Posted: April 22, 2011 at 2:08 am
By John Davis
A report out of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri shows that a federal Dairy Market Support Program (DMSP) could help keep up prices without using any tax dollars to do so.
FAPRI Associate Director and dairy & livestock analyst Scott Brown says they looked at how the National Milk Producers Federation used DMSP during the recession of 2009 to add $2 cwt to milk margins, significant when you consider most margins are around $8 cwt. The way it worked was to cut supplies, and that pushed up prices, without the government having to step in and pump any funds into it.
Brown says while it’s not part of federal dairy policy now, it certainly could be. He says that even in these budget-cutting times, DMSP would be appealing to both sides of the political aisle since it would not require any outlay of tax dollars. Brown adds the best part might be that DMSP wouldn’t be used very often.
You can hear more of my conversation with Brown in this edition of the Milking Parlor: Milking Parlor Podcast FAPRI Report on DMSP
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Posted: March 13, 2011 at 1:07 pm
By John Davis
Prospects for dairy farmers are mixed for this year, with milk prices going up but profits being a bit lower… that’s the word out of the recent USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum.
In this edition of the Milking Parlor, we hear from Ag Department dairy analyst Roger Hoskins, who told the group gathered for the forum that feed prices have gone up for producers, but fortunately, so has the price they’re getting for their products. In fact, the latest numbers from the USDA’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates show that strong international demand and improving domestic demand will help keep prices up with the all milk price forecast to average $18.10 to $18.70 per hundred weight this year … up about two dollars from last year’s prices. Hoskins believes that even with smaller profits, dairy producers will expand their herds in 2011, an assertion that is backed up by USDA Outlook Board Chairman Gerry Bange.
It’s an interesting conversation, and you can hear more of what they have to say or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast USDA Ag Outlook Forum
Special thanks to our friend Gary Crawford at the USDA’s Newsroom for providing us with the audio for this report.
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here.
Posted: February 11, 2011 at 1:00 pm
By John Davis
Beef operations are a big part of any dairy farm, so it’s only fitting that a dairy man has risen to one of the top leadership positions at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). During the recent Cattle Industry Convention in Denver, Scott George, a family dairy farmer from Cody, Wyoming, was elected as the new vice president for NCBA, switching over from leadership with the Federation of State Beef Councils where he just finished a year as chairman.
In this edition of the Milking Parlor, we talk with George and get his thoughts on the new structure for the Federation, as well as the NCBA’s new Beef Industry Long Range Plan that includes the vision statement of “An industry united around a common goal of being the world’s most trusted and preferred source of beef and beef products.” In addition, George gives us his thoughts on how the beef industry needs to work with all of the other agriculture industries out there to make sure consumers have confidence in their food supply.
It’s an interesting conversation, and you can hear more of what he has to say or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast Scott George, new VP of NCBA
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Posted: December 30, 2010 at 7:00 pm
By John Davis
Dairy farmers are moving to more sustainable operations, and Novus International, sponsor of this program, has opened a research farm that tests its products and ways to be sustainable.
In this edition of the Milking Parlor, we take a look at Green Acres, Novus’ research farm that uses several sustainable features, including collecting the wastewater and composting and a soon-to-be-operational solar array that will help provide power while Novus tests its products in a real-world environment. During the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the 15-acre Green Acres, we talked with Novus CEO and President Thad Simons; manager of Product Services for Novus, Skip Hampton; and Missouri Director of Agriculture Jon Hagler about the facility, as well as catching up with Novus’ Director of Product Management Wendell Knehans, who explains Novus’ “triple bottom line” concept.
See photos from the event in our Flickr photo album.
It’s an interesting conversation, and you can hear more of what they have to say or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast on Novus International's Green Acres farm
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Posted: November 23, 2010 at 5:14 pm
By John Davis
Dairy farmers are looking for more ways to get their story out to the public … and some of that is starting with school kids.
