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DAIRY ST R
Closing the gap between farmer, milk processor
February 13, 2021
“All dairy, all the time”™
Volume 22, No. 24
Producing goat milk in volume
Drumlin Dairy caters Communication, trust key to specialty to successful relationships cheese market By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
MADISON, Wis. – An open line of communication with his milk processor helps drive success for Wisconsin dairy producer Jim Winn, of Cottonwood Dairy, and South Dakota dairy producer Kevin Souza, of Victory Farms. Winn ships his milk to Grande, and Souza ships his milk to Valley Queen Cheese. Each farmer enjoys a close-knit relationship with his processor. “Our communication with Grande is second to none,” said Winn, who milks 1,750 cows. “I’ve known the Grande reps since I was a kid. It means a lot to be in business with guys you know and trust. That’s why I recommend getting to know your processor on a personal level, not just on a business level. Grande is like family, and we work very well together.” Winn and Souza were joined by Jason Mischel, vice president of sales and milk procurement at Valley Queen Cheese, and Greg Siegenthaler, vice president of supply chain for Grande Cheese, in a panel entitled “Building Relationships: Farmer and Processor Insights” during the virtual Dairy Strong conference Jan. 19-21. Viewing each other as friends, the dairy producers and processors cited communication and trust as key to successful farmer/processor relationships. A mutual reliance between farmer and processor helps ensure issues are resolved quickly. The four agreed the conversations are not always easy, but communication is important. For example, when Valley Queen announced it was getting away from shipping milk containing bovine somatotropin, they notied farmers a year in advance. “That year-notice was huge for our business in deciding how we were going to come off it,” Souza said. “I had buddies who only had a couple months’ notice.” Winn said he also received a oneyear notice for the removal of BST. “When the eld man told me he was going to take it away, I wasn’t happy,” Winn said. “But it was the best thing for us in the long run. Now, I wouldn’t use BST if they gave it out for free.” Valley Queen stays connected to its Turn to RELATIONSHIPS | Page 5
By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
C H I LTO N , Wis. – Fullling a niche in the dairy marketplace was the driving factor in the creation of Drumlin Dairy. A demand for more goat milk in the area spurred the development of the lakeside farm near Chilton. The home of 8,000 milking goats, the majority of the farm’s Grade A milk is shipped to Montchevre to make STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR cheeses like crottin, Kevin Wellejus is the general manager of Drumlin Dairy near Chilton, Wisconsin. The dairy was cabrie and bucheron. started in 2017 and milks 8,000 goats. “Goats do really well on this scale,” said Kevin Wellejus, general manager in nearby Hilbert. Drumlin Dairy is a processors that were looking for more of Drumlin Dairy. “As the demand division of Holsum Dairies, which goat milk,” said Wellejus, a partner for goat products continues to climb, consist of Holsum Irish and Holsum with Holsum Dairies. “A fair amount I think we will see more farms of this Elm. Adding a third operation to milk of goat cheese in the U.S. is made from goats, these dairymen responded to curd imported from overseas. You get size.” The owners of Drumlin have been a request to produce another type of better quality cheese if you make it fresh, which is what these processors around the dairy industry for many milk as well. “We were approached by some wanted to do. All of our milk is used years, operating two 3,700-cow dairies for cheese production.” A veterinarian by trade, Wellejus was raised in a Pennsylvania farming community. Even though he did not call a farm his home, he grew up working on farms and developed a love for the dairy industry. He practiced veterinary medicine for seven years in western New York and northwest Pennsylvania, serving mostly dairy cow clients. In 2013, Wellejus moved to Wisconsin and became a manager at Holsum Dairies. Now managing Drumlin Dairy full time, Wellejus has shifted from cows to goats. “There is some overlap in how cow and goat dairies operate, but overall, they are fairly different,” Wellejus said. “One of the Holsum partners has a connection with a large goat dairy in the U.K., and we spent a couple weeks in Europe learning about the industry. We also worked with overseas goat STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
An employee at Drumlin Dairy preps a goat for milking on Jan. 28. The dairy employs 30 people, two-thirds of which are female.
Turn to DRUMLIN | Page 6