Sometime in the next two weeks or so – the deadline is September 1 – the U.S. Department of Agriculture will issue final details about how the 2014 Farm Bill's voluntary Dairy Margin Protection...
While all the research conducted by the world's animal scientists is geared towards building a better agricultural system, it's important for everyone to remember that ultimately our number one goal is...
Comfortable cows or easily maintained manure systems. It seems like many dairy producers feel they must choose between one or the other. Sand has a strong reputation for enhancing cow comfort and lowering...
Water quality is paramount to cow health. "My cows are dying. What is going on?" sobbed the 65-year-old dairy producer as his cracked hands cradled his cheeks and covered his swollen eyes. "They calve,...
The Commercial Herd Award recognizes the top herd in the nation for Energy Corrected Milk. The herd must complete over 50 lactations during the year. Hoard's Dairyman Farm completed 147 records in 2013...
A field covered in black soil looks good, but there's much more to soil quality than what meets the eye. Soil testing can help farmers properly manage nutrients, saving both money and the environment....
It's that feeling of hope. The red-carrier Holstein (carrying one copy of the recessive red gene) was bred to a Red and White bull (carrying two copies of the red coat color gene). There was a 50-50 chance...
Gone are the days where every youth at a dairy event resides on a farm. There was a time when nearly every youth showing at a fair, competing in dairy judging or competing in quiz bowl lived and worked...
If robots are the next evolution of milking cows on a large scale, then the future is here already. Except it is happening slowly and not at all in the U.S. . . . yet
On Tuesday, June 24, a team of three American Guernsey Association personnel made a visit to the Hoard's Dairyman Farm to evaluate Rolling Prairie Bella Blue. The special trip occurred because Guernsey...
As our industry looks for the most efficient dairy animal, some are turning towards the idea of a smaller cow. But size isn't everything, some researchers are saying
Shades, fans, misters and water make milk production possible even in the desert. Few places in the U.S. are as deadly an environment for cows as Arizona, but milk producers there have become masters at...
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,...
Randy Shaver, University of Wisconsin-Madison, presented the monthly Hoard's Dairyman webinar "Update on starch utilization by dairy cows" on Monday, June 9, a subject he's extensively researched for the...
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
June is an exciting time for the dairy industry . . . amiable weather, bustling activity and overall enthusiasm for milk and dairy products. The most obvious signs of dairy promotion are Breakfast on...
