Pests can be costly to dairy farmers due to disease transmission and irritation. Whether pests feed upon animals or are simply a nuisance, they can reduce milk production and decrease weight gains.
Know ...
Farmers markets represent several different opportunities for dairy producers. For some, they provide a chance to branch out and expand business, and for others they’re a great point of contact for outreach ...
The 2016 Women in Dairy Conference, held Nov. 2 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, closed out with a panel discussion on the topic of farm diversification. The panel featured three female dairy farmers who opened ...
About half of those receiving this issue of the magazine will be reading Progressive Dairyman for the first time. We welcome you to our family!Our magazine is published by a family-owned business that ...
With so much information – and misinformation – circulating about the pros and cons of genetically modified foods, it’s understandable that the public is concerned and, at times, confused about what to ...
Leroy and Barbara Shatto of Osborn, Missouri, were the talk of the town recently after their family business, Shatto Milk Co., was featured on the Hallmark Channel. Barb spoke with Progressive Dairyman ...
It’s simple to see how well cows produce milk by monitoring milk weights and tracking milk component percentages. But knowing and tracking these figures can be misleading when it comes to determining how ...
After a brutal Midwestern winter, it’s time to start thinking spring. Mark Zinke, Zinke Dairy Farms LLC, Brownsville, Wisconsin, is changing gears to prepare for the warmer weather that is sure to come. ...
Ryan Lee
Edgerton, Wisconsin
Best on-farm fix: Homemade acidified milk replacer feeder Each year, Ryan Lee and his wife, Karen (editor for Progressive Dairyman ), raise about 100 Holstein bull calves, ...
Green Valley Dairy’s on-farm testing lab provides timely turnarounds for milk cultures and much more.
Manager John Jacobs Jr. operates the 3,500-cow dairy near Krakow, Wisconsin, with his father, John; ...
Click here to download a PDF of the "InFocus" image from the March 12, 2014 issue of Progressive Dairyman magazine. STATISTICS:
Organic dairyfarms account for23 percent of the900-some dairiesin Vermont. ...
In 1950, the dairy industry was pretty simple. Milk was produced primarily for drinking with some used for butter churning and some for ice cream. Dairy processors were within 100 miles of their suppliers ...
The removal of long-term constraints on the Irish dairy industry and the inherent potential in the existing Irish dairy herd will result in a considerable increase in production over the coming years. ...
From the first generation to the third, transition planning begins with a family meeting
When Stephen Maddox was a little boy, he dreamed of one day owning his own dairy farm. After all, his dad helped ...
In a small village in El Salvador, four co-ops are struggling to keep their fledgling dairies alive. Devoted co-op members work seven days a week tending animals not suited for their climate.
They produce ...
Tighter lending criteria in the last five years has led many enterprising dairy producers to look after their lending relationships almost as carefully as they do their cows.
While cows generate the cash, ...
Milk checks in 2014 look like they will more than cover my feed and operating expenses.
Since this hasn’t happened for some time, and since I’m still gun-shy after 2009, how much cash should I hold ...
Many significant things have occurred in the dairy industry during my lifetime. High on top of my list is the phenomenal increase in U.S. cheese consumption. In 1950, per-capita cheese consumption was ...
This article was #2 of the Top 25 most well-read articles on www.progressivedairy.com in 2014. It was published in the March 12, 2014 print issue.
This producer feature spotlights the Westendorp ...
If I had a nickel for every question I get about shredlage, I’d be living the good life by now, lounging on the beach in San Luis Obispo. But, unfortunately, it doesn’t work this way.
Shredlage is a hot ...
Stephen Weststeyn, a third-generation dairy farm owner in northern California who milks 4,000 cows; Brenda Hastings, an Ohio farmer with 400 head; and Ryan Bright, a fifth-generation dairy farmer, would ...
Working and living near Washington, D.C., my daily routine differs from that of most Progressive Dairyman readers. But from early morning until late at night, my typical day – like that of many of you ...
Editor’s note: The authors of this paper will be holding a webinar on how dairy producers can maximize the benefits of the new margin insurance program and protect against severe downturns on March 26, ...
Dairy replacement feeding and management systems have undergone major evolution in the last 25 to 30 years. As herd sizes increased, individual hutches were introduced to protect calves from contaminated ...
