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7 201 2018
DAIRY ST R “All dairy, all the time”™
Volume 19, No. 20
December 9, 2017
Farmers can Groetsches named MMPA reƟre Producer of the Year
Bedker presents “Exiting the Business Gracefully” at MN Milk Expo By Krista Kuzma
krista.k@dairystar.com
RED WING, Minn. – Many dairy farmers expect the later years in the their life to look similar to the earlier ones, working to take care of their herd of cows and the land where they live However, Callyn Bedker, an attorney at Pluto Legal, PLLC, in Tyler, Minn., said dairy farmers should learn about “Exiting the Business Gracefully,” the name of the seminar she presented Nov. 29 at the 2017 Minnesota Milk Dairy Conference and Expo in Red Wing, Minn. “There’s an assumption that farmers can never retire. It’s not true. You can. I’ve seen it happen,” Bedker said. But retirement requires planning, Bedker said. “You have to get ahead of it because … the transition takes years, not days. To have the best possibility of the next generation succeeding, you really need to give them a heads up and allow the transition process to work, which is primarily done through estate planning,” she said. Bedker said although many people have estate plans, there is a large possibility the legal document is outdated. “Estate plans need to be updated pretty frequently. They live with you because life changes, so if you have a will from 30 years ago, you need to update it and revisit it,” Bedker said. For people needing to establish an estate plan, Bedker suggested nding one that works best for each person’s individual needs. “One size does not t all when it comes to this. Just because you have a friend that something worked out great for, does not mean it will work out great for you,” she said. The goal of an estate plan is to establish what happens to a person’s assets after he or she has died. People making an estate plan usually want to control their assets as long as possible; protect their assets from lawsuit, bankruptcy or divorce; transfer ownership to someone they chose in the timeline they want and how they want it done; provide for their spouse and children; avoid probate; and prevent unintended beneciaries, Bedker said. While establishing an estate plan, Bedker said it is important to know the two values that comprise a business. One part is the operation – the name, trademarks, patents, machinery, equipment, livestock, inventory, etc. The other is the land and buildings – all commercial buildings and any farm acres, etc. The estate plan will also help navigate through concerns brought forth by people on each side of the transaction when transferring a farm. For the sellers, or in many cases the parents, they will want to know where they will get income during retirement, how will they transition the business to their children, how will they protect the business when they are gone and how they will treat non-farm children fairly. “I work with people who love all their kids, but fair is not always equal and equal is not always fair. If you have a farming heir who has been working with you
Turn to RETIRE | Page 5
JENNIFER COYNE/DAIRY STAR
Steve and Lisa Groetsch observe one of the lactaƟng pens Dec. 4 at their 260-cow dairy near Albany, Minn.
Award recognizes dedication to industry By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com
ALBANY, Minn. – In 1989, Steve and Lisa Groetsch married and, soon after, took over Steve’s family’s dairy farm. “We came home early from the honeymoon to milk cows,” said Lisa, laughing. Over the last 28 years, the Groetsches have created a work environment that exemplies their dedication to family, community and the dairy industry. For those reasons, Groetsch Dairy Inc. was recognized as this year’s Minnesota Milk Producers Association’s Producer of the Year during the Minnesota Milk Conference and Expo Nov. 28 in Welch, Minn. “That humility settles in, and you wish every dairy farmer could get that because we all work so hard,” said Lisa of being named recipients of the prestigious honor. “You hope the publicity of [this award] can get people thinking, ‘Wow, farmers do work hard,’ and that idea is carried throughout the entire industry.” Steve and Lisa, and their three grown children – Jennifer, Matthew and Kate – milk 260 cows with four automatic milking systems near Albany, Minn. When the Groetsches rst began dairying, they milked 47 cows in a 40-stall barn that was built in 1902. In September 1997 to February 1998, the Groetsches built a freestall barn and installed a used double-7 herringbone parlor.
JENNIFER COYNE/DAIRY STAR
Steve and Lisa Groetsch accept the 2017 Minnesota Milk Producers AssociaƟon’s Producer of the Year award during the Minnesota Milk Dairy Conference and Expo Nov. 28 in Welch, Minn. Over the years, herd expansions and building renovations continued until 2012, when the Groetsches installed milking robots. The path towards robots took four years, and began with the need to restructure the manure handling system and the desire to milk three times a day without adding more labor. Previously, the Groetsches were using a small manure pit that was hauled out every 10 to 14 days. With upgrades to the facility, the family was looking to make a system improvement that could handle the use of sand as Turn to GROETSCHES | Page 6