When South Dakota’s farmers wanted to connect with consumers they brought the consumers to the farm. Now, events like Mom’s Day Out on the Farm dot calendars throughout the state and consumers are meeting the people who help put food on the table.

Rita Holt has a farmer’s heart. That’s the secret ingredient to her award winning recipes. Each year for the past several, she’s entered a contest at National MooFest, an Athens, Tennessee, event celebrating the community’s connection to dairy farmers. or scroll down to see more details on MooFest. Twice now, she’s won; once for using dairy products in a recipe and once for her homemade ice cream. She said she and her husband, Dean, used to farm but when she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, they sold all but a few acres. They still occasionally keep livestock around – a few chickens or a cow, which she spoils rotten.

Ontario Farm Products Marketing Commission approves Somatic Cell Count (SCC) regulatory standard change Effective August 1, 2012, the SCC standard in Ontario Regulation 761 will change from the current 500,000 to 400,000 cells per millilitre. The SCC penalty program will not change. A producer will continue to be subject to an SCC penalty if the monthly weighted-average (MWA) SCC test is greater than or equal to the regulatory limit in the current, or most recently completed month, and two out of three previous months.