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Sauk Rapids Herald | Saturday, June 6, 2020
Benton County 4-H continuing on despite COVID-19 challenges
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Ken Hess checks in on some bison at the Horseshoe Grove Bison Ranch in Paynesville.
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FOLEY – COVID-19 has caused cancellations and altered life for nearly everybody, and Benton County 4-H is no exception. 4-H members and volunteers spend the entire year preparing to show what their endless hours of labor produced at county and state fairs. When the Benton County Agricultural Society canceled its county fair May 20 and the Great Minnesota Get-Together soon after called off its event, 4-H was left to do what it does best: be resourceful. “4-H remains committed to giving Minnesota youth opportunities to learn and showcase their projects for others,” said Ann Olson, University of Minnesota Extension Educator for 4-H Youth Development in Benton County. “The youth begin early in the year on projects, and it is important that we give them an avenue to showcase their projects.” 4-H page 3B
America’s original red meat
New bison association president talks about the breed
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BY SARAH COLBURN | STAFF WRITER
AUK RAPIDS – They can weigh upward of 2,000 pounds, stand 6 feet, 6 inches tall at the hump, run 35 miles per hour, jump 5 or 6 feet and turn on a dime. “If you just watch this animal, it’s got the wow factor,” said Adam Ulbricht, incoming executive director of the Minnesota Bison Association. “This animal is so big, so strong and so fast, it’s just natural.” Ulbricht, who spent his youth visiting his grandparents, Loren and Martha Ulbricht near Lakefield, has always had a fascination with bison but honed his interest in the last five years after visiting Theodore Roosevelt National Park in western North Dakota and watching the beasts interact in nature.
A bison stands among the wildflowers at the Hidden Bison Ranch in Sauk Centre while a small bird takes refuge atop its head.
Bison page 2B
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Two bison spar for dominance at the Hidden Bison Ranch in Sauk Centre. New bulls were released into the pen and bison, being a hierarchical species, spar for dominance as new contenders come into the fold.
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“They are a keystone species,” Ulbricht said. “They are integral to our environment, they shaped it – they helped shape everything. They are made for this climate, and they are just about as native and perfect as they can get.” Prior to people populating the west, it is estimated that 20-60 million bison roamed the land, Ulbricht said. There was almost a complete elimination of the species in the late 1800s when their population dove to a meager 1,000. Today, the population has rebounded to an estimated 400,000 in North America. As Ulbricht, a Sauk Rapids resident, gears up for his new position with the association, his goal is to spread information about the important role the animal plays in the environment. “They have a regenerative effect by nature,” he said. As ranchers rotationally graze the animals, the manure gets worked into the soil and long-dormant native plant species begin to grow. As that happens, he said, there is a return of ducks, birds and butterflies to the land.
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Adam Ulbricht is poised to take over as executive director of the Minnesota Bison Association.
According to the National Bison Association, manure and urine provide the soil with vital nutrients, hoof action stirs the soil and buries seeds, wallows create depressions that capture rainfall and the resulting healthy grasslands capture carbon from the atmosphere and return it to the soil. “These animals can have a positive impact on our environment,” Ulbricht said. “I want to promote the good work our ranchers are doing.” The industry is ingrained, to a certain degree, in Americana. There are songs about bison, long-held stories about the species that are part of the country’s heritage, but Ulbricht wants to uplift their image even more. As people, especially
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A newborn calf romps alongside her mother in spring. When calves are first born, they’re called “red dogs,” or “cinnamons,” because of their coloring; when the calves reach a few months of age, they brown.
millennials, trend toward buying local, they want to know where their food comes from. With bison being such a niche market, he said, consumers can build that relationship and have a true awareness of the animal. Oftentimes, people refer to bison as buffalo, but there are not any buffalo native to the United States. There are water and cape buffalo found in Africa and Asia, but in North America, there are bison. The variation on the name can cause some misnomers in labeling. Sometimes, he said, products – especially pet food products – say they contain bison, but the ingredient is actually water buffalo. That can create a confusion for consumers and cause them to associate that product with the bison industry. The National Bison Association spends a fair amount of time and work promoting a truth in labeling act requiring water buffalo to be labeled as such when included in a product. As an economic player, the bison market is still a small industry in America. Through state and United States Department of Agriculture-inspected plants, the bison industry processes in a year what the beef industry processes in a day. Bison, Ulbricht said, is a lean product and coveted by the uber healthconscious. Whether the animals are grain-finished or grassfed, he said it is a healthy meat and protein and one he considers to be America’s original red meat. Overall, the meat is slightly sweeter than beef and is typically leaner but has a similar consistency to beef. From a farming standpoint, the animal is not domesticated. Bison page 3B
4-H from front
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SAUK RAPIDS HERALD | SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 2020 | Page 3B
Bison from pg. 2B
Olson also said 4-H supports the difficult decision to cancel fairs. Olson, along with other Benton County 4-H volunteers, are working toward preparing for virtual judging in both general and animal science projects. Olson said 4-H families can be assured that virtual judging will replace the traditional style, and even though details are not yet finalized, she said she is excited to see what the 4-Hers have accomplished. More details on the events will be released in the next few weeks. While Benton County 4-H members and volunteers are doing everything they can to stay connected and continue with their projects, it is also easy to recognize the tangible hardships that accompany hard times. “We also know that our 4-H PHOTOS SUBMITTED youth and families continue to feel loss, grief and frustration,” Marissa Kuklok practices her photography skills. Kuklok, of Foley, is a Olson said. “We share that member of the Cornerstone Clovers 4-H Club. disappointment with them.” Some 4-H members hard at even if it is virtually,” she said. work on their projects echoed “I am super glad we have an that sense of disappointment but opportunity to still get judged on left room for optimism. our projects.” “It is hard to not be able to But even more than missing get judged at the county fair, out on the traditional practices but I am excited I still have a that 4-Hers have become chance to get my photography accustomed with and enjoy, judged virtually,” said Marissa Olson said many members Kuklok, a Cornerstone have commented how Clovers 4-H Club much they will miss member, working on the connections that a photography project. 4-H members eagerly “It is important to anticipate. receive feedback from “We can’t a judge. That way I can replace having an inPHOTOS SUBMITTED continue to improve person county fair, but my photography we will do our best to Morgan Matvick holds a baby in her jacket early this skills.” continue providing chick spring. Matvick, of Sauk Rapids, Morgan Molitor virtual opportunities,” is a member of the Graham 4-H Ann Olson agreed. Molitor shows Olson said. Club. poultry with the Graham In the meantime, 4-H Club. while Benton County 4-H The activities include weekly “While it will be hard not solidifies virtual judging plans, challenges, virtual 4-H camps to have the live experience it will be sending out summer and at-home kits for 4-H with the judge, it is great that opportunities for families to stay youth interested in the special we get to connect with a judge, connected and stay involved. opportunities.
