Dairy's Bottom Line January 2015

Volume 17: Issue 1January 2015

Dairy industry contributes more than $43.4 billion to Wisconsin’s economy, 8

Is your farm business crisis-prepared? Page 7

Sharing ideas, solutions, resources and experiences that help dairy producers succeed.

Is your farm business

Professional Dairy Producers™ I 1-800-947-7379 I www.pdpw.org

B O T T O M L I N E

Hone your dairy financial skills , Page 31

Kick off 2015 by making plans now to attend the 2015 PDPW Business Conference, March 18-19, at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis. The Conference is your portal to a world of new con-nections that can help you and your dairy business thrive. It’s also your portal to the dream team of the dairy business—Dr. David Kohl, Tim Hunt and Mary Led-man—who will deliver three of the conference’s six general session keynotes.

Back by popular demand, Dr. David Kohl will take you on a ride far beyond your farm during the Business Confer-ence’s Opening General Ses-sion keynote, “Connecting the Dots, Economically and Generationally.” With one foot planted on your dairy and the other on the gas pedal, acclaimed economist and teacher Dr. Kohl will explore economic data and resources that will make a di� erence in your future suc-cess and will help you

connect with critical success factors and visualize just how important you are to the dairy universe.

During his March 19 morn-ing keynote, “Think Globally, Connect Locally,” Tim Hunt, Global Dairy Strategist for Rabobank’s Food & Agribusi-ness Research and Advisory team, will assess the demand for dairy products around the world, growth in competing dairy regions and your ability to compete on the world stage. He also will explore the challenges facing our pro-cessing infrastructure and reveal the increasingly i m p o r ta n t co n n e c t i o n s among everyone in the dairy supply chain.

No one knows the dairy

m a rke ts a s well as Mary L e d m a n , fo u n d e r o f Keough Led-man Associ-ates, a dairy e c o n o m i c c o n s u l t i n g

firm. Using her keen insight into the production, process-ing, pricing and policy side of dairy, Ledman will deliver one of the Closing General Ses-sion keynotes on March 19 and show us how to “Connect to Profit Opportunities in 2015.”

The 2015 PDPW Business Conference, March 18-19, Madison, Wis., is the place to connect with a new idea, an old friend, a global perspec-tive, a preferred supplier, an inspiring attitude, a leading expert, the latest technology and a trusted resource—all in just two days.

Look for more information about the PDPW Business Conference in the next issue of Dairy’s Bottom Line.

A world of connections awaits you: 2015 PDPW Business Conference

Tim HuntDave Kohl Mary Ledman

Cornerstone Dairy Academy™, Page 30

PDPW

Board of Directors

PresidentKeith York

Lake Geneva262-903-6265

[email protected]

Vice PresidentMitch Breunig

Sauk City608-643-6818

[email protected]

SecretaryKay ZwaldHammond

[email protected]

TreasurerCharlie Crave

Waterloo920-478-3812

[email protected]

Jeremy NatzkeGreenleaf

[email protected]

Brian ForrestStratford

[email protected]

Marty HallockMondovi

[email protected]

Walter MeinholzDeForest

[email protected]

Linda WhiteReedsburg

[email protected]

PDPW Advisors

Matt RepinskiLand O'Lakes Winfield Division

Amherst

Dr. Richard WallaceZoetis

McFarland

Dr. Steve KelmUniversity of Wisconsin-River Falls

River Falls

Steve SchwoererBadgerland Financial

Fond du Lac

The list of tasks that must be done every day on a dairy farm is long–handling new calves, feed-ing cows and calves, mixing milk replacer, milking cows, mixing feed rations, cleaning milking equipment, transporting cattle and training employees are just a few.

But, one of the least favorite tasks–probably even lower on the list than cleaning the barn–is developing a complete set of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the operation.

Writing SOPs can be as fright-ening and daunting as giving a speech at the local Rotary club. It’s a job that’s put off for those less-busy days . . . and when those rare days arrive, another emergency comes along that derails the assignment to the bot-tom of the “To Do” list. But, SOPs can be powerful in driving con-tinuous improvement and bot-tom line results.

Why should a dairy want SOPs?

Here are some reasons how SOPs can impact dairy perfor-mance:

1) Animals flourish on consis-tency and perform much better when things are done correctly, on time, the same way, every time.

2) People need consistency to do the best job. Doing tasks the same way every time rather than guessing how the boss wants its done improves productivity.

3) SOPs can reduce system variation which brings about production efficiency and quality control.

4) Step-by-step instructions

help trainers ensure that nothing is missed and provide a tool for employees to turn to when they forget the steps involved in a job or their supervisor isn’t there to ask.

5) SOPs work very well as a ref-erence document for relief work-ers or people who do not perform the job on a regular basis.

6) Involving employees in developing SOPs creates engage-ment. If employees have input in SOP development, the final product is usually more com-plete, useful and accepted.

7) SOPs aid in conducting per-formance evaluations because they provide clarity for what must be done and shared expec-tations for how tasks should be completed.

8) Using complete SOPs can reduce biosecurity risks and help keep employees safe at work. Detailed procedures might pro-vide some legal protection if an injury occurs.

9) Animal well-being pro-grams such as Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (F.A.R.M.) recommend written SOPs, posted in the language of the farm’s employees. A best practice is to review SOPs annu-ally and update as necessary.

Getting started with the writing effort

The first step to writing SOPs is to identify four or five critical areas where SOPs would be use-ful. Examples might include hir-ing employees, feed manage-ment, animal handling, manure handling, equipment cleaning and sanitation, vaccination, bed-ding, biosecurity or new animal

arrival.Based on the list in step one,

you should then identify one or two top areas for attention. In which areas will economic returns or impact on the opera-tion be the greatest? Are there areas with “low-hanging fruit” that will allow some early suc-cesses and serve as a springboard to continue the effort?

Step 3 is to pinpoint the best person to lead the SOP effort and assign a team of employees, managers, agribusiness repre-sentatives, consultants and oth-ers who can bring appropriate expertise to the effort.

If you’re challenged about the actual writing of the SOPs, you can look online or ask your field representative or extension agent for SOP formats.

As a supplier to world markets, the goal of every dairy producer must be to protect consumer confidence and trust in the dairy industry by demonstrating a commitment to best manage-ment practices.

Having effective SOPs is the foundation for providing that assurance, can ultimately benefit a dairy’s bottom line and even offer a competitive advantage.

For producers who are serious about supplying the market, investing the time and energy today to develop and implement effective SOPs will result in eco-nomically sustainable business performance.

Joan BehrDirector of Communications

and Brand Management, Fore-most Farms USA , a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Use SOPs to control costs and add value to your dairy

2 PDPW – DAIRY’S BOTTOM LINE • JANUARY 2015

PDPW – DAIRY’S BOTTOM LINE • JANUARY 2015 3

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Farming traditions are important to Wisconsin, and, to keep Wisconsin strong, protect-ing families and children in our farming communities should be a priority.

In the U.S., farming and other agricultural professions consis-tently rank among the most dangerous, along with mining, transportation and construc-tion.

The difference between agri-cultural professions and the other dangerous industries is the presence of children in the worksite. Farming is typically a family business, where children are raised on the farm and par-ticipate in farming activities at young ages.

Troubling child safety statistics

• One child dies about every three days on a farm.

• Of the leading sources of fatalities among all youth, 25% involved machinery, 17% involved motor vehicles (includes ATV’s), and 15% were drownings.

• Every day, 38 kids are injured in an agricultural related accident.

• It’s estimated that more than 7,700 kids were hurt on a farm in 2012, and 80% of them were not working when the injury occurred.

The good news is that the rate of injury among kids declined by more than 60 percent from 1998 to 2002. But when you break the numbers down by age, you

uncover another frightening sta-tistic: Injuries among kids under age 10 are increasing. From 2009 to 2012 the rate of injury among kids under age 10 almost doubled.

What does an injury cost?

• $143,580 for injury of a youth that required 10 or more days of hospitalization.

• $6,577 for an injury requiring less than 10 days of hospitaliza-tion.

Bottom line: You cannot afford to NOT make safety a priority on your farm. For many, a single injury could wipe out a farm’s operating profit for an entire year. As for the cost of a child’s life, you cannot put a number on that.

Let’s make safety a year-round priority.

Statistical information pro-vided by the National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health & Safety.

John QuirkDirector of Marketing, Rural

Mutual Insurance Company , a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Growing new farming traditions, protecting the next generation of farmers

Photo by Thomas Northcut

Keep kids safe by making safety a year-round priority.


Winter brings cold, harsh weather with low humidity, the perfect conditions for teat skin chapping, damage and hyper-keratosis, the most common teat skin and teat end problems.

When temperatures are in the 30s and are combined with 20 to 25 mph wind speed, frozen teats are likely to occur if preventative measure aren’t in place. During cold months, teat skin damage is a major factor predisposing cows to mastitis.

The following strategies can help keep herds healthy and producing high-quality milk through winter.

Precondition teats: Because teat skin thickness changes rap-idly during extreme changes in temperature, it’s important to condition the teat skin to keep it flexible. Increasing the amount of emollients in your post-dip will help precondition the teat skin, making it more flexible and ready for the changing weather.

Evaluate winter teat dips: Select a proper teat dip that is formulated for your cows’ win-ter weather environment. Emollients are a critical element in winter teat dips as they pro-tect, heal and soften skin in harsh weather.

As soon as the weather starts to get cold, use a post teat dip that contains a higher level of conditioning balanced with the proper protection against mas-titis. When the cows’ environ-ment hits below freezing, use a winter teat dip with high levels of emollients (preferably between 74 percent to 76 per-cent) with an extremely low freezing point (-76° F on aver-age) to protect your cows.

K e e p i n m i n d t h a t

conventional water based dips freeze solid around 29°-32° F. A good winter teat dip should also include an effective germicide proven to kill mastitis causing bacteria.

Maintain equipment and optimize automation: Evalu-ate equipment to ensure it is functioning properly. Perform both static and dynamic (while milking) tests as well as making sure parts are replaced at the recommend interval.

