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Welcome home, Wade
Muths rejoice as toddler son’s cancer goes into remission
By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com
WEST BEND, Wis.
Last fall, Peter and Gina Muth received news no parent ever wants to hear: their son had cancer. Wade Muth was 18 months old when he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia Oct. 21, 2024. AML is a cancer of the bone marrow and blood.
“I was shocked,” Peter said. “It was scary, but it was in God’s hands; it was out of our hands. All you can do is pray about it, and we had a lot of people praying for him.”
The Muths milk 200 cows and farm 700 acres at Cedar Lawn Farm near West Bend with Peter’s parents, Kathy and George.
Peter went back and forth between the farm and Children’s Wisconsin in Milwaukee to help as much as he could while Gina stayed with Wade, who spent 4.5 months in the hospital undergoing four rounds of chemotherapy treatments.
“We still had everything going on here too,” Peter said. “With dairy farming, you can’t turn it on and turn it off. It’s 24 hours a day.” Peter went down two nights a week to the hospital to give Gina a break, so she could return home to their 4-year-old daughter, Josie.
“We have a great group of employees,” Peter said.
Making a home in America’s Dairyland
western Wisconsin
By Dan Wacker dan.w@dairystar.com
BLACK RIVER FALLS, Wis. — Luke Wolsberg and his wife, Lis, always knew they wanted to start a life in agriculture. But land and space to start a dairy was hard to come by in their hometown of Lynden, Washington.
Luke had visited Wisconsin a few times, coming to World Dairy Expo in high school as well as venturing to western Wisconsin for Organic Valley’s annual meeting in 2023. Later that year, the Wolsbergs decided to take the leap. With a truck, a horse trailer and one Jersey calf in tow, the couple moved to western Wisconsin to start a dairy life of their own.
Luke and Lis now operate Double L Dairy. They milk 40
cows in a 9-stall step-up parlor with a 40- by 80-foot sawdust bed pack barn on a rented farm near Black River Falls.
Luke grew up on a dairy farm in Whatcom County in the far northwest corner of Washington. His family had been shipping milk to Organic Valley since 2005. Lis also grew up in agriculture, helping on her grandparents’ horse and hobby farm and competing in rodeo.
“I was renting a house, working as a herdsman at a big dairy and we started thinking about our future,” Luke said.
“I wanted to pursue homeownership, but the West Coast is really expensive. Lis and I are both rural kids and we wanted property. Having the experienc-
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
The Muth family — Gina holding Josie and Peter holding Wade — gathers outside the barn March 13 at Cedar Lawn Farm near West Bend, Wisconsin. Wade returned home March 4 cancer-free a er spending 4.5 months in the hospital to be treated for acute myeloid leukemia.
DAN WACKER/DAIRY STAR
Luke and Lis Wolsberg kneel March 3 near one of their calves at Double L Dairy near Black River Falls, Wisconsin. The couple is milking 40 cows in a 9-stall step-up parlor.
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“A lot of neighbors stepped up this past fall as well to get eldwork done. They were all a phone call away if we needed an extra set of hands and were more than willing to help. The whole community came together for us.”
In between each round of treatments, Wade was able to come home for approximately one week.
“It was a long road, and the rst month was very rough,” Gina said. “He was in the pediatric intensive care unit and was intubated for a week. He got a cold, and he had a feeding tube for a while until he pulled it out.”
Wade also received three different chemotherapy drugs in his spine.
“Leukemia can hang out in all parts of the body, and a big area that it hides in is the spine,” Peter said.
Cancer did not keep this toddler down, however. Peter said Wade was at that age where he wanted to explore everything and was always on the go.
“During the rst round of treatments, Wade slowed down, but after that, he never slowed down,” Peter said. “He was very active.”
On March 4, Wade returned home cancer-free. Although his cancer is in remission, he has to go back for checkups once a month for the next year to ensure the cancer has not re-
BENEFIT FOR WADE
Fillmore Turner Hall, Fredonia
turned and every other month for the second year.
Cancer screening visits will become less frequent the longer Wade remains in remission. Doctor visits drop to every three months during the third year and every six months during the fourth. Following that, he would return yearly for 10 years. If the cancer were to come out of remission, a bone marrow transplant would be the next course of treatment.
Wade’s journey began last August, when his pediatrician noticed bruising on his chest, which Gina said can be a sign of cancer. A blood panel was run but did not reveal anything abnormal. By September, Gina
noticed Wade looked paler, he was clingy, and he was waking up multiple times throughout the night. He had also exhibited signs of Bell’s palsy on one side of his face and had an ear infection that would not heal.
“Wade went more downhill after that,” Gina said. “He had a respiratory infection and colds that didn’t go away. His symptoms lingered on. When we thought he was nally getting better, a whole new dose of something else would start. It took three medications to nally clear his ear infection. He would also puke randomly and was very pale. He was not himself.”
West Bend, WI
Stratford, WI
De Soto, WI
East Dubuque, IL
Optimal hoofcare for dairy
Con nued from WOLFISBERGS | Page 1
es I had with bigger dairies, our goal was to have our own small family farm.”
With dairy in his heart, Wolsberg worked at a variety of farms. He spent time at a 50-cow Brown Swiss farm, a 1,000-cow operation and was a herdsman at a 1,500-cow dairy across the river from his family’s farm. Seeing his family’s cows out on grass helped him realize how he wanted to operate his own dairy.
“I was working for a great family and it was a great opportunity in Washington,” Luke said. “But on the bigger dairies, you’re working with numbers and there’s less connection. We knew we wanted a smaller operation and getting the cows out on grass was a big factor for me. Being within an hour of the processing plant was important too, so we knew we wanted to be in western Wisconsin, southeast Minnesota or northeast Iowa.”
Wisconsin was not the ultimate goal, but a timely trip helped convince Lis that this was the right place for their dairy.
“We had plans to go to the beach in May of 2023, but Luke had gotten us tickets to visit Wisconsin last minute,” Lis said. “That was the perfect time to come. It was beautiful.”
Although ownership was the initial emphasis, meeting with a Farm Service Agency loan ofcer steered them to the renting option. This enabled them to gain experience operating their own dairy and building years to qualify for a young farmer loan.
“Renting and living off the farm wasn’t what we pictured at rst,” Lis said. “We wanted to be on our farm and walk out our back door to milk cows. But renting has allowed us to get to know our new state better.”
After making the move to Wisconsin in spring 2023, the Wolsbergs were in line to rent a farm that fall, but miscommunication derailed the opportu-
nity.
“We were about to sign the paperwork to rent our rst farm, but we realized not everyone was on the same page with the transition,” Luke said. “It made us nervous because we moved halfway across the country for this opportunity, and we couldn’t just go home.”
The two farm kids rented an apartment in the city of La Crosse that winter, picking up off-the-farm jobs. Lis worked as a bartender and barista, with Luke going to work at the Organic Valley-Chaseburg Creamery.
“Those six months off the farm really helped us get acclimated,” Lis said. “We got to know a new city, a new state. We had some time to really embrace what Wisconsin was about.”
For the rst time in his life,
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Luke was not working on a farm. The new experience provided more perspective of the dairy industry.
“It was cool to be on the inside and see how it works on that side of the industry,” Luke said. “It was an eye-opening experience.”
Finding their community became more the goal than nding a farm during those winter months. Meeting new people, making friends and exploring the area brought them to their new farm near Black River Falls.
“I started making some phone calls about farms to rent last spring,” Luke said. “At that same time, some friends we had met at church texted us randomly and just asked if we were still looking for a farm to rent.”
Andrew Odeen, a fourthgeneration farmer who milked
a conventional 30-cow dairy, had recently sold his herd. His land was certied organic as his neighbors, David and Will Peasley, were renting the land. The Peasleys tipped off the Wolfisbergs about the potential of working with Odeen.
“Andrew was a little hesitant to us renting at rst,” Lis said. “He reached back out to us pretty quickly and we sat down and started putting a plan together. He could really see our vision. He’s great to work with and he’s the best landlord we could have asked for. He’s been open and honest with us. He built the facility almost by himself and knew that we would care for the facility like he would.”
The Wolsbergs lled the barn by purchasing cattle from neighbors and the area’s organic
community. They are renting 80 acres, 60 of which will be pasture this spring with 10 going towards corn to make feed in the fall.
“We want to let the cows graze as much as we can,” Luke said. “We wanted enough land to keep cattle outside May 1 until Dec. 1.”
Starting a dairy nearly 2,000 miles from home has been difcult, but the power of community has helped the Wolsbergs realize their dream in western Wisconsin.
“One of the biggest challenges was just guring out who to talk to about what,” Luke said. “Back home I knew who to call for feed or equipment, but here we were starting from scratch. Everyone we’ve worked with has felt like they’ve been on our side.”
DAN WACKER/DAIRY STAR Lis and Luke Wolsberg stand by their farm sign March 3 near Black River Falls, Wisconsin. The couple relocated from Whatcom County in Washington to start their own dairy.
ADA ENTERPRISES, INC.
Push out Bucket
Wade Muth drives a car down the hallway March 4 as he is
dren’s Wisconsin in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Wade was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia Oct. 21, 2024, at 18 months of age and is now in remission a er having four rounds of chemotherapy treatments.
At an urgent care visit in Mequon, the doctor noticed Wade had an enlarged spleen. Wade’s 18-month appointment was moved up, and another blood panel was run. This time, the results were troublesome.
The Muths were already on their way to Children’s Wisconsin to check on Wade’s Bell’s palsy when their pediatrician called, and they were instructed to go to the emergency room. Another panel was run, and Wade was admitted to the hospital that night.
“Prior to this, I had said to Peter, ‘What if Wade has cancer?’” Gina said.
The Muths said they are happy to be on the other side of this ght.
“We’re cautiously optimistic,” Peter said. “We’re really excited to be here, but it’s always in the back of your mind now — what if? Doctors told us if the cancer comes out of remission, more than likely it will be in the rst year. After the rst year, odds of it coming back drop greatly.”
The Muths’ neighbors are hosting a benet for Wade March 29 starting at 1 p.m. at Fillmore Turner Hall in Fredonia. The event, which was spearheaded by the farm community, will feature a tractor ride, food, drinks, rafes, a silent auction, kids’ activities and live music.
The Muths said they have received tremendous love and support from their community.
Her fears were conrmed that October day as the family entered what would be an intense battle to save their son’s life. Wade was immediately given blood and platelets, and his color came back.
Wade’s leukemia was caused when chromosome 16 ip-opped with another chromosome.
“What he has is very rare,” Peter said. “He has low-risk AML, and there are not many cases each year of this type of leukemia. AML is more prevalent in adults than children, but low-risk AML has a higher probability of being cured.”
Doctors told the Muths Wade’s age and sex were helpful factors in his recovery.
The Muths said during this time of distress they experienced kindness from many directions.
“The generosity from friends, family, and complete strangers was overwhelming,” Peter said. “It still is.”
“We’re really thankful for what they’re doing for us,” Peter said. “I’m on the Fillmore volunteer re department, and my re department family has done a lot too. The whole community has been amazing.”
Gina’s sisters and cousins also put on a benet for the Muths in Gina’s hometown.
Wade is a busy toddler who enjoys playing with tractors and other farm toys. On April 4, he will celebrate his second birthday.
“We’re grateful we’re home and grateful for this outcome,” Peter said. “Wade is in a really good place now, and hopefully the cancer stays in remission. If it comes back, we know what we have to do. But the outlook is very promising.”
PHOTO SUBMITTED
released from Chil-
Dedicated to the Holstein cow
Van Dyk honored with state association’s distinguished service award
By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com
NEW RICHMOND, Wis. — The registered Holstein cow has long been the axis Bonnie Van Dyk’s world has turned on.
For her dedication to the breed, Van Dyk was honored by the Wisconsin Holstein Association as the recipient of the Marlowe Nelson Distinguished Service Award at the organization’s annual convention Feb. 22. The association has been at the heart of breeding registered Holsteins in Wisconsin for over 130 years.
“The industry has changed a lot, it’s totally different,” Van Dyk said. “It’s changed faster than I think anyone thought it would.”
Van Dyk served on the association’s board of directors, beginning her term in 1999. She served several years on the executive committee before being elected as the organization’s rst female president in 2003.
Van Dyk said during that time, the board chose to separate the running of the magazine from the association itself. Van Dyk’s experience working in both nance and management proved valuable tools to take on the tasks at hand.
“That was a big task because it was a major restructuring,” Van Dyk said. “We saw an upside to the magazine. We knew it could be, and we wanted it to be, protable. The management of the association was going ne, but it was subsidizing the magazine way too much.”
The commitment of board members during that period was great, Van Dyk said.
“It was very time consuming,” she said. “I remember making three trips to Baraboo in a 9-day time period. At that time, all of us on the board paid for everything ourselves. It was a time for restructuring, for some very sound forward thinking, to ensure we were on good footing.”
Van Dyk said that was a turning point, as they began to operate the association like a business. Despite the hard work required, Van Dyk is proud of what she was a part of accomplishing.
“There have been boards that had a lot more fun than our board did, but we got things done,” Van Dyk said. “The magazine is still separate. Things have changed over time, but the fundamental basis is still there, and based on the 2025 annual report, it’s been successful.”
Leading by example, Van Dyk supported the magazine as a regular advertiser.
“At that time our farm felt we were in a position to help out,” Van Dyk said. “We advertised on the inside front cover at least six of the publications a year.”
The Willows–Edge prex is one that is synonymous with top-quality registered Holsteins, and the Van Dyks have been perennially successful in both the show and sale rings. They
have bred more than 435 Excellent cows that carry the family’s prex along with accumulating over 40 AllAmerican, Junior All-American and Red & White Dairy Cattle Association All-American nominations. Throughout the years, the Willows–Edge show string has brought home 43 premier breeder banners, including the 2003 International Holstein Show at World Dairy Expo.
