Ask dairy producers and nutritionists whether the source of dietary protein makes a difference in performance and the answer is a resounding “Yes!” But the answer may not be as emphatic when you ask about sources of supplemental dietary fat and fatty acids, even though the response should be the same. The source of dietary fat makes a difference in animal performance, just as it does for protein sources. It’s a question of digestibility, bioavailability and more.

U.S. dairy export total volumes set a new record high in March. Exports of milk powder, whey protein concentrate and lactose were each at all-time highs, helping push overall volumes above the previous high set in March 2014, according to a monthly summary from Alan Levitt, U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) vice president of communications and market analysis.

Earlier this year, the National Mastitis Council (NMC) launched a new online resource to its 1,000 members. The Teat Condition Portfolio allows users to quickly see and compare various teat conditions. They can then use this information to assess teat health and make recommendations for treatment.

It is no secret that humans are emotional beings. We naturally are moved by sensational content that pulls at our heart strings or scares us into action. This is the template that animal and environmental activist groups have been using to captivate audiences for years, and they are successfully swaying public perception through emotionally charged material and skewed data.

April showers bring May flowers. Those spring showers can also bring on some much-needed spring cleaning. Instead of complaining how it’s too wet to do anything outside, turn those rainy days spent indoors into a day of productivity.

CWT continues to focus its export-assistance efforts on dairy products that most directly impact producers’ milk checks: American-type cheeses and butter containing 82 percent butterfat.

Globalization touches virtually every aspect of our business from sales and demand to nutrition and environmental policy, trade, the economy and more.

With milk market availability no longer a certainty, many producers are wondering how they can make their operations attractive for a direct supply contract. For the first 20 years of my career, I worked for consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies.

Like many of you, I attend many dairy meetings and am fortunate to have the opportunity to speak at many of them. In my interactions with dairy farmers and other industry people at these meetings, I find there is not a good understanding of what is happening with demand for dairy products.

Without a doubt, you’ve read a half-dozen or more articles in the past several months about managing your dairy operation during periods of low margins. I initially thought this would be another of those articles; however, I’ve changed my mind and decided to offer a different message.