Below are the featured articles from recent issues of Hoard's Dairyman.


July 15 2014
it may not be the leading cause of improved milk production, but behavioral research in Europe has shown that cows that listen to music produce more milk. While it remains a relatively unstudied field,...
July 15 2014
The Class III futures market expects $18 prices in early 2015. May's Class III price announcement of $22.67 per hundredweight was just the start of what is likely to be more cuts. Announcement of the $1.74...
July 15 2014
We recently heard a presentation from a nutritionist in one of America's largest school districts who was struggling to comply with USDA's school cafeteria requirements. After listening to her discuss...
June 15 2014
Despite our growing ability to find a needle in the "foodborne illness" haystack, as a whole, food safety continues to show steady improvement. Foodborne illnesses reported to the Centers for Disease Control...
June 15 2014
Will today's record milk prices lead to new price lows? The billion dollar question every dairyman would love to know: how long will these historical milk prices last? In April, USDA announced Class III...
June 15 2014
In determining how to employ margin insurance, understanding the premium cost relative to the expected payout for your dairy farm business will generally be the critical driver affecting coverage level...
May 25 2014
While dairymen do not like rising feed and protein prices, it must be recognized that many of the same world export markets that are currently driving up protein and grain costs are the same markets that...
May 25 2014
Climate prediction models can help farmers plan ahead and work to reduce the potential impacts a changing environment will have on the dairy industry
May 25 2014
Genomics was a large focus at the Advancing Dairy Cattle Genetics workshop this past February in Phoenix, Ariz. The issue of bias in genomic evaluations was not on the official agenda, but it was discussed...
May 10 2014
Rising retail prices for meat, milk and other staples have become routine leads in many media reports in recent months. While it's true that food costs have gone up slightly, lost in every story we've...
May 10 2014
Heat abatement is not just for the milking herd. Dry cows that are cooled are healthier, breed back sooner and produce more milk. Heat stress has substantial impacts on milk yield during lactation
May 10 2014
Wide windrows are routinely recommended for hay silage, but a drive through farm country during forage harvest season still finds many narrow windrows
April 25 2014
Facing mounting resource pressure, can California dairymen rise to the challenge, or will they continue to disappear? Kansas already requires dairies that pump more than 15 acre-feet of water to put meters...
April 25 2014
Even though the body of scientific evidence backing GMOs is overwhelming, humans more easily relate to emotions, not facts. With the name "genetically modified organism" identifying the GMO moniker, all...
April 25 2014
Walmart staff were amazed to learn that, at 300 cows, the Anglins' herd size is twice the national average. They had a perception that most dairy farms were much
April 10 2014
Farm milk prices and margins were surprisingly strong this past winter. As we head into spring, prices may weaken, as they often do, as milk production marches toward its seasonal peak. Even so, prices...
April 10 2014
Agronomists say that for all the plant growth you see above ground, there is an equivalent root mass found underneath the soil's surface supplying plants with life-giving nutrients. This living, breathable...
April 10 2014
China and India's practices leapfrog a generation Farmers in the world's two most populous countries are updating production practices at a rapid pace. Even so, this modernization effort isn't without...
March 25 2014
Recently, there have been a lot of comments, papers and seminars using the general phrase "Precision Farming." We have all marveled at the global positioning satellite (GPS) technology that was introduced...
March 25 2014
Genetics, genomics and good cow sense all garnered attention at a recent national genetics workshop. The Genetic Workshop not only included discussions on breeding better cows, but attendees also brainstormed...