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DAIRY ST R
March 27, 2021
“All dairy, all the time”™
Volume 23, No. 3
Decades of modernization help Baudhuins thrive
Family combines housing, feed storage in latest expanson Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
BRUSSELS, Wis. – When Galen Baudhuin took over his parents’ farm in 2002, it marked the beginning of a series of changes and updates to the dairy near Brussels. From its breeding philosophy to cattle housing, Baudhuin and his wife, Lisa, transformed the farm into an operation that would work best for their family. Barns were expanded and remodeled, a milking parlor was built, cow numbers were increased, new buildings were constructed, and manure systems were put in place. The Baudhuins farm with their two children – Brooke and Dustin – who are the sixth generation on the farm that has been in the family since 1899. The family milks 240 cows and farms about 600 acres. All labor is supplied by the family. Baudhuin and Brooke milk Turn to BAUDHUINS | Page 6
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
The Baudhuin family – (from leŌ) Amy holding Chloe, 2 months, DusƟn, Lisa, Galen, and Brooke holding Brynlee, 19 months – milks 240 cows and farms about 600 acres near Brussels, Wisconsin.
COVID-19 vaccines available for essential workers Dairy farmers, processors nd opportunity in pandemic By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com
One year into the coronavirus pandemic, the virus remains a hindrance to communities across the globe. Yet, as vaccines become available to essential workers in agriculture, a sense of normalcy is on the horizon. “Receiving the COVID-19 vaccine is important because it will offer our team members and their families protection, and, hopefully, some relief from the stress this virus has caused,” said Annie Vannurden, manager at Silverstreak Dairies LLC. Vannurden has coordinated with local health care providers to administer the vaccine to employees at the farm’s central Minnesota dairies March 27. At the beginning of March, agriculture workers became a part of the group of eligible Minnesotans to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, categorized as frontline essential workers. As of March 21, the state health department reported more than 1.4 million citizens having received at least one vaccine dose and another 850,000 who have completed the vaccine series.
The same is similar in Wisconsin. As of March 23, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported nearly 1.5 million Wisconsin residents have received at least one dose of a vaccine; 870,000 have completed the vaccine series. “We have been coordinating with our members and health ofcials to set up on-site vaccination clinics at plants, doing that on plant-by-plant assistance for weeks now,” John Umhoefer said. “There are several ways to get people registered through the federal and state lists and through pharmacies. We’ve been driving that message to our members.” Umhoefer is the executive director of Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, which represents 650 cheesemakers, buttermakers and whey processors. There are three COVID-19 vaccines approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, two with a two-dose series and one with a single dose. The two-dose series are considered plug and play technology, according to Lisa Morici of Tulane University’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology. “This type of vaccine induces an immune response to stop the COVID-19 spike protein from getting to our bodies’ cells,” Morici said. “This particular method is designed to combat a pandemic, where we’re dealing with an emerging virus that we didn’t
know how to grow and make a lot of it. This has been in development for 30 years.” Morici presented, “Dispelling misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine: What agriculture producers need to know,” in a webinar hosted by AgriSafe Network March 11. The single-dose vaccine is modied from the human adenovirus to create the spike protein found in COVID-19. “These vaccines are some of the safest that have ever been developed,” Morici said. “They were incredibly scrutinized.” Regardless of which vaccine is administered, health ofcials are urging all to get vaccinated. “It’s estimated about 20% of the United States are immune to COVID-19. We need about 80% of the population to be immune to get to herd immunity,” Morici said. “Ag businesses are familiar with herd immunity as it affects animals and crops. We need enough to block and limit transmission of the virus to protect those who are not immune.” For Stephanie Krueger and her family, contributing to that immunity through the vaccine was a simple decision. “We didn’t really have any hesitations,” Krueger Turn to VACCINES | Page 5