2014 northstar cooperative dhi annual performance summary 2014

2 Enhancing producer profitability through integrated services.

32014 DHI Annual Performance Summary

Dollar Value Calculation: A fair comparison of cow and herd production is dependent on the use of accurate, up-to-date prices paid to dairy producers for milk shipped from their farms. Dollar values for herd and cow listings in this publication were calculated based on standardized prices for milk, fat and protein yields. The prices for fat pounds, protein pounds, and producer price differential (factor for milk pounds) were computed as the averages of monthly price information from the Mideast Federal Milk Marketing Order 33 for October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014. The formula used was: (pounds of milk X $0.0094) + (pounds of fat X $2.2053) + (pounds of protein X $3.8105).

Testing year reported represents period of October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014, with a minimum of nine processed tests required for inclusion.

1.800.631.3510northstarcooperative.com4200 Forest Road, BLDG A

Lansing, MI 48910

NorthStar Milk Analysis Labs:In Michigan, Indiana and Ohio:

800.836.8114In Wisconsin and MI Upper Peninsula:

800.436.9344

Minimums to appear in summary: • Herd size = 10 cows• Number of Processed Tests = nine• Top Dollar Value Mixed Breed herds = $4,800

• Top Dollar Value Red & White herds = $4,800• Top Dollar Value Protein herds = $4,000• Top Dollar Value Lactations = $4,000

Reports

Important Notes

6-7 Top 150 Dollar Value Herds - MI, IN & OH

10-11 Top 100 Dollar Value Herds - WI

13 Top Dollar Value Holstein Cows by Age

MI, IN & OH

17 Top Dollar Value Holstein Cows by Age - WI

19 Top Herds by Size & Dollar Value - MI, IN & OH

23 Top Herds by Size & Dollar Value - WI

26 Top Protein Breed Herds by Dollar Value - WI

29 Top Protein Breed Herds by Dollar Value

MI, IN & OH

32 Top Dollar Value Protein Breed Cows by Age

MI, IN & OH

34 Top Dollar Value Protein Breed Cows by Age

WI

35 Top Lifetime Cows for Milk Production - WI

36 Top Lifetime Cows for Milk Production

MI, IN & OH

37 Herds Under 100,000 SCC - WI

38 Herds under 100,000 SCC - MI, IN & OH

CONtents

BY THE NUMBERS(compared to 2013) 2014 % GrowthCows Tested 3,804,061 12.2%

DHI Samples Analyzed 3,339,976 12.7%

Total Milk Samples Analyzed 3,585,338 11.6%

Herds on Test 1,332 2.0%

Cows Enrolled 438,800 35.6%

Average Cows Tested per Month 317,005 12.2%

Average Herd Size 329 32.7%

5 Record Growth Again!

8 Find it, Fix it

14 Attentiveness to Detail

20 2014 Progressive Dairy

Producer Award Winner

24 Cow Comfort, Teamwork

& Genetics

27 Cow Comfort & Teamwork

30 Family Tradition

Articles

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®EPRINEX and the Cattle Head Logo are registered trademarks of Merial. ©2014 Merial Limited, Duluth, GA. All rights reserved. RUMIEEP1128-A (01/14)

1 Based on FOI summaries and label claims.

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Enhancing producer profitability through integrated services.4


By Ginni SheridanDirector, DHI Services

record growth Again!Wow, what a year it has been

for NorthStar DHI! Like 2013, records were repeatedly set and broken, making

us enthusiastic about your confidence and trust in our team and services. NorthStar’s DHI team is second to none and their dedication to serve contributed to our remarkable growth.

At the end of the testing year, over 438,000 cows were enrolled at NorthStar DHI Services, with more than 385,000 samples analyzed through the two milk processing laboratories. While reflecting on the completion of a successful year is encouraging, looking forward is truly exciting knowing that so many people recognize the value NorthStar DHI Specialists bring to the farm and how that information can positively affect your bottom line.

DHI has been providing valuable information to dairy herds for over 100 years; however, national DHI enrollment has remained relatively flat during the past decade, hovering around 47 percent. Adversely, the states in NorthStar’s core service area have experienced notable increases in the percentage of cows enrolled in DHI over the last 10 years rising from 45 to 52 percent.