The dairy industry has a good story to tell … one of hard-working farmers and their families, who are producing quality, nutritious products that build strong bodies and strong minds. In this episode of the Milking Parlor, we talk to Brad Scott, a fourth generation family dairy farmer from Southern California and a member of the National Dairy Board, and get his thoughts on the training the dairy checkoff has made available to dairy producers like him to better communicate that good news to the public, using many methods, including social media. In addition, Bridget Sheehan, a registered dietitian and program manager in the Kansas City area with the Midwest Dairy Council, talks about how the dairy industry 
has teamed up with the National Football League to offer the “Fuel Up to Play 60″ program … a program where kids are encouraged to get an hour of play every day, fueled by nutritious meals, such as ones with milk and dairy products.
It’s an interesting conversation, and you can hear more of what they have to say or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast on Communicating Better Using the Dairy Checkoff
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here.
The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
Posted: October 29, 2010 at 8:50 pm
By John Davis
It was a much more upbeat mood than in the past few years in Madison, Wisconsin earlier this month for World Dairy Expo, the dairy industry’s premier event.
More than 65,000 people attended this year’s event, including 2,468 from 87 countries outside of the U.S. The good turnout and the increased optimism was music to the ears of the 770 companies from 26 countries represented at this year’s show, including the 135 first-time exhibitors.
In this edition of the Milking Parlor, we talk to several people at this year’s expo, including World Dairy Expo Sales Manager John Rozem; Dr. Lance Fox, Alpharma’s Director of Technical Services; Senior Manager of Technology for Arm and Hammer Animal Nutrition, Dr. Elliot Block; Dr. Larry Chase with Cornell University; Novartis Animal Health Director of Veterinary Services Dr. Doug Scholz; Dave Hartford, dairy operations manager of the award-winning Oakridge-Bahler Farm in Connecticut; and Dr. Andy Skidmore with Schering-Plough Animal Health, who serves as the Secretary of the Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council, a group formed a few years ago to help improve fertility in the industry.
Listen to what they have to say or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast on Improving Profits at World Dairy Expo
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The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
Posted: September 21, 2010 at 8:15 pm
By John Davis
World Dairy Expo is just around the corner, taking place at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin, Sept 28th – Oct. 2nd.
Lisa Behnke is the marketing Manager for the expo, celebrating its 44th anniversary this year. She promises the event will be bigger and better than ever.
“We have a tremendous dairy trade show, the world’s largest. We expect to have more than 775 exhibitors from 26 different countries, demonstrating the latest and greatest wares you can possibly implement on your own dairy.”
With the theme “Crowning Achievements – Golden Opportunities,” Behnke says some of the new technology on display at World Dairy Expo will include new ideas designed to help the environment, as well as those hard-working dairy farmers.
While it’s a must-attend event for those in the dairy industry, Behnke understands there will be plenty of busy dairy farmers who just won’t be able to get time away from their herds to make it. That’s no problem. She points out that there will be more than 200 journalists from around the country and around the globe, covering the event. Among those is our own Cindy Zimmerman, who will be providing up-to-the-minute updates on this website, as well as AgWired.com, the WDD Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/WorldDairyDiary) and her own Twitter account (@FarmPodcaster). Thanks to our sponsors of the coverage: Novus International, Charleston-Orwig, Arm & Hammer, Novartis and Alpharma.
Listen to or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast with Lisa Behnke, World Dairy Expo
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The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
Posted: August 26, 2010 at 7:33 pm
By John Davis
As we told you in the previous post, the dairy industry gets a new tool to help it better research and market its products. Dairy Management Incorporated and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy have announced the formation of the Dairy Research Institute, a non-profit group designed to strengthen the dairy industry’s access to and investment in the technical research needed to drive demand for dairy products and ingredients around the world.
In this episode of the Milking Parlor, we talk to Greg Miller, president of this new Dairy Research Institute and executive vice president for research, regulatory and scientific affairs for DMI. He says the institute will bring industry, academics, government and commercial partners together with a focus on nutrition, product and sustainability areas of innovation.