The farm has hosted many sales featuring the best from their herd, with their nal dispersal held in 2022.
“We had 10 sales on the farm, many back in that 2000s era, that were extremely successful,” Van Dyk said. “They averaged $4,800 on what were just our cattle, always having at least 80 head in the sale.”
While the herd has been dispersed, Bonnie enjoys continuing to dabble in the industry, keeping a small herd of heifers at the farm, one milk cow housed at her nephew’s nearby farm, along with a few partnership animals housed elsewhere and a solid inventory of embryos from her favorite cow families.
Along with implanting her embryos to create heifers to consign to sales, Van Dyk said she occasionally enjoys investing in exceptional genetics to keep her interest in the breed fresh.
This spring she has several animals consigned to sales around the upper Midwest, including a granddaughter of one of her favorites selling in the Quest for Success VII sale next month.
Van Dyk’s all-time favorite cow still resides on the farm at nearly 20 years of age. Willows-Edge Advent Malika EX94-2E was a prolic show and brood cow for the Van Dyks, garnering several Reserve Junior AllAmerican titles.
“Malika was modern before her time,” Van Dyk said. “She was a bit smaller cow but always pretty, with a perfect udder. She has several Excellent daughters. It’s a cow family that breeds back and has tons of longevity; they get better as they get older. And, she has a great personality.”
nation,” Van Dyk said. “You have to have the numbers to support it and exhibitors from several states. It’s been a phenomenal show — the Holstein, Red & White and Jersey shows are all exceptional.”
Van Dyk’s interest in the show ring parlayed itself into a judging career.
“I haven’t done any judging lately, but I used to do a lot,” Van Dyk said. “I did a bunch of state and regional shows and judged the Western Spring National Holstein Show. Then it looked like my daughter had the chance to play Division 1 volleyball. You don’t get an agent for that — that’s what mom has to do. I made a choice and spent my time working towards that. But I always think about that. There just aren’t enough women judging.”
Van Dyk has served three terms on the Holstein Association USA audit committee, a term on the RWDCA national board and two terms on the World Dairy Expo Dairy Cattle Exhibitor Committee. She was also a long-time 4-H leader. Recently she has begun refereeing basketball and volleyball for the Catholic Athletic Association.
Van Dyk said she is pleased with the young leadership in the industry, stepping forward to keep WHA and other organizations strong and viable.
With the close proximity of their farm to the Minnesota State Fair, Van Dyk has been a staunch supporter of the show there and was inuential in lobbying for the Holstein Association USA national show designation.
“It’s not easy to obtain that desig-
“Everyone who has been involved at the state level has put their heart into it and tried to do their best,” Van Dyk said. “We have a lot of natural leaders in this industry, and each one can come forward and leave their mark, making things better for everyone.”
Industry Leader in AG Curtains
PHOTO COURTESY OF WISCONSIN HOLSTEIN ASSOCIATION
Bonnie Van Dyk (le ) accepts the Wisconsin Holstein Associa on’s Marlowe Nelson Dis nguished Service Award from Todd Stanek Feb. 22 in Rothschild, Wisconsin. Van Dyk was honored for her service to the organiza on.
Farming in the face of regulation
Schmidtke seeks proactive solutions to proposed manure spreading ban
By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com
STRATFORD, Wis. — Kevin Schmidtke is four years into living his dream of dairy farming — a dream that comes with a hope of watching the farm his family built from scratch carry successfully into the second generation.
Alongside his wife, Kendra, and son, Kody, Schmidtke milks 74 cows, maintaining a herd of 100 on their Stratford dairy farm.
When it comes to looking towards the future though, Schmidtke has concerns about looming potential regulations.
Marathon County is considering banning winter spreading of liquid and slurry manure during February and March due to high levels of phosphorus that plague the Big Eau Pleine River Watershed.
Schmidtke did not grow up on a dairy farm, but was always helping at the neighbor’s farm when he was growing up.
“I’ve always wanted to farm,” Schmidtke said. “Everyone has a dream. The question is: when you catch the dream, can you keep it a dream or does it become a nightmare?”
Armed with that philosophy, Schmidtke entered his dairy dream with an exit strategy in place.
“We decided we’d do it for a year,” Schmidtke said. “Whatever we purchased in that year we needed to make sure we could sell if no one was happy, so we could walk away. We started out pretty crude; we wanted to start basically debt-free. We had a loan for the cows and a loan for a (total mixed ration mixer) six months in. In order to make it, you have to start simple.”
The Schmidtkes spent three years building their facilities themselves from the ground up, before beginning their enterprise milking 10 cows.
“There were never more excited people than we were, when we lifted the tank lid after our rst milking and saw that the milk reached the beater,” Schmidtke said. “We were able to ship milk. We laminated a copy of our rst milk check. We were thrilled with that check.”
After four years, Schmidtke remains with the decision to add dairy farming to his resume. His family continues to improve the farm and their herd daily, preparing for the day the farm becomes a second-generation family farm, with Kody at the helm.
When it comes to the proposed manure spreading ban which would affect his dairy farm, Schmidtke said he feels
the proposal unduly affects small-scale dairy farmers like himself.
“I don’t want an advantage, but I also don’t want a disadvantage,” Schmidtke said. “I just want the opportunity like everyone else.”
Schmidtke said there is an issue with water quality in
the watershed, but questions if banning manure spreading in two months is the best solution to the issue.
“What about the salt and brine put on the roads, the airport, the landll, the y ash spread by the mills?” Schmidtke said.
Numbers presented at
recent meetings about the proposed ordinance focused solely on manure-related runoff Schmidtke said. He said he wonders how that compares to other sources of phosphorus being introduced in surface water.
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DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR
Kevin (le�) and Kody Schmidtke stand March 3 in the freestall barn they built on their family’s rst-genera�on dairy farm near Stra�ord, Wisconsin. Kevin Schmidtke has concerns about how a poten�al Marathon County manure spreading ordinance will affect small farmers like himself.
“If farms are the source of the greatest percentage, then that is where you need to start,” Schmidtke said. “But if those other sources have higher numbers, why wouldn’t you start there and work your way down, for the greatest impact?”
The one-size-ts-all approach of picking specic months to ban spreading raises concerns for Schmidtke. He said in 2024, February and March were nearly ideal conditions for spreading manure, while April and May were months that spreading was not advisable.
If the ordinance were put in place, Schmidtke questions how it will be interpreted and enforced.
“Now they’ll need manure police,” Schmidtke said. “Your interpretation of liquid and slurry manure and mine might be two different things. Even a bedding pack — if I scrape up a bedding pack, there is still going to be liquid. When I put it in my spreader, I’m going to put the hardest stuff in the back and the liquid to the front, to keep it from seeping out before I get to the eld. If you’re driving by as I’m nishing spreading, you’re going to see the more liquid stuff. That is all you’ll see — me spreading liquid during the ban. You didn’t see the bedding pack.”
Schmidtke believes there are better, more proactive solutions to mitigate potential phosphorus runoff into the county’s surface waters.
“Buffer zones around surface water would be more effective, addressing the issue across the board,” Schmidtke said. “All farmers — dairy, beef, crop — would have to create those buffers.”
Schmidtke said he questions what impact his farming operation might have on the phosphorous issues in the Big Eau Pleine Reservoir.
“I don’t have any streams running through my crop land,” Schmidtke said. “Even if I did, I’m too far south for anything to ow towards the reservoir. Again, implementing buffer zones seems to be a better way to really address the problem at hand.”
This year the Schmidtkes will farm 217 acres of owned and rented land. Sourcing land has been a challenge, the newly established dairy farmer said.
“We’re surrounded by large dairies and a big cash cropper,” Schmidtke said. “But they all work with us. I appreciate that relationship. That’s the way it should be.”
This will be the rst year Schmidtke will not have to purchase haylage since he started dairying four years ago.
“That will make a big difference for us,” Schmidtke said. “We have to travel a bit of a distance for some of the land, but we’re getting there. In the end, it’ll save us a lot of money.”
Schmidtke daily hauls his manure, although he has been researching the feasibility of building manure storage, even before the proposed ordinance came to light. Given his experience in navigating that process, Schmidtke questions how many farmers could meet the 3–5-year timeline for implementation of the ordinance, if passed.
“I feel like they are setting the small guys … up to fail,” Schmidtke said. “All I ask is that they at least try to make it fair.”
Green Bay Dressed Beef
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“The pregnancy report is very useful.”
What are some of the DHIA tests you use?
Other than the standard reports, we also receive pregnancy results. Which is your favorite and why? The pregnancy report is very useful to keep our calving interval where we would like it.
How do you use them within your dairy? We use the production and SCC reports for culling decisions and use the fat, protein, and MUN reports to evaluate feed ration changes.
How long have you been using the DHIA pregnancy test? We have been using the milk pregnancy test for about two years.
What do you like about the DHIA Pregnancy Tests? It’s nice to be able to do the pregnancy test without any extra time or labor.
How does testing with DHIA bene t your dairy operation? We also use the individual somatic cell count scores. This helps us keep our SCC low so that we can receive quality premiums from our co-op.
Tell us about your farm. We milk 95 cows and raise all of our replacements. The cows are housed in sand bedded freestalls and milked in a double 5 parlor. We also have a 40-cow beef herd and raise chickens for Pilgrims Pride. Our farm was started by my father and grandfather in 1937. Two of our children and most of the grandkids work on the farm.
Testing with DHIA since 1980 Sauk Centre, MN Buffalo, MN
On March 6, President Trump announced a 30-day pause on all tariffs to Canada and Mexico. A day later, Trump made another change in the tariff policy. “Canada has been ripping us off for years on lumber and dairy products; 250% (tariff on dairy products), nobody ever talks about that, which is taking advantage of our farmers.” Trump promised to retaliate with new tariffs coming in a matter of days.
International Dairy Foods Association response
The International Dairy Foods Association released a statement in response to President Trump’s criticism of Canadian dairy tariffs. “It is accurate that Canada imposes a tariff of approximately 250% on U.S. exports of certain dairy products from Canada, and even more with Canada’s 25% retaliatory tariffs in place,” said Becky Rasdall Vargas, senior vice president, IDFA. However, that tariff would only apply if U.S. dairy exports exceed the parameters of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Due to protectionist policies in Canada, the U.S. has not gotten close to those quota levels. Rasdall Vargas said the U.S. dairy industry appreciates the Trump administration’s efforts. “At the same time, a prolonged tariff war with our top trading partners will continue to create uncertainly and additional costs for American dairy farmers, processors, and our rural communities. We urge Canada and the United States to negotiate a resolution to these issues.”
Lawmakers
The letter was sent by Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall and Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst
Policy experts seek better safety net for farmers
By Don Wick Columnist
At the National Farmers Union Convention, agricultural policy leaders addressed key farm policy challenges, including legislative uncertainty in Washington. “I think right now, the easiest way to describe Capitol Hill is a bit chaotic,” said Brad Weddelman, majority chief economist, Senate Agriculture Committee. “There’s a lot going on with a new administration, new chairman.” Despite the turbulence, Weddelman stressed that Chairman John Boozman remains focused on passing a 5-year farm bill with a stronger safety net. “He’s preached that over and over again. That is his goal for this year,” he said. The conversation also centered on improving disaster assistance programs for farmers. Harlea Hoelscher, a professional staffer for the House Ag Committee, outlined House farm bill provisions aimed at strengthening relief efforts. “Chairman (Glenn ‘GT’) Thompson followed the principle of how we can bolster the programs that we already have and make them work better for producers.”
Waters of the U.S. guidance updated
seek fairness in trade
A bipartisan group of senators is calling for fairness for dairy farmers in any trade talks with Canada. The lawmakers sent a letter to the agriculture secretary, commerce secretary and U.S. trade representative, saying Canada has hurt U.S. dairy prices by selling dairy products worldwide at articially low prices. The letter said, “Historically, Canada has failed to live up to its commitments to provide access to its market.” The lawmakers also contend Canada appears to be evading USMCA rules and is exporting protein at articially low prices.
The Waters of the United States rule is getting another revision. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin said this change will stand the test of time. “We are not looking for this to be ping pong anymore; what we’re looking for is to simply follow the guidance from Sackett (Supreme Court ruling),” Zeldin said. “It gave us a clear path in determining the waters of the United States. It found only those wetlands with a ‘continuous surface connection to a relatively permanent water’ are Waters of the United States. The court also struck down the long-utilized
Calvin & Tammy Beumer
95 Holstein cows • Hillman, MN
Con nued from AG INSIDER |Page 10 signicant nexus test, leaving only those wetlands that abut or are adjacent to waters of the United States as jurisdictional.” Zeldin said his agency will work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to cut permitting costs and reduce red tape. American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall was part of the announcement and said WOTUS has been a pain in the side for farmers; “This is a rst big step in a very difcult farm economy that gives farmers and ranchers hope, hope that good things are going to happen in the future.”
Make America Healthy Again Commission meets
The Trump Administration’s Make America Healthy Again Commission met for the rst time. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said they are committed to a holistic process to improve the federal dietary guidelines. Rollins said these guidelines will be based on sound science and released ahead of its Dec. 31 deadline.
March supply and demand estimates released
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest supply and demand report, 2025 milk production estimates were lowered to 226.2 billion pounds. Lower-than-expected milk output per cow was cited as the reason. The Class III price forecast was lowered with a drop expected in cheese and whey values in the year ahead.
Celebrating Wisconsin agriculture
In a message of celebration on National Agriculture Day, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Secretary Randy Romanski said Wisconsin agriculture contributes $116.3 billion annually to the state’s economy, and one in 10 people working in the state hold a job related to the ag industry.
