Dairy Farmer's Thankful Farmer

Ever heard of Action Jackson?

Well, this is the Arkansas Farm Bureau version of  Action Jackson,

that is, Matt Jackson, Agriculture Educator!

Kindergarten students at Pea Ridge Primary School

listened intently to all that Mr. Matt shared with them about

 the dairy cow and how to milk her. 

     My job was easy--I was the local dairy farmer

who brought Cow hats,coloring books and crayons provided by

Midwest Dairy!

Hugs and smiles from a child definitely give you star power.

                                       
                                            I'm thankful for the portion of our Farm Bureau
                                            membership dollars that are spent for educating
                                             children and  adults  and for the opportunities
                                                            to share our agriculture story.
           
                                         

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Sitting in the petting zoo last Saturday watching the kids and adults holding 

the chicks and milking the cow, I thought a lot about the evolution 

of the Benton County Farm Bureau Petting Zoo.

Benton County Farm Bureau has sponsored a free petting zoo 

at the Benton County Fair since the 1990's.

Janice Shofner, our Women's Committee Chair at the time,

had the great idea of providing a petting zoo to educate kids and adults about

Benton County agriculture.

Our first zoo was in a tent under the big old tree at the

 fairgrounds in downtown Bentonville. 

Our current petting zoo at the Benton County Fair is under

 a tall red-iron structure with plenty of room for chicks,

calves,pigs, a couple of cows

 and a lot of kids!

I'm thankful for dedicated Farm Bureau members

 that continue to  see the value of the petting zoo in educating 

kids and adults about agriculture.

                                                     Even our Benton County Fair Queen
                                                                      loves  the chicks!

Dairy FarmHer Anniversary

Although I knew I was marrying the farm and the dairy farmer 

thirty three years ago, 

I did not realize that I would become a Dairy FarmHer.

                                             
                                            It's been a thirty three year transformation from
                                        city girl to Dairy FarmHer but it's been a grand journey.
                                                 Thank-you to the dairy farmer for sharing
                                                          his passion for all things dairy!
                                       

                                 I never thought I would be teaching children about dairy farming,
                                     

providing dairy farm tours for all ages of consumers,

or working everyday  with my husband 

and our 4th generation dairy farmer sons 

down on the dairy farm producing

 high quality milk for your family and mine.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Like the varied spots on our spotted Holstein cows, 

every group of dairy farm visitors are unique.

I love to see the expression on the face of the child or adult that 

suddenly understands how we work on the farm to produce

 a great product that their family enjoys.

                                       
                                       I'm thankful to  connect with consumers to share how
                                we work everyday to care for our animals, produce  nutritious
                                          milk and give them a feel for life on a family farm.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Our cows enjoy a balanced nutritious diet every day. 

It's one of the most important ways we take care of our dairy cows 

everyday and in return, they provide us with nutritious milk.

This was one of the messages I shared during this past week 

with a small group of children making their first visit to a dairy farm.

Touring the feed barn and watching the cows eat is one 

of my favorite stops on the tour.

I consider it a privilege  to be able to share with children and adults 

 how we care for our dairy cattle  everyday

 during  a farm tour.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to provide 

the perfect show and tell for all ages!

                                             
                               

                                         
                                               

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Frannie, the Arkansas Farm Bureau cow, 

 was on her best behavior today as Westside Elementary students  milked for the first time. 

It's always fun to watch the kids try their hand at milking the cow and give them first hand information about dairy farming and Arkansas agriculture.

                                      I'm thankful for the opportunity to share how we work
                                      on the dairy farm to produce high-quality milk and the
                                             importance of agriculture to our everyday lives.

Dairy Truth Telling

My mother-in-law never gave any farm tours. It wasn't necessary

 because in her generation, every one she knew lived on a farm or had family

 that grew up on the farm and knew where food came from.

 Her generation didn't have fears about how their food was produced,

In fact,  many of her generation  were happy and grateful  to just  have food.

It's quite a change ninety years later.

We now have at least three generations of consumers with no direct 

connection to a farm or family that were connected to a farm. 

Opening the barn doors and inviting consumers to the farm  is now an 

important way we   farmers can share

 how we produce food for  all of our families.

It's a great opportunity for dairy truth telling!

When it comes to food,we have a lot in common, no matter what age:

We love to eat!

As I prepare for a  dairy farm tour this week, it's my hope that our visitors

 will learn the truth about dairy farming  and experience the commitment 

we have to providing high-quality milk and dairy products by taking good

 care of our cows and the land we call home.

If you can't make the tour, you can find more dairy truth telling

 at Midwest Dairy and DairyGood.

Arkansas Dairy Question

What would it take to get you to become an Arkansas dairy farmer?