Listen to or download the podcast here:
Milking Parlor Podcast with Greg Miller
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The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
Posted: June 28, 2010 at 11:28 pm
By John Davis
The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
No new news to dairy producers across the country: the industry is being hit hard by historically low prices. In this edition of the Milking Parlor, we listen in to part of the news conference Secretary of Ag Tom Vilsack and Assistant Attorney General Christine Varney held during a recent joint USDA-Department of Justice hearing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Vilsack pointed out that, in the last 10 years, the dairy industry has gone from 111,000 dairy farms to fewer than 65,000… and it’s not because producers got more efficient. He wants to get to the bottom of what is devastating the dairy industry. Varney says they’re looking at what role the markets, such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, are playing in the price declines. But she’s not prejudging at this point and wants the hearings to run their course and show what the problem really could be. Vilsack added that, despite some reports, they don’t have a hidden agenda of reformulating the law regarding cooperatives… they just want to make sure producers are treated fairly, and rural America again becomes a great place where people want to live and work.
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here. Listen to or download this episode in the player below.
Milking Parlor podcast
Posted: May 28, 2010 at 11:50 pm
By John Davis
The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
There have been some concerns raised about proposed changes to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association governance, not the least of those concerns raised by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. He wants to make sure the NCBA changes don’t affect the independence of the Federation of State Beef Councils, they keep separate checkoff and policy dollars… maintaining a firewall between the two, federation members won’t be required to buy a seat, and USDA’s Ag Marketing Service will maintain regulatory oversight of the federation and the board.
In this episode of the Milking Parlor, we’ll listen in to part of the press conference where Illinois cattle producer and NCBA President Steve Foglesong and Scott George, NCBA Federation Division Chair and Wyoming dairy/beef producer, address those concerns.
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here. Listen to or download this episode in the player below.
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Posted: April 21, 2010 at 11:23 pm
By John Davis
The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
He’s best known as “Big Al, your beverage pal,” but Alex Conti, Senior Director, U-S Menu Management for McDonald’s has been more than just a friend for the dairy industry … his innovations to expand the amount of dairy the food giant uses has made him a major benefactor for dairy farmers throughout the country.
In this edition of the Milking Parlor, we get to meet Conti (trust me, I tried to get a picture of him when he spoke to a recent gathering of dairy farmers … but that’s a whole other story!) and listen in as he details how McDonald’s works more milk, cheese and ice cream into the tasty treats the company offers. From the old standbys … Big Macs, Quarter Pounders with Cheese, Egg McMuffin … to the new line of McCafe and Frappe drinks, the Golden Arches continues to be a major buyer and seller of dairy products.
Top hear Conti’s presentation, just click on the latest episode of the Milking Parlor in the player below.
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here. Listen to or download this episode in the player below.
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Posted: February 26, 2010 at 8:47 am
By John Davis
The USDA has issued the final rule on organic access to pasture. This rule amends the National Organic Program (NOP) regulations to clarify the use of pasture in raising organic ruminants.
USDA officials say the final rule provides certainty to consumers that organic livestock production is a pasture based system in which animals are actively grazing pasture during the grazing season. The majority of organic dairy and ruminant livestock producers are already grazing animals and maintaining pastures that meet the requirements of this rule. These standards contain clear requirements that will provide greater assurance that all producers are being held to the same standards.
This episode of the Milking Parlor podcast features Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan, laying out out the terms regarding the final rules and telling how this underlines the ag department’s commitment to organic agriculture.
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here. Listen to or download this episode in the player below.