Current equipment settings should be set at optimal to your cows’ current milk production

and the liner that you are using. Settings that are too low or too high than the optimum for vac-uum and pulsation will increase teat stress and aggravate teat end condition. Detacher set-tings with a milk flow rate that is too low prolongs unit on-time and causes excessive compres-sion against the teat end (due to vacuum level increases during low flow periods).

Precise milking proce-dures: Proper milking proce-dures are crucial to harvest high quality milk safely and quickly.

Your milking procedure

should allow for proper stimu-lation, milk-let down time (90 to 120 seconds), clean teats, proper unit attachment and alignment. Milkers should be educated on the challenges of winter weather and the effects on teat tissue. Because of the rough, flower-like characteris-tics of hyperkeratosis, soil can be trapped on teat ends, making cleaning much more difficult. Milkers need to apply pressure across the teat end when wiping to better clean teats and aid in removing excess keratin when it is ready.

Prime housing environ-ment: Managing the environ-ment will minimize the impact of winter weather on teat end health and is especially import-ant for fresh cows. Fresh ani-mals are more prone to teat damage, as they have less circu-lation in their udders and more swelling.

Keep bedding dry to prevent ill teat skin effects and prevent it from freezing in the stall. This might mean more frequent bed-ding and using less recycled bedding in the winter. Be sure to monitor stall usage, a decline may indicate frozen bedding or clumps of frozen bedding in the stall. Wind blocks can help reduce wind speeds and prevent chapping or frostbite.

H e a l t h y t e a t s m e a n high-quality milk and healthier cows, and that is more profit in your pocket.

Keith EngelDairy Farm Hygiene and

Supplies Specialist, GEA Farm Technologies , a corporate spon-sor of PDPW

Keep teats healthy this winter

Preventative measures can help prevent frozen teats. Emollients in winter teat dips can help protect, heal and soften a cow’s skin in harsh weather.

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A realistic business plan, a strong management team and a strong capitalized business are three components of an ongo-ing, successful operation. To ensure continued success, changes in technology, eco-nomic conditions and numer-ous other factors require busi-nesses to grow and change.

Business growth can be accomplished with bringing in investors, obtaining capital with loans or by building capital through profits. While time and control can affect your plan, each of the three mentioned options has advantages and dis-advantages.

Bringing in an investor(s) to help grow your business may give you immediate capital to grow the business quickly. The investor(s) may complement your management with knowl-edge and experience that might help the business as well as bringing in capital.

To expand the business, some choose to bring in another business as a partner and iden-tify management responsibili-ties in the new operation. Some will bring in one or more new investors—silent or active—who bring in cash for a share of the business revenue going for-ward.

Dairying requires a large cap-ital investment to get started. Many farmers start out by tak-ing over the family farm with their parents as the investors. If you have the option to work in a situation that will allow you to

grow in an established business with a purchase option, then somebody else is actually your investor/lender. This will allow you to start to purchase an operation over time. And, while this can be a great opportunity, it requires both parties to have similar goals and a plan that is followed.

Working with other investors requires one to work on joint goals or may involve giving up some control that may initially make you uncomfortable. Even a silent investor may have cer-tain expectations, which could also bring with it new chal-lenges. Future plans or events need to be planned out, and everyone needs to be in agree-ment. This should be reviewed with an attorney to properly set

up the entity, and also make sure the language is written to put a plan in place if the inves-tors change in the future. All the parties involved need to be on the same page before the arrangement starts and have a clear idea of future expecta-tions.

Increasing the size of the operation through borrowing is a good option where you do not give up any ownership.

Debt increases can be limited by cash flow and purpose for the additional debt. Terms can be adjusted and structured dif-ferently depending on the cash flow, type of debt and business plans/projections. Capital obtained through loans, leases or from venture capital firms can appear in different forms,

on or off the balance sheet, but it is important to understand the terms of repayment.

Because a strong working capital is necessary to cash flow the daily needs of the operation, it is important to maintain an adequate cushion of up to 25 percent additional cash com-pared with debt servicing requirements. The cushion allows for unplanned events that can restrict cash flow and future loan availability.

The advantages of growing the business through your own profits leaves you in control of your business without having any additional responsibilities to an outside party looking for a return on investment or pay-ment required on a loan or lease.

With no debt or very little debt, cash flow requirements may be lower and it may be eas-ier if you change or sell. A chal-lenge might be that, because the dairy business requires such a high capitalized investment, moving to a new technology or increasing the size of the oper-ation may take many years lon-ger to generate the needed cap-ital. For that reason, usually there is some form of additional capital input used to help the purchase or expansion move forward.

Laurie SchetterSr. Financial Services Officer,

GreenStone Farm Credit Ser-vices, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Invest, capitalize, save: What’s your best option?

“Operating a dairy farm requires a large investment, especially when you are starting out or trying to grow your business.”


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Let’s concede right up front that crisis preparation is not a topic that excites most dairy producers. After all, you’re a farmer because that’s what you love–milking cows, growing crops, feeding the world, which already keeps you plenty busy. You’re probably not as passion-ate about pulling together a cri-sis communications team, writ-ing key messages and dealing with the media.

But preparing for a crisis before you face one will help protect your business and ensure you can keep doing what you love. It’s also not as difficult as it sounds.

Creating a crisis preparedness plan

The first step is taking some time to evaluate your dairy and i d e n t i f y p o t e n t i a l

vulnerabilities. What are the physical risks from machinery

and facilities? What about environmental risks from water, wind or manure?

There also are human risks to consider. Do you regularly train and retrain employees on basic safety, acceptable behavior, standard operating procedures, and proper animal care and handling? Are you connected with your community? How do your neighbors view you, your dairy and how you care for your cows?

Other steps to developing a crisis plan include:

• Deciding who is on the crisis team: Members could include the farm owner(s), herdsman, veterinarian, nutri-t i o n i s t , p l a n t /p ro c e s s o r

Is your farm business crisis-prepared?

Being prepared for a crisis before you face one will help protect your operation. On Jan. 29, 2015, PDPW is hosting a workshop on preparing for a crisis and building a proactive communications plan.

See PREPARED, on page 8


PreparedContinued from page 7representative, attorney and a communications professional.

• Choosing a spokesperson: Make sure the spokesperson has had media training.

• Making a list of key con-tacts: This includes names and phone numbers of the crisis team, along with others who should be kept in the loop, such as local law enforcement and regulatory agen-cies.

• Developing a communica-tions flow chart: Graph how

information will be communi-cated, to which audiences, and by whom.

• Writing key messages: This involves basic facts about the farm, as well as statements about the farm’s mission or purpose.

• Determining who will secure your property: Pick a cri-sis team member to walk or sketch the property to see where others might gain access, and figure out how to prevent it.

• Training employees on the crisis plan: Everyone on the farm

should know who to contact in case of emergency, who is authorized to speak for the farm, and who isn’t.

Speaking of speaking, if you’re ever actually confronting a crisis, the communications rules change. This is not the time to “tell your story.”

Depending on the situation, you may not need to engage with the media at all. And, if you do:

• Acknowledge what went wrong

• Share your regret• Take responsibility

• Explain planned changesWhen it comes to keeping the

news cycle as short as possible, as one seasoned crisis communica-tions professional says, “Tell it all. Tell it fast.” In other words, respond quickly and tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, including the bad news. If you don’t know, say so, then go find the answer.

Renea HeinrichCounselor, Morgan Myers, a mis-

sion sponsor of PDPW

In 1989, a dairy producer asked where his herd produc-tion should be in 2010 in order to have a sustainable dairy operation that could be passed on to his children. I told him his goal should be a RHA of 25,000 pounds with a 3.6% fat test and a 3.1 protein test. I truly under estimated how our dairy industry would change.

Consider this recent chal-lenge from a dairy producer to me: “I want 100 pounds of milk per cow/day with a 3.6% fat test and a 3.2% protein test.” He wants a herd average of 36,500 pounds per cow and cows that produce 3.6 and 3.2 pounds of fat and protein each day.

You cannot reach those pro-duction goals by feeding your daddy’s cow.

To obtain a herd average of 100 pounds per cow/day, peak milk for mature cows needs to

be 130 pounds or greater. Peak milk for first lactation cows needs to be 104 pounds.

Cows don’t violate the laws of thermodynamics. If you want them to produce 130 pounds of milk, then they must consume enough energy and protein for 130 pounds of milk. This will require a dry matter intake of 65

to 68 pounds per day. For the entire herd to average 100 pounds of milk per day, the dry matter intake must be 55 to 58 pounds.

These dry matter intakes just don’t happen. You need to have good cow comfort, plenty of feed bunk space, put up highly digestible forages and have

plenty of access to good water.Two nutrients can limit dry

matter intake: undigested fiber and too much starch. Undi-gested fiber contributes to rumen fill. Too much rumen fill will limit intake.

The undigested fiber content of forages can now be esti-mated: It is called uNDF as a percent of diet DM, and you can request this test on a forage analysis. The higher the uNDF value, the greater the rumen fill of a forage.

If you want cows to consume 65 pounds of dry matter, you need to allocate forages based on their uNDF content.

Highly digestible forages will have a low uNDF content. The goal is to have cows consume 5 to 5.5 pounds of uNDF daily.

Consuming higher amounts of uNDF may limit feed intake. High-starch diets will limit dry

Feeding all the high-producing cows not in your daddy’s shaker box

If you want your cows to produce 130 pounds of milk, then they must consume enough energy and protein for 130 pounds of milk.

See FEEDING, on page 9


FeedingContinued from page 8matter intake by depressing fiber digestion and producing too much propionic acid. There is a negative relationship between fiber digestion and starch con-tent of the diet. Dry matter intake is maximized when feeding mod-erate starch levels (22% to 26%) with high sugar levels (6% to 8%).

Feeding trials at the USDA dairy forage research station in Madison, Wis., reported optimal fiber digestion when the diet contained 7.2% total sugar. Starch plus sugar content should be 29% to 33% to optimize feed intake.

Feeding molasses based liquid supplements, customized to your operation, which can include vitamins, minerals, protein and such has been shown to stimulate dry matter intake in diets con-taining 50% or more forage. In an

11-trial summary, the average increase in dry matter intake was 2.42 pounds compared to diets without liquid supplements.

