer belongs to Lien’s friend, Tanner Rohner.

Farmyard fun

As the rope of the fence gate I was holding in my hand drifted with my robust shaking into the portion of the fence that was electried, my older sister, who had the fence gate wrapped around her waist, got one of the bigger shocks of her life.

It all happened as we were playing horsey, with my older sister pretending to be a horse that I was driving, when the vigorous shake of the “reins” got us both into more than we had bargained for. I would like to mention that I also got shocked during the whole ordeal, but I guess having a hot wire fully wrapped around your waist is denitely worse than just holding it.

Fun on the farm was usually pretty easy to nd. Luckily for me, not all my exploits were as shocking as that one.

A yearly farm adventure was the kittens. Growing up, our farm always had a pack of 15-20 cats which were — at least in nominal expectation — meant to keep the rodent population down. Their rodent diet was supplemented with dry food and waste milk, and though their effectiveness at doing their job was called into question regularly, they managed to produce soft, adorable kittens every summer.

Catching and taming those kittens became an important part of summer days. The process was replete with little snacks to bribe them with and the oh-so-delightful joy of touching their small noses and gazing at their round tummies as you cradled them in your hands.

As a young kid, my arms were covered in scratches from indignant or terried cats and kittens unimpressed by my animal whisperer skills.

When I was young, the cats liked to hang out in what we called the “White Building.” The White Building was a dilapidated shed with the side of one wall missing. It was lled with cats, storage items and junk. Each year, Dad would take a tractor and bump the shed to make sure it was still stable. Though the building held little use to him and was an eyesore, he made the sacrice of our barnyard aesthetic and didn’t tear it down until I was older because I enjoyed playing inside it almost every day.

One activity in the White Building was building cat palaces. I don’t know if the cats appreciated my efforts or not, but I had all the fun in the world taking the old 15-gallon teat dip barrels and bricks and other stuff stored inside and crafting my own makeshift jumbo farm “Legos” into cat habitations.

I even hosted a cat party once or twice. The party was probably not a thrilling experience for my family since the cats were considered guests of honor and were given a feast of food — I provided no refreshments for my human guests — while we played a game or two of cards. All I can say is that my family loved me and put up with a lot.

As I grew older, I began understanding the need and importance of nding at least some of the summer crop of kittens a new home. I remember the neighbors would stop by occasionally, and I would make sure their little girl had the opportunity to pet an irresistibly cute kitten, deviously knowing that once she had seen them, she would give her parents no peace until she got one.

Life has changed. You will never nd me playing in electric wire; I respect fences more than cows do. I still love kittens though our population has petered out and the White Building has been replaced by lawn grass for well over a decade. I still host parties, but I try to focus better on my human guests than I did years ago. One important thing has not changed though. All those people who loved a silly little girl and went along with her games are still part of my life, and for that, I am thankful.

By Amy Kyllo Staff Writer

This little girl’s dream is coming true

Hello, I am Emma Kuball, the newly crowned Princess Kay of the Milky Way.

I am from Morristown, Minnesota, in Rice County, and I am so excited to represent Minnesota dairy farmers this year. It has always been my dream to be Princess Kay.

When I was little, I learned what the butter sculptures and Princess Kay were, and I always wanted to be her. I thought that it was so exciting that there was a real princess who loved the dairy community just as much as I did. I used to tell my friends in elementary school that I was going to be Princess Kay, so I am so honored that this dream has come to fruition.

On the Road with Princess Kay

with the back end of a cow, and I was never afraid because I trusted my cows. This was much different from my experience with chickens. After chickensitting for a neighbor, I realized I would not put my hand under a chicken; however, I was not afraid to put my head right by the leg of a cow. This trust goes both ways. We trust our cows, but our cows not only trust us to take care of them but also their calves. As dairy farmers, it is our honor to do everything we can to keep that trust by caring for our cows and their calves. Our goal is for consumers to understand this and to trust us as well.

and to tell your stories to those who may have never experienced the love, kindness and integrity of the dairy community.

