Butch Lerum of Minnesota/Select Sires Co-op Inc. and Don Mullen of NorthStar Cooperative, have been honored as the Select Mating Service (SMS) genetic consultants of the year. Lerum and Mullen received this award at Select Sires’ national SMS Consultant Conference held in Texas and New Mexico in early May. This national award is presented annually to genetic consultants who exemplify the qualities that make SMS known worldwide as the premier mating program in the industry to assist dairy producers in developing genetic business plans. The recipient must have years of superior service, a history of high-quality evaluations and the ability to build and maintain successful relationships with dairy producers.

This June Dairy Month, the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB) is celebrating real dairy products with its Taste the Dairy Difference campaign. Patrick Geoghegan, WMMB, explains this interactive website, which is also equipped with a mobile version. What is the web address? GEOGHEGAN: www.TheDairyDifference.com Why was it developed? GEOGHEGAN: The website was developed to celebrate June Dairy Month with a collection of 12 new dairy recipes, as well as dairy farm breakfast information for the 2011 June Dairy Month Taste the Dairy Difference campaign.

First Lady Michelle Obama, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Surgeon General Regina Benjamin today unveiled the federal government's new food icon, MyPlate, to serve as a reminder to help consumers make healthier food choices.