Molasses improves the palat-ability of the diet but it also helps to reduce sorting. The reduction in sorting of the diet will lead to a healthier rumen environment for digestion. The increase in dry matter intake will lead to higher peak milk production and greater persistency in the first 160 DIM.

To get high milk production, you need high dry matter intakes. Combining the concept of uNDF and moderate starch diets with the feeding of molasses-based liquid supplements will make higher DM intake possible.

Stephen M. Emanuele, Ph.D. PAS

Senior Scientist, Quality Liquid Feeds, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Wisconsin continues to live up to its “Dairyland” title. That’s the word from Greg Bussler, who serves as the state’s agriculture statistician.

Bussler points out that the lat-est Census of Agriculture data from 2012 revealed that 16.5 per-cent of all farms in Wisconsin have milk cows. The state also has significantly more dairy farms, at 11,543, than any other state. And we are also one of only two states with more than one million milk cows.

All of that milk means the state is very rich in cheese output. USDA figures note that Wiscon-sin processors make more cheese than any other state at nearly 3 billion pounds annually.

“More than 25 percent of all cheese in the United States is made in Wisconsin,” Bussler said.

But, of course, Wisconsin farming is more than just dairy. The state ranks first nationally in cranberry and ginseng produc-tion.

Wisconsin is also the No. 1 state when it comes to corn for silage production.

With just under 70,000 farm-ers living in the state, these pro-ducers farm about 14.5 million acres of land and sold more than $11.7 billion worth of agricultural products during 2012.

Pat SternitskyUS Agnet, a corporate sponsor

of PDPW

Ag census confirms Wisconsin still America’s dairyland


Many of you on New Year’s Eve may have burst out in song with “Auld Lang Syne.” Trans-lated into English, that song title means “long, long ago”—which probably describes the last time many of you would have reviewed your farm’s business plan.

Now that you want to kick 2015 off to a great start, here are several areas to review when assessing your farm’s business plan.

The Strategic Plan. Strategic planning is an organization’s process of defining its strategy—or direction—and making deci-sions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy.

As part of your business plan review, defining or redefining your farm’s strategic plan is very important. Your farm’s strategic plan should be developed by: 1) evaluating the current status of the farm (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats); 2) establishing achievable goals and a plan of action; 3) developing a feasibility study which deter-mines the practicability or feasi-bility of proposed changes; and 4) developing an implementation plan to make the changes effec-tive.

Legal Structure. Today, a farm may be operated as a sole proprietorship, corporation, lim-ited liability company, limited partnership or a combination of these structures. The choice of entity or entities for your farm will often affect three key areas: 1) its valuation for transfer tax purposes; 2) income tax conse-quences during your farm’s

existence and possible later liqui-dation; and 3) the overall owner-ship or management of the farm.

It’s a smart move to review whether or not your farm’s legal structure meets the objectives of your farm’s business goals.

Buy-Sell Agreement. A buy-sell agreement is an agree-ment which provides for the pur-chase and sale of ownership interests in the farm at a price determined in accordance with the agreement and upon the occurrence of certain (usually future) events. The events often include divorce, termination of employment, death, disability, bankruptcy or insolvency or an attempted transfer to an out-sider.

For those of you in a multi-owner farm or who will be in a multi-owner farm in the future, establishing a buy-sell agree-ment should be considered. In addition, if your farm currently

has a buy-sell agreement, you should review its terms and con-ditions.

A buy-sell agreement provides certainty concerning the terms on which a retired, withdrawing or deceased or disabled farm owner’s ownership interests will be purchased.

The buy-sell agreement also often provides a source of long-term financing for the purchase of a departing owner’s ownership interests, possibly allowing installment payments to be made out of cash flow.

Several factors should be con-sidered or reviewed when estab-lishing buy-sell terms: 1) the value of the farm’s underlying assets; 2) the financial condition of the farm; 3) the farm’s ability for financing, including the farm’s financial ratios; 4) the rel-ative percentage or other owner-ship interests of the owners; 5) the ages and health of the farm’s

owners; and 6) the objective evaluation of working relation-ships between the farm’s current owners and possible future fam-ily member owners.

Life Insurance. Life insur-ance is often used by farm own-ers to provide funds to purchase the ownership interests of a deceased owner. These life insur-ances should be reviewed to make certain that they are in adequate amounts, at acceptable premiums, and otherwise on acceptable terms and conditions.

In addition, life insurance is often purchased to provide funds to treat the non-farm children fairly. Because of the unique tax rules involving life insurance, life insurance policies should be reviewed to make certain they are properly structured to avoid neg-ative tax consequences such as the transfer for value rules, gift tax and estate tax.

In the past, a farm owner’s business plan was often in her head and usually only verbally conveyed to a banker at the time the farmer met with the banker to borrow money.

Today, it is more important than ever that your farm’s busi-ness plan, through careful con-sideration and sometimes nego-tiation, establishes achievable goals and objectives and have fully thought-out agreements and understandings. And, farm owners should, at least annually, review their farm’s business plan.

Troy R. SchneiderTwohig, Rietbrock, Schneider

& Halbach, S.C., a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Is farm business planning part of your New Year’s Resolutions?

A farm owner’s business plan should be shared with others and put down on paper.


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We have all heard the old proverb, “Two heads are bet-ter than one.” For increasing milk production on one south central Wisconsin dairy farm, however, it turns out three heads are even better.

The south central Wiscon-sin dairy producer turned to a nutritionist and an agrono-mist, asking that the three of them partner to develop a plan that would boost the dairy’s milk production.

The collaboration resulted in the dairy netting an extra six pounds of milk per cow per day and yielding a more prof-itable bottom line.

While the nutritionist had provided the dairyman with nutrition services for more than 15 years, the solution to the dairyman’s challenge came about when t h e t w o w e r e talking one day about the nutri-tional aspects of b r o w n m i d r i b corn (BMR) silage and how it might h e l p i m p r o v e digestibility and the herd’s silage intake.

To get insights i n t o t h e m o r e agronomic side of B M R , t h e y decided to call on the agronomist. The nutrition and agronomy consul-tants agreed that BMR corn silage could meet the farm’s agronomic as well as nutritional goals after the agronomist made some rec-ommendations for increasing

plant populations and uni-form stands. The nutritionist then suggested that his cus-tomer do some testing.

“Feed it for a few months a n d s e e w h a t h a p p e n s ,” t h e n u t r i t i o n i s t advised.

The three team members deter-mined that the BMR corn would s u p p l y a b o u t t h re e m o n t h s ’ w o r t h o f t h e f a r m ’s s i l a g e needs. Since it wa s s to re d i n bags and clearly labeled, it was easy to track the B M R s i l a g e ’s i m pa c t o n t h e herd’s milk pro-duction.

“DHI records showed that the milk production went up by six pounds per cow and held steady for 90 days,” the nutritionist said.

After the silage had run out, however, the dairy’s milk pro-duction dropped back to

pre-BMR levels. Not surpris-ingly, the dairyman decided to increase his BMR acres the following year.

“Rather than being satisfied with where our dairy was pro-duction-wise, I decided to reach out to experts and see if they could help me find a solution that could boost pro-duction and make the dairy more profitable,” the dairy-man states. “Many of the businesses we interact with stand ready to help their cus-tomers succeed. Why not use them?”

John BinversieDairy Nutritionist, Land-

mark Services Cooperative, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Teamwork will yield profits

Producers should work with their agronomist and/or nutritionist to determine the operation’s goals and help create planting and feeding solutions.

“Rather than being satisfied

with where our dairy was

production-wise, I decided to reach

out to experts and see if they could help me find a solution

that could boost production and make the dairy

more profitable.”


With most of the busy holiday season behind us, it’s a good time to reflect on 2014 and plan for where you’d like to go in 2015. So let’s start the year off right! Here are a few tasks and goals to include in your 2015 list:

1) Complete production and yield reports. This is critical for both your crop insurance cover-age and FSA programs. Complete these reports sooner rather than later while harvest is still fresh on your mind. Crop insurance cover-age decisions for 2015 will be needed before spring. Contact your insurance specialist to dis-cuss what has changed and what is unique for 2015.

2) Contact your local FSA office for details on the new Farm Bill. With the 2014 Farm Bill released, changes are in place for both milk and crop programs. The deadline for the DMPP pro-gram has now passed. However, the crop programs have also changed and you will need to see what options best fit your farm.

3) Document feed and crop inventories, dairy livestock numbers and other assets for your balance sheet. December 31 is the effective date for most balance sheets. So, in case you did not spend your New Year’s Eve completing your balance sheet, put it on your list of things to do very soon! It is easier to complete now rather than trying to back-track later.

An accurate year-end balance sheet is a vital document for you and your lender to track your

financial progress. Remember to document any pre-paid expenses so they show up on your balance sheet and it will be used to com-plete your accrual earnings.

4) Update accounting and bookkeeping records. It’s time to close the books on 2014 and open up 2015. Completing the year end and keeping as up-to-date as possible will assist in future planning. Organize your office and files to be prepared for upcoming meetings with your tax preparer.

5) Prepare a 2015 budget. With the close of 2014, you have current records to assist in pro-jecting your cash income and expenses for 2015. Due to the expected lower milk prices in 2015, it is crucial to determine what your costs will be in 2015. Key expenses such as feed and fuel will likely be lower. And

remember to consult your nutri-tionist and agronomist for feed-back on estimated projections.

6) Meet with your lender. The first quarter of the year is a good time to meet with your lender to review your balance sheet, 2014 earnings and your 2015 projections. In other words, it’s a time to look back and a time to look forward.

Discuss with your lender your plans for your dairy farm. What machinery replacements and building improvements will be needed? Will the neighboring farm be coming up for sale? Have your estimates or bids organized and prioritized for your meeting.

7) Invest in yourself and your key employees. More knowledge leads to better deci-sion making, so take the time to invest in yourself and those key partners in your business by

attending educational meetings this winter. Many opportunities are available with excellent speak-ers, specific issues and timely topics.

