Steady growth in the number of Jersey herds in the U.S., particularly among large dairy owners in the West, naturally leads to the question of how do they do financially? It's not an easy question to answer,...
I grew up listening to my grandpa talk about the "good ol' days" when computers did not exist and cellphones were a figment of the imagination. For better or worse, I have never known agriculture without...
"Although corn prices dropped dramatically during the fourth quarter of 2013, most other feeds rose in price which kept more profitable bottom lines just out of reach," reported the Frazer LLP certified...
Milk producers made tangible progress last year in their uphill battle to recover from the financial disaster of 2008-09, according to summary data from the largest dairy accounting firm in the country
Across the industry, there is one struggle upon which we can unite. Regardless of your chosen production method or location in the country, margins have been tight as of late
For a good part of my childhood and most of my high school and college years, I have been the employee at my parents' 150-cow dairy in Valley Center, Kan. Like most farm children, I headed up calf care
Running any family business is challenging. The complexities of farming only add to that challenge. As with every business there are different personalities to work with, emotions that run high
Wisconsin is known for its cheese. In fact, a good friend of mine just told me last week "a Wisconsin-style pub just opened" near her apartment in New York City. It's serving "Sheboygan bratwurst, fried...
Dairy producers are living a milk price dream right now, even though scars from the nightmare five years ago are not fully healed. It's a bust-to-boom turnaround of staggering proportions that producers...
When combined with the five slip-ups below, fluctuating temperatures and wet spring conditions can often lead to an uptick in the rate of scours and respiratory illness we see on farm, noted Sam Leadley...
Still a long road ahead of us. By Patti Hurtgen, Hoard's Dairyman Online Media Manager Based on 2014 data, 29 percent of American food consumers think food companies are trustworthy. With 44 percent neutral...
It's shaping up to be an expensive summer for hay in the West. By mid-April, prices for supreme and premium quality alfalfa were already over $300 per ton in some of the region's largest dairy states,...
Life does truly go full circle. Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to be on the speaking docket with Scott Armbrust, D.V.M., at the Livestock Genetics Export Seminar in Madison, Wis
We've been indoctrinated with the five C's to give calves their best possible start. Colostrum tops this list, followed by calories, cleanliness, comfort and consistency. Despite the order we've all been...
April is National Grilled Cheese Month. Just the thought of warm melting cheese on hot buttered toast stimulates the taste buds. Delighted customers foster the continued consumption of dairy products....
"SNP chips are information powerhouses," says Tami Smith with Neogen Corporation. Smith addressed the audience at the Dairy Calf and Heifer Association's annual conference last week. A SNP (pronounced...
Record milk prices give milk producers a financial opportunity that is simply too good to ignore – dry pen and hospital pen cooling. They're no-brainer investments whose benefits touch every area...
If you were raised on a tie stall dairy, you quickly learned that a cow's appetite dropped well before her milk yield showed signs of slowing. As our industry has transitioned from this one-on-one setup,...
With spring approaching, runoff concerns come to mind for many dairy farmers around the country. Managing or redirecting the water that could run to or through manure storage facilities and confined animal...
Thirty years ago, dairy representatives wanted a way to promote the positive image of the industry. Their ideas brought forth the Northeast Dairy Farm Beautification Program. At that time it included the...
