Magazine

October 30, 2020 DairyBusiness News Team DP 1

Fluid milk went decades without major product and packaging investment while the broader competitive beverage universe innovated at a dramatic trajectory in categories from coffee to alternative beverages to water. So, five years ago, Dairy [Read More …]

Dairy Replacement Program: Cost & Analysis Summer 2019

This project was conducted as part of the PRO-DAIRY Activity Analysis Project and was supported by PRO-DAIRY As the dairy industry becomes more competitive and farms increase in size, economic performance of the dairy replacement [Read More …]

Why Bother?

John Ellsworth Ouch! That is the question I was asked by a producer in December 2018. Please allow me to put his question into perspective. He had suffered through four consecutive years of low milk [Read More …]

Socialization of Calves

Management of calves has a substantial influence on calfhood performance. A common practice that has been used for many years is to raise calves in individual hutches from the time of birth until shortly after [Read More …]

The Pricing of NDM and Class I and Class IV Milk

In May of 2019, the formula for Class I was changed. The change was covered in the January 2020 and July 2020 posts to this blog. The change in formula was intended to make hedging by processors more accurate [Read More …]

Great Teams Require Psychological Safety

Imagine that everyone on your farm in each of your teams feels safe to take risks, voice their opinions, and ask judgment-free questions. Today that situation or culture is described as psychological safety. Research by Google [Read More …]

Parasites Threaten Dairy Heifer Health and Productivity

Pasture-raised heifers’ relationship with parasites can be damaging Pasture-raising heifers can offer significant feed cost savings, but these animals may have a new friend from the wrong side of the tracks … or grass, in [Read More …]

CA: A Western Focus on the Dairy Net-Zero Initiative

The Western States Dairy Producer Association held a technical workshop, which brought in several the industry’s top professionals and scientists for the purpose of evaluating the current state of the science and progress toward reducing [Read More …]

CA: Speakers Announced for the Virtual California Dairy Sustainability Summit

Dairy farmers, state officials, technology providers, researchers, and partners will speak at the virtual California Dairy Sustainability Summit, November 5-6, 2020. The second California Dairy Sustainability Summit takes place online this November 5-6, with two [Read More …]

CA: Animal Rights Activists Increasingly Aggressive, Dangerous

For producers who have not experienced animal activism directly, it can be difficult to fully appreciate the scope of their illegal activities. Not content with protests and on-line harassment, animal rights activists have turned to [Read More …]

Retrofits Reconstructed: Common Qualities Across Dairy Renovations

The term “retrofit” has been an official part of the English language since the 1950’s, but buildings, equipment, planes, cars and dairy barns have been taken and repurposed in many ways for many, many years [Read More …]

Through It All, We Never Wavered from Sales, Trust Goals

The disruption we’ve experienced due to COVID-19 has caused a monumental shift – in consumer behavior and lifestyles, in the demands on both commercial and institutional channels, and in the supply chains that take dairy [Read More …]

Sunderland Farm Recognized for Excellence in Dairying

Sunderland Farm, a sixth-generation dairy operation in Bridport, Vt., can best be described as a farm with a future that’s not forgotten its past. Although it can trace its beginnings back to the mid-19th century [Read More …]

Are You Adequately Covered?

John Ellsworth As the cost of buildings on your operation continue to rise each year, you certainly wouldn’t think of not covering their replacement with adequate insurance. Yet, have you done the same thing with [Read More …]

Supply Management: Cherries, Cows, and Cognitive Dissonance – Oh, My!

Editor’s note: You can listen to Brittany Olson discuss this issue further in episode 27 of DairyVoice, which is available below the article. Even though my days as a farm journalist are getting farther and [Read More …]

National Association of Animal Breeders Holds 74th Annual Meeting

The Annual meeting of the National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB) was held September 16th via Zoom conference call. Meeting agenda included the Business session and the election of directors. During the business session, Board [Read More …]

CDCB Industry Meeting Focuses on Genetics and Sustainability of Feed Efficiency

Dairy producers and genetic enthusiasts are invited to participate in the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB) Industry Meeting, which will focus on feed efficiency, genetic selection and impacts on sustainability. This annual meeting – [Read More …]

National Dairy Shrine Holds Virtual Annual Meeting, Funk Elected President

The 71st annual meeting of National Dairy Shrine was held Oct. 1 via Zoom technology with 26 directors, members and friends participating. The meeting and annual banquet had been scheduled for this day during World [Read More …]

What’s the Fix for These High PPDs?

Despite milk prices in June and July recovering strongly from the early COVID-19 lows, many dairy farmers have yet to reap those higher prices and public and private risk management tools are ineffective in covering [Read More …]

Is the Milk Production in Sync with Domestic Consumption?

In the prior post, the latest statistics on domestic consumption of dairy products was reviewed. This post will analyze the supply side needed to match this demand. The USDA summary of domestic consumption, which is based [Read More …]

High Quality Feedback – Now More Than Ever

UNCERTAINTY! You and your workforce have never seen today’s level of uncertainty/ Anything you can do to reduce uncertainty in your workforce will be greatly appreciated and increase motivation and productivity. There is likely no [Read More …]

Don’t Let External Parasites Peak This Winter

Prevent lice, flies and mange from limiting your dairy herd’s milk production What are cows doing if parasites are hanging around? Certainly not what they’re supposed to be doing. “The presence of external parasites can [Read More …]

The Art of Feeding: Slick Bunks

I often get some questions on what is known as the slick bunk approach to feeding dairy cows. The idea comes from the feed lot industry and is called the staying ahead of the cattle approach or limiting [Read More …]

Toxins Don’t Have a Season

Regardless of the season, toxins can be found on-farm in various places – especially feedstuffs. As choppers run full throttle into the fall of a moderate 2020 growing season, toxins may not be on the [Read More …]

California Dairy Sustainability Summit Goes Virtual

Dairy farmers, policymakers, technology providers, and researchers will connect digitally this November 5th and 6th to promote the continued advancement of planet-smart, sustainable farming practices. Organizers of the California Dairy Sustainability Summit today announced that [Read More …]

CA: Evaluating Compost Benefits in Alfalfa Hay for Improved Soil Structure and Fertility

We all recognize human health as a goal, but healthy soils is a key goal for farming operations since healthy soils frequently result in higher yields and economic returns over time. “Health” is often defined [Read More …]

Research Centers Rise Up with Industrywide Assist During COVID Crisis

Milk disposal was one of the more unfortunate consequence of COVID-19 for the dairy community. The country’s economic shutdown caused a bottleneck at plants as restaurants and other normally reliable channels were closed for business, [Read More …]

Yield Adjustment Factor in Dairy Revenue Protection

There are a lot of great things about Dairy Revenue Protection (DRP) program and I am generally a fan of it to help dairy farmers hedge their milk price risk. One of the complicated factors [Read More …]

Transition Cow Stress: Are You Part of the Problem?

Intermittent stress is part of any dairy cow’s daily life. But transition cows are especially vulnerable to additional stressors that can cause major disruptions to their health, welfare, productivity and ultimately your bottom line. Cows [Read More …]

USDA Proposes RFID Tags as Only Official ID for U.S. Beef and Dairy Cattle