The dairy industry is in a con-stant state of evolution and change, and it’s necessary for dairy farmers to also evolve and change to remain competitive and profitable. In addition, it’s enjoy-able to see other dairy farmers and industry people at these events.

In closing, there is a lot to look forward to in the New Year and with a little extra planning, it will help prepare you for a successful 2015. Cheers, with a glass of ice-cold milk, to a great New Year!

Mary ElvekrogDairy Lending Specialist,

Badgerland Financial, a mission sponsor of PDPW

Time to make plans for 2015

One way to “improve yourself and your employees” in 2015 is to attend PDPW’s 2015 Business Conference, March 18-19, in Madison, Wis.

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On dairy farms, it is said there are five rations:

1) The one on paper (or com-puter)

2) The one delivered to the cow/heifer

3) The one the cow/heifer eats

4) The one digested and uti-lized by the rumen microbes

5) The one digested and uti-lized by the cow/calf/heifer

This is true for all animal groups being fed on the dairy including preweaned and weaned calves, breeding age heifers, bred heifers, springing heifers, dry cows and lactating cows. The dairy’s nutritionist and/or veterinarian may be responsible for all of these groups, just the lactating cows or any combination of groups.

It is absolutely critical that t h e re i s c o m m u n i c a t i o n between the owner, nutrition-ist, veterinarian, herdsperson and other management team members. When team members share information, it allows for a smooth transition from one group to the next group of ani-mals. A seamless transition helps keep the animal on the path to success. The number one purpose of nutrition is ani-mal health, with production needs—be it milk, protein, fat, reproduction, or growth—being met after maintenance and health needs are satisfied.

Research on calf and heifer growth and its effect on breed-ing age, calving age and milk production shows a positive response to biological normal growth. Good sources for

guidelines on setting goals for an individual dairy farm are Dairy Calf and Heifer Associa-tion, Penn State Extension or any other university extension website.

Every calf should start their l i f e w i t h h i g h - q u a l i t y (IgG&GT;50g/l), clean (bacte-ria in colostrum reduces IgG absorption rate) colostrum at 10% of their body weight within the first two hours after birth. The second feeding of their life should also be colos-trum. The third through the sixth feeding can be colostrum, the second and/or third milking from the cow or a mixture of all three products.

Milk from the second and third milking contains higher milk solids, protein, fat and Vitamin A than milk from later milkings. Calves should be fed whole milk or a milk replacer that will provide the needed

nutrients for maintenance and the desired rate of growth to obtain biological growth that meets the goals set for the dairy. A good quality textured calf starter of 22% to 26% pro-tein should be added by Day 3 to 5, with fresh feed every day. You should work with the herd nutritionist and veterinarian to balance a ration and employ best management practices for each group of animals on the dairy.

Epigenetics, in simple terms, is the environmental impact on the expression of genes, with-out changing the DNA sequence of the genes. In the fetus, this is called fetal programing—where the environmental stimulus or insult on the dam has effects on the fetus, in turn affecting that offspring’s health and produc-tion later in life.

From conception to delivery, the fetus is continuously

growing, with 75% of physical size in the last two months. The growth early in development is when organogenesis is occur-ring in the fetus. It is also when the caruncular area of the uterus and the placenta are developing the maternal-fetal vasculature that is essential for oxygen and nutrients to the fetus from the dam. This is of particular importance from the time of placenta attachment at 90 days to the needed blood flow increase from 120 days to term.

Systems that are impacted include respiratory, digestive (colostrum absorption and scours), reproductive efficiency, weaning weight, muscle growth and development and adipose deposit (marbling, back fat and brown fat in new born calf).

Nutrition—providing ade-quate protein, energy, vitamins and minerals—as well as not over conditioning animals and always having fresh, clean water available have positive effects on fetal programing. Other environmental factors include heat (cooling dry cows), cold, wet and/or windy condi-tions, cow comfort, low stress handling, pen moves, vaccina-tions, and any other factors that would cause transient decrease in maternal nutrition.

Nutrition, health, comfort and management are all tied together to serve the animals best interest.

Dr. Rich ErnsbergerWestway Feed Products, a

corporate sponsor of PDPW

A dairy nutritionist’s role in calf and heifer growth and health

Many dairy farms have five rations: 1) The one on paper (or computer); 2) The one delivered to the cow/heifer; 3) The one the cow/heifer eats; 4) The one digested and utilized by the rumen microbes; and 5) The one digested and utilized by the cow/calf/heifer.


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The transition period rep-resents the time in the dairy cow’s life with the greatest opportuni-ties and yet the time with the greatest potential consequences.

During no other time is there more at stake. How a cow comes through the transition will ulti-mately impact performance and profits in this lactation and future lactations.

To make the most of the tran-sition period, it takes all mem-bers of the dairy team—includ-ing the nutritionist, veterinarian and herd manager—to work together toward a common goal of a healthy, productive herd.

Working toward solution-based outcomes

When it comes to the transi-tion pen, the first step is

identifying herd challenges, goals and desired outcomes so protocols can be implemented to monitor ongoing perfor-mance.

For example, a dairy that identifies ketosis as a challenge will be focused on finding the cause and developing a plan to minimize its incidence. One tool they may elect to use is BHBA monitoring, a simple blood test that can identify subclinical ketosis in fresh

cows.By creating a protocol, the

team can routinely monitor fresh cows for ketosis and more quickly identify a rise in inci-dence to allow for adjustments to feeding and management practices.

In many cases, identifying the desired outcome is the f i rs t s te p. O n c e a d a i r y knows the final outcome they wish to achieve, the team can work together to

put action plans in place. For these plans to be successful, t h e wh o l e tea m m u s t b e involved in the discussion and work together to deter-mine the path forward.

Lay the groundwork for transition success

The communication among team members is the basis for

Take a team approach to navigating the transition

See TEAM, on page 16


From the comic book charac-ter the Riddler, “If you break me, I do not stop working; if you touch me, I may be snared; if you lose me, nothing will mat-ter. What am I?”

Questions and more ques-tions. Life seems to be full of questions, plenty for just one individual but add a family and more shortly follow. Run a farm, add some cows and employees to the mix and, brother, hang on! They’ll never stop.

Can you relate?In addition to the typical farm

questions, consumers are becoming more concerned and involved in the udder-to-glass process. So now, not only do you have your questions need-ing answers, but others are showing up at the barn door asking additional questions. We’re talking about questions asked by individuals who may not always be motivated by curiosity, but rather driven by an anti-agricultural agenda.

Sometimes you might not be able to tell if they are a helpful

Jim Gordon friend or a mortal enemy, the Joker.

In order to find answers, it often seems as if this world needs a superhero, a Bruce Wayne or a Peter Parker. Well, Bruce, there may be some good news and some bad news for you.

Good news is you don’t need a bat cave or shiny tights to be the hero. Bad news is you may need to change where you spend your time and increase the number of gadgets on the farm.

Probably the best—and maybe the most difficult—gadget we need to add to the tool box to

answer questions — and be the hero — is good record keeping.

Sorry if you were expecting a bite by a radioactive spider or becoming adopted by Wayne Enterprises, therefore providing unlimited resources. The reality is good record keeping can give a boost to your operation and identify (maybe not unlimited) new resources to increase pro-ductivity, answer your ques-tions about individual animal productivity and build trust with consumers. It will also empower you to silence the critics of animal agriculture.

Written protocols for animal

Solving the riddle of record keeping

When setting out a plan and path using written protocols for animal handling and treatments, your veterinarian, your nutritionist or your Extension agent are great sources of help.

TeamContinued from page 15success in navigating the transi-tion period. Working together allows for open dialogue and idea sharing, without the pointing of fingers or placing blame.

To make the team most effective in the transition pens, implement the following prac-tices:

• Host routine meetings. Have a standing meeting on the calendar where the team members can discuss any issues they’ve seen in the fresh cow pen, and address their concerns before they become

a real problem. Allow the fresh cow managers to openly share what they’re seeing with the nutritionist and veterinarian, so they can be aware of how cows are responding to the ration and implemented management prac-tices.

• Have protocols in place. Talk through the protocols in place with the fresh cow managers, herd manager, nutritionist and veteri-narian. Review these protocols and discuss how they are implemented and what improvements can be made so they are most effective.

As part of the meeting, conduct hands-on training so everyone is on the same page when it comes to executing the protocols, recording interventions and reporting find-ings.

• Communicate frequently. Dairy nutritionists and veterinari-ans who have been most success-ful in the transition pen point to ongoing dialogue as one of the key factors. As soon as one party iden-tifies a potential issue, they call the other to discuss it, even if a team meeting is weeks away. In many cases, this proactive approach

prevents significant problems later on.

• Keep focus on the transi-tion. With such a lasting impact on herd productivity and profit-ability, keep the transition period top-of-mind as you make changes on the dairy. Even when the chal-lenge areas seem few, routine monitoring and goal setting is imperative for success.

Dr. Joel PankowskiField Technical Services, Arm &

Hammer Animal Nutrition, a cor-porate sponsor of PDPW

See RIDDLE, on page 17

Probably the best —and maybe the most difficult — gadget we

need to add to the tool box to answer

questions — and be the hero — is good record

keeping.


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RiddleContinued from page 16handling and treatments are a good place to start. Setting out a plan and path will help you inter-pret the data coming out of your record keeping system. This is where your sidekick can come in, you can call them Robin. The role of Robin can be played by your veterinarian, your nutritionist or your extension agent. Their years of schooling and practical experi-ence will aid in developing these documents for benchmarking results and interpreting data.

Next is bringing in gadgets of data collection. Great technology advancements are being made to capture animal behavior and employee behavior.

For your cows, cattle moni-toring systems through elec-tronic pedometers can give you indication of active heats for breeding, health status for treatment and general cow comfort to evaluate cow density and bedding options.

For employees, there are new check-in/check-out drug inventory monitoring systems. These systems aim to help producers monitor drug use on the farm and will provide vis-ibility to inventory shrink and a con-venient way of applying treatments to individual animals.

Finally, it’s about analysis. This is a combination of using the gad-gets and taking time to seek the answers.