Export assistance program gets a name change
The National Milk Producers Federation board of directors has vot-
ed to change the name of its voluntary dairy export assistance program. Cooperatives Working Together was created in 2003 with dairy co-ops and individual producers contributing to this program. The new name of this program will be NEXT, which stands for NMPF Exports and Trade. A new business plan for the successor organization will be up for nal approval in June.
Danish dairy co-op to partner with South Dakota rm Arla Foods plans to produce whey protein for the food and beverage industry through a partnership with Milbank, South Dakota-based Valley Queen. Arla Foods is one of the largest dairy cooperatives worldwide and is based in Denmark.
4-H Hall of Fame honorees named Wisconsin 4-H has announced the 2025 Hall of Fame laureates. The inductees will be Francis Ginther of Pierce County, Daryl Hansen of Rock County, Marla Kluge of Sauk County, Karrie Melin Swenson of Polk County, Joyce Ann Nelson of Barron County, Dennis Patterson of Grant County, Jim Rutledge of Walworth County and Jeff Thomas of Iowa County. Two individuals will be honored in memoriam: Leona Jacobson of Waukesha County and Leverne Senn of Fond du Lac County. The ceremony will be held April 26.
Trivia challenge
Texas is the home state for Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. That answers our last trivia question. For this week’s trivia, what country consumes the most cheese on a percapita basis? We’ll have the answer in our next edition of the Dairy Star.
Don Wick is owner/broadcaster for the Red River Farm Network of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Wick has been recognized as the National Farm Broadcaster of the Year and served as president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. Don and his wife, Kolleen, have two sons, Tony and Sam, and ve grandchildren, Aiden, Piper, Adrienne, Aurora and Sterling.
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Reducing ammonia loss in manure
Capture nutrients in soil through low disturbance injection
By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com
MARSHFIELD, Wis. — Ammonia is a major component of dairy manure susceptible to being lost to the atmosphere during spreading. Injecting manure in the soil versus applying it on top of the soil is proven effective for retaining ammonia and preventing its escape into the environment.
Using low disturbance injection to reduce ammonia losses in dairy manure has been a focus of research for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center. A key area of scientists’ work at the University of Wisconsin’s Marsheld Agricultural Research Station was to examine low disturbance manure application, especially in hay elds, versus the traditional approach of broadcasting manure on the surface without incorporating it into the soil.
Eric Young is a research soil scientist in the Environmentally Integrated Dairy Management Manure Management unit with the U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center. Before he came on board in 2018, his predecessors looked at shallow disc injection and using an aerator to poke holes in the soil with the idea of increasing inltration of the manure.
“This gives liquid manure a place to go and get under the surface,” Young said. “It showed quite a bit of promise, particularly shallow disc injection where a large disc creates a crease or slot in the
A shallow disk injec on tool injects manure into a hay eld at the Marsheld Agricultural Research Sta on in Stra ord, Wisconsin. This form of low disturbance manure applica on uses a large disc to create a crease or slot in the soil where manure is placed and then covered back up to increase inltra on.
soil where manure is placed and then covered back up. There are a whole bunch of companies that make these products now.”
Young said using low disturbance injection to reduce ammonia losses from liquid dairy manure reduces and minimizes tillage where possible, so the soil will not be disrupted or erosion increased.
“The ultimate in low disturbance is no till – using coulters or discs to open and close the soil,” Young said. “Low disturbance manure injection gets manure under the surface of the soil, which
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reduces that ammonia loss. Ammonia is very volatile. We’re really limited in terms of trying to capture that ammonia unless we do some kind of physical disturbance to the soil.”
Approximately half of the total nitrogen found in liquid dairy manure is in the ammonia end form, Young said.
Research at the Marsheld farm showed immediate incorporation of manure into the soil can create a reduction in ammonia losses of around 90-95% compared to broadcasting manure on the surface.
Global technology, local solution
Stjernholm sand separator now available through Midwest dealerships
A new partnership is bringing high-quality sand separation to the doorsteps of U.S. dairy farmers. Originating in Denmark, Stjernholm technology can now be found close to home through a full-circle approach that includes dealerships in Wisconsin and Minnesota working alongside a local distributor, Dairy Nutrient Reclamation. Providing three layers of quality to ensure a seamless experience, farmers will enjoy quick service with local boots on the ground.
The Stjernholm sand separating system provides quality sand bedding for maximum cow comfort, recycling at levels exceeding 90% retention. The tailor-made systems have the smallest footprint on the market. Currently, 12 systems are installed in the U.S. with 10 more to come this year.
Through this new partnership, you will have the backing of a trifecta of knowledge, service and experience accentuated by farmer-to-farmer interaction. Trillium Hill Farm is working with Dairy Nutrient Reclamation in showcasing its own Stjernholm system. See the system in action on a farm reclaiming 98-99% of its sand.
“We are here for the farmers,” said Mike Jones of Trillium Hill Farm. “Through this unique setup, we are engaged with customers from day one.”
“This level would be achieved with plow tilling,” Young said. “For example, a farm could apply liquid manure in the spring when ready to plant corn and come back through with a disc or chisel plow to incorporate manure into the soil. You see a little less reduction in ammonia loss when using no-tillage tools.”
Young said a shallow disc produces decent results above 90% reduction in ammonia loss, whereas an aerator-band system would be less effective, reducing ammonia loss by two-thirds to threequarters. Both units can be used in hay elds or corn elds.
“A shallow disk injection unit more effectively reduces ammonia and other soluble nutrient losses in runoff than an aerator-band unit,” Young said. “The aerator doesn’t quite get it in the soil as effectively.”
In addition to ammonia capture, Young said another benet of these systems pertains to water quality and runoff.
“By mixing that manure into the soil, it’s less vulnerable to runoff during rain events and snowmelt losses,” he said. “If manure is broadcast on a corn eld or hay eld versus being incorporated into the soil, it sits on the surface and is much more vulnerable to being lost in surface runoff.”
At the Midwest Manure Summit Feb. 26 in Green Bay, Dr. Horacio AguirreVillegas, a scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, shared results from a study on ammonia emissions from conventional, organic and grazing dairy farms. During his presentation, AguirreVillegas highlighted how the farms’ unique management practices impacted how much ammonia was emitted.
–Stjernholm technology, farm distributor and dealer –here
Julie Jones (from left), Mike Jones, Thomas Christiansen, Ben Jones and David Jones gather next to the Stjernholm sand separating system Jan. 15 at Trillium Hill Farm near Berlin, Wisconsin. The family has been using the system since April 2023 and is reclaiming 98%-99% of their sand.
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Thirteen dairy farms were modeled: ve conventional, ve organic and three grazing. Farms ranged in size from 501,000 lactating cows and maintenance animals. Aguirre-Villegas said diet composition determines the nutrients in excreted manure.
“Organic and grazing dairies feed more pasture and forages which have more crude protein and nitrogen in the diet,” he said. “Higher crude protein results in higher nitrogen excretion that has a potential to be emitted as ammonia throughout manure storage and land application. During the grazing season, manure is excreted on the pasture in small pockets, creating high concentrations of nitrogen, which might not all be utilized by growing pastures as opposed to a controlled application of manure on growing crops when manure is stored and land applied.”
The study revealed farm size does not signicantly affect results when expressed per excreted manure. Despite a reduced surface area exposed to wind because it is stacked, solid manure has higher ammonia levels than other forms of manure due to its higher pH, which is one of the main drivers of ammonia emissions, Aguirre-Villegas said. When looking at storage, the average pH was 7.4 for liquid manure, 7.8 for slurry, and 8.5 for solid manure.
Liquid manure or slurry, which has less total solids, has higher inltration rates into the soil, and therefore reduced ammonia emissions from land application. Barns have the lowest ammonia emissions when compared to stoarge and land application, except for two organic farms with bedded packs, as those create ideal conditions for ammonia to be emitted.
“Higher temperatures create more opportunity for ammonia to be lost,” Aguirre-Villegas said.
The study revealed that the top practices for reducing ammonia emissions
were solid liquid separation and injection, which reduced ammonia loss by about 40%. Injection alone lowered ammonia loss by 30%. Reducing crude protein in the diet reduced ammonia loss by more than 20% as did a combination of anaerobic digestion, solid liquid separation and injection. However, anaerobic digestion and solid liquid separation without injection could increase ammonia emissions Aguirre-Villegas found if proper management is not applied. Furthermore, he found compost increases ammonia emissions by 25% from high temperatures and aeration caused by turning the compost.
Research conducted at the UWMarsheld Agricultural Research Station is aligned with the Ruminant Farm Systems model for testing and validating best practices, such as manure incorporation and crop rotation on nutrient losses. This whole-farm simulation model is designed to simulate all major nutrient ows on a dairy farm, including manure generation and nutrients in manure, as well as milk production. Young’s role in its development includes soil and water module aspects.
“We’re honing in on crop production, fertilizer, manure, runoff and nutrient cycling in the eld,” he said. “A lot of our work up at the station is designed to help test that model by applying different types and rates of manure. The model will take this into account and provide recommendations.”
For example, if a farm has 100 acres and applied X amount of manure to a eld that has been in corn for three years in well-drained soil with a certain pH, the RuFaS model will calculate nitrogen recommendations based on those inputs.
“You can look at these cascading levels across the whole farm and change different variables and test different scenarios,” Young said.
The RuFaS model is still in development and will be free for all to access once available.
from our side our side OF THE FENCE
What is the return on investment when you take a vacation?
Tim
and Heidi
Vosberg Blue-Collar Holsteins LLC
Cuba City, Wisconsin Grant County 140 cows
Tell us about a recent vacation you took. We traveled to the Netherlands in early December. While there, we saw the Anne Frank Museum, toured the former Heineken Brewery, took a boat tour of Amsterdam, saw and toured some of the iconic windmills and watched as a craftsman made wooden clogs. On Sunday, we experienced the Rijksmuseum.
What made you decide a vacation was in order? Heidi loves to travel, but I think she loves planning trips even more than the traveling itself. She’s an executive assistant of a large trucking company, so she plans travel regularly as a part of her job. She actually pays for the trips from her take-home pay and, most of the time, lets me tag along. We really loved Ireland, and she plans to visit a former exchange student we hosted from Spain this fall with our oldest daughter.
What logistics did you work through to leave the farm? Fortunately, we have excellent people working for us, including two full-time employees along with our daughters. I can easily step away from the farm for a few days without missing a beat.
Tell us about your best vacation. Our best vacation had to be our road trip to see friends in Wyoming. It was in 2010, which was 10 years after our honeymoon, and we hadn’t been on vacation in that decade. We loaded up our ve kids (and one on the way) into the Suburban with a little pop-up camper, and off we went. We visited the Corn Palace, watched Old Faithful in Yellowstone and almost got eaten alive by the mosquitoes in Mitchell, South Dakota. But, believe it or not, my favorite part of the trip was helping our friends dig their septic system; there’s just something about helping a friend.
What is the return on investment, for you personally, when you take a vacation? Time away from home helps me appreciate what we have here. There’s no place like home, but if you never get away, you don’t know how good home is. Getting away also helps me to see things I’ve been unintentionally ignoring around the farm.
If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? We would love to go to New Zealand. Heidi has been dreaming of going there for years. Hopefully, we can swing it before we’re too old to enjoy it. Israel would be another destination I would like to see. To see the places mentioned in the Bible would be amazing.
Tell us about your farm. We own and operate a 140plus organic dairy in the southwest corner of Wisconsin (God’s country). We graze and crop around 400 acres and compost all our manure.
Joel Groetsch Sauk Centre, Minnesota Stearns County 120 cows
Tell us about a recent vacation you took. We are leaving in a couple weeks for Cabo, which is on the west side of Mexico. Usually, we go to the east of Mexico but decided to change it up this year.
What made you decide a vacation was in order? For my wife and I, it is a de-stressor. You go to relax and unwind so you can come back refreshed and ready to go. I farm with my brother; every January, he goes on a trip with his wife, and every February, I go on a trip with my wife.
What logistics did you work through in order to leave the farm? I farm with my brother, Josh, and between him, his kids and my kids, it is not too difcult since we have robots. We line it up so the kids get up with Josh in the morning; then, they can drive to school. It really helps that we have each other to balance out chores when ei-ther one of us wants to leave so we don’t have to hire anybody extra. The kids help out on the farm enough to understand what to do.
Tell us about your best vacation. Jamacia. It was a smaller, all-inclusive hotel that had a pool bar and a nice beach. It was small enough that we got to know the other people at the hotel. I liked it because we didn’t have to walk as far to get to the beach and got to know the other people. Also, there were a lot of farmers from the U.S. there.
What is the return on investment, for you personally, when you take a vacation? I think everybody needs to get away to have some downtime to appreciate what you have. You feel so much better when you get back. It gives you something to look for-ward to instead of the same routine every day.
If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? It depends on how long I could get away. If I could, I would go all over Europe, and not the tourist places. I want to experience the rural areas to get to know the agriculture and the communities. I would also like to go to Japan someday; it is something different.
Tell us about your farm. I farm with my brother, Josh, and we milk 120 cows with two Lely milking robots. I have three boys, and he has two boys who help on the farm, too. We are the second generation on our farm. We farm 800 acres of corn, soybeans and alfalfa.
Josh Kraska Pine Grove Dairy Swanville, Minnesota Morrison County 70 cows
Tell us about a recent vacation you took. Last fall, I went elk hunting in Colorado. I was there for a week with two of my brothers and a nephew. We rode horses seven miles out to a camp, then stayed at that camp for a week. It was really fun.
What made you decide a vacation was in order? My brothers and I do a hunting trip every fall. We go to Colorado, Wyoming or Montana every year.
What logistics did you work through in order to leave the farm? I farm with my brother, Dan, and we are partners at the dairy. We take turns going on vacation so we can both get time off. It makes it so much easier to get away because one of us will always be here to take care of things.
