Management

One of the side effects of being home-bound during the “Great Pause” is that I’ve become very fond of the predictable story arc of Hallmark movies. We have a bit of a game to see if the first kiss is within the last 15 minutes of the show.

If you grow forage or raise animals that consume forages, chances are your operation has been positively impacted by the U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center (USDFRC).

John was ready to start his succession plan. He was 63 and wanted to get the process done quickly. He had a plan. During our first meeting, we discussed history, core values and culture.

The crossroads experienced over the last 12 months undoubtedly tested each and every person’s mindset, decision-making and leadership skills. All parts of dairy operations were impacted, especially the most valued asset: the people.

Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMOs) were created in the mid-1930s to bring order to milk marketed in the U.S. At the time, milk was primarily consumed in fluid form, which is classified in FMMOs as Class I for pricing purposes. As recently as 1960, 65.4% of all milk priced through FMMOs was classified as Class I milk.

Everyone knows that feed from haylage and corn silage bunkers will vary in composition from day to day. What is not so clear is the magnitude of this variation, and whether it might be worth it, economically and environmentally, to rebalance dairy rations daily to correct the variation.