There is a growing appetite for Western-style food in the international diet, and the dairy checkoff is working to put U.S. dairy on menus far beyond our borders.

Many attendees at Western Dairy Management Conference experienced delayed flights or a bumpy ride into Reno, Nevada, for the 14th edition of the biennial event.

You’re busy – milking cows, managing employees and getting ready for spring. With that in mind, Progressive Dairyman looks at issues in the news impacting you and your dairy business.

Now more than ever, dairy producers need to focus on the productivity of their farm operations using an inside resource: their employees.

Growing your dairy farm requires a strategic plan, one that positions it for success in the long term. That plan forms the basis for incremental growth, focused on putting numerous small steps together to achieve the desired end result. The key to this step-by-step approach is knowing beforehand what that final goal looks like and developing a strategy to achieve it.

Editor’s note: The author, an Indiana dairy producer and freelance writer, continues her exploration of resources and methods to help dairy farmers deal with farm stress. Find a comprehensive list of programs, help lines, websites, videos and factsheets and other materials online (Farm stress: Sources and resources).

Do you ever feel like when you cross one thing off your to-do list, two more things get added? There’s no doubt responsibilities on the farm and at home can pile up quickly. And when faced with challenging times, it’s easy to lose perspective. Making decisions can be a struggle.

Progressive Dairyman recently introduced readers to our new group of editorial advisers (See “Meet Progressive Dairyman’s 2019 reader advisers,” March 12, 2019, issue).

Although they may take on various forms, dairy discussion groups involve individuals with common interests who gather to exchange information and ideas, compare methods and support one other. Grants offered through Pennsylvania’s Center for Dairy Excellence (CDE) help fund dairy discussion groups throughout the state.

The 2019 Dairy Calf and Heifer Association’s (DCHA) annual conference is set for April 9-11, in Madison, Wisconsin. Themed “Joining forces. Reaching higher.”, this year’s lineup of speakers will challenge attendees to join industry experts and their fellow producers and strive for a higher level of care on their farms.