The Milking Parlor podcast is sponsored by:
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Posted: October 17, 2009 at 11:44 am
By Amanda Nolz
Recently printed in the San Luis Obispo Tribune, an article titled, “Mad ‘cows’ protest plan to cull Cal Poly dairy herd,” written by David Sneed describes how students dressed in cattle costumes to support dairy program, which could lose 120 of its animals. In an effort to save money, Cal Poly is planning on reducing their cow herd, leaving many students upset about the loss of a good program. Read more to learn all about it…
Some Cal Poly students Friday protested plans to reduce the university’s dairy cow herd by 80 percent. Dairy students — some dressed in cow costumes — protested in the morning outside the Embassy Suites Hotel in San Luis Obispo, where Cal Poly’s dairy science advisory committee was meeting. Protests continued in the afternoon at the school’s dairy unit. In a letter sent Sept. 30, Dairy Science Department Head Bruce Golden said that plummeting milk prices and state budget cutbacks were forcing the university to reduce the milking herd to 30 animals from 150. He promised to restore the herd once finances improve.
However, students are concerned that the cuts may be permanent and 106 years of building good genetics into the Holstein milking herd will be lost, said Theresa Machado, president of the Los Lecheros Dairy Club. The Dairy Science Department has 130 students, 48 of them freshmen, Machado said. They operate the only dairy in the county, and Cal Poly is one of only two schools in the nation to offer degrees in dairy science. According to the program’s Web site, it is the only university on the West Coast to offer a specific dairy science major, and Cal Poly has the country’s largest dairy science program.
Posted: October 1, 2009 at 3:03 pm
By Cindy Zimmerman
World Dairy Expo Photo Album
World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
This edition of the Milking Parlor podcast focuses on the Dairy Price Stabilization Program proposed by Holstein Association USA as a way to address the current dairy industry economic situation and minimize milk price volatility for the long term.
I spoke with John Meyer, executive secretary and CEO of Holstein Association USA, about the plan during an interview at World Dairy Expo. “One of the beauties of this program is that nothing has to be affected,” Meyer says. “The Dairy Price Stabilization Program does not require the Farm Bill to be opened, nor does it affect any of the current dairy programs. It’s a very simple thing to be implemented and it can be done very quickly.”
Meyer says they are getting good industry support for the plan and hope to get a bill written and considered by Congress, possibly as early as the end of this year.
Listen to this podcast here:
milking-parlor-wdx09.mp3
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Posted: August 27, 2009 at 9:37 am
By Cindy Zimmerman
This edition of the Milking Parlor podcast focuses on what is being done on the national level to address the current dairy industry crisis. From congressional actions to USDA to the dairy industry itself, we hear from Congressman John Boccieri, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, University of Wisconsin Ag Economist Dr. Bruce Jones and National Milk Producers Federation president Jerry Kozak.
Thanks to Fort Dodge Animal Health for sponsorship of this regular monthly podcast for dairy industry professionals. We encourage your feedback, comments and questions to provide input for future editions of the program.
Listen to this podcast here:
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Posted: October 9, 2008 at 1:25 pm
By Chuck
Dr. Gary Neubauer, Pfizer Animal Health, attended World Dairy Expo to meet dairy producers and he had a lot of them to meet with! I stopped to ask him about all the activity which included what looked like a lot of political campaign buttons. He says it’s called their Industry Pflair program.
“What Pfizer is trying to do is have a concerted effort in the dairy industry to simply show our pride for the dairy industry, allow producers, veterinarians, industry people to come to the booth and they find lanyards, buttons . . . ” Basically he says that producers can take and wear these items so that people 
will stop them and ask about it. This provides them with an opportunity then to help educate people about the industry and dispel some of the myths out there. He says people need to realize that a dairy producer is one of the hardest workers you’re going to find.
You can listen to my interview with Gary as part of our Milking Parlor Podcast: milking-parlor-42.mp3
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, here are some instructions.
World Dairy Expo 2008 Photo Album
Sponsors of World Dairy Diary coverage of this year’s World Dairy Expo include GEA Farm Technologies and BASF Plant Science.
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Posted: October 6, 2008 at 2:39 pm
By Chuck
Grant Kohler is a dairy farmer from Utah where he milks 300 cows with a family operation. He was attending World Dairy Expo to talk about the Childhood Nutrition Fitness Initiative that’s a joint project of the National Dairy Council and the National Football League.
