With beef from dairies contributing an estimated $5 per hundredweight of milk-equivalent revenue, exposure to beef price volatility now carries real weight in culling and calf marketing decisions. Managing the downside without limiting upside is where Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) fits.

Creating a culture of safety is vital in addressing these challenges and must be the foundation of any farm safety program. It encourages proactive hazard identification and management, reduces injuries and near misses, and ensures that everyone returns home safely at the end of the day.

When employees understand what the farm is working toward and how success is measured, they are better equipped to make decisions that support those goals. Transparency builds trust, reduces confusion and creates a shared sense of purpose across the operation.

Milk prices are moving in favorable directions, with May Class IV futures closing at $22.29 per hundredweight (cwt) on April 24 and May Class III futures closing at $17.56 per cwt. But markets can quickly change. Add in the record prices dairy producers are receiving for cull cows and beef-on-dairy animals, and an established risk management plan becomes even more critical.

Recently, I’ve had some deep conversations with producers around the concept that it’s not how much you can borrow but rather how much you can repay that matters. At the heart of the conversation is whether collateral or capacity to repay is more important.

Interest rates in the fourth quarter of 2025 dipped to rates not seen since 2022 – lower than the peaks of 2023 but remained above the 10-year average – a signal lending conditions were more favorable for farmers despite overall credit conditions deteriorating as the year came to a close.

A robust insurance package serves a critical role for your business. Your livelihood depends on factors that happen every day on the farm that are unpredictable or outside your control, and it’s important to be protected when those things happen.