Multiple programs exist from various software vendors associ-ated with data collection. Cow monitoring software, herd man-agement programs like DC305 to PCDart, and other homemade versions using Excel will help gather data for review and orga-nize information to be translated into actionable items.

Here again, hero, you’re not alone. Go back to your sidekicks and have them help interpret

data. Your veterinarian is a good source to help you understand the correlation between data and needed actions to improve health and decrease costs.

A good record keeping system will help you answer your ques-tions and those posed by others, regardless of motivation. In its essence, the system will inspire trust in your management deci-sions, driving costs down and building consumer confi dence.

Oh, yes, the answer to the rid-dle. Did you come up with it? It’s trust. If we lose it, nothing else will matter.

Dan EllsworthA N I M A RT, a c o r p o ra t e

sponsor of PDPW

Three types of membership

Dairy Farm Member

One membership per dairy entity covers all managers, spouses and employees. While each dairy entity has one vote, every person within the dairy—operator, spouse and employees—enjoys the member rate when attending events.

Associate Member

Membership is open to any individual interested in the dairy industry. This is a non-voting membership. Associate members enjoy the member rate when attending PDPW events.

Corporate Member

Open to any group, company or orga-nization interested in the dairy indus-try. This is a non-voting membership. This membership qualifies every employee within your organization for the member rate when attending PDPW events.

To learn more or to join PDPW, call PDPW at

800-947-7379 or go to www.pdpw.org.

Join today!Join


This past September was an exciting month for the Wiscon-sin dairy industry as new num-bers revealed just how big of a deal dairy cows are to Wiscon-sin’s economy.

The UW-Extension released its full report in September on the Economic Impact of Wis-consin Agriculture, based on the 2012 USDA-NASS (National Agricultural Statistics Service) Agriculture Census, and, according to the report, agricul-ture has an $88.3 billion impact on the state’s economy—up from $59 billion in 2007.

Wisconsin’s dairy industry is the largest sector of agriculture and accounts for nearly half of the total economic impact con-tributing $43.4 billion in indus-trial sales to the state’s econ-omy. That’s an increase of 63.7 percent.

The study, authored by Ste-ven Deller, a UW-Extension community development spe-cialist and professor in the UW-Madison agricultural and applied economics department, is a follow-up to a previous study published in 2009 using 2007 data.

According to the study, despite the combined effects of the drought of 2012 and the Great Recession, agriculture remains a critical component of Wisconsin’s economy. The study highlights the overall strength of the dairy industry and the role it plays in fueling the state’s economy, particu-larly growing industry seg-ments which include creamery butter and dry, condensed and evaporated dairy products.

Through diverse industry seg-ments, it is clear dairy contrib-utes more to Wisconsin’s state economy at $43.4 billion than citrus does to Florida, $9 billion or potatoes to Idaho, $6.7 bil-lion.

With Wisconsin’s 1.2 million cows pumping economic life throughout the state, it is clear why dairy would be the largest contributor to the state’s econ-omy.

If you were to look at how much each Wisconsin dairy cow generates, the numbers are astounding. The average Wis-consin dairy cow generates $34,000 a year in economic activity, which is then circu-lated back into the community through local schools, safety services, roads, retail activities

and on and on. In fact, the dairy industry fuels the state’s econ-omy at more than $82,500 per minute.

The study also indicates 78,000 jobs in agriculture are generated by the dairy and food processing sectors, or about one in 10 people working in Wis-consin hold a job related to this key industry. These jobs include farmers, their employees and those providing them with goods and services—veterinar-ians, crop and livestock consul-tants, feed and fuel suppliers, equipment dealers and lend-ers—as well as those employed in equipment manufacturing and food processing. That agri-culture has grown 50 percent in terms of its total economic impact over a five year period is

impressive, and is due in part to the hard working individuals who produce quality products for markets here in the United States and abroad.

“Dairy continues to flourish as a strong and vital industry in our state,” said James Robson, CEO of the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board. “As an orga-nization, we are honored to promote and serve the many dairy families and businesses that help generate $43.4 billion dollars for the Wisconsin econ-omy.”

It is because of organizations like PDPW and others that sup-port producers and industry professionals who share the common bonds of dairy and are committed to continuing edu-cation of producers and indus-try professionals and promo-tion the state’s award-winning dairy products. Development and innovation will continue to fuel the industry, which will allow Wisconsin to maintain its presence as a leader in the dairy industry moving forward.

The full report “Contribution of Agriculture to the Wisconsin Economy: Updated for 2012” is available at http://wp.aae.wisc.edu/wfp/contribution-of-agri-c u l t u re - to - t h e - w i s c o n -sin-economy.

Additional Wisconsin Info-graphics and other statistics are available at www.dairydoing-more.org/economicimpact/statistics/infographics.

Patrick GeogheganWisconsin Milk Marketing

Board, a mission sponsor of PDPW

Dairy industry contributes more than $43.4 billion to Wisconsin’s economy


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Culture on a dairy farm is not something we often think about. A dairy farm is a very busy place, and we are often preoccupied with all the work has to be done.

There are real differences in how dairy farms operate, the way that they look at cows and the role the cow has on the farm. We are all aware of recent publicity that has shown some dairies in a very poor light. How do dairy producers build a culture that puts the cow’s well-being first?

The first step needs to involve a bit of self-examina-tion. In “Start with Why” Simon Simek writes about how successful companies and leaders have a very clear purpose or “why.” We all know “what” to do and “how” to do it, but, if we don’t clearly focus on “why” we are in the dairy business, then the best SOPs in the world won’t be worth the paper they are printed on.

What is the “why” on your d a i ry ? Do yo u l ive yo u r “why”?

If animal care is a core principle on your dairy would you fire a person (even your relative) that you found not following your standards? Do you have a standard? Does your “what” and “how” on the dairy match up with your “why”? If animal care is your “why” how quick are you to attend to a lame cow? Do we do it today or do we wait till the vet or trimmer gets to it?

Employees can figure out

the real “why” of a dairy pretty quickly. Is the boss just paying lip service or do they really believe in what they preach? Martin Luther King didn’t have SOPs; he had a dream.

Cows are very responsive to the care which they receive. The better we care and feed them, the better they take care of us.

Today’s modern dairy cow still has many of the same characteristics as the first domesticated cattle. They are still prey animals and, as such, need to be treated dif-ferently than predator ani-mals such as humans.

So people might misread cows and give them human characteristics. If not familiar with how cows react, a person might think they are dumb brutes, uncooperative and unwilling to change—when in fact, they are smart, sensi-tive, cooperative and willing.

If you want to be successful w i t h c ows, yo u n e e d to understand how they think and work. Many of the prin-ciples of low stress livestock handling were first described by Bud Williams and have been incorporated into many training programs currently available in the industry.

So what do cows want?

They need a quality consis-tent ration, a comfortable place to rest, freedom from pain, injury and disease, the ability to express normal behavior and to be free from fear and distress. How we manage our dairies and the people that care for the cows has everything to do with meeting these needs.

To instill a culture that puts

the cow’s well-being at the center requires that we first know ourselves. Why are we in the dairy business? If cow care is not the first priority of the people that are in contact with your cows, you need to hire people who are.

As a leader of your dairy, you get to set the culture of your business. Being true to your “why” will make your dairy a great place with happy, healthy cows and people.

Floyd SuttonKey Account Manager, Zinpro

Performance Minerals , a mis-sion sponsor of PDPW

Instilling a culture of care: What does it look like from the cow’s perspective?

Being true to your “why” will make your dairy a great place with happy,

healthy cows and people


Will 2015 be the year the tide turns for interest rates?

The dairy industry has recently enjoyed an incredible period of low interest rates. Regardless of rate product—be it fixed or variable, low rates have been a great benefit for produc-ers who rely on credit lines for operating need, or who have invested in new facilities, equip-ment or land with longer-term loans.

The Federal Funds rate—the short-term interest rate set by the Fed and upon which other short-term U.S. interest rates are based—has been effectively zero since 2009, during the days of what was termed the financial meltdown on Wall Street. With the economy slowing improv-ing, the likelihood of higher interest rates is increasing as the Fed begins to change their pol-icy.

Now is a great time for dairy farmers to understand and man-age the effect of rising interest rates for their business.

Cost of borrowing expected to rise

There is growing consensus by economists and lenders alike that the cost of borrowing is expected to begin to rise during the middle of 2015 or early 2016. No one knows for sure when the Fed will raise interest rates. Once it is decided, policy change is needed to keep inflation at bay and the Fed will begin a series of rate increases.

As the accompanying Federal chart indicates, there is clearly

only one way for rates to move: up. And that begs the question, “By how much?”

The amount increase rates increase will depend on the rate of inflation and unemployment. The Fed has a 2% target for inflation and, as long as inflation remains close to this target, then most economists believe the Feds would raise rates more slowly than in the past. The key factor is the unemployment rate, which currently has fallen below the Fed’s 6% target to 5.9%.

Some level of concern still remains that there is slack in the labor market, which is why the Fed is holding off until mid-year 2015 to raise the funds rate.

Manage financial riskThere is no time like the pres-

ent to consider the benefits of locking into low fixed rate prod-ucts.

Fixed rate loans provide

borrowers certainty with estab-lished monthly payments and value by paying lower rates over the full term of the loan. This is a well-founded risk manage-ment strategy for producers since we know other operating costs are sure to be volatile and will likely reduce their revenue.

Another way for producers to benefit from today’s bargain on interest rates is to take advan-tage of lender programs to refi-nance farm machinery they paid for in cash over the last couple years.

This could be a great way use three- to five-year fixed rate programs and build up working capital at reasonable rates pre-paring producers for the uncer-tainty that lies ahead for 2015 and beyond.

Producers should not forget about cash management options when considering ways to reduce interest costs. One way is by selecting a lender that offers

a revolving line of credit com-bined with a cash management account.

The key benefits of this approach to cash management are: business receipts directly delivered to the revolving line of credit, minimizing loan balances and reducing interest costs. Additionally the investment feature of these accounts earns interest at rates very comparable to short-term CD rates.

Whether it’s margins, cost of production, farm policy or interest rates, dairy producers are constantly dealing with change. Understanding your operation, the options available to you and managing risk effec-tively, will help you position your operation for long-term, steady success.

