Right before the end of the year, I made a visit to Kinnard Farms in Casco, Wisconsin, and met with director of dairy operations Shaun Hardtke to talk about one small change that made a significant difference ...
The Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) export assistance program and CWT member cooperatives benefited all U.S. dairy farmers in 2019 by exporting 135 million pounds of cheese, butter and whole milk powder. ...
You can order pizza in Asia that has shrimp or crabmeat as a topping or one that has a ring of edible powdered charcoal around its edge.
The Asian pizza experience is certainly a world away from ...
Milk quality monitored in three of four Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMOs) improved in 2018, according to an update from the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
APHIS: Determining ...
You’re busy milking cows, squeezing in a final extension meeting or two and wondering if your manure lagoon is big enough. With that in mind, Progressive Dairy looks at issues in the news impacting you ...
Genske, Mulder & Co. has produced, for decades, what is referred to as cost studies for our dairy clients. These show the averages of our clients’ profit and loss statements from about 14 states, which ...
What a decade 2010-19 has been. We had the highest milk prices ever in 2014 followed by a very prolonged half-decade with persistently low milk prices.
There were many reasons for those low milk prices ...
How do I compare to my competition? How do I know if I am ready to expand? These questions asked by Ohio’s dairy farmers sparked publication of the 15 Measures of Dairy Farm Competitiveness in 1997.
Twenty-two ...
Ag economist Marin Bozic of the University of Minnesota calls himself a “jack of all trades” when it comes to his work in the dairy industry. He does primary research in the area of dairy markets; teaches ...
Numerous agriculture meetings and events are held this time of year, as it’s the “slow” time. Of course, it seems no time of the year is slow anymore, especially if you are a dairy owner wearing many hats, ...
Sitting on my stool in front of the third farm audience of the week, I should not have been surprised to receive the same question for the third time by text: “Elaine, how we do we stop the conflict on ...
Breaking up is hard to do but, as the risk manager for your farm, you should be prepared for the day when you and your lender may have to go your separate ways.
Your relationship with your lender is ...
Companies that treat their accounting software as a tool only for compiling taxes are missing out on the opportunity to produce valuable management reporting.
Traditionally, many farms used their accounting ...
On-farm milk cooling has come a long way in the past few decades. From the early days of spring water passing through a stack of 10-gallon milk cans, getting milk cold as quickly as possible once it leaves ...
DeLaval President and CEO Joakim Rosengren has been with the global company for nearly two decades. He recently sat down with Progressive Dairy to share his thoughts on the advancements in milking equipment ...
For most dairies, profits found in 2020 will likely be used to pay back debt accrued in recent years. Financial advisers also suggest using profits to grow the business or make it more efficient. Since ...
Approaching Christmas in 2019, there were still fields yet to take off as high-moisture corn, snaplage or earlage – and even corn silage, if you can believe it.
The 2019 corn crop seems like my preschool- ...
Hourly pushups to keep feed within the cows’ reach has helped Kinnard Farms grab onto milk production and herd health goals.
Shaun Hardtke, director of dairy operations at the farm in Casco, Wisconsin, ...
Planning and managing forage inventory on the dairy can sometimes feel like playing Tetris. Like Tetris, we see things begin to pile up or disappear faster than our feed center is prepared for, with consequences ...
Gallons of ink have been used and thousands of blog posts have featured information and voiced concerns about the quality of the 2019 crop.
Large sections of the United States where dairy producers ...
Across North America, the 2019 corn silage crop was seriously compromised at all stages of growth and production.
The challenges ranged from delayed planting, excess rain or drought during growth, ...
As milk prices continue to squeeze the dairy industry, many producers utilize overcrowding to maximize efficiency of facilities and keep bulk tanks full. Previous work from Albert De Vries and colleagues ...
The role of the transition cow in robotics is no different than in any other milking system. A good transition program minimizes calving difficulties and metabolic and infectious diseases.
Any of these ...
The transition to lactation is a metabolically challenging time in the life cycle of a dairy cow. Nutrient requirements to support milk production exceed nutrient intake, and the cow is at increased risk ...
Often, when I visit a farm to troubleshoot an incident of poor transition cow performance, I hear the comment, “Things had been going so well until now. What might have changed with my anionic supplement?” ...
In the weeks leading up to calving and the early postpartum period, various behavioral, metabolic and physiological challenges are imposed on the dairy cow.
One of the biggest stressors the cow faces ...
Is fiber important in human nutrition? Ask anyone. Ask the internet. Ask your doctor. But then follow this up with a simple question: What exactly is it? Hmmm.
Ruminant nutritionists – folks like me ...
If you follow along with any of my social media profiles, or you have read my past HERd management columns, you might know 2019 was a difficult year for me.
I have been battling mild anxiety and depression ...
Last October, my mother, Charlotte Ann Despain Crandell, passed away after a prolonged bout of dementia. I have been gathering her history and have found treasures upon treasures of love and faith from ...
They say experience is the best teacher, but is it? How many of you would recognize a rattlesnake if you encountered one? If experience is the best teacher, the only way you would know to leave that rascal ...
It’s difficult to get people’s attention in the modern era. According to research, the average individual sees over 5,000 advertisements per day.
The end result is that we’re bombarded with marketing ...
Well, Tim here with your yearly reminder that Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. If we’ve learned anything from the holidays, it’s that credit cards and yoga pants both have limits.
That being ...
Two cows live on a theoretical farm. Both produce revenue. Both are recently fresh. One calved well, is in good body condition, breezed through the whole transition phase and is ready to breed – and looks ...
One thing they don’t necessarily tell you when you’re in school, studying to be a nutritionist, is that what comes out the back of the cow is almost as important as what goes in the front.
Over my ...
“Nothing haunts us like the things we don’t say.” — Mitch Albom. Everyone has secrets they don’t want to share out loud. Some are small secrets, but some are huge, life-altering secrets. A secret is a ...
Successful implementation of feeding programs on the dairy hinges on accurate assessment and effective management of forages in the diet. As we wrap up a year notable for the extent of weather challenges ...
Dairy producers tend to focus on the production side of the business more than financial metrics. And when they do take a look at the financial picture, they tend to consider it in the aggregate. But there’s ...
Each day, the cows at Second-Look Holsteins are served up a hefty helping of corn silage, and they have yet to miss the haylage that used to be a part of their meal.
Over the past three years, brothers ...
Erin Mosley is owner of Mosley Dairy Consulting LLC and lives in Canal Winchester, Ohio. She provides independent dairy nutrition consultation focusing on the utilization of currently available software ...
Created on 22 August 2019
advertisement
Serving Dairies Nationwide
Progressive Dairy regularly delivers relevant industry news, cow health and dairy management info to you at no cost.