He says, “It brings a package not just to the cafeteria of the school but a package that can engage the principals and teachers.” The NFL teams are on board to provide their players as spokespersons when and where needed. He says the program includes a full nutritional plan that of course includes dairy. He’s proud to say that over 40,000 schools have already signed on. Here’s some excerpts from a recent release on the project.
To poise the multi-year program for success, the NDC will spend $100 million over five years to support this initiative, including school grants. The NDC will spend an additional $150 million on other efforts aimed at improving child health and wellness.
“We are taking a leadership role to help kids win the battle for good health,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “Our players know the importance of staying healthy, and it’s important that we help young fans understand the value of exercise.”
You can listen to my interview with Grant as part of our Milking Parlor Podcast: milking-parlor-39.mp3
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World Dairy Expo 2008 Photo Album
Sponsors of World Dairy Diary coverage of this year’s World Dairy Expo include GEA Farm Technologies and BASF Plant Science.
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Posted: October 6, 2008 at 2:28 pm
By Chuck
Last week GEA Farm Technologies was announced as the new “brand” for WestfaliaSurge, Houle and Norbco. Before Expo was over I spoke with Linda Mrugacz, Director, Marketing & Communications. I wanted to find out what kind of feedback they had been receiving from producers attending the show.
According to Linda, “Actually, it’s going very well. There’s a lot of interest in general about the name, a lot of questions about it, “What does GEA stand for?” Well, it stands for Global Engineering Alliance. GEA Farm Technologies is part of a global alliance of 250 companies according to Linda. She says this means that producers will get the benefit of a “total offering” from the “family of GEA Farm Technology companies.”
You can listen to my interview with Linda as part of our Milking Parlor Podcast: milking-parlor-40.mp3
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, here are some instructions.
World Dairy Expo 2008 Photo Album
Sponsors of World Dairy Diary coverage of this year’s World Dairy Expo include GEA Farm Technologies and BASF Plant Science.
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Posted: October 6, 2008 at 2:20 pm
By Chuck
After the virtual farm tour that BASF Plant Science sponsored at World Dairy Expo, I spoke again with Jerry Weigel, Global Nutrition Manager, about their Nutridense silage product.
He says there’s a real distinction between what they’re doing and what other companies are doing. “We are focused in two different directions. We are focused on a grain direction and a silage direction.” He says that other companies develop a hybrid for grain and if it doesn’t make it that way they just plug it into the silage market. He says BASF Plant Science stays focused on each market separately.
Jerry wants producers to know that they’re developing corn silage that’s all about fiber digestibility. He says that’s what they’re going to continue to focus on and that in the future they’re going to have to look at bringing gmo technology into play but that would be years down the road.
You can listen to my interview with Jerry as part of our Milking Parlor Podcast: milking-parlor-41.mp3
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, here are some instructions.
World Dairy Expo 2008 Photo Album
Sponsors of World Dairy Diary coverage of this year’s World Dairy Expo include GEA Farm Technologies and BASF Plant Science.
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Posted: October 5, 2008 at 2:57 pm
By Chuck
The 2008-2009 Alice in Dairyland is Ashley Huibregtse. She serves June to June and promotes agriculture all over the state.
I met her at this year’s World Dairy Expo. She says she’s “an ambassador for everything from the dairy industry which we have here at World Dairy Expo, to cranberries, cherries and ginseng.”
Her travels take her to media interviews, school visits and events like Expo. She hopes to get a job in communications that allows her to continue to promote agriculture.
You can listen to my interview with Ashley as part of our Milking Parlor Podcast: milking-parlor-37.mp3
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, here are some instructions.
World Dairy Expo 2008 Photo Album
Sponsors of World Dairy Diary coverage of this year’s World Dairy Expo include GEA Farm Technologies and BASF Plant Science.
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