Greg SteeleVice President and Industry

Specialist, AgStar, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Position your operation as interest rates rise


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Dairy farmers are among the most savvy, watching their bot-tom line when it comes to mar-gins, milk quality and produc-tion per cow. And, while the year 2014 yielded record high milk prices, there’s a particular investment that might be just as—or more important—than just dollars and data.

That investment is in people of this great industry: the research-ers, the crop consultants, the milk marketers, the farm broad-casters and, most of all, the new generation of dairy farmers.

Young dairy farmers are among the minority in this age-old industry. Often criticized by their city counterparts and applauded by their rural leaders, they hold the future in their hands, on the edge of their plows and at the brim of their bulk tank.

For obvious reasons, they are an important part of this indus-try as we look to the future.

They are the ones to be the innovators and progressive thinkers, looking for ways to improve their farm and provide for their future. They’ll test products and protocols, and share with other farmers how to boost their bottom line. They’ll forever change the way dairy farming works, and they’re already beginning to.

It’s not just the way these young farmers will do dairy in the future. It’s the way they’ll be involved in industry organiza-tions and serve as leaders. The investment most important here is not innovation, it’s the pro-gressive thinking behind these young, future leaders.

Fortunately for them, oppor-tunities abound for ways to get more involved in developing dairy policy, promotion initia-tives, industry standards and so

much more. These opportunities come in the form of young pro-ducer groups formed by cooper-ative boards and agricultural organizations.

Most of these young producer groups are fairly new to the industry, when it was first real-ized a few years ago the value that younger farmers have for the future of agriculture.

Farmers and young profes-sionals participate in these groups for various reasons. Some are looking to make friends, near and far. Some are looking for new ideas on how to improve their operation, and they are hoping to hear real experiences from other farmers. Others might simply be looking for a way to get more involved in an industry they love.

Whatever the reason, bringing these individuals together cre-ates a great opportunity. They have new ideas they bring to the table, and fresh ways of thinking. They challenge the way things have been done simply to under-stand if it’s still the right way of doing things.

Given the right circumstances and strong support from other leaders in an organization, these bright ideas can take hold and grow into greater opportunities

in the future.Before these younger producers

become the leaders within an organization, they first get to work alongside their current leaders. This is a chance to learn the way things currently happen, what challenges are present and which

ones are anticipated to come. More importantly, it’s a chance to share values and ethics, ensuring values are never compromised.

Education is their most pow-erful tool, and they are eager to learn and ask questions. In fact, having that sincere curiosity is their greatest asset. Bring them with you to industry events and chat with these young producers about their opinions. Share ideas that never came to fruition and see if they can be reinvigorated.

It’s a fairly simple concept: the best way to stay green in this age-old industry is to keep learn-ing, to keep asking questions of your generation and the next.

Julie MartinDirector of Communications and

Marketing, FarmFirst Dairy Cooper-ative, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Watching our greatest investment grow

Young producers learn more than how to raise cattle, care for youngstock and work the land. They also learn the values of being a dairy farmer and what it means to be a part of this industry.


While U.S. dairy product and milk prices have remained strong through November when compared to international prices, recent downward price convergence has been experi-enced.

Continued forward month convergence into 2015 could potentially result in significant declines in domestic dairy product and milk prices.

Butter pricesOf the three component

prices used in formulating Class III milk prices, U.S. butter prices experienced the most significant divergence from world prices leading up to the fourth quarter of 2014.

From June to September, U.S. butter prices increased 35.8% while average Europe and Oce-ania butter prices declined 20.8% over the same time period. When adjusting Europe and Oceania prices to the U.S. standard 80% butterfat, the divergence in prices at the end of September created a $1.55/lb. spread between U.S. and aver-age international butter prices, a 10-year high.

Since September, interna-tional butter prices have con-tinued to decline, but at a far lesser rate than domestic prices. Average Europe and Oceania butter prices declined 3.3% from September to November while domestic but-ter prices have declined 34.9%.

CME futures and GlobalDair-yTrade (GDT) butter prices sug-gest that convergence between domestic and international but-ter prices is expected to continue into 2015, driving down the U.S./international butter price spread to less than $0.45/lb.

Cheddar cheese prices

U.S. cheddar cheese prices also experienced significant divergence from world prices leading up to the fourth quarter of 2014, although not to the extent of domestic butter prices.

U.S. cheddar cheese prices increased 25.8% from June to September while Oceania prices declined 14.0% over the same time period. The divergence in prices at the end of September created a $0.64/lb. spread between U.S. and average inter-national cheddar cheese prices, also a ten year high.

Since September, interna-tional cheddar cheese prices have continued to decline, but

at a far lesser rate than domestic prices. Oceania butter prices declined 3.8% from September to November while domestic cheddar cheese prices have declined 24.7%.

CME futures and GDT ched-dar cheese prices suggest that the spread between domestic and international cheddar cheese prices is expected to remain at levels far below those recently experienced into 2015, with U.S./international ched-dar cheese price spreads just north of $0.25/lb.

Forward Class III milk price projections

Forward month butter and cheddar cheese price gains experienced in recent GDT

auctions have also led to a sig-nificant convergence in quar-terly calculated international and domestic Class III prices. When calculated in September, 2015 quarterly international Class III prices averaged $13.69/cwt while the U.S./international price spread averaged $4.07/cwt. When cal-culated using current Novem-ber figures, 2015 quarterly international Class III prices have increased to an average of $14.30/cwt, with the average U.S./international price spread being reduced by over 40% to $2.34/cwt.

Although this convergence has resulted in recent declines in domestic Class III prices, calculated quarterly interna-tional prices remain signifi-cantly below domestic levels. If price convergence contin-ues, U.S. Class III milk prices could fall to levels consider-ably closer to the $14.50/cwt range.

Authors’ Note: The infor-mation and comments con-tained herein are provided as general commentary of market conditions and are not and should not be interpreted as trading advice or recommenda-tion. The information and com-ments contained herein are not and should not be interpreted to be predictive of any future mar-ket event or condition. Informa-tion contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be reli-able, but cannot be guaranteed as to its accuracy or complete-ness.

Carl Babler, Will Babler and Luke Strub

Atten Babler Commodities LLC, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

U.S. vs. international dairy prices, Dec. 2014

Whether you’re looking for a more flexible work schedule, hoping to focus on cow man-agement or want to bring the next generation into the dairy industry, there is much to learn and understand about robotic milking.

Over the last year I’ve been on a mission to dig deep into the minds of up-and-running robotic milking producers and producers contemplating mak-ing the jump. I wanted to know the pros and cons from the cur-rent operators as well as the questions still lingering in the heads of the undecided produc-ers.

Here is a list of pointers from producers who have entered into robotic milking over the last year, plus some important steps taken when deciding if

robotics was for them.Do your research. There are

multiple different brands, makes and models of robotic milking systems, and each car-ries its own special feature that sets them apart from the others. One robotic brand may have a feature that will accommodate your needs more than the next operator’s needs. Some exam-ples would be the underbrush vs. the teat cup for washing, an under arm vs. a table, a flush floor in the robot vs. no flush floor.

Is there a dealer close by? This is very important because should something go wrong, you need quick service so you don’t have a long down time on a robot.

Tour some up-and-running facilities and make sure these

operations have been running full speed for a good couple of months.

While a new facility is always exciting to see, the operational end of things may still have some kinks to work out. While on tour ask a lot of questions, including. . .

• Average milk time?• Production level?• Fetch rate?• Entry rate per day, per cow?Work with an experienced

builder who has experience not only in robotic facilities but also in the construction and dairy industry. You might want to ask if the salesperson you interact with has been in the farming and construction industries for a significant amount of time and understands the full pic-ture.

Every producer that I have spoken with who is milking with a robotic system has told me the key to a successful robotic dairy is cow manage-ment.

As the producer, you can gather a lot of information about your cows through exces-sive amounts of data compiled from the robotic computer sys-tem. Knowing how to read this data, analyze it and act on it is the key to a successful robotic milking dairy.

Using the system as a man-agement tool gives you the abil-ity to focus on the science of each cow individually.

Once your robotic milking system is operational, you will quickly learn how one small


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See ROBOTIC, on page 24

Are you contemplating robotic milking?


RoboticContinued from page 23adjustment in feed can change each animal’s production. Through much experimenting, you will also learn how to feed

each cow to obtain her best pro-duction.

Only you can make the deci-sion what is right for your facility when it comes to deciding on

robots or a conventional milking parlor. At the end of the day, the person running the operations is what will make or break a suc-cessful farm.

Ashley AmbrosiusAgriculture Business Develop-

ment, Bayland Buildings, Inc., a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Each year key decisions are made on a dairy farm influencing the dairy operation’s success and prof-itability for the next year. One of these decision areas revolves around the planting, harvesting, storage and feedout of corn for silage.

The first step towards success with corn silage is hybrid selection. A recent University of Minnesota study (Coulter, J. Univ. Minn. Extension) looking at management decisions which make a difference in corn production ranks corn hybrid selection as the No. 1 agro-nomic factor. Hybrids can account for 37% to 64% of the impact on yield of corn.

Corn silage hybrid choices are abundant, as are the philosophies around hybrids designed for silage.

The mix of ideas around what makes a good corn hybrid for top animal production is often confus-ing. Measuring the value of corn silage is complicated due to the series of event which occur from planting through harvest and feed-out. Often a decision about the success or failure of a corn silage hybrid has little to do with field per-formance and more to do with ker-nel processing and post-harvest ensiling or feeding.

Trying to clear the fog around corn silage hybrid choice starts by figuring out what factors are con-trolled by genetic choices versus other environmental influences. At the end of the growing season, only a few factors play into how a corn silage hybrid “performs.” For the

most part, these key factors are related to agronomics.

Factors which make for high-yielding corn grain produc-tion also influence forage yield and quality of corn for silage. Selecting hybrids with good stand establish-ment, standability, drought toler-ance and disease resistance all drive corn performance for silage. These hybrid performance factors all help to increase total yield of leaves, stalks and husks as well as the grain (starch).