Although they can be fairly passive, they can also be easily startled, prompting them to stampede. They also have a great herding instinct and where one goes, the others will follow. When Ulbricht first became involved in bison, he cold-called ranchers, asking if he could swing by their farms and look at their operations. He was used to farm life as he was experienced on his grandparents’ hog and beef farm. His mom’s father, Don Wessel, was a milk hauler for what was Kraft and is now Land O’Lakes in Melrose, and he’d go on the milk route on the weekends. Every single rancher Ulbricht called welcomed him to the ranch. From taking photos of ranches and visiting with owners, things began to snowball. He began helping with the Minnesota Bison Association social media page because he had a background in journalism. As he became more and more connected and continued to research ranchers, the executive director position opened up and Ulbricht applied. Now Ulbricht is poised to take the helm of the organization that has membership of about 150 farms and ranches across the country, but especially throughout the Midwest including Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Canada. It is not uncommon for members to travel hundreds of miles with their animals for the association’s annual sale at the sale barn in Albany. The Legends of the Fall sale is held annually the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The auction features consigned animals with classes that can be included in judged and unjudged categories. The North American Bison varies from the United States Plains Bison and the Woods Bison in Canada. The animals have differences in their cranial and skeletal makeup as well as differences in their horns, head, hump, hair and pelage coat. There is also a European ancestor to the North American Bison found between Germany and Poland. One thing bison have in common, no matter their descent, is they look into the wind when every other animal looks away from it. Wind pushes down a bison’s fur and helps insulate them. In the north, bison go into survival mode in the winter. Their metabolism slows, but the giant hump of muscle across their shoulders and their incredible sense of smell remain, as part of their natural ability to survive. Bison can smell foliage and grasses through 3 feet of snow in the winter and the hump on their shoulder is all muscle, a necessity when it comes to moving the snow for winter grazing. In the wild, bison feed on grasses below the snow line, drink snow water and birth on their own. “They’re a hardy animal,” Ulbricht said. Many farmers provide their bison with hay bales to supplement their feeding in the winter, and they also provide them with various nutrients as well as heated water tanks for ease of drinking. The rut comes in late June-early July, and the males tend to lose quite a bit of weight as they are focused on mating. Calves are typically born late March into May and many calves are born at around 50 pounds. Generally speaking, bison mature more slowly than cattle and do not have their first calf until they are 3 years old. Ulbricht is excited for his new position, working to promote this majestic species. “When you work with these animals up close and personal, you truly see how athletic they are,” he said. “It will blow your mind.”
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Page 4B | SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 2020 | SAUK RAPIDS HERALD
June is Dairy Month Humphreys’ heart lies in agriculture Milaca graduate wins state FFA dairy award BY EVAN MICHEALSON | STAFF WRITER
MILACA – Alyssa Humphreys’ journey into dairy did not begin as a pursuit of passion. The Milaca High School graduate was in the ninth grade when Todd Hoffman, a Hayland Township board member, mentioned in conversation with fellow board member Eric Humphreys the need for work at his farm, Hoffman Dairy. As it turned out, Alyssa needed a job, and her eventual hands-on introduction to the industry came through feeding calves. Now, Alyssa is a college freshman at South Dakota State University. She is a longtime FFA member, having won first-place proficiency in dairy production placement at the Minnesota FFA’s virtual convention May 19-21. “My advisor had called me and told me, then they officially announced it,” she said. “I didn’t really believe it. It didn’t set in all the way until they announced it at the virtual convention. I was on their slideshow and everything, and it was more exciting.” As it turns out, her journey extended far beyond feeding calves. When she took up the position at Hoffman Dairy, she only worked on the weekends. However, she developed an ease and poise working in dairy, gaining more experience in the summer. During her sophomore and junior years of high school, she worked every night as her role grew from feeding calves to scraping free stalls and milking cows. Humphrey page 5B PHOTOS SUBMITTED
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Alyssa Humphreys feeds a calf during Elementary Ag Day in Milaca. Humphreys first began her agricultural experiences in feeding calves, something she continues to do at Hoffman Dairy.
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Alyssa Humphreys carries a set of FFA awards during the Milaca FFA Chapter banquet April 2019 in Milaca.
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