ONTOWA FARMS INC.

Ryan and Lori Martin

Q& A

1. What steps do you take to ensure consistent, high-quality milk production on your farm?

It starts with clean, healthy, happy cows. After that, it comes down to the details like prestripping cows in the preparation for milking, dipping before and after milking, and clean housing and fixing problems with the milking system as soon as they appear.

2. What is the most important factor that influences milk quality on-farm?

The most important factor is consistency: we perform the same prep, same milking procedures, and clean housing all of the time to help drive quality milk production.

3. What is your message to consumers about the quality of Canadian milk?

Farmers work hard to produce a quality product and take pride in the job we do.

4. What does this award mean to you?

We are proud of this award and hope many more dairy farmers can reach this level of milk quality.

5. What else do you want people to know about your farm?

Once you manage to get your quality numbers to this level, it’s easier to maintain this degree of quality.

“The Martins are 100 per cent dedicated to the dairy industry and to the consumer, and they believe we must provide the highest quality milk possible to build the market; we owe it to the consumer and our processors. Their farm is always kept clean and tidy and preventative maintenance is a priority as is keeping the milking and cooling equipment in tip-top shape. Issues are fixed immediately and they often ask questions about how to improve. They are always looking to get better.” —Paul Norris, FSR