DCRC names Excellence in Dairy Cattle Reproduction Award winners

The Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) honored 24 dairies for reaching exceptional reproduction achievements. These dairies received Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze in DCRC’s Excellence in Dairy Reproduction Awards program during the group’s annual meeting, held Nov. 11-13 in Middleton, Wis. The 24 dairies excel at reproductive efficiency, fertility and well-implemented management procedures. Platinum recognition went to: Cottonwood Dairy, LLC (Jim Winn), South Wayne, Wis.; Felling Dairy LLC (Jason Felling), Sauk Centre, Minn,; Hendriks Dairies (Tyler Hendriks), Brucefield, Ont., Canada; Mar-Bec Dairy (Marty and Becky Hallock), Mondovi, Wis.; Pleasant View Farm (Rodney Metzler and John Proskine), Martinsburg, Pa.; and Schumacher Farms (Kurt and Trisha Schumacher), Elgin, Minn.

In addition to the six Platinum winners, there were six Gold, six Silver and six Bronze winners (listed below). One hundred thirty-four nominations came from four countries, 18 U.S. states and three Canadian provinces. Farms were nominated by dairy professionals who serve the dairy industry, such as veterinarians, extension specialists and artificial insemination and pharmaceutical company representatives.

Gold
Allevamento Della Rossa s.s agr. (Della Rossa Marco), Centallo, Italy
Hammink Dairy (Wim Hammink), Bruce, S.D.
North Creek Dairy (Corey Hoffman), Chatfield, Minn.
NuStar Farms (Anthony and Lori Nunes), Sibley, Iowa
Shea Dairy (Tom and Jason Shea), Viola, Minn.
Way-Har Farms (Lesher Family), Bernville, Pa.

Silver
Boadwine Farm Inc. (Riley Boadwine), Baltic, S.D.
Hoffman Family Farm (Keith Hoffman), Shinglehouse, Pa.
Holmesville Dairy (Travis & Stephanie Holmes), Argyle, Wis.
Newmont Farm (Will Gladstone), Fairlee, Vt.
Rock Bottom Jerseys (Bernie Bakker), Alvord, Iowa
Soc. Agr. Cervi Ciboldi (Cervi Ciboldi Ceilia), Cremona, Italy

Bronze
Four J Farms (Ryan Junio), Tipton, Calif.
Kliebenstein Farms (Nate and Morgan Kliebenstein), Darlington, Wis.
Modak Dairy (Jacob Moes), Goodwin, S.D.
Pickmick Farms LTD. (Melissa Thibaudier), Delta, B.C., Canada
Stellete Farms (Stefan Mueller), Milverton, Ont., Canada
Trailside Holsteins LLC (Michael and Margaret Johnson), Fountain, Minn.

This awards program, sponsored by Hoard’s Dairyman magazine and DCRC, recognizes dairy producers whose herds excel in getting cows safe in calf. DCRC’s Excellence in Dairy Cattle Reproduction judges considered many criteria when reviewing finalists’ applications, including pregnancy rate, voluntary waiting period, interbreeding intervals, heat detection, conception rate, value of reproduction and culling rate.

The Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council is focused on bringing together all sectors of the dairy industry – producers, consultants, academia and allied industry professionals – for improved reproductive performance. DCRC provides an unprecedented opportunity for all groups to work together to take dairy cattle reproduction to the next level.