Things start to get muddled when thinking about factors that influence energy content and energy availability of the corn for-age when fed to milk cows. At the end of the day, you want corn hybrids that consistently deliver the highest energy to the feed bunk. So the question is what quality or nutritional factors influence energy

production of silage?Nutritionists have to balance

dairy rations primarily by using the forages and grain grown on the farm. They need both fiber and grain to make the cow’s rumen work optimally. Corn silage delivers both grain and fiber at the same time. Having highly digestible fiber and grain is key to driving animal intake and performance.

How much will corn hybrid genetics influence these factors? To determine this, we need to under-stand the genetic range of two plant characteristics, starch content and fiber digestibility.

University studies show the range of fiber digestibility to be rel-atively small among non-BMR hybrids. In typical corn silage hybrid trials, there is a range among all commercial entries of four to six units of fiber digestibility. On the

other hand, the variability for starch content is much larger. In addition to top silage yields, the top per-forming corn silage entries have consistently high starch content and high fiber digestibility. These are the measurable factors which most influence animal perfor-mance and drive profitability.

More recently, discussions around starch digestibility have surfaced. University of Wisconsin researchers have concluded that starch digestibility differences do not exist among corn hybrids when harvested as corn silage and prop-erly processed and fermented.

In addition to genetic variability, corn silage producers and nutri-tionists need to deal with the impact of weather and other envi-ronmental influences on corn silage digestibility. Often the year-to-year differences are credited to corn genetic differences.

The reality is that rainfall pat-terns and temperatures along with soil type, previous crop, fertility and other management factors have a great influence on every hybrid planted.

Keep your corn silage selection process simple. Start with great agronomics, look for top end silage yield and starch content and then look for above average fiber digest-ibility. These are the key factors driving success with corn silage.

Daniel WiersmaLivestock Information Manager,

DuPont Pioneer , a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Keeping corn silage hybrid selection simple

The first step towards success with corn silage is hybrid selection. Hybrids can account for 37% to 64% of the impact on yield of corn.


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A dairy cow’s ability to main-tain normal blood calcium con-centrations is challenged during the start of each new lactation. With milk, including colostrum, extremely rich rich in calcium, cows must quickly shift their priorities to adjust for this sudden calcium out-flow.

Subclinical hypocalcemia affects about 50% of second and greater lactation dairy cat-tle fed typical pre-fresh diets.

The main economic problem associated with subclinical hypocalcemia is lowered milk yield, with the loss in milk yield beginning at higher blood cal-cium concentrations than pre-viously suspected, noted Dr. Garret Oetzel, University of Wisconsin, in a presentation at the 2013 Tri-State Dairy Nutri-tion Conference. Research now shows that negative effects from subclinical hypocalcemia starts whenever blood total cal-cium concentrations drop below about 8.5 mg/dl.

At calving, oral supplemen-tation is generally the best way to replenish a standing cow’s drop in blood calcium. Your product choices are nearly end-less, and there are almost as many forms of administration as there are breeds of dairy cow. But you should know that not all calcium supplements are created equal.

Always read the product label. Without reading the product label, you could mis-takenly purchase a calcium supplement that is difficult to administer or one that has little to no impact on a cow’s calcium level.

The most common forms of calcium supplements are boluses, drenches, pastes and

gels. Boluses easily rise to the top in terms of ease and safety of administration.

A key challenge is choosing a product that has the right types of calcium.

The three most common forms are calcium carbonate, calcium propionate and cal-cium chloride. Let’s look at each of these choices a bit closer.

Calcium carbonate’s reputa-tion for efficacy is rocky at best, because that’s exactly what it is: ground rock. In a presenta-tion at the 2013 Tri-State Dairy Nutrition Conference, Dr. Oet-zel reported that “calcium car-bonate in water did not increase blood calcium concentrations at all.” Calcium carbonate has been shown to be poorly absorbed and is also alkalo-genic, meaning it could hinder the mobilization of calcium from other sources, such as bone.

Calcium propionate is not acidogenic: It doesn’t support mobilization of bone calcium. While calcium propinate absorbs faster than calcium

carbonate, it is often given as a liquid, and drenching or pump-ing liquids can be challenging. If calcium propionate is admin-istered orally, special attention

must be given to avoid aspira-tion pneumonia.

Calcium chloride is rapidly absorbed and invokes an aci-dogenic response that allows the cow to mobilize more of her own calcium from bones. A study by Dr. Jesse Goff showed that six hours after administra-tion of 50 grams of calcium from calcium chloride, calcium levels will still be at 9 to 10 per-cent over baseline1.

Ask your veterinarian to review your fresh cow calcium supplementation program to ensure your protocol is biolog-ically and cost effective.

1 Goff JP. The monitoring, prevention, and treat-ment of milk fever and subclinical hypocalcemia in dairy cows. Vet J. 2008 Apr;176(1):50-7

Scott LaufenbergBoehringer-Ingelheim , a

mission sponsor of PDPW

Not all calcium supplements are created equal

At calving, oral supplementation is generally the best way to replenish a standing cow’s drop in blood calcium. A key challenge, however, is choosing a product that has the right types of calcium.


A lot of different factors go into a good hay crop. Good ground, good seed, good weather and a little good luck all help contribute to unlocking the full yield potential of your farm.

While 10-ton alfalfa is a high yield target for many farmers, following some key manage-ment practices can make that goal realistic.

1) Select the highest yield-ing seed. The way to maximize your crop is to start with an alfalfa variety that has the high-est yield potential available.

University trials, local yield data and on-farm trials are great sources of info to find the best yielding genetics. Areas you should investigate include knowing what diseases to expect pressure from and which varieties will offer protection. In addition, shopping simply for the lowest price alfalfa seed can have negative ramifications, as a yield difference of only .2 tons/acre allows growers to pay $100.00 more for a bag of seed and break even in the first year if hay is worth $180.00 per ton. (Assumes 18 lbs./ acre seeding rate, which gets you 2.78 acres per bag.)

2) Implement a soil testing program. A soil test provides the basis of knowledge needed to make other management decisions for each field. Your soils should be tested at least every other year and, if needed, lime applied at least one year before alfalfa establishment to bring your field’s pH between 6.5 and 7.0.

To replenish nutrients that are removed from high yields, fertilizer should be applied each year. After all, 10 tons of alfalfa removes 580 lbs. of potassium

from the soil, which needs to be accounted for in the fertility plan. Split applications ensure proper nutrients are available all year, especially going into fall. Other nutrient levels such as sulfur, calcium, magnesium and boron levels should be corrected before problems occur.

3) Focus on establishment. Good seed-to-soil contact is a must.

A field should be worked in several directions to level it, then rolled before and after planting to leave a footprint no deeper than ¼ inch. If you use a no-till drill, seeding depth should be monitored and adjustments made when field conditions change so seed is placed ¼ inch to ½ inch deep in clay or loam soils, or ¾ inch to 1 inch deep in sandy or light soils.

The first 60 days can deter-mine the yield potential for the stand’s entire life.

4) Seed at least 18 lbs./acre. Alfalfa yield potential is a function of plants per acre. B e c a u s e e n v i r o n m e n t a l

conditions vary, using at least 18 lbs. of seed per acre will maxi-mize yield potential and reduce the need for replanting.

5) Scout for insects. We suggest you scout at least twice per week with a sweep net and spray immediately when threshold levels are reached. If you see v-shaped leaf burn from potato leafhoppers or defolia-tion from alfalfa weevils, yield is already lost and plant health is sacrificed.

6) Consider using a fungi-cide. Spring and early summer growing conditions can be cool and wet. When these conditions are prevalent, a fungicide treat-ment can help reduce leaf dis-eases and improve leaf reten-tion, which, in turn, will pro-duce higher yields.

7) Be open to foliar feed-ing. It’s a smart move to inves-tigate foliar feeding nutrient packages. They may contain important micronutrients that can enhance yield, and be com-bined with many insecticides for one-pass application. Seed re p re s e n ta t ive s o r c ro p

consultants can help explain what works in any given area.

8) Avoid soil compaction. Once compaction occurs, yield potential is already diminished. This is particularly important when traveling in newly estab-lished fields. Larger equipment allows for less passes through the field during harvest, but typically adds weight where traffic does occur. Monitoring field conditions before entering the field with equipment will help minimize compaction and crown injury.

While following these man-agement practices won’t guar-antee you will get 10-ton alfalfa, they will help put you in a better position to maximize the yield potential of your alfalfa fields. Prep your fields. Plant the best genetics. Pray for good weather. And, with a little luck, 10-ton alfalfa yield could well become your reality.

Chad StaudingerForage Product Manager,

Dairyland Seed, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

Achieving 10-ton alfalfa is possible

When you follow key management practices, 10-ton alfalfa might be closer than you think.

Agriview Be 27

©2015 Dairyland Seed Co., Inc. All rights reserved. ®Dairyland Seed and the Dairyland Seed logo are trademarks ofThe Dow Chemical Company (“Dow”) or an affiliated company of Dow. Dairyland Seed is a seed affiliate of Dow AgroSciences.

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See FINANCIAL, on page 29

As you look to improve your operation’s performance, it’s easy to focus on the day-to-day production management activ-ities. The risk of this alone, however, is that you can lose sight of the broader financial management picture, which affects all of your key business decisions and your dairy opera-tion’s ability to thrive in the future.

The following quiz is designed to help you understand the financial management side of your operation.

Behind the metricsThe first three questions

relate to profitability and your rate of return. Cost of produc-tion drives the bottom line and should be a key component of your risk management deci-sions.

Your operating expense ratio focuses on the cost to generate your income stream. Managing that cost—and understanding the relationship between your day-to-day decisions and your expense ratio—can help you focus on managing cost of pro-duction.

ROA is a measure of profit-ability compared to your invest-ment to produce that profit. We’ve all seen operations with too many high-priced tractors to turn a profit. Knowing your ROA can help you determine which investments are adding to or detracting from your bottom line.

The next questions relate to your balance sheet and staying power. Leverage is the measure of how much your credit part-ners (liabilities) have invested in your operation compared to what you have invested (equity).