Princess Kay of the Milky Way, Emma Kuball, serves as the Minnesota dairy community’s goodwill ambassador. Kuball grew up in Waterville, Minnesota, working on her family’s sixth-generation dairy farm assisting with milking, cow care and calf feeding. She attends University of Wisconsin-River Falls, studying agriculture education, and looks forward to also becoming an FFA advisor. In her free time, she enjoys reading, crocheting and baking. Her parents are Nate and Shannon Kuball.

I grew up on my family’s dairy farm with my parents, Nate and Shannon, my sister, Kelsey, and my brother, Keegan. Some of my earliest memories in the dairy community are riding in the tractor with my dad, learning how to bottle feed calves and riding with my grandpa to check the heifers. As I got older, I gained more responsibilities on the farm. Today, I regularly milk cows and am responsible for cow and calf care. Nothing can describe the pride that I feel when I know that I just helped a cow or a calf be more comfortable. This summer I had the opportunity to work on the farm every day, and it helped me reconnect with the farm after a busy year with my FFA state ofce. It also gave me a reminder of the aspects of the dairy community I would love to share with consumers this year.

As your newly crowned Princess Kay, my goal this year is to communicate the pride that we take in the work that we do on our farms and the trust that we have in our cows and the trust that they have in us. I am beyond honored to serve you this year

Princess Kay is very active doing school visits, representing dairy farmers, and sharing the importance of dairy farming and dairy foods at appearances across Minnesota.

By

As dairy farmers, we take pride in the work that we do on our farms. At the beginning of the summer, my family had several tours of elementary students visiting our farm. My job on those days was to get up extra early to make sure that the calf barn was as neat as possible for our visitors. Even though it required me to get up earlier and be extra particular with chores, it was all worth it when I saw the joy that the calves brought the students. I realized what a gift it was to work with these little calves every day.

One of the most important things on a dairy farm is trust. I have always loved the cows and have been extremely comfortable around them. This only became more apparent when I started milking cows in our step-up parlor. There were some moments in the parlor that required me to get up close and personal

BY SMITH’S

Scabbling makes a 2.5 inch wide groove that is rough on the bottom and sides. This gives your cow traction at ALL times!

Call us for ALL your slippery concrete needs!

References available.

Leon

We’ve been keeping your cows on their feet since 1987!!

Smith

715-314-0388

www.SmithsofWisconsin.com

I really like using the Merlin It’s quiet and cows really ada to it quick ly.”

– Jose A .

I really like using the Merlin2G . It’s quiet and cows really adapt to it quickly.”

– Jose A .

I really like using the Merlin2 G . It’s quiet and cows really adapt to it quick ly.”

– Jose A .

u c I really like I like using the Merlin the Merlin2G 2G . It’s quiet and It’s and cows really adapt cows to it quickly.” to it quickly.”

– Jose A . – A.

“ I really like using the Merlin2G . It’s quiet and cows really adapt to it quick ly.”

– Jose A .

OF WI LLC

Emma Kuball

70th Princess Kay of the Milky Way

Young farmers visit the big city

I was recently reminded of a gathering my wife and I attended back when we were young dairy farmers.

It’s hard to believe we were once considered young. We are now so ancient that verifying our age involves Carbon-14.

The long-ago soiree was a young farmer program hosted by our milk buyer. The affair was held in downtown Minneapolis, which was both exciting and problematic. It was exciting because it would be our rst foray to the big city; it was problematic because it meant driving in the big city.

Our milk buyer furnished us with a printed map and driving instructions. The map proved highly useful although it failed to mention the NASCARlike bumper-to-bumper trafc.

We somehow managed to navigate the terrifying hurly-burly of Twin Cities trafc and arrived safely

at our hotel. After parking in the hotel’s cavernous and labyrinthine ramp, my wife pried her whiteknuckled ngers from the steering wheel and announced, “We’re not driving again until it’s time to leave.” I heartily agreed.

