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The following excerpt is from Val Wagner’s blog. Wagner farms with her husband and four young sons in North Dakota. http://wagfarms.com
I’ve heard a lot of talk about the #OccupyOurFoodSupply movement. I read a lot of articles on the downfall of our modern agriculture practices, the need to “get back to the basics,” and the need to reconnect to our food supply.
So I thought that instead of blaming some unknown enemy for placing my farm in a bad light, or blaming consumers for not taking the initiative to actually visit where their food comes from, I would show you, just as I have for the last year and a half.
Lameness is one of the leading reasons for milk loss on any dairy.
It is also a hot animal welfare topic, according to Dr. Gerard Cramer, who is a bovine hoof care consultant, educator and researcher from Ontario, Canada. Cramer recently discussed his hoof health program via webcast.
Most people who know me, know that I really like to plan things. In fact, most days I can get so caught up in what I’m going to do next that I forget what I am doing in the moment. However, even with all those plans, I find the secret to successful planning is to be able to throw said plan out the window at a moment’s notice.
The old adage of farming being a “way of life” no longer rings completely true. Farming is very much a business these days, much like any manufacturing or service industry in town.
Even the smallest dairy operations can show assets in excess of $1 million, as milk quota, in many cases with this size of unit, is the main contributor to the farm balance sheet.
With a name like World Ag Expo, the event is bound to attract people from all over. While there, Progressive Dairyman met up with Meerten and Anita Zeldenrust from Barrhead, Alberta. They had traveled to Tulare, California, as part of a tour group.
Jeff Nonay is a third-generation dairy farmer in Alberta. His grandfather’s family business grew to include his father, Dave, and his uncle, Dan, and moved to its present location near Legal – 30 kilometres north of Edmonton – in 1976.
After more than 28 years working as a hoof trimmer in the dairy industry and, like many others, seeing the many changes within the dairy industry, I think a simple question has to be asked: “Why is lameness increasing as an issue?”
The answer is the modern dairy industry still has not recognized the requirements for the hoof to function “normally.”
State Department of Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch announced that BIOFerm Energy Systems and Allen Farms have been awarded a grant to help fund a feasibility study for the "plug and play" digester EUCOlino.
This project, made possible by a partnership with the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (UW Oshkosh) and its Foundation, will be the first U.S. installation of this new technology.
EUCOlino was developed to improve the on-site environmental and energy sustainability of small-herd family dairy farms. The system can be implemented at farms with a dairy herd size of 50 to 500; the average Wisconsin dairy farm has about 300 cows.
A good weed control strategy in alfalfa is fundamental to a strong yield performance, say experts from Pioneer Hi-Bred.
"Successful weed control has been an ongoing challenge for alfalfa growers," says Dave Miller, Ph.D., Pioneer alfalfa breeder.
After more than 28 years working as a hoof trimmer in the dairy industry and, like many others, seeing the many changes within the dairy industry, I think a simple question has to be asked: “Why is lameness increasing as an issue?”