Little things can be overlooked when preparing for showmanship. I attend several youth dairy shows throughout the year as a spectator, but participated in dozens during my junior years. Showmanship is...
Cash grain farmers have experienced one of the best financial runs in the history of American dairy farming. How much longer will it last? For those growing corn, soybeans, wheat and other small grains,...
Some are already gone. More will follow. The big question is, how many can be saved? The greatest milk-producing machine the U.S. dairy industry has ever seen is breaking down. Doomsday feed prices and...
Does it still benefit farmers or does it discourage product investment and innovation? I don't have the answer, but because exports now account for more than 13 percent of all milk solids made in the U.S....
Cows will sacrifice feeding time in order to lie down when both resources are limited. There are a variety of reasons that can lead to overstocking in our freestalls. While it may be a short-term solution,...
Producers have options for identifying ketotic cows, but some methods are better than others. Cows that do not adapt to the negative energy balance experienced after calving are candidates for developing...
Having a heifer enterprise won't make sense for every operation. Most dairies have three enterprises on-farm: cows, cropping and heifers. Within this subset, the cost of raising replacements also accounts...
State Assembly Ag Committee votes 6-0 in support of better parity with FMMO values. May Day was a good day for California dairy producers – and an unusually crowded one for members of the State...
It took an NFL stadium to contain the excitement Minnesota youth had for the Fuel Up to Play 60 Program. It's not every day you get to meet an NFL athlete, especially as a 6th grader. But if you're in...
Students write essays to connect farming with their food. This spring, Wisconsin's Ag in the Classroom program held an essay contest. Fourth and fifth grade students from across the state wrote one-page...
The drought has been hard on pastureland, so extra attention should be given to prepare paddocks for this growing season. The drought that affected much of the United States last summer will likely have...
A moderating drought in Oceania has caused prices to drop slightly from the recent highs. However, tighter than expected global supplies should keep dairy product prices stronger than originally expected....
Harris Poll finds consumers are skeptical and less willing to pay for "green" goods. It turns out that most U.S. consumers are smarter about food-buying choices than many people in agriculture may have...
My travels in Australia last month included a visit to a dairy farm and milk processing facility. One-hundred-twenty Guernsey cows grazed the pastured hills in Maleny, in the state of Queensland, Australia,...
Whey, the liquid by-product of cheese making that is often disposed of as waste, is being made into vodka by a large-herd dairy farmer in England. No kidding. Naturally, the mere fact he is doing it has...
Spreaders and other implements are beginning to hit fields across the country as we begin the 2013 cropping season. But have you taken the time to evaluate your nutrient recording keeping system lately?
Earlier this month, I attended the Royal Easter Show held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The dairy show is part of a larger event, similar to a very large state fair, with cattle, agriculture and...
Dairy cows struggle to maintain normal blood calcium levels at the start of each lactation. Colostrum and milk both use a large amount of calcium, and the cow must suddenly adjust for this rapid nutrient...
Can you hear a quiet question floating in the spring breezes: "Is it time to lock in feed?" With grain markets down, milk futures up, and crop outlooks rosy - not to mention bad memories that are still...
While genomics is new to Ayrshire breeders this April, and it has gradually made inroads in Brown Swiss circles, the DNA-based science has completely transformed how we mate and market Holsteins and Jerseys
