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DAIRY ST R
Volume 19, No. 16
The future of dairy lies in exports Plan to increase international sales by 5 percent in ve years By Krista Kuzma
“All dairy, all the time”™
Herd data at Johnson’s ngertips
Ear tag system monitors activity, rumination, eating, temperature By Krista Kuzma
krista.k@dairystar.com
krista.k@dairystar.com
MADISON, Wis. – Three dairy industry leaders – Tom Gallagher, Dairy Management Inc. (DMI), CEO; Tom Vilsack, CEO and president of the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC); and Marilyn Hershey, Pennsylvania dairy farmer and DMI board vice chairperson – met Oct. 4 in Madison, Wis., during the week of World Dairy Expo for a press conference to talk about the future of dairy. “What’s on my mind is improving trust among consumers and the ability of farmers to be able to operate in the next ve to 10 years,” Gallagher said. In order to continue operating, dairy farmers will need a place for their milk, which is becoming a concern with producers as milk is lling processors to near capacity. “The reality is we do an incredibly good job at producing milk. In fact we do an everincreasing good job each and every year. It’s projected that will continue. No matter how well we do on the domestic side of consumption, we’re still going to have to have strong exports in order to stabilize markets,” Vilsack said. Vilsack and Gallagher talked about how their two organizations will work together to use checkoff dollars to increase the U.S. dairy export market. Right now, exports account for 15 percent of the nation’s dairy sales. Vilsack and Gallagher said they are working on a plan to increase that to 20 percent within three to ve years. “The reality is, we can’t stay at 14-15 percent. We have to expand exports … To do that, Tom Gallagher mentioned the word trust and it’s incredibly important we go out and establish trust not with our own consumers, but with consumers around the world. If they trust us, they will try our products. If they try our products,
FOUNTAIN, Minn. – Whether Michael Johnson is standing right in front of his cows or in another state hundreds of miles away from home, he knows their status and whether or not his cows are feeling well. It is all because of the latest technology the Johnsons have implemented on their 570-cow dairy, Trailside Holsteins, near Fountain, Minn. In January 2015, they started using a rumination and activity monitoring ear tag that has changed the way they manage their dairy. “One of the biggest things for me is the piece of mind that all my cows are being monitored 24/7. I can look up any cow at any time and say she’s been eating this much or she’s feeling good,” said Johnson, who farms together with his dad, Jon, along with his wife, Margaret, and their children, Sawyer, 5, Levi, 3, and Claira, 1. The tags connect to the RFID tags the Johnsons started using in 2014, one of the reasons this particular product caught Johnson’s eye. It is also a web-based program, with no software costs. Johnson appreciates the capability to check on any cow from any location with his smartphone. The tags monitor rumination and eating time along with activity and temperature. Turn to JOHNSONS | Page 7
Turn to EXPORTS | Page 5
October 14, 2017
KRISTA KUZMA/DAIRY STAR
Michael Johnson checks his smartphone to look up a cow while in his barn on his family’s 570-cow dairy near Fountain, Minn. The Johnsons use informaƟon from a ruminaƟon and acƟvity monitoring ear tag, which can be checked anywhere there is an internet connecƟon, to streamline cow management on their dairy.
Expansion a necessary step in generational transfer at Remarc Holsteins Moy works to buy farm, cattle from grandparents By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com
JUDA, Wis. – Remarc Holsteins is located in Green County, just outside the small town of Juda, Wis. The farm was featured on the Green County Dairy Modernization Tours held throughout Green County on Aug. 24. The purpose of the tours was to open up farms that had recently completed upgrades of facilities and incorporated new technology for other farmers and dairy industry members to view and see in operation. The Remarc Holsteins Turn to REMARC | Page 6
DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR
Robert (back) and Dorothy Cramer (right) are in the process of transiƟoning their farm to grandson Doug Moy (leŌ), who has worked on the farm since he was in the sixth grade. Also pictured are John and Anna Bartels, other grandchildren of Robert and Dorothy who enjoy being able to spend Ɵme on the farm.