We checked in and went directly to our room. I looked at the bed and the sweeping vista of the city skyline outside our window and said, “Let’s do that thing we’ve always wanted to do.”

So, we watched cable TV. Wow. A hundred channels and still nothing on. Even so, it felt upscale compared to the four channels of nothing at home.

It was soon time for our rst function. We reported to the venue and some bigwig gave a speech that basically said, “We’re glad you’re here. Thank you for producing our nation’s food.” Then they fed us.

During the meal, we met a nice young dairy

farmer couple I’ll call Deb and Wayne. We clicked immediately, having many things in common including young children at home and a visceral fear of driving in the Twin Cities.

Our milk buyer’s annual meeting was taking place, and we were encouraged to attend as many of its goings-on as possible. But we were scheduled for countless activities which generally included a tour, a speech by a bigwig saying how happy they were to have us and getting fed.

It was a challenge to become hungry. If we weren’t tucking into a feast, we were being urged to enjoy the free ice cream bars that were available everywhere. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see a bunker of ice cream bars in the men’s room.

Some of our time was left open, and we were encouraged to explore the city. This would obviously not involve driving.

Wayne and Deb and my wife and I hopped a bus that took us down Nicollet Avenue. We got off at the foot of the IDS Tower, also known as the tallest building in Minnesota.

The four of us stood and gawked up at the prairie skyscraper. Wayne and I wondered how many tons of forage it might hold and how much horsepower it would take to blow silage up to the top. Deb and my wife wondered how many boutiques it held.

A passing Minneapolitan stopped near us and peered skyward. “Where’s the jumper?” he asked.

We sheepishly explained that this was our rst time in the city and there was no jumper. The guy stalked off, shaking his head and muttering, “Rubes.”

After looking up at the IDS Tower from its bottom, we decided to visit its top. Imagine our relief when we learned that the high-rise had elevators.

We rode up to the top oor and discovered that it had a restaurant. We weren’t hungry but thought we could sit near a window and enjoy a refreshment while gazing out at the bustling city and fantasizing that we were masters of all we surveyed.

It was not to be. The maître d’ snifly informed us that his establishment had a dress code and jeans were not allowed. He didn’t say it, but I could tell he was thinking, “Rubes.”

So, we left, stealing a frustrated backward glance at the luminous window and the nearby empty table that could have been ours.

The only calamity during our sojourn arrived via a frantic phone call from my wife’s grandma Milly, who was babysitting our two small sons. She reported that our youngest, aged 3, was insisting that he had to help Grandpa Nelson with the milking. It was the dead of winter, and he was preparing to walk the 2 miles to Grandpa’s farm to carry out this critical mission.

We told Milly it was OK to drive the lad to Grandpa’s place and that we would head for home just as soon as we nished our scrumptious ice cream bars.

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

By Jerry Nelson Columnist

Dear County Agent Guy

Real dairy conversations at state fair

My shift at the Miracle of Birth Center at the Minnesota State Fair was at 1 p.m. on the rst Friday of the fair. For the rst time ever, I was late because of difculty nding parking. The fair was packed; I later learned that an attendance record was set that day. When I nally arrived at the bovine area of the barn, the cow that had been induced to calve for the day had already done so, and she had about 3 feet of placenta hanging out of her vulva. Most of the time she was lying down, so one could not get a full view of the placenta. Even though it was obvious to me that she had calved, the most common question I was asked was, “When is she going to have the baby?” — or some version of this. After I explained that she had already calved and what we were seeing was the placenta, almost everyone immediately asked, “Where is her baby?” Her calf was in a pen, by itself, in a corner of the barn about 30 feet away. When I pointed this

out, most people then said, “Why do you take the baby away from the mother?”

