How to determine your goals to make the best building decision for your situation Do I bulldoze my building and build new, or is there a way to make do with what I have?

Medeiros and Son Dairy used to pay more than $20,000 each month to provide electricity to their 2,450-cow dairy, but now a 1.1-megawatt solar array installation is providing 80 percent of their electrical needs.

Thanks to touchless ventilation and lighting technology borrowed from the swine and poultry industries, maintaining a consistent barn environment on one New York dairy is a breeze.

Dairying is labor-intensive. Probably the most labor-intensive sector of agriculture. Hours are long, vacations are rare, and you miss out on time with family and friends.

As technology races on at a dizzying pace, tools are introduced to the dairy industry with the promise of helping improve productivity. Robotic milking is one such technology that promises a wide range of benefits.

In order to maximize a new or remodeled milking facility, the trick is to size the parlor and cow groups for the most efficient cow throughput without keeping the cow from her usual daily activities.

Milking systems are designed to collect milk effectively and efficiently, with the cow’s comfort in mind. Perhaps the most important, and often overlooked, part of the system is the teat cup liner.

Wolfe’s Neck Farm in Freeport, Maine, purchased a mobile milking parlor after recognizing its potential to advance U.S. organic dairy production. However, that potential – like the machine itself – is stagnant.

I don’t know about you, but I am going bonkers with this election process. It is a Barnum and Bailey circus without any safety nets or guide wires. The tigers are loose in the ring, the announcers don’t know which way to turn, and the photographers don’t know where to point the camera.

With spring already here, that means summer is quickly approaching, and so is haying season. Now is the time to start thinking about pre-season maintenance and getting equipment out of winter storage.