Earth day Event

Our heifers were not aware that today was Earth Day as they were enjoying the warm sun, munching on green grass in the pasture as I left to attend the Earth Day Celebration in downtown Bentonville sponsored by Baker Elementary School. A dozen organizations were represented with table displays or demonstrations about environmental stewardship. I displayed information about dairy, provided dairy recipe booklets and gave out Borden string cheese.One little boy asked me if I was selling for free? His smile was priceless as I handed him that free cheese! Every grade participated in the Earth Day program with songs,poems, or facts about recycling and what we can do to improve our environment. One of the 4th grade classes made and modeled hats with recycled materials that we might find in our homes like newspapers, water bottles,cereal boxes,soda cans and pizza boxes. Those hats were definitely conversation pieces! These students recycle everyday in their school program. They are being taught about the value of caring for the environment. Dairy farmers value and care for our natural resources everyday because we depend on the land for our business and quality of life for our families and our communities. We know the future depends on what we do today. Farmers do celebrate Earth Day Everyday!

Earth Day--Everyday

As I was feeding baby calves and enjoying a dose of April sunshine, I was also thinking about an upcoming event I will be participating in next week for the celebration of Earth Day. The very first Earth Day celebration began in april 1970 to bring awareness to environmental issues. Farmers and ranchers are known to be the first environmentalists. Like most farm families I know, we live and work on our farms. We work to maintain and improve the soil and our natural resources to pass on to the next generation. Our cows are the perfect recyclers! Just as our urban neighbors are recycling grass,newspaper, and aluminum, we apply our cow manure to fields to replace the nutrients in the soil. Sharing information with our community about dairy farming and agriculture seems a natural fit for Earth Day celebrating, and it's a great way for us to connect with and give back to the people in our area. Dairy farm families essentially celebrate Earth Day every day by taking the best possible care of our land and animals, and it's important for us to encourage others to do their part as well.

Dairy Springin'

If you want to get a dairy farmer excited, just start talking about the heifers that are springin'! Before I became a farmer, I would have connected this with enjoying the spring beauty that surrounds us in Northwest Arkansas. Springin'(springing) actually is a description dairy farmers use referring to the beginning development of the heifer's udder and other changes that they can visually see and usually indicate that calving is not too far away. To produce milk, a heifer must have a calf. Having a calf for the first time is a new experience for the heifer and very exciting for the dairy farmer. As a dairy farmer, it is gratifying to see an animal that we have raised from a baby calf come to this point in their growth and development. Springin' heifers give us a spring in our step as we work to produce a great product!

Family Tradition

As I was working in the kitchen yesterday preparing food for Easter lunch, I happened to hear the Hank Williams song "Family Tradition". It sparked alot of thoughts about the traditions we have in our family as dairy farmers. Holidays of all kinds are like a juggling act with the daily chores of milking and caring for our animals added with the holiday activities. The best part of every holiday is that we are together as a family. 98% of farms in the United States are family farms with real families working together to produce the safest and most affordable food in the world. Today was a bitter sweet holiday, the first Easter without my mother-in-law. One of her Easter traditions since my husband was a little boy was to bring out the small red basket that held the old stuffed and faded calico hen sitting on top of dozen colored plastic eggs. The eggs were always stuffed with candy,coins or small toys for my sons to discover after Easter lunch. I really did not have the heart to bring the old hen out for this Easter and I thought the boys probably wouldn't care since they are 21 and 19 years old. Just before Easter lunch today, as I was welcoming some of our guests in the back door,my oldest son came up to the door with the old hen and basket in his arms. Family traditions are hard to break--next year the eggs will have candy,coins, or toys for the big boys!

Dairy Icon

This past week I attended the Dairy Farmers of America annual meeting in Kansas City. One of the attractions in the trade show was Elsie the Borden Cow. A real live cow waiting to have her picture taken with any admirer! Did you know that Elsie is in the top ten list of icons for the twentieth century? Elsie was a real cow owned by family farmers in Connecticut. The Borden family purchased Elsie and began promoting her as their mascot. Elsie was created in the 1930's to symbolize the
"Perfect Dairy Product". She is still being used to promote the Dairy Farmers of America's Borden cheese. Taste, trust, and tradition are what consumers relate to when they see Elsie on the Borden package. Dairy farmers have a lot in common with Elsie---we are producing a great tasting product, we are trusted to provide a safe and nutritious product and we are working to maintain the family farm tradition. Check out recipes and meet some of our dairy families at Friends of Elsie.com.

DAIRY AND DAYLIGHT

All the farmers I know are celebrating the arrival of Daylight Savings Time. Dairy farming is a management and labor intensive occupation. Every day of the year we are milking cows twice a day on our farm, feeding and caring for all of our livestock and working to maintain the farming operation. So what is so exciting about Daylight Savings Time? Daylight Savings Time brings more daylight for the farmer to work longer hours. The warmer spring weather and longer days signal the beginning of our other task which is to prepare farm equipment and fields for crop production. As I moved my clock forward last night, I thought about stories my mother-in-law told us about Great Aunt Edna. In the 1940's, Aunt Edna worked as a nurse in town, milked cows before and after work, and raised a huge garden for her family's food supply. She often hoed her garden by lantern light. With Daylight Saving Time, we now use tractor lights instead of the lantern!!

Dairy Consumer Choices

While waiting to visit with my congressional representatives in Washington,D.C., I was enjoying a half pint of skim milk. This bottle of milk was labeled BST hormone free and that this was verified by dairy farmers. Bovine somatotropin (referred to as BST) is produced naturally in every dairy cow and is present in all milk--including organic. This is a protein hormone and is digested as any other protein. Scientists developed rBST for farmers to use as a management tool to help cows produce more milk. Utilizing this technology increases milk production,helps reduce the environmental resources needed to produce milk and it is proven safe. We must utilize every bit of science and technology that we have to continue to feed our nation and the world population. Dairy farmers pay attention to what consumers want and provide choices for them. Dairy farmers are listening to consumers and providing safe,affordable and nutritious milk and milk products.