In fact, this is usually the second or third most common question I receive every year. My response always includes a discussion about colostrum, antibodies, health of the calf and eventually that dairy cows produce milk for human consumption while beef cows produce milk for the consumption of their calf. I was talking to a group of three younger folks, perhaps in their late 20s, and when I said “beef cow,” I pointed to the very tame black beef cow in a pen with her calf nearby. These three, two women and one man, seemed to be intelligent, articulate folks with genuine interest in what I had to say. Right after I pointed out the beef cow, the young man asked, “What kind of cow gives the kind of milk I like to drink, you know, non-dairy milk?” Certain that he was joking, I gave a small laugh and started to say how that cow had a brown trunk topped with green leaves and branches loaded with almonds, and how one can only make non-dairy milk from a combination of any oilseed, sugar, white coloring and chalk. However, right in the middle of my jabbering, I noticed a look of what I can only describe as horror on the face of one of the two women in his group. She had apparently just realized that he thought non-dairy milk came from

some sort of special cow and not a plant seed. He was not joking. Immediately as I understood this, I softened my response and talked about how people really like the taste of almond, oat, or soy milk. He responded nicely in kind about how he really enjoys it, and I think and hope that everyone felt their opinion was understood and respected.

Upon reection, I realized how valuable this discussion was. As volunteers, we are instructed not to attempt to change people’s opinions about agriculture but rather to connect. I really wanted to ask this young man why he chose to drink non-dairy milk since it clearly was not because he had anything against milk from a cow. But, that might have been a little invasive and would risk creating conict that was both unnecessary and potentially harmful. Rather, making the connection between two people with vastly different slates of experiences, while discussing small details about how agriculture works, was the real point.

The same applies to the question about removing a calf right after birth. It is not likely that my explanation will directly change any minds, but it may change someone’s understanding of why we do what we do. Hopefully, more people will see farmers as real people who care about and for their animals, and not just owners of so-called factory

farms. This small connection can open the door to more support for agriculture whether it be social, political or nancial.

These connections are also important because they help me, and you, to better understand the perspective of the people who do not really know anything about what we do. There just is no way we can learn all the perspectives of people in society today. Hardly anyone lives on an actual farm where animals are the main source of income for the family. Yes, we are all busy, but we can learn a lot from these kinds of contacts even if some of the questions we get seem remarkable. So, we all owe a big thank you to CHS, the FFA, the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association, the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Minnesota and all those dedicated volunteers who make this happen. An even bigger thank you goes to those who graciously share their beautiful animals for the fair. Great work everybody; see you there next year.

Bennett is one of four dairy veterinarians at Northern Valley Dairy Production Medicine Center in Plainview, Minnesota. He also consults on dairy farms in other states. He and his wife, Pam, have four children. Jim can be reached at bennettnvac@gmail.com with comments or questions.

PRWD, 1461 hrs., 1070 CH hrs., #553938 ....... $299,000

JD 8600 2018, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1652 hrs., 778 CH hrs., #188792 ......... $342,000

JD 8600 2016, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1608 hrs., 1200 CH hrs., #555841 ....... $289,000

JD 8700 2017, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 2545 hrs., 1835 CH hrs., #546919 ....... $308,000

JD 8700 2018, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 2393 hrs., 1849 CH hrs., #552442 ....... $284,000

JD 8800 2017, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1561 hrs., 862 CH hrs., #524820 ......... $355,000

JD 8800 2016, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 2605 hrs., 1707 CH hrs., #175182 ....... $268,100

JD 8800 2017, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1728 hrs., 870 CH hrs., #544616 ......... $339,900

JD 9500 2022, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 606 hrs., 317 CH hrs., #565391 ........... $554,000

JD 9600 2021, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 873 hrs., 538 CH hrs., #565399 ........... $420,000

JD 9600 2020, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1309 hrs., 775 CH hrs., #565393 ......... $375,000

JD 9600 2019, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1734 hrs., 1130 CH hrs., #553763 ....... $349,900

JD 9600 2019, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1272 hrs., 811 CH hrs., #532049 ......... $409,900

JD 9700 2020, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1167 hrs., 835 CH hrs., #543646 ......... $503,000

