Dairy farmers are facing a financial challenge as milk prices have dropped more than 40 percent since 2014. Future milk price increases may be several months away with excess milk production from the European Union, New Zealand and the United States, low oil prices limiting several countries from buying dairy products and Russia’s import ban.

Feed continues to be the highest individual cost in confined dairy production systems. According to the USDA Economic Research Service (2016), during 2015 feed costs represented 56 percent of the total cost of producing milk in the U.S., progressively increasing during the last decade.

If you are a dairyman or a dairy nutritionist, you’ve been there. You open up a new silage pile, bunker or silo, or begin to feed a new crop of hay and you pull the first samples, take them by the lab and that afternoon get the email … and the nutrient values or the digestibilities are not what you expected – not even close.

Transcriptomics, proteomics, microbiomics, metabolomics ... If you have read any scientific articles lately, chances are you have heard of one of these cutting-edge approaches. The development of technologies such as DNA microarrays, next-generation sequencing and advanced mass spectrometry have allowed for broad application in animal nutrition research.

According to Dr. Jeremy Schefers of the University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, the rising levels of copper concentration in liver samples of dairy cattle received at the diagnostic lab remains a practical concern. The reason for the concern is the common usage of copper sulfate in footbaths on many dairy farms for the control of digital dermatitis.

Nowadays, everyone wants to know what to adjust on a self-propelled forage harvester to maximize forage quality and minimize fuel consumption.

It’s no secret dairies use a lot of electricity and, up to this point, dairymen have simply had to bite the bullet and pay the fees electrical companies charge in order to keep the milk flowing.

Most of us are required to hold regular documented safety meetings. The idea is that when safety matters are discussed and there exists a functioning safety committee, property damage and injury accidents will go away. There is much we can do to improve the safety of our family members and employees.

Many of us have experienced a growling chatter emitting from the brakes of our tractors when we apply either brake independent of the other or both together. I had been having this trouble on an older 510 industrial John Deere backhoe and finally broke down and took it to the shop.

In baseball, team batting average is a great indication of how successful a team will be. The major league teams that play in the World Series have some of the best batting averages in the league.