The Great Christmas “GRAND” PRIZE
GIVEAWAY
See pages 24 and 25 of this section for details!
DAIRY ST R
November 12, 2022
“All dairy, all the time”™
Volume 24, No. 18
Bittersweet change leads to opportunity
Talberg leaves Minnesota home to farm in Wisconsin By Grace Jeurissen grace.j@star-pub.com
ATHENS, Wis. – Opportunities can arrive at unexpected moments, but for Ryan Talberg, a young farmer from Minnesota, the opportunity to grow his herd and acquire more land has come after a long search for the perfect place to call home. Throughout the morning of Oct. 28, the entire Talberg family showed their emotions with the wiping of tears as they all kept busy nishing up the last chores before two cattle pots arrived to take their cattle to their new home in Athens. After several trips back and forth leading up to the move, the day became surreal
for Talberg as he nished morning milking. “This has been my home for almost my entire life; this has been my herd’s home for the last seven years,” Talberg said. “I wish I had an opportunity to stay, but with being landlocked, high land prices and neighbors with far deeper pocketbooks, this was my only option to grow and make my dream work. Out there I have room to grow not only my herd but maybe someday raise a family on the farm too.” For the last seven years, Talberg has lived in Freeport, Minnesota, with his parents, Dan and Stephanie
GRACE JEURISSEN/DAIRY STAR
Ryan Talberg milks cows for the last Ɵme Oct. 28 in Freeport, Minnesota. Talberg’s next milking was in a 67-stall Ɵestall barn in Athens, Wisconsin, that he purchased in September.
Talberg, to pursue his dream of running a dairy farm. Talberg said they have been more than supportive since
the beginning, having dairy farmed themselves until 2001 when they dispersed the herd. “I’ve been looking for a
Making a miraculous comeback
Schmaling dees odds, walks again after life-threatening accident By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
DELAVAN, Wis. – Tanner Schmaling was told he would spend the majority of his life in a wheelchair after breaking his neck in a swimming accident in January. At best, he would be able to walk short distances. But that was not a diagnosis this dairy farmer was willing to live with. “I wasn’t content with being in a wheelchair for the rest of my life,” Tanner said. “I thought, how am I going to do the things I still want to accomplish in life if I’m in a wheelchair?” Tanner and his wife, Maddie, own and operate Maple-
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
Tanner Schmaling and his wife, Maddie, own and operate Maple-Leigh Futures where they board donors and show caƩle near Delavan, Wisconsin. Tanner broke his neck in a swimming accident in January while vacaƟoning with his family in Hawaii and has since learned to walk again. Leigh Futures near Delavan – a certied in vitro fertilization
facility and boarding business for donors and show cattle.
few years for a site to purchase because I’m landlocked here Turn to TALBERG | Page 7
Oberweis Dairy lets go of its farmer patrons
Maple-Leigh Futures houses around 90 donors and 25 hightype animals for customers around the country. Maddie also works full time at Land O’Lakes. Tanner farms alongside his parents, John and Jill, on their 120-cow commercial dairy, where the Schmalings farm 1,000 acres. Tanner and Maddie were on vacation in Maui, Hawaii, with other family members celebrating Tanner’s parents’ 40th wedding anniversary when the accident took place. “It was the second to the last day of our vacation,” Tanner said. “We had a great time before that.” On Jan. 7, Tanner was swimming 20 yards offshore when he dove into a wave and was pulled underneath by the undercurrent. “The wave ipped my whole body, and I heard and felt my neck crack on the ocean oor,” Tanner said. “I went limp and passed out face
NORTH AURORA, Ill. – After more than 25 years of shipping his milk to Oberweis Dairy, Phil Diedrich received notice in September that starting Oct. 1, his product would be going elsewhere. The move meant a signicant price cut for the dairy farmer who milks 130 cows near Twin Lakes, Wisconsin. “We’ve taken a pretty big hit nancially,” Diedrich said. “We’ve probably lost over $2.50 per hundredweight. It’s like a 10% pay cut. You can only adjust your bottom line so much. Oberweis Dairy announced it is no longer buying its milk direct
Turn to SCHMALING| Page 8
Turn to OBERWEIS| Page 6
Nine farms forced to move on as of Oct. 1 By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com