Tell us about your best vacation. One winter, we took a 2-week family vacation to Florida. We drove and spent time in St. Lois, Fort Meyers and Orlando and swam in the ocean. We did Universal Studios in Orlando. My in-laws spend the winter in Fort Meyers, so, we spent some time with them. We went in the winter because it is easier to get away for an extended amount of time.
What is the return on investment, for you personally, when you take a vacation? Rest, recharge, refresh. It’s also good for the kids. We made a lot of memories on the Florida trip and had good family bonding.
If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? I would take my wife to Europe. I don’t have a specic place in mind, but we have that in the back of our minds.
Tell us about your farm. I farm with my brother, Dan, and we milk 70 cows in a stanchion barn. We farm about 800 acres of corn, soybeans and alfalfa. We are the third generation on our farm. Our wives work off the farm, but my two sons help with chores now. We ship our milk to Bongards.
Sam McNulty, Pascal D’Huyvetter McNulty Farm/D’Huyvetter Farm
Black River Falls,
Wisconsin
Jackson County McNulty, former dairy farmer now raising heifers; Pascal milks
145 cows
Tell us about a recent vacation you took. Recently, I took a 2-week vacation to Europe with Pascal and another Jackson County dairy farmer. We started in Munich, Germany. There we toured the BMW museum and visited the Dachau concentration camp and the Pottinger factory. We had coffee with the owner of Pottinger. I had met him in Louisville last year, and he said if we were ever in the area to let him know. It was really fun to have that tour and get to visit with him again. After that, we went to Zurich, Switzerland, and saw some sights. From there, we visited the Rhein Falls in Switzerland. Along the way, we toured castles and churches. Next, we went to the Champagne region of France. We spent time at a dairy farm in that area and took in some World War I history. We toured even more churches and castles and spent a day in Paris, where we went to a food trade show. There were all sorts of cheeses, wines and meats from France, Austria and Germany. After that, we spent two days in Normandy and visited Pascal’s family in the Calvados region of France before we went to Belgium. There we toured a lot of medieval castles. We visited a farm in Hoogstraten and stayed with a family who milks 200 cows and has some pigs. We also toured a 12-acre strawberry farm. We nished the trip in Amsterdam. We visited the Anne Frank house and saw some of the sights that Amsterdam has to offer. We even did some canal rides there.
What made you decide a vacation was in order? We try to take a trip every two years. It’s just time to get off the ranch. It’s great that we can visit Pascal’s family, and we’ve gotten so close with people over there that, when we make the trip, we can continue those friendships. It makes it a little more affordable as well when we have the chance to stay with family and friends.
Heather Jauquet (pictured with her husband, Jay, and their three sons, Evan (back, from left), Carter and Mason)
Synergy Family Dairy Pulaski, Wisconsin Shawano County 660 cows
Tell us about a recent vacation you took. In late October 2024, we spent a weekend with friends in the Driftless Region of southwest Wisconsin. We stayed in Viroqua, took in beautiful fall colors, visited Wildcat Mountain State Park and perused the eclectic collection at Trail’s End (The Amish Walmart).
What made you decide a vacation was in order? The end of October with harvest complete always feels like a good time to relax a little and enjoy the weather before winter arrives.
What logistics did you work through in order to leave the farm? We have a great team that makes scheduling time away possible. It usually means working ahead on bigger tasks to make sure only the basics need to be covered while we’re gone. My husband, Jay, does all the breeding, so nding someone to cover that responsibility usually poses the biggest challenge. We try to be available via phone in case any major issues arise.
Tell us about your best vacation. When our three boys were 6, 8 and 10, we decided to make a family vacation each year a priority. We were able to have six of those before COVID caused the last one to be canceled in 2020. Our family of ve traveled to Florida, California (San Francisco and Yosemite), Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Croatia.
What logistics did you work through to leave the farm? For us, it’s pretty simple. My two boys and my nephew help on the farm, so we give them a list of orders and we know they can handle it. We trust my boys and my nephew to take care of things for us when we leave.
Tell us about your best vacation. My favorite vacation is taking in the sights of Europe. I’m a big fan of history, and as soon as you get over there, you’re dropped right in the middle of centuries of history. We nd so much stuff to do over there that’s just different than at home. Also, having friends and family there can really give us an inside look as to what day-to-day life is like for them on their farms. One piece of advice: Make sure to travel when you’re young. You’ll never get to see the whole world, but starting young when you can move well and without assistance has played a big role in when we started taking our trips and how often we try to go.
What is the return on investment, for you personally, when you take a vacation? The return for me is getting to see an entirely different lifestyle. There’s an excitement for us leading up to the trip, and being off the farm for a couple weeks just helps us change pace. Sometimes, we’re more tired when we get home than when we leave. However, experiencing a different part of the world and experiencing a new culture is worth it to me.
If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? If I could go anywhere in the world, I’d love to visit the area of Palmer, Alaska, being a history buff, knowing that’s where people homesteaded farms back in the 1940s and 50s. Seeing where they farmed and how they farmed in that climate during that time would be incredible. And, knowing that’s where farmers from eastern Wisconsin went, having similar ties and background would make it that much more exciting of a trip.
Tell us about your farm. My brother and I farm together at McNulty Farms. We grow corn, hay and soybeans and raise heifers and steers. We also have 9,000 non-genetically modied land hens. We sold our milking herd a few years ago but were up to 135 cows. Now, we raise heifers from larger calves and raise them up to springers. Pascal milks about 145 cows at his farm, and our other friend who went with us milks about 130.
Puerto Rico was our favorite trip because of some amazing experiences that made it extremely memorable. The rst morning, we woke at our Vrbo, and as we were checking out the beach, two whales swam in and were playing off the coast. We could see them clearly without binoculars. We scheduled a visit to a local coffee farm that was very interesting, and then they treated us to the best coffee and coffee cake we ever had. Finally, we went on an adventure tour in El Yunque National Forest, which is a rainforest up in the mountains. We navigated a river downhill via a cliff jump, rappelling and body sliding, and we swam behind a waterfall. This is denitely the boys’ favorite vacation memory.
What is the return on investment, for you personally, when you take a vacation? This industry is tough sometimes, and it often feels like many farmers wear a “Badge of Honor” with consecutive days or years worked without a day off. If that truly makes you happy, it’s great, but I feel like most people need to recharge their batteries periodically. For me, focused time away with family is really important. Opening our eyes to the world outside of our own little corner helps us to appreciate what we have. We have experienced other cultures and different ways of life and seen severe poverty in our travels. Perspective is powerful, and we always come home thankful for our life on the farm.
If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? Jay and I both have heavy Belgian descent. We have spent time researching our ancestry and have talked about a trip to Belgium for many years. Next year (God willing), we will celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary, and we are planning our dream trip to Belgium. We are looking forward to trying amazing Belgian beer and visiting rural Wallonia, which is where our farming ancestors emigrated from.
Tell us about your farm. We milk 660 cows and raise all our own replacements. Our cows are housed in sand-bedded freestalls and milked in a double-12 parallel parlor. Our milk is sold to Agropur. We own 600 acres, rent additional acreage and work with neighbors to grow forages to feed our herd. Jay and I own the farm and enjoy working with our amazing team to run a successful, sustainable dairy. We are very open to the opportunity of incorporating the next generation of our family into managerial and ownership roles in the future.
Five ladies (from left) April Klaphake, the daughter of Mark and Jennifer of Sauk Centre, Haddie Walter, the daughter of David and Cathy of Sauk Centre, Jaiden Smith, the daughter of Jeremy and Emily of Melrose, Bella Schiffler, the daughter of John and Kristie of Albany, and Daisy Zimmermann, the daughter of Mike and Lori Zimmermann of Sauk Centre were crowned Stearns County dairy princesses March 15 at the Freeport Community Center in Freeport, Minnesota. Klaphake and Walter won the Stearns County ADA scholarships and Ava Smith, the daughter of Jeremy and Emily Smith, was named miss congeniality. Ambassadors are Chloe Hoppe, the daughter of Travis Hoppe and Amy Hoppe of Albany, Megan Frieler, the daughter of Duane and Amy Frieler of Greenwald and Ava Smith.
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With DeLaval VMS V300, it all revolves around you, which is why we have developed the V300 to be the world’s most exible milking robot–so that it works for you and not the other way around. Whether your operation is small or large, the VMS V300 can help you farm your way.
How many times a day do you milk, and what is your current herd average, butterfat and protein? We milk twice per day. Our rolling herd average is 30,214 pounds of milk, 1,313 pounds of butterfat and 992 pounds of protein, with component tests of 4.5% butterfat and 3.3% protein.
Describe your housing and milking facility. Fresh cows and cows that need extra attention are housed in deep-bedded sand stalls in a barn with the dry cows. The rest of the milk cows, which is the majority of the herd, are housed in a freestall barn with waterbeds and bedded with chopped straw. Cows are milked in a double-8 parallel parlor in the old tie stall barn.
Who is part of your farm team, and what are their roles? Our farm team consists of three owners who manage and run the day-to-day operations. There are two full-time and two part-time employees who help cover the milking shifts. There are six other parttime people who help, mostly family members who help with feeding calves and other jobs where needed.
What is your herd health program? Pregnancy checks are done every two weeks
TOP PERFORMERS
by our vet using ultrasound. Typically, we meet every two weeks with our nutritionist to go over animal performance and any adjustments that need to be made on any diets. We discuss any concerns and ideas with both our veterinarian and nutritionist to best position our cattle to perform their best. Vaccination protocol on heif-
ers includes giving Alpha-7/ MB-1 and Bovi-Shield Gold FP 5 L5 before breeding, along with a de-wormer. Vaccination protocol on cows includes giving Bovi-Shield Gold FP 5 L5 at 30 days in milk and a Vaxxon SRP Salmonella vaccine and Alpha-7/MB-1 at dry off. Cows also receive a de-wormer twice per year. All cows are
dried off using Quartermaster and a teat sealant.
What does your dry cow and transition program consist of? Dry period is 60 days for rst lactation and 50 days for all older cows. We have a group of dry cows that is housed on a bedded pack, using either corn stalks or straw.
The dry cow ration is made up of corn silage, grass hay and a mineral/protein mix. Cows that calve are put into the fresh cow pen on day one.
Prigge Farms LLC Winona, Minnesota | Winona County | 327 cows
AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR
The Prigge family — Adam, Terry, Jana and Cody — gathers March 11 at their dairy near Winona, Minnesota. The Prigges milk 327 cows.
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Dr. Justine Britten, Pres. Udder Health Systems, NMC board: “In my personal experience, every dairy is impacted to some degree by Staph. aureus,” and “If Staph. [aureus] was easier to see, farmers would be a lot less tolerant of it.” {Translation – you don’t pay attention to the problem so they will test your milk samples}
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“Soft, comfortable udders that milk out quickly and completely have a big impact on milk quality and performance,” says Erik Hagedoorn, managing one of two Bos Dairies locations near Lovington, N.M., milking 5400 Jersey cross cattle, calving over 30 a day.
“We rely on Udder Comfort for routine use in our hospital groups and for our fresh cows at the start of lactation.
“When outdoor conditions decline, we increase our preventive use. It works like a charm,” Erik adds. At Beer Cattle Co., Berne, Ind., 250 heifers calve-in monthly.
“We use Udder Comfort after each milking for 5 to 7 days after calving to remove swelling. This gets udders softer, faster, for more milk,” says Keith Beer. “We saw better first-lactation performance in our 2-year-olds with a 3 to 4 pound production increase at 14 DIM, and a reduced SCC for the group. We love how easy it is to do this in the parlor,” he adds.
time, money,
See us at CENTRAL PLAINS DAIRY EXPO
Sioux Falls, March 25-27
WISCONSIN FARM SHOW Oshkosh,Apr1-3
What is the composition of your ration, and how has that changed in recent years? Our milk cow diet consists of corn silage, haylage, ground corn and a protein mix. The ration is usually between 58%-60% forage. This has been a very similar diet we have been using for many years, aside from recently removing cottonseed. Over the past couple of years, we have been and currently are experimenting with a cocktail mix consisting of grasses and clovers and how it might t into our cow diets. There are multiple reasons behind looking into this, with a main focus on improving cow health and soil health.
Tell us about the forages you plant and detail your harvest strategies. We grow all of our own forages and grain corn. Corn silage varieties are picked with a focus on digestibility. Alfalfa is harvested four times, sometimes ve times per year, with 28-32 days between cuttings. On alfalfa, our goal is to have a relative feed quality of 150-190. All forages are harvested by a custom chopping crew.
What is your average somatic cell count and how does that affect your production?
Average SCC is 120,000. We installed waterbeds one year ago and have seen how much more comfortable the cows are compared to the old mats we used. We have just installed a Lely Discovery Collector, and we hope this will help lower
farm near Winona, Minnesota. The Prigges said they hope this will lower soma c cell among other things.
SCC as well as result in fewer cases of mastitis and ultimately lead to healthier cows.
What change has created the biggest improvement in your herd average? The biggest change was putting more focus on putting up higher quality forages and working with our nutritionist to feed for higher levels of production. Although this is what we believe to be the biggest contributing factor to a higher herd average, it still all starts with teamwork and
communication between everyone on the farm.
What technology do you use to monitor your herd? We don’t have any technology directly tied to the cows. We use Dairy Herd Improvement Association testing to help make management decisions on cows along with DairyComp for cattle records. We have a robotic feed pusher and, recently, a robotic manure collector. We have looked into different monitoring systems
for the cows but haven’t committed to anything at this time.