If you’ve ever seen the movie The Internship and are familiar with the World Wide Web, you probably were laughing at the scene where Vince Vaughn’s character kept saying “on the line” rather than “online.” ...
Testing the Waters: Why every U.S. dairy should care about a court case affecting five families in Washington
If you think things are tough now, just imagine what would happen if cow manure was regulated ...
Congress enacted the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) in 1976 to protect people and the environment from solid and hazardous waste. The idea was to regulate sources of waste such as underground ...
Plaintiffs in the Yakima Valley dairy lawsuits are veterans in the environmental-agriculture legal wars. Some might call them serial litigators.
The Center for Food Safety (CFS) and the Community Association ...
If this legal battle were a baseball game, it would still be in the first inning.
The fight between environmental activists and a group of Yakima Valley dairymen is just beginning.
The case could drag ...
There were a lot of tears the day Eugene Smith’s cows left the parlor for the last time.
“That was harder than moving off the farm,” he said. Smith was the fourth generation of his family to farm and ...
Students from Australia, Maryland and Louisiana handily won the attention of leading science organizations and a household-name philanthropist foundation in their efforts to address how to improve data ...
Ideas to improve dairywomen’s participation in U.S. dairy organizations
Women perform a variety of important roles on dairy farms today, be it farm work, administrative duties, working off the farm or ...
Our farm sits in the bottom of a valley. Because of it, we can’t get any reception. When I did have a cell phone, I had to climb to the top of the hill to use it. On winter nights talking to friends, I’d ...
There are days when I’m still stunned about the assumptions people make about the dairy industry, especially when you live on a “large, corporate” dairy. I keep thinking I’ve heard it all. Turns out ...
When I was growing up, back in the Ice Age, moral stories were common and children understood them. The “Three Little Pigs” was not just a story about three pigs building houses in the forest. It was a ...
One the first things my dad did, after he completed the building of our dairy barn in 1970, was to start on a farm shop. As I have mentioned before, Dad was a factory-trained mechanic, so he routinely ...
Diane and Wendell Loew Dairy producers Byron Center, Michigan
Diane: “My goal is to pass on the leadership skills and the negotiation skills that we’re learning to our sons so that they can continue ...
Age: 44
History of your dairy, in a nutshell: My wife, Linda, and I own Seven Hills Dairy LLC near Goodland, having purchased it after moving from the Netherlands in 1996, where I grew up on a 60-cow ...
Age: 41
Location: Twin Falls, Idaho
History of your dairy, in a nutshell: My family started dairying in 1984 in Jerome, Idaho, milking 80 cows. My step-dad, John Reitsma, built a dairy empire over ...
A steady growth in population continues worldwide. As we grow, urban development paves and permanently changes the ecosystem. Cities and towns, large and small, annex their surrounding natural woodlands, ...
Successful management of cows through transition is a hot topic among both producers and researchers. Producers know smooth transition means making sure to cover the basics. With the basics covered, the ...
How often do you or your dairy employees stop treatment because a cow looks better? If your herd manager or person responsible for administering treatment doesn’t show up to work, do your health records ...
This article was #21 of the Top 25 most well-read articles on www.progressivedairy.com in 2014. It was published in the March 12, 2014 print issue.
Research from Dr. Nigel Cook and the Food Animal ...
The easy answer to this question is yes, but the deeper question is: How much improvement are you making, and could you be making more?
For the vast majority of producers, improving the genetics of offspring ...
Taking a few minutes to calculate heat stress losses and their impact on your dairy’s bottom line can help you strategize for better heat abatement, which could mean more milk, improved fertility and even ...
I fly a lot of miles on a lot of airlines; my best estimate is that I have boarded more than 2,500 different flights over the years. That’s more than the average pilot. I recommend it. There are those ...
I have been in New York for nearly two months. The bulk of my work includes meeting landowners and evaluating their performance at meeting water quality standards. These are called annual status reviews. ...
Warm and dry conditions prevailed at the 2014 World Ag Expo in Tulare, California. While the weather made for good show attendance, it was not what the locals really needed.
"Pray for Rain" I saw ...
Created on 20 February 2014
advertisement
Serving Dairies Nationwide
Progressive Dairy regularly delivers relevant industry news, cow health and dairy management info to you at no cost.