JD 9700 2020, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 965 hrs., 500 CH hrs., #552460 ........... $524,900

JD 9800 2020, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1292 hrs., 833 CH hrs., #536344 ......... $497,000

JD 9800 2021, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 448 hrs., 302 CH hrs., #550106 ........... $518,000

JD 9800 2019, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 899 hrs., 660 CH hrs., #550175 ........... $503,000

JD 9800 2021, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 575 hrs., 369 CH hrs., #552624 ........... $553,000

JD 9800 2020, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1470 hrs., 942 CH hrs., #554135 ......... $459,900

JD 9900 2022, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 518 hrs., 330 CH hrs., #565395 ........... $595,000

JD 9900 2021, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 612 hrs., 401 CH hrs., #565397 ........... $574,000

JD 9900 2019, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 1224 hrs., 884 CH hrs., #550177 ......... $493,000

JD 9900 2020, Kernel Processor, PRWD, 849 hrs., 661 CH hrs., #553436 ........... $508,000

By Jim Bennett Columnist

The great Minnesota sweat-together

Last week was 4-H livestock encampment at the Minnesota State Fair, and it started off with a heat wave.

All three of our kids earned trips to the state fair this year, and they were all very excited to go. We nished up third-crop hay the weekend before the fair, and I’m glad we did as we put up a large percentage of it as small square bales to feed calves with. There is no hell like stacking bales in a hayloft on a hot and humid day, soaked from sweat and covered in hay chaff.

The heat during the rst couple days of the fair was newsworthy enough that both Jonnie and Hannah were interviewed by the local news for a

story about how 4-H’ers were keeping the animals safe during load-in despite the heat.

The dairy barn at the state fair was surprisingly comfortable thanks to many, many fans and the fact it’s shady in there. We hauled in livestock earlier than we usually would to get them there before the temperature climbed even higher with the blazing sun. Thankfully, trafc wasn’t bad, and we got there quickly.

This year was our daughter Hannah’s rst year she was old enough to go, and she won a trip with her beloved Rhode Island Red Bantam chickens. They are her favorite animals on the farm, and she purchased and raised them herself. It’s great that

not only she loves them but the judges at both the county and state fair liked them too. I wonder if the judges noticed that she paints their toenails.

Erik, our oldest son, got reserve champion at our county fair with a cow he had to halter train four days before the fair. His cow, Candy Cane, that had done well at the state fair the year before died of bloat one night in the pasture right before the county fair.

From the Zweber Farm

Emily had a very pretty white Holstein named Bell identied in case one of the kids wanted to show her in the future. She got haltered and pampered immediately. It turned out, after a couple days of acting quite offended to be tied up instead of going to the pasture, she decided it was pretty nice getting baths and prime, quality hay.

By Tim Zweber Farmer & Columnist

The highlight of state fair show day for me was watching Erik show her in showmanship. All the other animals in the group were being troublesome, knocking other cows around and making their kids spin endless circles to keep them in line. Bell just stood there in the chaos right as Erik had set her up, with her head up, chewing her cud and looking completely at home in the show ring as if she’d been doing it since she was a calf.

Jonnie, our middle son, might have preferred to take his Cayuga ducks to the state fair since it’s less work to show poultry, but unfortunately, he didn’t get a trip with them, so he brought his Brown Swiss cow, Candy Corn. He has been showing her since she was a calf, and she mostly just tolerates the attention and separation from her food. She’s a cow that has a resting annoyed face, so it’s funny watching her scowl her way around the ring. They did well in the show, and she was reserve champion total merit Brown Swiss.

Everyone is back from the fair now, and we’re looking at another hot weekend although I hope it’s less humid. It’s time to get going on fall building and repair projects soon, so I hope more falllike weather shows up. I much prefer to dig dirt and pound nails in a sweatshirt versus a sweaty Tshirt. Until next time, keep living the dream. Even though it’s hot out, don’t be fooled; winter is coming. Better start getting ready.