What is your breeding program, and what role does genetics play in your production level? We start breeding heifers at 13 months. All cows are on a double ovsynch program for their rst breeding, with average days in milk at rst breeding being 80 days. We breed with sexed dairy semen and beef semen. We started genomic testing heifers in 2020 and use sexed dairy
semen on our highest genomic testing heifers and cows and the rest get beef. We focus on health traits and components when picking bulls. We have had fewer health-related issues and have continued seeing higher components in rst lactation heifers since we started genomic testing.
List three management strategies that have helped you attain your production and component level. One: communication between everyone involved with the day-to-day chores to outside labor, like the vet and nutritionist. Two: being able to adapt our thinking when facing challenges and having the willingness to embrace change. Three: being open-minded to new ideas, being open to thinking outsidethe-box and always having the desire to learn something new.
Tell us about your farm and your plans for the dairy in the next year. We are the second and third generations on our dairy and have been milking cows at our current location since 1972. We raise all of our own heifers and feed out all beef crosses to nish. We grow all of our own crops. We have no major plans for the coming year other than the robotic manure collector which was just recently installed. It all starts and ends with giving all the glory to God and having the opportunity to do what we love in caring for the land and cattle.
ROOTED IN THE HEART OF OUR AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY,
AMY KYLLO/DAIRY STAR
Leedstone service representa ves Mike Phillips (from le ) and Andy Nicklay visit with Adam Prigge about the new Lely Discovery Collector they were installing March 11 at the Prigge
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Building a sustainable future
Walleser recognized with Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation’s 35 Under 35 award
By Dan Wacker dan.w@dairystar.com
DE SOTO, Wis. — In January, William Walleser of Wall-Stone Holsteins earned the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation’s 35 under 35 award as the top individual in the sustainable environment category. Wall-Stone Holsteins began in 1961 as a small tiestall barn dairy and has evolved into a 1,400-cow dairy with a 50-stall rotary parlor in Wisconsin’s Driftless region.
While expanding throughout its history, Walleser, along with his grandparents and parents, has always had a focus on sustainability, allowing them to continue to improve the farm year by year, setting up its future.
“Sustainability means making more using less in all that we do,” Walleser said. “Farming is a generationally driven business. Nine times out of 10, the goal is to move the farm to the next generation … or a trusted person that you partner with.”
The family farm has expanded to employ 25 people
who work in conjunction with the Wallesers to add to and maintain the farm’s sustainability efforts.
“This award is shared with everyone here,” Walleser said. “If we could put everyone’s name on it, it would make a lot more sense than it just being mine. This is so much bigger than me.”
The teamwork between the owners and employees has been essential to their continued progress.
“We achieved this because we have everyone seeing the same vision,” Walleser said. “Not because people are only listening to what you say, but because they see the end goal we have as a team. It lets our employees add to it by making suggestions and being comfortable providing feedback.”
Helping employees nd their voice is a challenge all managers must handle. The Wallesers have found it easier to give them that chance by working side-by-side with them.
“You need that feedback from your employees,” Walleser said. “You may think that you told them the right way to do it, but if you’re not
on.
the one directly doing that job every day, or if you can’t get your team to give you feedback, you aren’t all working towards the same goal.”
Sustainability has been ingrained at Wall-Stone Holsteins since its inception. More recently, the farm expanded to its new rotary par-
POLY-TANKS and TOTES
lor and built different facilities along the way.
With the expansion, variable speed motors were installed in all areas of the new milking facility, with all lighting being transitioned to LED.
“We don’t want to consume any more electricity
than we have to,” Walleser said. “Some may think those are little things, but when you run as many lights as we do and have all those other machines, you notice the difference just in your power bill.”
DAN WACKER/DAIRY STAR
William Walleser stands in a freestall barn March 7 at Wall-Stone Holsteins near De Soto, Wisconsin. He and his family installed variable speed motors and LED ligh ng to reduce their electricity consump
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To help ease the burden of the local community, Wall-Stone Holsteins worked with Dairyland Power and Vernon Electric Cooperative to be part of its Peak Power program. This allows the dairy to have its own generator. During peak times of the year, the dairy can be disconnected from the traditional energy provider. The generator creates enough power for the dairy for 4-hour sessions during peak times.
Taking care of the land and the surrounding community is also important to Walleser and his family.
“It’s our job as a farmer to be stewards of the land,” Walleser said. “The land, animals and people that are part of our team are all trusting us to do what’s best for everyone, because when we do that, we get the best results. Sustainability and protability are so closely tied together. I’d like to see my family here for another 100 years, and that means I must do my part.”
Agronomically, Walleser and his family have been implementing sustainability practices since the farm was founded by his grandfather nearly 70 years ago.
“We’ve been practicing contour farming since 1961,” Walleser said. “Where we’ve evolved is doing a lot more no till, with a lot of low disturbance manure applications. Incorporating manure without disturbing the soil has been big for us.”
The cover crops have also been an important factor for their farm in Wisconsin’s southwest corner. Walleser’s farm sits on top of a ridge with rolling hills surrounding it. Using cover crops helps keep the topsoil on top of the hills. Using rye and triticale, WallStone Holsteins is nding a use for the cover crops in its rations as well.
“We don’t want to leave acres bare,” Walleser said. “That top six inches of soil is so valuable. If that soil washes into the Mississippi, we’re not getting it back and it’s not going to help us grow the quality crops we need.”
By preserving the topsoil and nding ways to be more energy ef-
cient, Walleser and Wall-Stone Holsteins hope to continue to be an asset to the community.
“We have a great group of neighbors that we get to work with, and we really enjoy that,” Walleser said. “Having people see that you want to do things the right way and working with your neighbors is important in this business.”
Walleser also sees the merit of hearing what consumers are looking for in products and continuing to evolve practices that meet some of those demands.
“I’m part of a generation who believes that sustainability is important to people that have no say in agriculture, other than with their dollar,” Walleser said. “The consumer cares about sustainability just as we do. The product that we’re making is going to end up on someone’s table and they want to feel good about it when they eat it. They want to know they chose a product from a family or group that cares about the same things.”
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Cows stand in the new rotary parlor during summer 2024 at Wall-Stone Holsteins near De Soto, Wisconsin. Wall-Stone Holsteins began in 1961 as a small estall barn dairy and has evolved into a 1,400-cow dairy.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Contour strips snake across a eld at Wall-Stone Holsteins near De Soto, Wisconsin. William Walleser cites his grandfather and his parents as paving the way for the dairy’s sustainability prac ces.
Breeding for beauty, balance
Kamphuis brothers named Wisconsin Distinguished Young Holstein Breeder
By Stacey Smart stacey.s@dairystar.com
BRANDON, Wis. — Passion for registered Holsteins started young in twin brothers Darren and Derrek Kamphuis. Although they did not grow up with a registered herd, the show ring was the place where their enthusiasm took root.
“We got the knack for it when we started showing at 9 years old, and we couldn’t get enough,” Darren said. “We always had to purchase show calves, and our love for registered animals stemmed from that.”
The work and dedication they put in over the next 20 years resulted in Darren and Derrek being named the 2024 Distinguished Young Holstein Breeder by the Wisconsin Holstein Association. Focused on blending type with production, building a well-balanced cow has been their ambition as they strive to breed an animal that can stand the test of time.
“We like old cows and breed for longevity,” Derrek said. “We don’t breed for extreme numbers. We breed for balance, tar-
Kamphuis (le ) and his twin brother, Derrek, stand at the halters of two of their favorite young cows March 13 on their family’s farm where they milk around 280 cows near Brandon, Wisconsin. The Kamphuis brothers were named the 2024 Wisconsin Dis nguished Young Holstein Breeder.
geting feet and legs, type and components.”
Farming with their dad, Steve, and their uncle, Doug, the Kamphuises milk around 280 cows and farm 600 acres at Kampy Holsteins near Brandon. Darren’s wife, Rachel, and Derrek’s wife, Valerie, work off the farm but help as needed.
After high school, both brothers knew they wanted to
farm.
Plans for expansion and a new barn began while the twins attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Farm and Industry Short Course. The two designed a barn that could cash ow while incorporating feedback from their professors. Darren and Derrek graduated in March 2015, and construction started July 1.
To ll the barn, the brothers purchased 160 registered cows to add to their growing herd of registered animals.
“We had a lot of registered cows grown from our grade herd as well as cows we had purchased as show calves,” Darren said. “We still have some of those original families.”
The Kamphuises were selective in the cows they bought.
“We wanted good genetics and maternal lines that could benet us,” Darren said. “We were able to take pieces of all the great herds around the state, and now it’s neat to see our herd ourish from others’ genetics. It gave us a chance to build our own herd.”
Kampy Holsteins has a BAA of 110.1 and a rolling herd average of 29,792 pounds of milk, 1,196 pounds of butterfat and 935 pounds of protein for tests of 4.4% butterfat and 3.4% protein. The herd contains 79 Excellent, 166 Very Good and 43 Good Plus cows. Kampy Holsteins ranks third in the nation for BAA in herds of 250 cows or more.
Darren and Derrek have had four All-American nominations, three Gold Medal Dams, and 23 cows with more than 200,000 pounds of lifetime milk. Their herd is also a 4-time Progressive Breeders’ Registry recipient.
“We don’t try for large records,” Derrek said. “We go after protability. In the last 10 years, we’ve been making better feed. We try to get our hay harvested quicker and our corn chopped faster. Little things like that add up.”
Darren and Derrek do most of the milking. Cows are milked twice a day in a double-12 rapid exit parallel parlor built in 2023.
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
Darren
Kampy Doc Gizmo EX-93 is pictured in her second lacta on when she made a record of 38,900 pounds of milk, 1,533 pounds of bu erfat and 1,150 pounds of protein. As the daughter of Bell-Ridge Gin Blossom EX-93, Gizmo comes from one of the Kamphuises’ favorite cow families.
“From repro and mating decisions to herd health and taking care of sick cows — all that goes through our hands,” Darren said.
When picking bulls, combined fat and protein is a number they follow.
“We make money off components,” Derrek said. “We look at pounds and percent over (Daughter Pregnancy rate) and Productive Life. We also want solid type of 2-3 points. The bulls we use must come from good cow families as well.”
The brothers use 10-12 bulls at a time while following linears like strength and leg set to correctively mate their cows.
“We’re tight on our criteria, so if we nd a bull we like, we use a lot of him for a long time,” Derrek said.
One of their past favorite sires was Doc.
“Doc crossed a lot of our boxes for type and production,” Darren said. “We used him early and often. We had many Doc daughters, a lot of which were Excellent and Very Good.”
Another favorite was Redburst-Red, a bull that created top cows in the herd for components and milk, including two EX94 daughters with over 200,000 pounds of milk.
Current sires in the rotation include Tentastic, Pazzle, Rompen-Red, Homecoming, Dropbox, Exclusive-Red and Luster-P. One-third of the Kamphuis herd is Red & White or red carrier.
“I always liked Red & White,” Derrek said. “One of the rst cows we got was red, and the rst heifer we showed was red.”
A Red & White named Jazz was grand champion at their local Alto fair and stood seventh in the spring yearling class at World Dairy Expo the same year. She went on to score EX-92.
Developing the best bloodlines is at the heart of everything the Kamphuis twins do. Two esteemed cow families in the herd include Inspiration and Gin Blossom. An EX-92 Dam of Merit sired by Goldwyn, Inspiration was a ninth-generation Excellent, and at one point, the herd contained 100 descendants. So far, 20 of her daughters are scored Excellent.
“That’s our longest line with 14 generations of Excellent cows,” Darren said.
Gin Blossom, an EX-93 Braxton daughter, was reserve grand champion at the 2014 Wisconsin State Fair junior show and fourth place senior 2-year-old at WDE that year. She also has many descendants in the herd.
The Kamphuises’ show circuit ranges from their community fair, to state and national shows. In 2024, Darren and Derrek achieved a longtime goal of being named premier breeder and exhibitor at the District 10 Holstein show.
The Kamphuises sell quite a few replacement cows, and April 19, they plan to share their genetics on a larger stage by hosting a tag sale. The day will start with a showing and tting clinic for youth followed by the sale that will feature 60 cows, calves and heifers.
“It’s cool to share the genetics we’ve developed,” Darren said. “We want to let other people have fun with them, too. The goal was to get members from most of our famous cow families in the sale.”
Reaching a milestone where they can offer genetics of this magnitude is a dream worked hard for, the brothers said.
“We want to continue to grow our cow families and have fun breeding cows,” Darren said. “There is always something to build towards, and we’re always trying to get better in everything we do.”
FIRST CARE CALF PASTE
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Support Immune Health IPS
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PHOTO SUBMITTED
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Ma hew Kramer (from le ), Dylan Siewert, Ka Schafer, Derrek Kamphuis, Valerie Kamphuis, Kampy Kenosha Indignity EX-92, Kampy Mcc Kingboy Pre y EX-91, Brant Flier, Darren Kamphuis, Rachel Kamphuis, Cathryn Gunst, and Holstein Princess Lauren Breunig, gather June 19, 2024, at the District 10 Holstein show in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Darren and Derrek Kamphuis were named premier breeder and exhibitor of the show.
Ultimate EZ™ Electric Milker is 100% portable, operates using 110V or power tool batteries, includes bottles, stainlesssteel buckets and many accessories.
“Everyone should have one of these EZ Milk Coolers, it stays chilled between 37 and 38 degrees, my clientele has doubled within the last year to over 200 customers!” ~ John Byler, Munfordville, KY
UPCOMING EVENTS:
March 25 - 27
The Dairy Signal ® Online, noon - 1 p.m., CT
Visit www.pdpw.org to participate in live-streamed event. Audio/video recordings also available free.
March 25 - 26
Carbon, Crops + Cows
Mar. 25: Pagel’s Ponderosa, Kewaunee
Mar. 26: Compeer Financial, Sun Prairie, Wis.
Visit www.pdpw.org for details.
