I recently attended a small conference involving several people I have associated with for years. There came an awkward time in the day’s agenda when we were directed to pair up with someone we didn’t know well personally, spending five minutes asking each other questions.

It started out as a year dairy farmers optimistically thought they would see milk prices rise. For some, it’s now turning into an urgent search to find markets for their milk.

When your dairy checkoff changed its basic strategy from simply doing generic advertising and promotions to working with partners that handle your milk, very few people probably realized what a huge impact on sales it would mean.

Although the 2014 Farm Bill doesn’t expire until Sept. 30, 2018, the 115th Congress has already begun work on its reauthorization. A piece of the 2018 Farm Bill likely to most directly impact the landscape for dairy producers is the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy), also set to expire in September 2018.

Funding the startup of a new dairy operation or the transition of an existing farm can be a tall task for any producer. Remember the “five C’s of credit” – a checklist of factors for producers to consider when securing funding for an agricultural business venture.

The words and actions of leaders shape the culture of businesses, families and even societies. Leaders have powerful effects on individuals too, instilling thoughts and behavior patterns that may last for a lifetime. Leadership is a privilege, and it should be exercised with care and attention to how it affects others, both immediately and long term.

Two more bills addressing foreign-born agricultural workers have been introduced in the U.S. Senate.

I began working with Jim, Karen and their three sons (Abe, Brett and Chad) last spring. The five had been partners* (joint owners) for the last six years. They knew they needed a buy-sell agreement, but they hadn’t been able to agree on some of the key provisions – chiefly, how ownership would transfer to widows should something happen to one of the sons.

Delivering high-quality forage for your ration starts long before you open the bag or dig into the pile. Now is the time to plan ahead, get it right in the field and focus on quality goals so you and your cows are satisfied when you start feeding next year.

Cover crops are planted to increase health and fertility of soils and to benefit the surrounding environment. In systems producing either beef or dairy cattle, cover crops are also grazed or harvested for feeding.