On more and more dairy farms every year, employees play integral roles in day-to-day operations, decision making, and problem solving. In these roles, ideas for changes to operations and for capital investments are generated.

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is the result of merging two continuous improvement approaches and has become a significant force within organizations in all sectors to optimize processes and drive out waste.

Normalizing the fact that there will be tensions and taking the time to consider your farm’s tensions can set the farm on the path to a more resilient succession plan. This article discusses strategies for a smoother succession process.

The first milk checks reflecting the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) revisions are arriving in producers’ mailboxes, reflecting both benefits and drawbacks of the revisions. At the same time, milk prices are softening after several months of relatively strong performances, perhaps the result of increased cow numbers and expanded processing capacity available in the marketplace now, among other influencing factors.

The stories of farm emergencies are splashed across the pages of newspapers and websites all over the country. Imagine for a moment that the headline is about your farm. What would it say? One way you can help write your farm’s story is to develop an emergency plan, which can help reduce vulnerability, increase resiliency and save time in the moment when a crisis hits.