April 1-3; 8-10; 15-17; 22-24; 29-30
The Dairy Signal ® Online, noon - 1 p.m., CT
Visit www.pdpw.org to participate in live-streamed event. Audio/video recordings also available free.
April 1, 8, 15
Dairy’s Visible Voice ®
Apr. 1: Pagel’s Ponderosa, Kewaunee
Apr. 8: Weiss Family Farms, Durand, Wis.
Apr. 15: Miltrim Farm, Athens, Wis. Visit www.pdpw.org for details.
BOTTOM LINE DAIRY’S Cultivating the next generation of leaders
We’ve so often heard that the most
assets on today’s dairy farms are our people. It’s true; dairies of every size rely on people to care for animals, crops and one another to meet production, profitability and sustainability goals. With fewer young people growing up on dairy farms, it’s increasingly critical to focus on developing our current team members alongside the next generation of dairy leaders, whether or not they come from a farm.
I’ve beneted from several mentors since starting my career in the dairy industry. I grew up on our family farm, McFarlandale Dairy, near Watertown, Wisconsin, then studied dairy science and life sciences communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After graduation, I worked as a dairy nutritionist in northeast Wisconsin for three and a half years before returning to the family farm in 2016 as the sixth generation.
tions, and they still mentor me and help to move our dairy forward.
Because being mentored has had such a positive impact on me, I’m grateful to have had the pleasure to return the favor by mentoring others through the Professional Dairy Producers Mentor Program. Through this program, college, short course and technical school, students are paired with dairy producers to spend a day working side by side with them for rsthand learning.
By Christine Bender
The PDP Mentor Program is a great opportunity for students to get an in-depth look at an active progressive dairy. On our farm, I typically have the student work alongside our calf manager and herdspeople. I also spend time with them, going through the ins and outs of our operation and sharing what we’ve learned over the years.
learn something, too. I enjoy meeting the students and learning about them, their roots and aspirations. It’s reassuring to know there are more bright young individuals interested in our industry.
It is vital for our farms and dairy industry to have bright young individuals who will dedicate their time and energy to ensuring an even brighter future for dairy. Whether on your own farm or through 4-H, FFA or industry and peer-network programs, making the investment to mentor the next generation of dairy leaders will deliver benets in the present and long into the future.
A note from PDP: In January, UWRiver Falls student Isaac DeYoung mentored with McFarlandale Dairy through the PDP Mentor Program. Here’s what he had to say:
Once there, I worked my way up from feeding calves and heifers to serving as lead herdsperson. Today, I’m an owner, overseeing the health of 2,000 cows and about 30 full-time employees.
My rst mentors — my parents — taught me how to take care of the animals, modeled a strong work ethic and instilled a passion for dairy. At CP Feeds, Randy Marx and Dennis Schueller taught me how to formulate diets for cows and consult with dairy farmers to help make them more successful. I continue to lean on several trusted consultants when we have ques-
The mentor program provides students who didn’t grow up on farms the opportunity to see a modern, working dairy farm rsthand and learn if a career in dairy is something they might want to pursue. For students who were raised on a farm, it’s important to experience other operations through tours and even working for someone other than their mom and dad. These opportunities give young people different perspectives on managing dairy farms, exposing them to new ideas and broadening their networks so they can be effective if they decide to return to their home farm.
I’ve found that another great thing about mentoring others is that I always
“Christine opened my eyes to the business side of farming and helped me see that farming is not just a job; it’s a source of pride and joy, an opportunity to take great care of their cattle and ensure they produce the best possible product. This has deepened my respect for the industry and reinforced my passion for working with animals and my commitment to pursuing a career as a large animal veterinarian.”
Christine Bender owns and operates McFarlandale Dairy near Watertown, Wisconsin, with her parents, Peter and Cindy McFarland, and her husband, Robb Bender. They milk 1,700 cows between two sites and are focused on improving and growing their business. The Benders have three daughters.
Upcoming changes to national genetic evaluations
cial dairy cattle genetic evaluations are published three times each year: April, August and September. This is when bulls receive updated Predicted Transmitting Abilities for genetically evaluated traits such as fat yield, Daughter Pregnancy Rate or livability. While minor changes may occur between evaluations, this April will see a few larger changes. This is because the formula used to calculate Lifetime Net Merit will be updated and because we will experience a base change.
yield receives less emphasis. Other changes include increased emphasis on heifer and cow livability, less emphasis on productive life and increased emphasis on feed intake traits. If you are interested in seeing the exact changes that will occur when Net Merit is updated in April, I encourage you to visit the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding’s website (uscdcb.com/introducingnet-merit-2025/).
By Isaac Haagen University of Minnesota
First, let’s address the anticipated changes with Net Merit. Net Merit is updated every several years to reect recent trends in income and experiences experienced by dairy farms. For instance, if the monetary value of fat or protein changes, Net Merit can be adjusted to place more or less emphasis on these traits. Indeed, this is the case for the 2025 update to Net Merit as fat has increased in value relative to protein in recent years; therefore, fat receives greater emphasis in the new Net Merit calculations, while protein
The last time Net Merit was updated was 2021. It is important to note that the relationship between Net Merit in 2021 and Net Merit in 2025 is extremely high. In fact, the correlation between Net Merit in 2021 and Net Merit in 2025 is 0.981 for progeny proven bulls. This means that, across all animals that receive evaluations, there will be slight reranking; however, it is still possible some animals will re-rank more than others. Secondly, we will also experience a genetic base change this April. This happens every ve years in the United States. Therefore, the last time we experienced a base change
was in 2020. For the upcoming base change, the average PTA values for animals born in 2020 will be set to zero. For most traits, such as yield traits and livability traits, PTA values will be adjusted down to reect that the average PTA values for these traits have improved.
For example, if the average PTA for fat yield increased by 20 pounds for animals born in 2020 compared to animals born in 2015, this reects that animals have improved 20 pounds in PTA fat yield during that
Dana Adams adam1744@umn.edu 320-204-2968
Luciano Caixeta lcaixeta@umn.edu 612-625-3130
Gerard Cramer gcramer@umn.edu 612-625-8184
Marcia Endres miendres@umn.edu 612-624-5391
Brad Heins hein0106@umn.edu 320-589-1711
Nathan Hulinsky huli0013@umn.edu 320-203-6104
Karen Johnson ande9495@umn.edu 320-484-4334
Emily Krekelberg krek0033@umn.edu 507-280-2863
Claire LaCanne lacanne@umn.edu 507-332-6109
Brenda Miller nels4220@umn.edu 320-732-4435
time. However, it also means PTA values for fat would be 20 pounds lower in the April 2025 genetic evaluation compared with prior evaluations to reect the base change. It is important to note the exact changes have not been nalized at the time of writing this article.
These changes to our national evaluations are infrequent but routine and will result in evaluations that more accurately reect the dairy industry as it exists today.
Isaac Salfer ijsalfer@umn.edu 320-296-1357
Jim Salfer salfe001@umn.edu 320-203-6093
Mike Schutz mschutz@umn.edu 612-624-1205
Melissa Wilson mlw@umn.edu 612-625-4276
Isaac Haagen hagge041@umn.edu 612-624-7455
Michael Boland boland@umn.edu 612-625-3013
Sabrina Florentino slpore@umn.edu 507-441-1765
Scott Wells wells023@umn.edu 612-625-8166
Erin Cortus ecortus@umn.edu
Goal setting on the farm
Recently, I’ve found myself having many conversations about goals. Whether it’s a conversation about my own goals or someone else’s, there is always the same theme: making goals stick.
Goal setting is important to both personal and business success. Goals help us work toward desired results and provide a point of guidance. Goals can be aimed at short-term issues, long-term projects and everything in between. Goal setting can also be used as a resilience strategy to promote organization. No matter what type of farm you have or what stage you or your farm are at, goal setting is important. The way we set our goals can also determine whether we are successful in achieving them. There are several questions to consider when setting goals:
likely you will have multiple shortterm goals you are working on at once, so it’s also vital to consider prioritizing your goals.
By Emily Krekelberg University of Minnesota
First, are the goals SMART? SMART is an acronym for specic, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely. As you write each goal, ask yourself, is it specic? Is it measurable? Is it attainable? Is it relevant? Is it timely? If it isn’t SMART, identify what needs to be changed or added to the goal for it to meet the SMART guidelines. This method is a great way to get started with setting both personal and business goals.
Second, what is the timeline for the goals? Thinking about goals in both the short term and long term can also make them more achievable. Typically, anything you want to accomplish within a year is a short-term goal. If the goal has a timeline greater than a year, it is a long-term goal.
Short-term goals can be written as a to-do list. Write them down and put them somewhere they will be seen often. For farm goals, this might be the fridge or somewhere in a breakroom. For personal goals, this could be on your computer or your bathroom mirror. This way, you will be reminded about them often and be able to achieve them in the set amount of time. Short term goals typically require less time and resources, or they may be short term due to urgency. It’s
Long-term goals should also be written down and very thorough. It may be benecial to break long-term goals into smaller goals to keep things on track. If the overall goal is to be achieved in ve years, consider if there is a oneyear goal for each of the ve years. For example, if a farm goal is to improve reproduction, perhaps you can reach a certain benchmark within one year and then build on that benchmark in subsequent years. This can help reduce overwhelm and make even large goals feel more attainable. Whether goals are short or long term, they should be written down and have a timeline.
Third, are these everyone’s goals? Specically for farm goals, it is crucial to communicate and share goals with everyone involved on the farm. A process often used for goal setting in farm transfer situations can also be useful in setting any type of goal on the farm. This can be especially useful on multi-generation farms and on farms with multiple managers. This three-step process involves developing, blending and prioritizing goals. In the rst stage — developing — individuals draft their own goals for the farm. In the second stage — blending — you share and combine your goals with the people you work closest with; this may be your spouse or siblings or whoever is in your generation on the farm. In the last stage — prioritizing — all people and generations on the farm come together to share their goals and create one, prioritized list. Creating goals for a business together can help ensure “buy-in” from everyone involved, as everyone gets included in the process.
Goal setting is important for any farm, as it keeps the business moving forward to the next step. Using these questions as a guide, take your rst steps toward setting some goals that stick.
An invitation to experience
Berning hosts farm camps to educate, engage consumers
By Michelle Stangler Staff Writer
EAST DUBUQUE, Ill.
Marrying a dairy farmer was not part of Natalie Berning’s original plan. But, she has embraced farm life, nding creative ways to diversify the business and connect consumers with the dairy industry.
“I was a city girl,” Berning said. “I did not grow up in farming at all. I honestly believe this was the rst work-
ing farm I ever stepped foot on. For a very long time, I really didn’t play a role at the farm at all.”
Berning is co-owner of Berning Acres alongside her husband, Matt. They milk 500 cows three times a day in a double-10 parallel parlor. The family also owns and rents approximately 800 acres of land.
In 2016, after Berning had their fourth child, the couple decided it was time for her to quit her full-time teaching job to focus on their growing family. In 2021, Berning began her rst farm camp.
“It was always an idea in my head that we could invite people here,” Berning said. “It’s just part of God’s plan.”
Berning’s in-laws have 31 grandchildren, so there was no shortage of kids on the farm.
Inspired by a visit to Hansen Dairy in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where an owner encouraged her to use her teaching background, Berning took
the compliment to heart and got started.
“I had some teaching, lesson planning and classroom management skills that were really helpful to get us going,” Berning said.
The camp sold out its rst
year and has grown each year since. Now entering its fth year, Berning Acres’ farm camp can host up to 140 children for six sessions of twoday experiences.
“The rst day, they learn all about cows — how much
they eat, drink, weigh, how much milk they produce and their living conditions,” Berning said.
Every day, a calf is born at the farm, bringing another learning opportunity. Berning teaches about calf care, including how calves have no immune system and need colostrum to start their lives. Additionally, campers get the chance to milk a cow and, in past years, have made their own butter or ice cream. This year, they will make whipped cream.
Having not grown up on a farm, Berning said she talks in the consumer’s language, not cow language.
“This is new lingo for me,” Berning said. “(For) forever I was like, ‘Why do you say pre and post-fresh cows? Why don’t you just say pregnant?’ Now I get it. It’s quicker. It’s faster (to say).”
Berning’s background allows her to explain everything in a way her customers understand, such as how she describes the cows’ experience of the dairy farm.
“We call it the bed and breakfast, our all-inclusive resort,” she said. “That’s how we describe it to our visitors when they come.”
For Berning, success is multi-faceted and is more than just income versus expenses.
“It’s been this cool thing we talk about around the dinner table,” she said. “They rave about the kids. So that, to me, is the success. My kids being happy, us being able to work together, that’s the success.”
MICHELLE STANGLER/DAIRY STAR
Natalie Berning stands March 13 at Berning Acres near Dubuque, Illinois. Berning is the crea ve behind connec ng consumers at her 500-cow dairy through farm camps, events and selling cheese.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
The Berning family — Celia (front, from le ), Rhe and Louis; (middle, from le ) Aloysius, Willa and Natalie; (back) Ma — celebrates the last day of farm camp in June 2024 at Berning Acres near East Dubuque, Illinois. This summer will mark the h year of hos ng farm camps for kids.
Another measure of success is providing a meaningful experience for visitors.
“(Visitors) see that our animals are well cared for and know that we are making an impact,” Berning said. “We’re providing a need for people to connect with their farmer and learn how their food is produced.”
The farm camp draws children from all over, including Chicago, California and Minnesota. Some kids stay with their grandparents in the area and get a chance to see dairy farming rst-hand.
Berning also works with the local tourism organizations for Dubuque, Iowa, and Galena.
“When we started, it was a for fun sort of thing,” Berning said. “But we see it growing (since) we are located close to Galena, and they get 1.8 million tourists a year.”
