The 2015 Pennsylvania Dairy Summit, hosted by The Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania and the Center for Dairy Excellence, will be here next week. Registrations are rolling in and many producers plan to be at the February 4-5 event located at the Lancaster Marriot in Penn Square, 25 South Queen St., Lancaster, Pa 17603.This year, multiple breakouts are planned as part of smaller sessions that will dive into specific topics focused on herd management, crop production and other areas of the business.
Here is a list of the breakouts planned for this year's Dairy Summit:
- Diving into the Corn Silage Trial Results: Virginia Ishler will share research conducted at Penn State to identify which varieties of corn performed the best as forages and what best management practices ultimately provided the best forages for the dairy herd.
- Cracking the Consumer Code: Moving Moms, Millennials and Foodies from
- Controversy to Consensus: In this session, Charlie Arnot, who leads the Center for Food Integrity, will drill down further to discuss how to talk about GMOs, antibiotics and other tough topics.
- Bulletproofing Your Balance Sheet: Lonnie Wells, an associate with the Russell Consulting Group from Iowa, will help dairy producers think through the best management practices to bullet proof their balance sheet from a downturn in the marketplace.
- Keeping Cows going Through the Transition: Daryl Nydam, an animal science professor with Cornell University, will share strategies for helping dairy cows move successfully through the pre-calving and early-fresh stages of her lactation.
- Making Sure Your Farm Is Safe: With increasing scrutiny on dairy farm safety protocol, Andy Young with Cargill Animal Nutrition will share protocols to consider as you develop a safety plan for your operation.
- Incorporating Robotic Milking Into Your Dairy: Jim Salfer, a dairy extension educator with the University of Minnesota, will look at the benefits of robotic milking systems and how to evaluate whether that investment will work within your dairy system.
- Balancing No-Till with Manure Application: Jeff Graybill, an agronomy educator with Penn State Extension will provide strategies on balancing no-till farming practices with manure application on dairy farm operations in Pennsylvania.
- Finding the Right Mix of Grass Forages for Your Dairy: Listen to three dairy producers share their best management practices for growing and harvesting a mix of grasses to supplement corn silage as the primary forage in dairy rations.
- Understanding Why Cows Die: Franklyn Garry, an extension veterinarian with Colorado State University, will share a look at common causes of mortality in dairy cattle and how to establish protocols to limit losses on the farm.
- Communicating and Working Through Farm Transitions: Mike McGrann will share strategies to overcome pitfalls in communicating and working through generational transitions.
More program details can be found by visiting www.padairysummit.org. Please call 814-355-2467 or email info@padairysummit.org for additional questions and information. Walk-in's registrants are welcomed.
PDMP is a not-for-profit organization of progressive, positive-minded dairy producers and agribusiness leaders working together to advance the dairy industry in Pennsylvania through improved productivity and profitability. Programs offered by PDMP are designed by dairy producers for dairy producers. For more information on PDMP, visit their website at www.pdmp.org. 
The Center for Dairy Excellence is a non-profit organization initiated by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture in 2004. Bringing together people from more than 40 different dairy organizations in Pennsylvania, the center's mission is to enhance the profitability of the dairy industry by empowering people, creating partnerships, and increasing the availability and use of resources. Learn more about the center at www.centerfordairyexcellence.org.