The phrase, “The gorilla in the room” is often used to describe something that is obvious yet ignored.

Last summer, in the height of the pandemic, a bad storm with straight-line winds went through our farm. The winds took out nine trees and a garage roof.

The statistics are heartbreaking. Only 30% of family businesses survive the transition from first- to second-generation ownership. Only 12% make it to the third generation, and only 4% make it to the fourth. So how does a family business ensure its legacy is carried into future generations?

It starts out wonderful. You have a natural fondness for each other, you share common passions, and your life goals seem to align quite well.

When I was 19, a guy about my age was hired to work on our farm. He was a good worker and took to the job well. So most of my family thought he was a great guy.

Each year, for eight days in January, hundreds of thousands of people flock to Harrisburg to visit the Pennsylvania Farm Show. This event is known across Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic region for its delicious food, animal shows and family-friendly exhibits but, mostly, it’s where city people go to learn about farming.

Incremental growth and manure separation were the topics discussed during a panel of Pennsylvania dairy producers who shared their stories at the Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania (PDMP) annual meeting.

Balancing work and family life is difficult for anyone, but it can be especially challenging for those who live and work with their family. On a dairy farm, it is easy to get caught up in the pressures of the day-to-day tasks coupled with the other stresses farming can bring and forget about the roles that matter most in our lives.

Finding myself without a job the summer after my freshman year in college, I asked to be put back into the milking schedule at my parents’ dairy farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. But with the farm growing to 300 cows, my sister, the herdsperson, had filled out the milking schedule with full-time employees.

Penn State Extension recently did a survey of the projected breakeven cost on 110 Pennsylvania-based dairy farms. The average projected breakeven was $19.04 per hundredweight, about $4 per hundredweight above the April all-milk price of $15 per hundredweight.