Sorghum Harvest

These past few days in Northwest Arkansas have been perfect for harvesting our corn and sorghum silage crops that will be used to feed our dairy cows through the next two seasons.  We feel fortunate that we have any crops to harvest considering the flooding in the spring that delayed crop planting and the severe summer drought. Actually, we are amazed that we have such a great crop of sorghum!

Today I drove to the field where Ryan and our two sons were harvesting the sorghum. Standing next to the plants, the seed heads at the top of the plants towered more than two feet above my head.  Both stem and seed head are chopped together and will provide energy and other nutrients when added to our cows diet.

After the silage is cut and blown into the truck, it will be hauled and packed into the silo and allowed to ferment for a period of time. Before we feed this silage to the cows, a sample will be sent to the lab for a nutritional analysis for our dairy nutritionist to use in designing a nutritious diet that utilizes the feed we have available to meet the specific nutritional needs of our cows.

As I watched the chopper moving up and down the field rows and the trucks filling up with silage, I know there was a big smile on my face as I watched my family working together to feed our cows  and thinking about how our  cows would enjoy eating this labor of love!

World Food Day-October 16

World Food Day gives recognition to our continued need to feed the hungry. In 1943 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt brought representatives of the allied nations together to consider the establishment of an international organization to deal with food and agriculture issues after World War II, the world population was smaller but faced what appeared to be insurmountable problems of hunger and devastation. With today's expanding world population, the solution to world hunger will require choosing to use existing and expanding scientific knowledge and technology in agriculture.

As a dairy farmer/dairymom  and consumer, food is the center of my universe every day. If I'm not shopping for food,preparing food or eating food, I am working three hundred sixty five days a year producing safe milk for consumers. Ninety-eight percent of all dairy farms in America are family farms, like mine, and regardless of the size of the farm or the method of production--our ultimate goal is to produce safe,healthy milk or milk product.

In a world with hungry people, we must be able to use every bit of sound science and technology that is available to feed our rapidly growing population. According to USDA statistics, United States dairy farmers today are producing almost three times more milk with about half the number of cows compared to 1960. Producing more milk has reduced the amount of feed,water and space needed. (Sustainability and Dairy Farming Fact Sheet found at http://www.midwestdairy.com/). Over the past sixty years, improvements in animal genetics,feeding rations,animal health programs,cow comfort and overall management practices have reduced dairy's carbon footprint by sixty three percent.  Sustaining our family farms by using our resources wisely supported by sound science and technology will allow us to continue to produce the needed food.

Sometimes the solution to hunger can be simply helping your neighbor.  Today, on World Food Day, I challenge you to consider donating to your local food pantry or work with an organization in your community to feed the hungry.  You can follow World Food Day comments on twitter by using the hashtag #bad11 or visit the Blog Action Day site at http://www.blogactionday.org/.

Myth Busting Dairy Farm Tour

Dairy farm tours provide a perfect opportunity to share how we work everyday to produce a safe product, open conversations about food production, and bust any myths or misperceptions about dairy or dairy farming. I was not surprised during yesterday's farm tour when the University of Arkansas nutrition student told me that she purchased a particular brand of milk because it stated on the label that it had no antibiotics.  It's a common myth that many consumers believe that milk contains antibiotics unless you purchase a product that is labeled antibiotic free.

I love to see and listen to the reaction of students when you bust the antibiotic dairy myth by sharing these facts:

• It is absolutely illegal for any milk to be sold with antibiotics.
• The milk from a cow being treated for an illness with antibiotics is separated from other cows' milk and disposed of.
• Milk is strictly tested for antibiotics on the farm and at the processing plant.
• Milk and dairy products are among the most highly regulated foods in this country.

Dairy farmers are committed to providing a safe,steady supply of dairy products.  You can find more dairy myth busting information at http://www.dairyfarmingtoday.org/ or http://www.midwestdairy.com/.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

University of Arkansas nutrition students are visiting our dairy farm this week to learn  how we work everyday to produce a safe,healthy product.  Several of the students told me they have never been on a farm and appreciate the opportunity to visit.  I am thankful for teachers that value agriculture and  want their students to understand where  food  comes from , how it is produced , and to appreciate that we as Americans enjoy the safest,most abundant and most affordable food supply in the world.