The larger the number, the more borrowed capital you have in relation to your own invest-ment.

A leverage ratio of 1.6:1 limits your borrowing capacity for future needs. Equity is the shock absorber, and a high leverage ratio indicates that the shock absorber is worn out.

Working capital measures your operation’s ability to man-age short-term hits to its profit-ability and cash flow. That is, how many months can your position cover operating expenses? Shoot for three to five months, if you want to be able to withstand market volatility.

If you’re an individual bor-rower, another factor you may want to consider is your credit score. Many dairy operations are sole proprietorships, so their credit score has a significant impact on a lender’s credit deci-sions. Knowing your credit score, what affects it and how to monitor it can mean the differ-ence between getting a pre-ferred or a high-risk loan rate.

Never too lateKeeping track of these met-

rics isn’t just a once-a-year exercise, it’s something that you should be monitoring continu-ally.

The answers to these ques-tions affect decisions such as buying new equipment or tak-ing advantage of expansion opportunities. If you don’t know the answers, you don’t know how these decisions affect your long-term financial pic-ture.

Of course, you should always start with accurate financial

What is your financial literacy score?


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A total mixed ration assumes that every bit of feed eaten by the cow has the same exact nutrition. It also assumes that every cow that is supposed to get this ration is eating the same exact ration.

However, this does not usu-ally happen in the real world on a dairy farm.

Typically what we see in the real world are four rations: 1) the ration formulated on paper; 2) the ration that is mixed by the feeder; 3) the ration consumed by the cow; and 4) the ration pushed out as refusal.

Formulating the right diet. When formulating the diet, we assume that we have all the cur-rent information on moisture and ingredient nutrient analy-sis. While this maybe true for most dry feeds, this is often not the case for wet feeds like silages. Due to sampling error and infrequent sampling of silages, the ration formulated on paper is not the same as the one mixed.

It is good practice to remove all the silage from the face, push and lift the silage into a blended pile, which allows good mixing. Then take 10 samples from this pile, mix the samples and take a sub-sample that will fit into a

quart-sized plastic bag.The contents in this bag

should be analyzed for moisture and nutrients and then this information used in the ration formulation software. Depend-ing on the variability of the silage, this task should be per-formed several times per week.

Are your cows really eating what you think you are feeding?

Numerous factors can cause significant variation in the TMR along the bunk, allowing inconsistent nutrition among all the cows within a pen.

FinancialContinued from page 28records. The phrase “garbage in, garbage out” is particularly appropriate. If your records aren’t accurate, your calculations could end up steering you in the wrong direction.

If your score is low right now, don’t despair. Financial literacy is something you can improve. Work with your team of advisers to find out the answers.

When you start to know more about your financial position, you’ll find yourself making better business decisions and you’ll be prepared to take advantage of new opportunities.

Bradley GuseSenior Vice President, Agribusi-

ness Banking, BMO Harris Bank, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

See EATING, on page 30


EatingContinued from page 29

Mixing the right diet. Mix-ing the right diet means loading the exact amount of each ingre-dient into the mixer and then mixing all the ingredients together so every bite eaten by the cow matches what was for-mulated on paper.

Most feeders do a good job of loading the right amount of ingredients into the mixer, but even the best feeders will have loading errors of 10 to 30 pounds per ingredient on average.

Feeder accuracy can be improved by parking the mixer so it is level and out of the wind. Another important factor—espe-cially when multiple pens are fed by a single load of feed—is mak-ing sure the right amount mixed ration is delivered to each pen.

Ten factors that can influence the TMR not matching the for-mulation are:

1. Worn augers, blades and kicker plates

2. Un-level mixer3. Poor processing of hay,

straw or baleage4. Loading position on the

mixer5 . I n g r e d i e n t l o a d i n g

sequence6. Liquid distribution7. Load size8. Auger speed on vertical

mixers9. Forage restrictor settings

on vertical mixers10. Mix time after the last

added ingredientEach of these factors can

cause significant variation in the

TMR along the bunk, allowing inconsistent nutrition among all the cows within a pen.

The ration the cow con-sumes. Whether all the cows eat the exact TMR that was delivered to them depends a lot on how well the dry forages are pro-cessed.

If the forage is not processed enough and if the TMR is too dry, cows will sort against the long forage particles and eat more of the fine particles contained in the concentrate portion of the TMR.

1Oelberg and Stone. 2014. Monitoring Total Mixed Rations and Feed Delivery Systems. Vet Clin Food Animal. Pgs. 721-744.

2Martel. 2010. Personal communication.

Tom Oelberg, Ph.D.Dairy Field Technical Specialist,

Diamond V, a corporate sponsor of PDPW

A survey of TMR sorting by Martel2 showed the following:

Ration type Incidence Percentage Sorted

Lactating 13/28 46%

Non-lactating 12/16 75%

Nine of the 13 sorted lactating rations and all 12 of the sorted non-lactat-ing were rations in which the forage was processed in the mixer wagon and was not processed ahead of time by a hay grinder or processor. If forage is to be processed to the proper length by the mixer wagon, then a routine maintenance schedule is needed to replace blades, kicker plates and augers.

Every career needs a corner-stone, a firm foundation on which you build. If you are in a dairy-re-lated field and either transitioning into management, looking to make a smooth career transition or just beginning your career, the Professional Dairy Producers want to help you succeed.

Conducted the day prior and the first day of the 2015 PDPW Busi-ness Conference in Madison, Wis., Cornerstone Dairy Academy™ is a two-day, two-program event on March 17-18 designed to give you the soft skills—foundational char-acteristics—that can propel your career forward. These soft skills are the very ones employers cite as a top consideration when hiring or promoting employees into leader-ship positions.

Participants will have their choice of two program options on Day 1:

• “INFLUENTIAL LEADER-SHIP: Interact and Influence!” These interactive sessions will explore the importance of work-ing well with others to solve complex problems in the work-place. Topics will include team-work skills, communicating with different generations, personality and leadership styles, conflict resolution and business eti-quette.

• “VISIONARY LEADERS: Ethics, Leadership and Outlook.” Participants will discover their leadership traits and identify which character strengths can positively influence others for success in business. Those strengths will be woven with the mega forces and trends of agri-culture as presented by leading

agricultural economist Dr. David Kohl. Participants will learn how to be impact players who lead others through a turbulent, changing global economy.

Both tracks culminate with the opportunity to put concepts into practice at the 2015 PDPW Busi-ness Conference, March 18.

“The future of the dairy indus-try depends on its ability to attract, develop and retain qual-ified people,” says Shelly Mayer, executive director of PDPW. “The combination of technical and soft skills is the foundation for a successful career. With Cornerstone Dairy Academy, PDPW is offering foundational business and leadership training not found anywhere else in the dairy industry.”

Any dairy producer or other professional in the dairy indus-try, as well as students pursuing

dairy related careers, may apply for this training. Age is not a con-sideration for selection. Employ-ers are encouraged to urge employees to apply.

Cornerstone Dairy Academy is an application-based program with a limited number accepted into each program. Tuition for Cornerstone Dairy Academy includes lodging, meals, training and admission to Day 1 of the PDPW Business Conference, with a significant percentage of tuition underwritten by Profes-sional Dairy Producers Founda-tion.

To be considered for Corner-stone Dairy Academy, individu-als must apply by Feb. 15. Appli-cants will be notified of accep-tance by Feb. 27. Program details can be found at www.pdpw.org or by calling PDPW at 800-947-7379.

Cornerstone Dairy Academy™: 2 days, 2 dynamic programs


Twohig RietbrockSchneider & Halbach“Attorneys for Agriculture”

(920) 849-4999

We are proud to be membersof PDPW andWisconsin’s

rural community.

No matter a dairy farm’s size or its production system, the written documents of farm business analyses are the basic tools of decision making.

If you are among the dairy owners who are at the top of their game when it comes to managing milk production, but have not embraced the financial side of your business and typi-cally shy away from analyzing your financial statements, then the Feb. 10 PDPW Dairy Finan-cial Workshop in Wisconsin Dells is for you. Workshop train-ers Steve Schwoerer, dairy spe-cialist with Badgerland Finan-cial, and Gary Siporski, a former president and CEO with the Citizens State Bank of Loyal and now part of the Vita Plus Cor-poration team, will show you how to grow your financial skills and your business.

Co-presenting information tag-team style, Siporski and Schweorer will conduct five important sessions: “Why You Need to Know Your Numbers,” The 5 Most Important Num-bers,” “Working with the Num-bers,” “Sitting in the Banker’s Chair” and “Action Steps.”

These sessions will:• Help you know and under-

stand essential financial num-bers so you can measure your financial strength and make sound management decisions.

• Zero in on key financial ratios that should be monitored on your dairy and explain what these numbers tell you about your operation and how to use these numbers to make man-agement decisions.

• Put your learning to the test as you and your team delve into a financial assessment of a case study farm and get a handle of

the financial strength of the operation. You and your team members will address “How would you manage this farm?” and “How would you prepare for a visit to the bank?”

• Have you and your team assume the role of a lender and look at your case study from the “other side.” You’ll also see how your feedback compares that from a real-world ag lender.

• Devote the final 30 minutes to you applying what you learned to your situation. You have the workshop’s two expert trainers on hand to answer your questions.

Developed by dairy producers for dairy producers, this PDPW workshop starts at 9 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m. During these seven hours, participants will be

given gems that can make a dif-ference to their dairy and come to understand the business side of milking cows in terms of their own financial statements, ratios

and measurements.PDPW’s Dairy Financial

Workshop is an accredited training program with the Uni-versity of Wisconsin School of V e t e r i n a r y M e d i c i n e (UW-SVM), and veterinarians may receive up to 6.3 CEUs for the training.

To learn more or to register, please call PDPW at 800-947-7379 or visit www.pdpw.org.

Hone your dairy financial skills

Gary Siporski

Steve Schwoerer

Dairy Financial Workshop

February 10, 2015

Glacier Canyon Conference Center45 Hillman Road

Wisconsin Dells, Wis.For more information, call

PDPW at 800-947-7379.

32 Agriview Be

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Dairy's Bottom Line January 2015

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