Our family’s history starts with a pond on top of a hill. It was first dug by my great-grandfather, Claire Dennis, as a watering hole for cattle. He lived and milked there for two years without electricity. Because the milk carts, pulled by horses, would not make the climb, he had to haul his milk over a mile in metal cans every day.

The most important election of our lifetime is fast approaching. Some of us have made our decision and will punch the card for the candidates we have followed on the news networks. We have weighed the pros and cons and, based on what we have seen, are sure we have the right fellow.

Check out a sampling of some of the unique booth promotions and educational offerings at this year’s show. Free copies of business book ‘Great by Choice’ Stewart-Peterson Inc. (EH 1605, 1606) is offering copies of Jim Collins’ recent best-seller, “Great by Choice,” to dairy producers who want to broaden their thinking about doing business in uncertain times. The book tells the stories of companies who succeeded – or failed – in chaotic, uncertain environments. At the booth, the financial company will provide a summary of the book and draw parallels to how dairy producers can make good milk and feed pricing decisions despite uncertainty.

My USDA official duty station is East Lansing, Michigan. I am here at the state Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office. The challenge is shifting my work towards domestic challenges from the efforts of international development. Not easy. My supervisor here has assigned me the task of evaluating CNMPs for certification.

The act of storing solid and liquid manure does alter the composition of manure from its raw state and could be consider a form of treatment on the manure. However, as dairy farms have altered the way they handle manure from simply storing it, soil scientists are looking into how those newer methods are affecting nitrogen and phosphorus in the end product. Speaking at the North American Manure Expo in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin, last month, Chris Baxter, associate professor of soil & crop science, University of Wisconsin – Platteville, explained the three types of manure treatment systems that were considered include liquid/solid separation, anaerobic digestion and composting.