Wisconsin saw the largest increase in cows enrolled at NorthStar DHI, up 130,226 to 197,327 total cows; while the Michigan, Indiana and Ohio area enrollment grew by 88,925 cows. This growth continues NorthStar’s increase in market share in all the states we serve.

So what’s driving this increased DHI enrollment? Most likely a combination of things. First, with high milk prices and record cull cow prices, producers are seeking even better ways to differentiate between profitable and non-profitable

cows. How rewarding to know that NorthStar DHI continues to provide data and services that are key to these evaluations!

While the available data hasn’t changed significantly over the years, the ability to analyze it into meaningful metrics continually improves. Money Corrected Milk (MCM) developed by DRMS, our records processing center, is one such tool that was made available this past year. Working in tandem with PCDART, MCM allows producers to quickly analyze individual cows from the perspective of income over feed cost. Recognizing income is a product of not only production, but also components and somatic cell count (SCC), enables you to take a more realistic look at individual animal profitability. The MCM report can be customized to match specific costs associated with your farm, providing an improved analysis of the daily value each cow contributes.

Another key driver to NorthStar DHI Services growth is the expansion of health and diagnostic testing on milk samples.

The ability to test for Pregnancy, Johne’s, Mastitis, BVD and

Leukosis, without additional labor or added stress

to the animal, has proven tremendously valuable. Rapid turn-around time on these tests also allows for greater efficiency

and profitability by allowing identification

and treatment of animals quickly.

Being involved in the dairy industry and with your farms is truly rewarding. While we cannot predict where the industry will be in the future, or what challenges it will face, NorthStar will strive to meet your ever-changing needs, ultimately helping to keep your operation profitable and sustainable. Thank you for your continued confidence!

0

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

20142004

438,800

NorthStar DHI Growth

➤ Cows on test through NorthStar DHI Services has nearly doubled over the past 10 years, while national growth has hung around 5 percent.

“NorthStar will strive to meet your ever-changing needs, ultimately helping

to keep your operation profitable and sustainable.”

3X address breed herd size milK fat fat % prot prot % value herd owner

Top 150 Dollar value herDsm i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o