Tim Zweber farms with his wife, Emily, their three children and his parents, Jon and Lisa, near Elko, Minnesota.

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

Time, the most limited resource on dairies

Of the things we have come to deeply understand as dairy owners, time is our most limited resource. Time management is absolutely crucial to the success of our dairy. Employee time costs money, cow time makes money, Mother Nature’s time can be variable and unexpected, and our time as dairy managers is equally critical.

Often, our to-do list exceeds the hours in a day. We become so busy that the good intentions we have set out for ourselves are thrown off track by incoming issues and res that need to be put out. Interruptions seem nonstop, and it can feel like there is no

urgent and needs to be done.

Set dates and times for important deadlines and work ahead of them. We often set deadlines ahead of schedule so that when issues arise, as they often do, we are able to address those res and still efciently move the dairy toward its goals. Put these deadlines on a calendar in the ofce, at home or on a shared calendar on your phone so that everyone involved is informed.

Delegate and create a schedule. Are you doing tasks that could be completed by employees instead of having you run ragged each day because there is so much to do? Delegate. As dairy owners, it can be one of the hardest things to do. Often, we feel that we need to do the task because no one else can do it as well as us. If you feel this way, delegate the task and take quality time to thoroughly explain all aspects of the task to an employee. Especially explain the little nuances you add to the task that make you feel that you are the only one who is capable. Get others involved, and you can accomplish more each day.

By

time for anything extra to get done other than the next pressing issue.

Therefore, it is essential to pause and ask ourselves if we are busy or if we are being productive. Are we being reactive or proactive?

“If you do not run your day, your day will run you,” said Mary Kelly, CEO of Productive Leaders.

Just because we have been busy all day doesn’t mean that we have been effectively advancing our dairy toward our desired goals. As we are coming into the fall season, when we have even more added to our list, we thought we would suggest a few tips for intentionally focusing on increasing the effectiveness of time on your farm.

Plan out the week. At the beginning of the week, set goals and tasks to be completed for the week. Each morning, plan out the day before starting. Create a to-do list. Take ve to ten minutes in the morning, during a cup of coffee, while the rst load of feed is mixing, or perhaps while the rst few cows are milking, to actively write or create on your phone, a to-do list. What are your primary goals for the week? Decide what is important and should to be done, versus what is

Clearly dene employee roles, what is expected of each person on the farm and who is responsible for completing the various tasks on the farm. Communication between these roles is essential. One of the common attributes of a dairy business is the number of irregularities that force us to quickly pivot and change what needs to be done. Weather, equipment breakdowns, employee issues and animal health are just a few of the issues that can arise on a daily basis and alter our plans for the day. Communicate with everyone on the farm to understand what needs to be done and by whom so that issues are addressed more efciently and other members of the team are free to continue working toward the day’s goals.

Effective time management is not only essential to the success of your dairy but, especially this oncoming harvest season, to mental health and decreased stress. As we enter into the busy harvest season, we aim to remind ourselves that when we intentionally spend the time on our dairy, we are able to not only move our dairy in the desired direction but also enjoy the fruits of our labor.

Megan Schrupp and Ellen Stenger are sisters and co-owners of both NexGen Dairy and NexGen Market in Eden Valley, Minnesota. They can be reached at Nexgendairy@gmail.com

Megan Schrupp & Ellen Stenger Columnists

The NexGen: Adventures of two dairy daughters

TRUSSCORE WHITE PVC WALL AND CEILING PANELS

5 to 7 Ton Potential

BMR Dwarf Sorghum Sudan

s

Cornstalk baling is a tough task, so operators in the livestock and biomass industries turn to this tandem for its combination of productivity and operating e ciency. The VR1428/VR2040 high-capacity wheel rakes can cover more acres in less time and the Vermeer 605N Cornstalk Special baler nishes the job. Together they deliver the performance and toughness needed to help overcome the harsh conditions of cornstalk baling. Time to team up. Vermeer