Last week, I attended the National Holstein Convention in Virginia, and so did over 1,000 Holstein enthusiasts from across the United States. The four-day event was full of meetings, tours, junior competitions,...
This past weekend, Fort Atkinson Wis., the home of Hoard's Dairyman, hosted the second annual Fort Atkinson Half-Marathon, with over 500 participants. Once again, the Barnyard Clovers, a local 4-H club...
We've talked about it before (see our blog, Wars we wage in dairy and agriculture and our editorial from the June 2011 issue, Keep chocolate milk in schools), but, like heat in the summer, the issue of...
The FFA is one of the nation's premier youth organizations and agriculture is blessed to have the organization training future leaders in our industry. The Washington Leadership Conference, one of the...
Our well-respected dairy products got special recognition when the USDA released its new, MyPlate nutrition education tool. The MyPlate program replaces the Food Pyramid which had been the government's...
Western herds' net income ranged from $89 to $252 per head last year, reports Moore, Stephens, Wurth, Frazer, and Torbet, Certified Public Accountants and Consultants. That compares to $585 to $962 losses...
Earlier this month, we were introduced to Anna Gibson, a Washington State University student who is working on a dairy in Tasmania, an Australian island. She shares stories from her first week "down under."...
My hometown has a population of about 5,000 people, and it is the largest town in my county. There were almost 450 students in my high school, and the surrounding schools had fewer students and were located...
In recent years, it seems that more opinions have given credence to the notion that raising high-producing cows in freestall barns, storing manure in lagoons, and storing silage in bunkers are all better...
An anniversary only comes around once a year, and Hoard's Dairyman has celebrated plenty of them! This year marks the 126th anniversary of the publication. After great fanfare with our 125th anniversary...
Will the 2012 Farm Bill actually be written and passed in 2012? What will it look like? That was the focus of the discussion at the opening session of the National Dairy Producers Conference in Omaha,...
Milk production for 2012 is forecast to climb as the decline in milk cows is expected to be offset by growth in milk per cow, according to USDA's World Supply and Demand Estimates released yesterday. Although...
As we've said before, farmers, industry professionals, and educators need to continue lobbying for dairy as much as we can. School teachers, supermarkets, and senators alike need to be reminded of just...
It may not seem like spring weather, but spring is here! That means it's time to clean, replace, and check on your equipment and facilities. David Bray at the University of Florida provided several items...
Under ideal conditions, corn will emerge in 10 days or less after planting. But, the cool, wet weather throughout much of the Corn Belt during April has been anything but ideal. Given these cooler soil...
With the end of the school year rapidly approaching, college is beckoning for many students. A new location, new routine, and new people can make college quite an adjustment. We asked a few students for...
When commodity prices shoot up, growers face tougher decisions about what to plant. They have to consider their own situations in terms of crop rotations, soil and moisture conditions, recent yields, seed...
Whole Foods Market is phasing in a new five-step animal welfare rating program for all chicken, beef, and pork products (Click here for their animal welfare page). At the least, all animal products must...
New USDA analysis shows that farmers are receiving less of each retail dollar spent. Numbers in 2008 showed a 20 percent share, but new data cuts that number to 12 percent of the food dollar going to those...
The rate of childhood injury on farms and ranches has dropped by nearly 60 percent since 1998. Officials at the Marshfield Clinic point out this is an encouraging sign that research and public awareness...