1 * nor-bert farms bremen, in b 16 31,940 1,514 4.7 1,118 3.5 $7,899 2 * e. Kuyers & sons west olive, mi h 161 34,870 1,350 3.9 1,090 3.1 $7,458 3 * nor-bert farms bremen, in h 106 30,873 1,398 4.5 1,071 3.5 $7,454 4 * wilson family farm Carson City, mi h 731 30,090 1,238 4.1 977 3.2 $6,736 5 * Crandall farms llC battle Creek, mi h 303 32,307 1,197 3.7 990 3.1 $6,716 6 * lew-max holstein llC belding, mi h 553 32,502 1,205 3.7 952 2.9 $6,591 7 tim & sandy verhage allegan, mi h 75 31,478 1,157 3.7 974 3.1 $6,559 8 * dan, paul, & nate elzinga zeeland, mi h 240 31,399 1,170 3.7 955 3.0 $6,514 9 * highland dairy llC. sebewaing, mi h 2,827 31,029 1,168 3.8 941 3.0 $6,453 10 Jeff Knuver fremont, mi h 158 31,010 1,178 3.8 930 3.0 $6,433 11 * Chapin family farms remus, mi h 699 31,311 1,171 3.7 927 3.0 $6,409 12 * Cary dairy farm battle Creek, mi h 987 31,948 1,155 3.6 930 2.9 $6,391 13 darrell & bonita richard Goshen, in h 75 28,740 1,223 4.3 888 3.1 $6,351 14 * Kent inniger middleton, mi h 233 31,083 1,097 3.5 952 3.1 $6,339 15 harold dodde falmouth, mi h 250 29,430 1,153 3.9 921 3.1 $6,329 16 * steve benthem mcbain, mi h 331 31,586 1,124 3.6 932 3.0 $6,327 17 steve landis Goshen, in h 31 27,603 1,232 4.5 877 3.2 $6,318 18 * Country dairy new era, mi h 111 27,797 1,265 4.6 855 3.1 $6,309 19 * pasch mbm weidman, mi h 272 30,989 1,115 3.6 928 3.0 $6,286 20 * bill & lisa bowerman Quincy, mi X 317 28,902 1,137 3.9 918 3.2 $6,277 21 doug & scott long Clayton, mi h 66 29,494 1,104 3.7 935 3.2 $6,275 22 * brand dairy farm waterloo, in h 381 30,081 1,086 3.6 940 3.1 $6,260 23 Jeff & alisha bigler lakeview, mi h 110 28,804 1,156 4.0 900 3.1 $6,250 24 * first farms ionia, mi h 280 31,308 1,103 3.5 924 3.0 $6,248 25 * doug westendorp nashville, mi h 246 31,412 1,040 3.3 954 3.0 $6,224 26 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi X 91 29,518 1,094 3.7 925 3.1 $6,215 27 * harry & Gary sanborn hubbardston, mi h 458 30,665 1,086 3.5 919 3.0 $6,185 28 * buning dairy llC falmouth, mi h 356 30,348 1,080 3.6 921 3.0 $6,176 t * mark & becky iciek Gladwin, mi h 304 29,703 1,093 3.7 915 3.1 $6,176 30 * rodney daniels whittemore, mi h 466 29,307 1,154 3.9 875 3.0 $6,155 31 * Jeff alexander hanover, mi h 111 30,390 1,071 3.5 920 3.0 $6,153 32 Greg pluger marion, mi h 162 29,136 1,117 3.8 896 3.1 $6,151 t earl & Jeff horning manchester, mi h 415 29,621 1,094 3.7 908 3.1 $6,151 34 starward farms sebewaing, mi h 90 28,530 1,107 3.9 902 3.2 $6,147 35 * ryan litwiller middleton, mi h 260 29,390 1,079 3.7 915 3.1 $6,142 36 devon & doreen zimmerman Claypool, in h 146 28,496 1,072 3.8 911 3.2 $6,103 37 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi h 1,210 29,856 1,058 3.5 915 3.1 $6,100 38 * Curry farms no.3 tawas City, mi h 197 29,365 1,072 3.7 904 3.1 $6,085 39 * dick van rijn deford, mi h 664 30,374 1,031 3.4 925 3.0 $6,084 40 robert lee marion, mi h 124 26,613 1,195 4.5 839 3.2 $6,083 41 * autumn vista dairy mc bain, mi h 2,047 29,524 1,093 3.7 890 3.0 $6,079 42 tim baker byron Center, mi h 72 27,694 1,062 3.8 905 3.3 $6,051 43 mike lyon eaton rapids, mi h 129 29,501 1,065 3.6 895 3.0 $6,036 t Ken zuiderveen falmouth, mi h 217 29,092 1,039 3.6 911 3.1 $6,036 45 mark vanderhyde - spartan farm sparta, mi h 224 28,651 1,130 3.9 855 3.0 $6,019 46 * david & susan Granskog stephenson, mi h 169 28,895 1,075 3.7 886 3.1 $6,018 47 * doug benthem mcbain, mi h 1,041 29,276 1,110 3.8 862 2.9 $6,008 * matt Grams harrisville, mi h 302 29,625 1,000 3.4 923 3.1 $6,001 49 dale brinks mcbain, mi h 198 27,872 1,108 4.0 860 3.1 $5,982 50 * ernest olson middleville, mi h 407 28,683 1,085 3.8 870 3.0 $5,978 51 * ron brinks mcbain, mi h 160 29,563 1,062 3.6 877 3.0 $5,962 52 * oneeda farms llC syracuse, in h 212 28,843 1,089 3.8 862 3.0 $5,957 53 Jeff shriver & max Carlson fremont, mi h 229 27,919 1,109 4.0 852 3.1 $5,955 54 * Carson acres llC hesperia, mi h 158 29,005 1,042 3.6 888 3.1 $5,954 55 * rich-ro dairy st Johns, mi h 3,218 27,742 1,055 3.8 883 3.2 $5,952 56 * Gordon dick mcbain, mi h 269 29,518 1,041 3.5 881 3.0 $5,930 57 hardy spring lake farms stanton, mi h 205 27,573 1,106 4.0 845 3.1 $5,918 58 * James reid Jeddo, mi h 216 27,513 1,048 3.8 878 3.2 $5,915 59 * bebow dairy inc st. louis, mi h 1,230 28,690 1,045 3.6 876 3.1 $5,912 60 * Jeff brenner hopkins, mi h 713 27,986 1,082 3.9 856 3.1 $5,911 61 * John & larry deruiter falmouth, mi h 138 28,008 968 3.5 919 3.3 $5,900 62 * Jeff shriver & max Carlson fremont, mi h 1,404 28,485 1,060 3.7 864 3.0 $5,898 63 * petro farms Gobles, mi X 120 27,995 1,043 3.7 874 3.1 $5,894 64 * brent robinson Caro, mi h 1,515 28,451 1,047 3.7 870 3.1 $5,892 65 burke larsen scottville, mi h 527 27,426 1,091 4.0 847 3.1 $5,891 66 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi b 10 25,021 1,061 4.2 869 3.5 $5,886 67 dave & rick tacoma falmouth, mi h 282 28,975 969 3.3 912 3.1 $5,884 68 * duane & Janet molhoek falmouth, mi h 178 28,817 1,029 3.6 876 3.0 $5,878 t bill & bob Gruppen zeeland, mi h 175 29,450 976 3.3 905 3.1 $5,878 70 wardin brothers hemlock, mi h 156 26,348 1,066 4.0 860 3.3 $5,876 71 norman Gross weidman, mi h 123 28,429 1,043 3.7 868 3.1 $5,875 72 ladine farms bellevue, mi h 129 28,664 1,033 3.6 872 3.0 $5,870 73 * Jonathon zimmerman Goshen, in h 122 29,251 994 3.4 890 3.0 $5,858 74 * winkel dairy llC mcbain, mi h 1,060 28,965 1,058 3.7 850 2.9 $5,844 t * sparks Quaker acres fremont, mi X 251 29,027 1,009 3.5 878 3.0 $5,844