With fewer than 60 dairies left in the state of Arkansas, this is a thought provoking

 question for these University of Arkansas animal science students that visited

us down on  our dairy farm Saturday morning.

Ryan  gave information and answered questions about dairy

 production,animal welfare and environmental issues.

I got the easy questions about calf raising.

Of course, no dairy farm tour would be complete without a little dairy promotion.

We served string cheese,ice cream and a sample of Fairlife chocolate milk 

with a touch of education about dairy promotion  funded

 by dairy farmers across the nation.

My question from down on the dairy farm:

                                             What's not to love about being a dairy farmer?

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Last Saturday I participated in the first  Benton County 4-H Food Safety Workshop 

It was a great example of teaching our youth an invaluable  life skill. 

I'm thankful for the dedication of our 4-H leaders 

and Benton County Extension agents who continuously strive to

 "make the best better"  

in the classroom,

at the Farmer's Market,

or 

connecting the past to the present.

I'm  thankful for these friends!

                                                                     

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

Benton County Farm Bureau Women's Committee brought Farm Expo to Russell Jones Elementary in Rogers on Monday.  Students rotated through stations to learn about Arkansas agriculture  from  farmers, University of Arkansas  extension agents, Arkansas Farm Bureau and Arkansas Beef Council staff.

I'm thankful for the students and teachers who allowed us to share about...

 

how seeds germinate and farmers raise crops,

 

the life cycle of a water drop and the importance to agriculture,

 

 

how farmers raise healthy chickens that included

 

 

 poultry terminology bingo,

 

 

how dairy farmers work to provide high-quality milk,

 

the benefits of beef and beef by-products we use every day,

 

safe food handling,

 

cotton farming and ginning,

 

 

rice production,

 

 

including milling the rice.

 

It was a win-win day for students and volunteers---

the students had a fun learning experience and the volunteers passionately  shared how agriculture  impacts our everyday lives!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

I was privileged to attend the American Farm Bureau Convention in San Antonio this week. It's always fun to work in the Arkansas booth at the trade show to share about Arkansas agriculture.

 

 

I'm thankful to be an Arkansas dairy farmer

 

and

 

 for the variety of  opportunities  I have to educate consumers of all ages about Arkansas agriculture!

 

Celebrate National Farm to School Month

October is a perfect month for fieldtrips and farm tours. The Farm to School Program strives to connect schools to local farms, with the objectives of serving healthy meals in schools, improving student nutrition and  promoting agriculture, health and education opportunities to support local and regional farms.


In case you aren't able to visit a dairy farm this month,  here's a few dairy facts I'd like  to share with you   for National  Farm to School Month:

Milk travels from local farm families--to inspection,  processing and pasteurization, to you--in 48 hours or less.

There are 51,000 dairy farms in the United States and 98 percent of them are family owned.

It only takes 5 to 10 minutes to milk a cow on today's dairy farm.

Fresh milk straight from the cow is 101 degrees. Milk is quickly cooled and kept cold at 35-40 degrees F.

A single dairy cow yields about 6 to 7 gallons of milk per day.

Today's dairy farms produce almost three times more milk than farms of 19--and with about half the number of crops.

90 pounds of feed and hay are consumed by a dairy cow each day.

Dairy farming provides 130,000 jobs in the United States.

Water used to clean the milking equipment and barn is recycled to irrigate fields to grow crops.

Manure is recycled and is used by dairy farmers to fertilize their crops and for many of us to fertilize our gardens.

                                            I'll be celebrating with milk--how about you?

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

Last week I was presented with a plaque from  Benton County Farm Bureau for my volunteer service as the Chairwoman of the Benton County Farm Bureau  Women's Committee. I've been blessed to work with the greatest volunteers, who I call my friends,  and with  the support and help of my family. I'm thankful for the opportunity I have had to help educate others about agriculture in a variety of activities!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Volunteering as the Zoo Keeper at the Benton County Farm Bureau's Petting Zoo at the Benton County Fair for the last 13 years  has provided many opportunities to share agriculture's story in a very fun environment.

                                 I'm thankful for the fun  I've had watching  children and adults
                                   of all ages enjoying the chicks at the Benton County Fair!

May's Farm Fun

For the last seven or eight years, the Benton County Farm Bureau Women's Committee has sponsored an elementary school  program in May  titled "Farm Expo". With the help of  volunteers from Arkansas Farm Bureau and the Arkansas Beef Council, we're able to provide hands-on fun with  information about Arkansas agriculture and how farmers provide safe food while protecting the environment.

 

Friday morning we shared Farm Expo with Bonnie Grimes Elementary third graders.

 

Students learned about...

cotton,

 

food safety,

 

poultry,

water,

 

chicks,

 

soil,

rice,

 

dairy,

                                                                                and beef.

                                         I'm sure the students had as much fun as the volunteers!