Over my 38-plus years servicing dairy farms in southwest Ontario, I have always been intrigued by what strategies make some dairy farms more profitable than others. For the fiscal year 2025, I came to the conclusion that five main factors really stood out.

Elyas Tesfaye has been sharing his collection of agricultural film online for several years. Progressive Dairy Editor Matti McBride interviewed Tesfaye to learn how this hobby began and what it means to him.

A digital twin is a continuously updated virtual version of a real system. In dairy, that system might be an individual cow, a milking robot or the entire barn. The twin mirrors the real-time state of the animal or equipment it represents. When a cow walks to the feedbunk, her virtual counterpart records it. 

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My mom made me this quilt the year we sold our cows. Faces of cows cover it, adorned with pink eartags and the control numbers of cows that had a big influence in my life.

When we talk about producing protein, we often think of the percentage shown on the milk paycheque and the kilograms of protein delivered. In practice, however, improving milk protein starts much earlier and in a more concrete place: the rumen.

“I don’t know if there’s a secret,” says owner Margreet Dijkstra of Sylvanside Dairy’s award-winning milk quality. “We just have an eye for details.” She also credits excellent cow comfort, no shortcuts and consistency.