As interest grew, adults started asking if there was a version of farm camp for them. At rst, Berning and her husband thought it was a joke until they realized people were serious. This led them to host special events, including
bachelorette parties.
“We didn’t mean to do that, but we’ll take a group of girls with their cowgirl boots, milk a cow, learn about the dairy industry and have a lot of fun,” Berning said.
One of the farm’s newest ventures is selling its own cheese.
“Cheese sells itself, so it’s super easy,” Berning said. “People want to purchase it because they want to feel connected to their farmer.”
Their co-op, Rolling Hills Dairy Producers Cooperative, began purchasing cheese from production plants and labeling it under the co-op’s name, directly linking it to the farmers. From there, Berning Acres started labeling and selling their own cheese, now offering three varieties. Today, more than half of their farm visitors leave with a package of Berning Acres cheese.
One opportunity has led to another, but the core mission remains the same — education.
“(To) be able to promote agriculture and the dairy industry in a way that they see
rsthand with real people and facts I think is critical,” Berning said. Reecting on the journey,
Berning said the timing was perfect because her kids want to hang out at the farm.
“I found a way to actu-
ally make myself a job and be protable while also being outside here with them,” Berning said.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
A group from the Chicago area visits in May 2024 at Berning Acres near Dubuque, Illinois. The farm a racts visitors from across Illinois and many surrounding states.
Being prepared
By Steve Frericks Stearns County FSA executive director
Often, the difference between success and failure comes down to preparation. Being prepared in agriculture can often make all the difference. If your forage chopper is not serviced and eld-ready before the pending storm on the horizon, it is impossible to get the crop harvested in a timely manner. Missing that window of opportunity means the next cutting will be delayed.
Missing out on U.S. Department of Agriculture or Farm Service Agency program opportunities can have the same effect. We know your time is very valuable. As the spring presents new priorities, we invite you to complete your FSA program or loan tasks now. Your much-deserved time in the tractor does not need to be interrupted because of something that could be accomplished previously.
Please note the deadlines for our current program signups:
— The Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage enrollment period for the 2025 crop year is Jan. 21, 2025, through April 15, 2025.
— The Dairy Margin Coverage enrollment period for the 2025 program year is Jan. 29, 2025, through March 31, 2025.
We invite you to call your local ofce to set up an appointment. This will help us better assist you during your ofce visit. This will help us expedite the signup process. Ask our team about all signature options for conducting your business.
Farm records and other changes
If you are making any changes to your farming operation (land sold/purchased, renting new land or
dropping land) please notify FSA immediately after these changes occur. Updating your records now will save you time when signing up for ARC/PLC, reporting your acres, and ensuring maps are ready. FSA is not notied of these sales by the county recorder’s ofce. In addition, notify FSA if your bank account has changed.
Farm loan
We cannot stress enough that if you need FSA direct loan assistance, please reach out sooner rather than later. Many people are seeing cash ow and balance sheets that are less than ideal. Getting on the list will help ensure you receive the best service available.
Farm stress
We know there is a lot of stress in the ag community right now. If you recognize this stress in your family members or friends, do not hesitate to seek the appropriate help. The Minnesota Farm and Rural Helpline is a free, condential service that provides support for people struggling with stress, anxiety, depression or suicidal thoughts related to farm and rural life. The helpline is available 24/7 and can be reached by calling (833) 600-2670, texting FARMSTRESS to (898) 211 or emailing farmstress@state.mn.us.
The question that everyone is asking currently: as of Monday morning, March 17, 2025, when this was submitted, FSA had nothing new to report on the program known as “Farm Act,” ofcially called E-CAP (Emergency Commodity Assistance Program) other than the news release Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins delivered at Commodity Classic.
Her statement is as follows: On the $10 billion in economic assistance passed by Congress, Secretary Brooke Rollins said, “My team has been working around the clock to stand up this process. Today, I am
proud to announce that the economic assistance program will be called the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program, or E-CAP. Congress gave us 90 days to start distributing the rst $10 billion in economic assistance — and we are on track to begin applications on or before March 20.
“I have asked my team to think creatively about how to develop a streamlined application process. We don’t want to be your bottleneck. In cases where we have information already on le, a pre-lled application will be sent to you. FSA will use the 2024 acreage reporting data you previously led to initiate the application process. There will also be an opportunity for you to provide this information if you missed the window. You will be asked to review the information, sign and return the completed application back to your local FSA service center. We are also developing tools to provide fair and transparent standards for calculating payments.”
On the $20 billion in disaster relief, Secretary Rollins said, “We are simultaneously working on rapid implementation of the $20 billion in disaster assistance due to weather conditions outside your control. Unlike the previous administration, we are not going to delay for an entire year — and gone are the days of progressive factoring. No longer will you be required to hand in your tax returns.”
Please know that your local FSA ofce will provide you with information on these programs as soon as possible.
Farm Service Agency is an equal opportunity lender. Complaints about discrimination should be sent to: Secretary of Agriculture, Washington, D.C., 20250. Visit www.fsa.usda.gov for application forms and updates on USDA programs
ltth
From the industry’s rst large round baler to the rst-of-its-kind self-propelled round baler, Vermeer has been the leader of innovation for the hay and forage industry for 50+ years. Continually introducing innovations that change the way you make hay. Of course, there’s MORE to making
than just baling it. Vermeer has a versatile lineup of hay tools and products for every step of the hay making process — from mowing your elds to feeding your herd. Now through April 30, 2025, quali ed buyers can receive low-rate nancing or cash back on select Vermeer products.
By Jim Mlsna
“Call the re department. Hurry.” Have you ever hollered those words? Many of us have and it isn’t fun. We had several house res early in our farm life, until we realized the chimney was the problem in our old house. One morning, I started frying bacon and then went out to help the trucker who came to pick up a cow, but I forgot to turn off the stove. Luckily, the re department was able to save the house. We had a combine start on re and once it reached the hydraulic lines, it really got hot. Farmers have told me about driving home as fast as they could to put out a re near their feet or under the hood. Spontaneous combustion has also burnt down many barns. People have described nding holes in haymows where a pocket burned but couldn’t get air and died out. That’s a lucky situation. Round bales are the leading cause of spontaneous combustion these days.
Last week, Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin hosted a working display about re prevention and action in Madison. Pittsville Fire Department Chief Jerry Minor was the presenter. He was a source of good information for all farmers.
He asked attendees what they thought is a good re extinguisher. He said the ABC ones are good if they are charged, but that they should be turned upside down every month and shook to break up the powder inside them. Then farmers can be condent that they will work.
Fire extinguishers last 35-40 seconds when the pin is pulled. He emphasized that that’s not much time, so people need to know how to use them. Once an extinguisher has been used, either recharge it or
throw it away.
A construction company in La Crosse had a shop re in February. Video footage from their security system captured the start of the re. Power tool batteries overheated and exploded. Chief Minor said to handle batteries with care, especially damaged batteries. They can be dangerous if anything has punctured them. He also said not to overcharge them and not to put them on timers.”
Other electrical res are common on farms due to old wiring and the fact that box sites are often dirty and dusty. If you experience a re, always shut the power off after calling 9-1-1.
In 2021 we had talked about having our local remen out to walk through the farm and create a plan for emergencies. These volunteers need to know where our fuel and oil tanks are – the same with chemicals. How do we explain where on the farm to go in an emergency? We have more than one cow barn, so how would we tell them which barn? If someone fell in a manure channel, do they know where that is? The list of questions is endless, but in an emergency every second counts. If you live many miles from town, I guarantee the wait is agonizing as you hear the sirens blaring, but can’t yet see re trucks.
We never had those discussions. Then in April 2022, smoke came rolling out of the roof on our large storage shed while I was out in a eld. Peter and Jaime also noticed it at the same time. This shed had just received a semi load of oats hulls and a load of ground corn. It also had 150 big square bales of straw, $100,000 worth of seed corn (which burns very well), a 15-foot no till drill, three skid loader and various other small attachments. But the biggest danger was that the re was only 50 feet away from our shop and all the power for the farm goes through the shop’s electrical room.
We need to thank the ve re departments who responded to our emergency with over 50 guys. Two things really helped that day: One was an east wind that kept the heat away from the house. The second
Editorial disclaimer: The views expressed by our columnists are the opinions and thoughts of the author and do not reect the opinions and views of
was the Hillsboro Fire Department’s new ladder truck. Our re was its rst job. One fellow perched on that ladder for three hours and kept the heat away from the shop and some of our feed bins. The plastic bins looked like toasted cheese by the end of the ordeal. When I called for an excavator, the operator already had it loaded – news travels fast in small town America. Since the re started while Jacqui was at the high school coordinating the FFA banquet, we ended up having plenty of food for the remen and additional helpers.
We live six miles from a water hydrant. Many, many trucks were hauling water that day. Chief Minor brought up an interesting idea: Maybe we could create rural hydrants out of runoff ponds or streams or lakes. It wouldn’t take a lot of time to get these hydrants operational and we could have clean water for the re pumps.
Just as access to water is important, so is planning and prevention. My longtime friend Dr. Andy always preached: “Proper prior planning prevents poor performance.” Most res are preventable. Ours started from a skid loader parked inside two hours earlier. Was the radiator clean? Was it parked in straw? We don’t know. Our custom harvester lost his Claas to re recently; now he blows it off and out every day it is used.
Finally, we can help our local re departments plan. They need farm people who can help understand situations quicker from their experiences. Could you help?
AGRICULTURE IS YOUR BUSINESS... and ours
Jennifer Klaphake
Yellowstone ramblings
Drive west, and the corn and soybean elds gradually give way to wheat and milo, which gives way to rangeland and cattle, which gives way to sagebrush and the occasional bug-eyed antelope. Keep going, and you’ll eventually nd a place where it appears that hell hath boiled over.
Welcome to the super volcano that’s known as Yellowstone.
Some years ago, my wife and I undertook an expedition to Yellowstone. Why? “Because we’re adventuresome” or “We like to learn new things” would be good answers, but in truth, I was inspired by the Yogi Bear cartoons I watched as a kid.
FIBERGLASS FENCING • GATES • FREESTALLS • FEED RAIL • FEED LOTS
New additive in our paint now prevents & protects against the growth of mold & mildew.
Fiberglass freestalls offer a heightened level of comfort which can lead to an increase in milk production!
NEW PRODUCTS:
• All Solid Rail Fencing has a 20 year UV coating to prevent slivers, Colors available
• Show Fencing & Pasture fencing
• Cattle Panels & Continuous Fencing
• 1’’ & 1-1/4 Electric Fence Post UV Protected
• 13% Chrome Post for Head Locks & Feed Rail
• Guard Rail and Fiberglass posts.
• Lifetime warranty on our fiberglass products from rusting and rotting
“We installed freestalls from TJ’s Fencing in our new expansion freestall barn. I really enjoyed the durability and longevity of the freestals and gates in my old barn. I will never install a steel post again after using their posts since they will never rust. They are also reasonably priced compared to other options.”
KG4 Farms, Ridgeway, IA
“I have used fiberglass rods from TJ’s Fencing for my pasture fencing for five years. I like how they are durable and nice and solid. I can also tie the high tensile wire right to the posts.”
Jordan Meyer, Caledonia, MN
“I have fiberglass freestalls and my milk production has gone up since we installed them. We love the fiberglass freestalls! I have cows standing in the morning because all the fiberglass stalls are full.”
Steve Kaiser Little Falls, MN
was stopped by an elderly gentleman who asked if he’d missed the eruption. I said it had just nished.
“Was it worth it?” the old guy asked. I said it was. Besides, how many times do you get to sit and watch a scheduled geyser? He decided to hang around for the next eruption, so I can truthfully say I sent a geezer to the geyser. We decided to drive around the park to see what else we could see. Wildlife, especially bears, was high on our list.
By Jerry Nelson Columnist
After white-knuckling through two mountain ranges, we nally arrived at Yellowstone. As we neared Lake Yellowstone, my wife wrinkled her nose and glanced at me accusingly. “It wasn’t me,” I protested.
For once, it wasn’t. The park’s volcanism causes many areas to emit a sulfuric odor. Yellowstone smells farty.
Yellowstone is a land of steam and snow. At the end of May, snow was still thick in the high country while steam rose from the shores of frozen Lake Yellowstone.
Steam pours from random openings in the earth, as if someone is running a humungous underground clothes dryer. These are called fumaroles, from the Latin “fuma,” meaning “really stinky,” and “role,” meaning “hole in the ground.”
There are also geysers. More than half of the planet’s geysers are in Yellowstone, including the most famous of them all, Old Faithful.
The Old Faithful site is highly civilized, featuring a historic log hotel, paved roads, T-shirt vendors and so on. A section of road had just been upgraded, and steam wafted from the new roadcut.
Old Faithful erupts approximately every 90 minutes. We had time, so we waited on the benches provided by the National Park Service.
We heard voices from all over the world. People were speaking French, Russian and Italian. I chatted with folks who were from Germany and saw others who hailed from India and Eastern Asia. It was as if the UN had convened in the midst of the steamy, smelly wilderness.
Old Faithful doesn’t go off with a bang. Its eruption builds slowly, in ts and starts, hufng and chufng and burping puffs of steam like a balky locomotive. As with many highly anticipated events, it was over much too soon.
Strolling from the viewing area, I
It wasn’t long before we encountered a herd of bison. They lumbered slowly across the road as if they owned it. We weren’t about to challenge the horned herbivores’ perception.
Cars clustered at the roadside marked the site of several grazing elk. The elk were so accustomed to being photographed that I wouldn’t have been surprised if a tourist posed with his arm around an elk’s neck.
We soon became adept at spotting wildlife. The main spoor we followed was clumps of cars parked at the roadside. Another useful sign was photographers who had miniature Hubble telescopes bolted to their cameras.