Moo Facts for National Farm to School Month

Did you know that October is National Farm to School Month?  The National Farm to School program works to improve child nutrition,sustain local farm economies, and educate children about where their food comes from. Dairy farmers have a great story to tell about milk that includes how we produce a nutritious product, while caring for our animals and the land we call home.

Here's a few interesting Moo Facts you can share with kids of all ages:

• There are 60,000 dairy farms in the U.S. with 11,000 dairy farms in the Midwest.
• It all starts with healthy cows: a dairy cow , on average, eats 90 pounds of hay,grain and silage each day, and drinks 25-50 gallons of water.
• Comfortable cows are healthy cows: cows lay down up to 14 hours each day.
• Before cows are milked, everything used in milking is cleaned and sanitized.
• Cows are milked 2-3 times a day.
• Each cow produces about 8-9 gallons of milk a day ,or more than 90 glasses. 
• Milk is produced in all 50 states; the top 10 producing states are: California,Wisconsin,New York, Pennsylvania,Minnesota,Texas,New Mexico,Michigan,and Washington.

You can learn more Moo Facts and about the story of milk in the educational packet From Farm to Food to You that is available at http://www.midwestdairy.com/. Sharing the story of milk is a great way to celebrate National Farm to School Month!

Bermuda Hay Challenges

Even though activity on the dairy farm seems to be speeding up with  the additional chores of planting grass seed,corn chopping and hay baling, the production of Bermuda hay is winding down with the onset of fall.  Although we purchase alfalfa  hay to feed the milking cows, we produce  Bermuda hay for our younger dairy animals and beef cattle. The Bermuda grass seems to  know its growing days are numbered before we have our first frost in just a few weeks.

As I watched Ryan raking the hay this afternoon, I noticed how much thinner the cut rows appeared.  This field would normally be cut and baled into small square bales that would be hand fed to young calves. Today it will be baled into large round bales for larger dairy calves and beef cattle due to the decreased quality and yield. Hay production on our farm and across Benton County has been less this year due to the extreme flooding in the spring and the drought this summer. Like all farmers in our county, we are scrambling to harvest every bale because of this shortage. 

Even if you follow the weather man and check the DTN weather map, it seems like  clouds will appear from nowhere when you are baling hay. Farmers always take this challenge!  Just as the raking was finished and the baler pulled into the field, the clouds were gathering.  Thankfully, the Bermuda  hay was baled without getting wet.  Now bring on the rain!

Power for Dairy Food Safety

Power outages usually occur when least expected.  Last week was the exception when the electric company notified us that our power would be turned off for a two hour period while existing lines were replaced.  Power outages at home are inconvenient and often irritating but, it's more than inconvenient when you are looking at 300 dairy cows that are ready and waiting in line to enter the milk barn and the lights go out!

Thank goodness we have a plan of action for the dairy when the power does get interrupted. Electrical power is important for cow comfort, quality milk and dairy food safety. Our cows' comfort depends on keeping to the milk schedule.  Electricity is used to run the equipment in the dairy barn to milk the cows, cool the milk and keep it cool until it leaves the farm for processing. Power is also needed  to run the system that washes and sanitizes the milking equipment after all the cows are milked before the next milking time.

Until last year, we used a generator that could be hooked up to the tractor to generate enough electrical power to get the cows milked. After experiencing five days without power from an ice storm and fearing that our small generator might not survive another lengthy power outage, we decided to invest in a stand alone generator.  This generator is much larger, runs more efficiently and provides enough power to get the cows milked,keep the milk cool and sanitize the milking equipment.

Dairy food safety is powered not only by electricity but by every dairy farmer's  commitment to provide safe,high quality milk and dairy products.  Hope you will power up with  some great dairy product this weekend!