We stopped at one such cluster and were treated to the sight of a lone wolf nonchalantly loping along in the distance.
I spoke to the guy next to me and learned that he was Mike Hassell, a volunteer ranger at the park. I asked him about Yellowstone’s wolf population.
“We have nine packs and about 120 wolves,” he said. “That’s down from about 300 some years ago. Before the wolves were reintroduced, the park had around 14,000 elk; it now has roughly 10,000. The slow and the stupid elk are no longer with us.”
Hiking up to the yawning basin that’s known as Excelsior Geyser Crater, my glasses suddenly fogged over. This had nothing to do with the fact that I was walking briskly uphill at 8,000 feet of altitude. A cloud of steam had billowed over me, exposing me directly to the heat of Earth’s beating heart. I now know how it feels to be a steamed carrot. We never saw any bears, which was a huge disappointment. They must have been out in the forest, doing whatever it is that bears do in the woods.
My guess is they were enjoying picnic baskets.
Jerry Nelson is a recovering dairy farmer from Volga, South Dakota. He and his wife, Julie, have two sons and live on the farm where Jerry’s greatgrandfather homesteaded over 110 years ago. Feel free to email him at jerry.n@ dairystar.com.
Editorial disclaimer: The views expressed by our columnists are the opin- ions and thoughts of the author and do not reect the opinions and views of Dairy Star staff and ownership.
Effective y control needs to start early
Parasites and insects can negatively impact dairy cattle performance and protability. Now is the time to develop your strategy to limit their impact on your farm.
Something to Ruminate On
First, let’s briey discuss mange and lice. These bothersome parasites are present year-round and build during cold weather. They are most often found on cattle necks, backs, hips and tailheads. Controlling these parasites enhances productivity primarily by improving cow comfort and the behaviors associated with it. Treat all cattle on the property at the same time if possible, choosing a time when they are not stressed or in poor condition. If groups must be treated separately, they should be kept apart to ensure no contact between treated and untreated groups.
By Barry Visser Nutritionist
Treatment programs often contain a general endectocide to cover both external parasites, such as mange and lice, and internal parasites. Consult your veterinarian or herd health professional for specic recommendations.
Now on to ies, which are a nuisance to farm workers and animals, transmit disease and cause signicant economic loss. Flies cause livestock to expend extra energy by fending them off instead of resting, eating and milking. Fly control is critically important to all dairy operations to reduce the spread of disease and improve animal comfort, resulting in decreased stress and greater efciency of growth or production.
In the past, insecticides often were the sole strategy to manage ies in dairy and livestock barns, but this single-tactic approach can aggravate y populations’ resistance to insecticides and inadvertently destroy natural enemies of ies. Today, farms are suc-
cessfully combining careful use of pesticides with other integrated pest management practices.
Fly identication and biology
Identifying the type of ies on your dairy and understanding their lifecycle is key to developing an effective IPM plan. Common ies found on dairies include houseies, horn ies, stable ies and face ies. Houseies are the most abundant around livestock operations but cause the least irritation. Both horn and stable ies are bloodsucking insects and can be very painful to their hosts. Although house and face ies don’t suck blood, they do spread disease.
According to Purdue University research, a y can complete an entire generation — from egg to adult — within as few as 10 days. All ies pass through four life stages: egg, larva (maggot), pupa and adult. During its lifecycle, which is about 30 days, a housey female can lay up to 1,000 eggs. These eggs are deposited on moist manure or any type of moist, rotten or decaying organic matter. The eggs hatch in 10-12 hours, and the maggots move into the wet manure. Fly maggots mature in 4-5 days under warm, moist conditions. Pupation occurs in the drier parts of manure, with the adult ies emerging in 3-5 days. Although capable of movement up to several miles, houseies normally stay within 0.5-0.75 miles of their breeding sites.
Sanitation
The largest economic return for y control is effective cleanliness and sanitation. Approximately 90% of a dairy’s ies will develop in less than 10% of its physical area. Removal and disposal of wasted feed, spilled milk or manure will go a long way in reducing y populations. Eliminating tall weeds around facilities can reduce attractiveness to ies, especially stable ies. In some cases, alternative bedding sources, such as sand in calf hutches, can be considered during the summer months.
Feed an insect growth regulator
The key to any y management strategy is to start
early in the season before y populations become a problem. An insect growth regulator is an additive that can be added to calf and heifer feeds as well as feed for any adult cows in housing situations where manure accumulates over time. This generally starts in early to mid-April in most of the Midwest. IGRs will not get rid of current ies but can go a long way in preventing future ies. Your nutritionist can assist with specic larvicide recommendations. The larvicide diubenzuron is the most common IGR used in dairy cattle and effectively prevents the four most irritating ies from developing and emerging in the manure. Diubenzuron breaks the y lifecycle by inhibiting the synthesis of the bug’s body wall (exoskeleton), resulting in death before the larvae can become adult ies. Begin feeding Diubenzuron 30 days before ies appear and continue until cold weather restricts y activity in the fall.
Additional y control strategies
Residual premise spray is often benecial throughout the summer to kill ies or deter other ies from coming into the dairy. Baiting or trapping ies is benecial in certain locations. Large surface area y control tape may aid in reducing the number of ies in conned spaces. Parasitic wasps have also been used effectively to help control the pest y population. Lastly, don’t forget about pour-on y control. This is perhaps the best option for controlling ies in a pasture situation. Resistance to chemicals is a concern; however, new products continue to come on the market.
Moderate to intense y pressure can be stressful to dairy cattle in many ways and result in decreased prot. Flies are attracted to dairies due to the large amounts of feeding and breeding sites that exist on any operation. Cleanliness in these high-risk areas is a great place to start controlling ies, but this alone is not enough. Complementary y control programs — such as spraying, baiting/trapping and larvicide feeding — will go a long way toward reducing y populations and positively impacting productivity. Barry Visser is a nutritionist for Vita Plus.
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Best laid plans
It appeared everything was falling in place as I checked off my to-do list at a blistering pace. The relief milkers were ready to handle all the cattle chores. Check. Our neighbor boy was eager to come over and feed the calves between his own calf chores. Check. There were no cattle due to calve while we were gone. Check. Emergency numbers were displayed in the barn, just in case. Check.
I switched over to my personal check list. Mark’s dress shirts were pressed. Our formal clothes were in hanging bags, clinging to the edge of the closet door. I had my travel activity bag packed with books to read and notebooks to write down ideas for new adventures. Check. Check. Check.
We had been praying for clear skies and dry roads as we ventured to Madison, Wisconsin, for Michael and Rachel’s wedding at the end of February. You never know for sure what kind of weather you’ll be
dealing with, but it appeared God was answering our prayers. Everything seemed to be falling into place, just like we planned.
Woah, stop the bus. Like we planned? Have you ever heard the story about who’s in control? If you want to make God laugh, just tell him what your plans are. Despite all our best-laid plans, it may not be the direction God had in mind.
I created my checklist to get me through a very busy wedding week. I didn’t want to drop the ball between all our commitments. Our county American Dairy Association had a booth at the Farm Show on Tuesday and Wednesday that week. I worked both days, serving ice cream and laughter to people who stopped by. It is always so much fun talking with the different people who wander by the booth. They always seem glad to talk as you hand them ice cream cups and other dairy items.
With summer heat approaching, maintaining health, production and growth is vital to being profitable. BOVINE ACCELLYTE II is a specialized electrolyte for periods of stress, rehydration and pre-hydration during events such as:
•Heat stress•Calving•Illness
•Shipping/receiving
•Feed changes
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one sharing on those days. I must have picked up a bug of some sort. By Thursday morning, I couldn’t crawl back into bed fast enough after feeding my calves. I felt miserable. I thought I could just sleep it off and would be ready to travel the next day.
Jackson was able to come over and feed calves that evening for me, as I tried to build back my strength. I remember yelling out the front door to his mom to thank her for bringing him over a day early to help. It was 4:30 p.m. and time for Jeopardy. The next thing I remember, it was after 1 a.m., and I was in a hospital room.
By Natalie Schmitt Columnist
After milking that night, Mark found me unconscious on the kitchen oor between the island and the counter. My left eye was swollen shut, ringed by colors of deep purple and blue. Poor guy was having ashbacks of 20 years earlier when he found me passed out on the bathroom oor. At least he instinctively knew to call for an ambulance this time.
What we have concluded is that I passed out due to a combination of low blood pressure, high fever and dehydration. I also ended up testing positive for COVID. To add insult to injury, the nose piece of my glasses busted my nose on impact. The best news out of all of this: I wasn’t in any pain. At this point, I’m taking all miracles, large and small.
Despite all this bad news, there are still blessings. Becca grew up across the eld from us. She and Katie are best friends. She grew up to be an emergency room nurse at our hospital and was working that night. She guided us through all the hospital stuff and got me settled into a room. She knew Mark was anxious about me and the wedding. In God’s perfect timing, Becca had that weekend off and volunteered to take care of me at home so Mark could attend the wedding.
Everything else just seemed to fall into place. The wedding was perfect. I was able to watch a live stream of the ceremony. The best part is that my feet didn’t hurt because I didn’t have to break in a new pair of shoes. I could relax on the oor with an ice pack on my face and just chill out as the kids made their vows to one another. I did miss a great meal, but I was still able to “dance” with Michael during the mother/son dance as my sister FaceTimed me as we all danced together. There wasn’t a dry eye among us.
BOVINE ACCELLYTE II helps to promote feed and water intake, and therefore, restores electrolyte functions and water retention to prevent losses due to dehydration.
It is strange how all this “new” technology is so commonplace in our lives. We break down in the elds and can FaceTime the repair shop or parts guy to get back up and running. We can pin an exact location for direct fertilizer deliveries without even getting off the tractor. We can always have an “eye” on what our cattle have been up to with their activity monitors. It’s kind of nice how this new way of doing things can give us new opportunities to keep our jobs moving forward and stay connected to those who aren’t so close.
Even with these setbacks in all my planning, I’ll still keep trying to map out my steps. I’ll just try to make sure I check in with the one who has the master plan so I can follow his best-laid plan.
As their four children pursue dairy careers off the family farm, Natalie and Mark Schmitt started an adventure of milking registered Holsteins just because they like good cows on their farm north of Rice, Minnesota.
Just Thinking Out Loud
2024 successes of Midwest Dairy Foods Research Center
In 2024, the Midwest Dairy Foods Research Center experienced another successful and productive year. We completed and implemented our 2024 strategic plan, actively engaging stakeholders to align our initiatives with our mission: to develop dairy scientists and innovate dairy technologies, ingredients, and products through industrydriven collaborative research, thereby driving regional and global opportunities for Midwest dairy farmers. This mission was accomplished through the collaborative efforts of principal investigators from six member universities, graduate students, industry partners, Midwest Dairy and Dairy Management Inc.
The dairy and food science department at South Dakota State University welcomed new leadership under Dr. Londa Nwadike, department head/professor, David A. Thompson Endowed, with whom we have already established an effective working relationship. At SDSU, Dr. Prafulla Salunke, associate director of MDFRC, has made remarkable progress in expanding his research program and strengthening industry collaborations. He successfully conducted another year of the membrane ltration short course for the dairy industry, attracting 26 industry professionals. Additionally, he partnered with Dr. Maristela Rovai to organize a workshop on avian inuenza, attended by 60 dairy farmers, to address critical concerns for dairy producers.
Under the mentorship of Dr. Maneesha Mohan, ve students earned awards in the products judging competition across various categories, while two students received recognition in the new product development competition. Additionally, a team from the University of Minnesota secured rst place in the new product development competition organized by DMI at the national level. Their innovative creation, Yay-tost, is a creamy Norwegian-style, brown, whey-based cheese spread that is rich in protein, contains 3g of dietary ber and is an excellent source of calcium. Dr. Jayendra Amamcharla coached the team.
The pilot plant facilities, including the Institute for Dairy Ingredient Processing, Davis Dairy Plant at SDSU and The Joseph J. Warthesen Food Processing Center at the University of Minnesota, have continued fostering strong partnerships with regional dairy companies. These facilities remain essential in supporting industry-driven research and development. A signicant milestone in 2024 was the appointment of a
new dairy faculty member at Iowa State University, following the retirement of Dr. Stephanie Clark. This new hire, Dr. Dylan Liu, ensures the continuity of robust dairy processing education and research efforts at ISU. Dr. Liu has expertise in commercial manufacturing processes, food safety, production management and education.
The 2024 spring research planning meeting, hosted by the University of Minnesota at St. Paul, welcomed over 60 representatives from the dairy industry and member universities. Industry partners outlined their research priorities and engaged in meaningful discussions with faculty members, aligning with the newly implemented strategic plan. This engagement led to a record 21 preproposals — three more than the previous year — reecting a growing interest in research initiatives. Of these, 15 were invited to present at the annual meeting in Minnesota. Following rigorous evaluation, the advisory committee approved six new projects, bringing the total number of ongoing MDFRC-funded research projects to 20.
Lastly, six MDFRC students graduated in 2024 and successfully transitioned into the dairy and food industry, underscoring the center’s role in workforce development. Furthermore, our research impact continues to grow, as evidenced by the publication of 40 peer-reviewed articles in international journals.
I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all the individuals and organizations who continue to support MDFRC, especially dairy farmers whose unwavering commitment and collaboration play a vital role in our successes and the advancement of dairy science and innovation. Your support enables us to engage in meaningful research, allowing us to address the challenges faced by dairy farmers and to explore new opportunities. Together, we are fostering a vibrant community of dairy scientists and industry professionals, dedicated to pushing the boundaries of what is possible in dairy technologies and products. Thank you for being an integral part of our journey and for contributing to the MDFRC’s growth and success. I look forward to continuing this important work together.
Dr. Jay Amamcharla Midwest Dairy