Top 150 Dollar value herDsm i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o

76 stuart farms lowell, mi h 370 27,678 1,038 3.8 863 3.1 $5,838 77 * river ridge dairy Co.inc Coopersville, mi h 1,355 27,047 1,127 4.2 812 3.0 $5,834 78 * perry Cisco hudson, mi h 219 28,260 1,054 3.7 849 3.0 $5,825 79 * petro farms Gobles, mi h 813 29,090 1,006 3.5 874 3.0 $5,822 80 * zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi h 7,620 27,375 1,073 3.9 839 3.1 $5,821 81 bob, mike, & matt Cnossen falmouth, mi h 512 27,713 1,059 3.8 846 3.1 $5,820 82 Jim oudman mcbain, mi h 374 27,977 1,036 3.7 857 3.1 $5,813 83 * rene dekker ubly, mi h 1,276 28,438 1,016 3.6 867 3.0 $5,812 84 * house farms mt. pleasant, mi h 338 28,244 1,032 3.7 858 3.0 $5,811 85 potgeter dairy farms allendale, mi h 68 27,597 1,068 3.9 837 3.0 $5,804 86 * Kent folkema fremont, mi h 1,141 27,785 1,023 3.7 861 3.1 $5,798 t * mark Yeazel eaton, oh h 118 27,428 976 3.6 889 3.2 $5,798 88 * andrews university berrien springs, mi h 756 28,547 1,043 3.7 847 3.0 $5,796 89 * messing dairy bad axe, mi X 264 26,195 1,036 4.0 854 3.3 $5,785 90 bob baker hastings, mi h 58 25,074 1,166 4.7 781 3.1 $5,783 91 ron folkema fremont, mi h 590 27,692 996 3.6 872 3.1 $5,780 92 Ken meekhof mcbain, mi h 195 27,084 1,017 3.8 860 3.2 $5,774 93 Jonas zimmerman wakarusa, in h 120 25,778 1,102 4.3 811 3.1 $5,763 94 * Jeff shriver & max Carlson fremont, mi h 146 26,925 1,081 4.0 820 3.0 $5,762 95 * Central michigan milk production st. louis, mi h 824 27,681 971 3.5 881 3.2 $5,759 96 david dezeeuw falmouth, mi h 169 27,238 1,066 3.9 827 3.0 $5,758 t brian brunink mcbain, mi h 428 27,776 972 3.5 880 3.2 $5,758 98 dutch meadows llC zeeland, mi h 195 27,487 1,004 3.7 862 3.1 $5,757 t * newell farms trufant, mi h 448 28,953 1,015 3.5 852 2.9 $5,757 100 * Galen schalk hillman, mi h 221 27,277 1,010 3.7 858 3.1 $5,753 t * doug seiler Carson City, mi h 257 28,895 977 3.4 873 3.0 $5,753 102 * norm hammond dowling, mi h 473 28,736 995 3.5 858 3.0 $5,734 103 * James & brad ritter byron, mi h 194 27,571 1,013 3.7 850 3.1 $5,732 104 * oesch swiss lane alto, mi h 1,619 27,876 1,039 3.7 834 3.0 $5,731 105 * robert Getzloff wilson, mi h 486 27,275 1,032 3.8 838 3.1 $5,725106 sperry dairy farm llC Coldwater, mi h 166 26,838 1,023 3.8 843 3.1 $5,721 107 Calvin bodeis mayville, mi h 61 26,840 1,016 3.8 847 3.2 $5,720 T * HofflandDairyLLC Clayton,MI H 1,340 27,305 981 3.6 866 3.2 $5,720 109 * oesch swiss lane alto, mi h 601 28,428 981 3.5 863 3.0 $5,719 110 * Gary protzman Caseville, mi h 669 27,332 1,002 3.7 849 3.1 $5,702 111 * nobis dairy farms st Johns, mi h 1,045 29,825 966 3.2 863 2.9 $5,699 112 bruce martin whittemore, mi X 132 25,944 1,020 3.9 839 3.2 $5,690 113 * Chad beck west branch, mi h 493 27,418 1,046 3.8 820 3.0 $5,689 114 * steve & doug denning Jonesville, mi h 414 28,084 958 3.4 869 3.1 $5,688 115 * herrema dairy fair oaks, in h 3,934 26,930 1,013 3.8 839 3.1 $5,684 116 * palms boys llC palms, mi h 1,375 26,363 1,020 3.9 836 3.2 $5,683 t * fisk farms sand lake, mi X 215 27,438 941 3.4 879 3.2 $5,683 118 dan dezeeuw mcbain, mi h 140 27,039 990 3.7 851 3.1 $5,680 119 * Juengels Corner oak Grand blanc, mi h 187 26,964 996 3.7 846 3.1 $5,674 120 * preston farms Quincy, mi h 756 27,575 976 3.5 853 3.1 $5,662 121 * matt Grams harrisville, mi X 27 23,782 1,046 4.4 821 3.5 $5,659 122 * tony rosbrugh west branch, mi X 561 28,007 991 3.5 842 3.0 $5,657 123 * vogel Chad minden City, mi h 168 26,576 1,037 3.9 814 3.1 $5,638124 * BruceRiffle Custer,MI H 158 26,001 1,066 4.1 798 3.1 $5,636 125 dale vandepol marion, mi h 307 26,521 1,025 3.9 818 3.1 $5,627 126 * allen martin Goshen, in h 356 28,488 995 3.5 830 2.9 $5,625 127 steve osentoski ubly, mi h 49 27,652 1,007 3.6 824 3.0 $5,621 128 * wirth farms evart, mi h 633 27,954 964 3.4 846 3.0 $5,612129 * CarltonEvans Litchfield,MI H 247 28,235 1,013 3.6 816 2.9 $5,609 130 * Chris & daniell osentoski Cass City, mi h 200 28,346 946 3.3 854 3.0 $5,607131 * nor-bert farms bremen, in a 11 23,483 1,040 4.4 810 3.4 $5,601 t Cumper dairy farms marlette, mi h 197 26,150 1,032 3.9 808 3.1 $5,601 133 * laeder dairy harbor beach, mi X 386 27,004 978 3.6 837 3.1 $5,600 134 Gilde farms llC lake City, mi h 208 28,102 972 3.5 837 3.0 $5,597 135 mark & henry ziel port austin, mi h 108 24,986 1,043 4.2 801 3.2 $5,587 136 sam Yonkman mcbain, mi h 617 26,793 1,013 3.8 813 3.0 $5,584 137 todd martin Claypool, in h 358 27,789 970 3.5 835 3.0 $5,582 138 * s & m dairy harbor beach, mi X 414 26,152 952 3.6 848 3.2 $5,577139 * tubergen dairy farm llC ionia, mi h 881 29,188 938 3.2 848 2.9 $5,574140 * Don&DianeGriffin Hastings,MI H 238 27,530 954 3.5 841 3.1 $5,567141 dan weil Goodrich, mi h 181 26,781 987 3.7 823 3.1 $5,564 t tjerk & ramona okkema blanchard, mi h 375 27,087 951 3.5 843 3.1 $5,564143 brian & shelly scholtz harbor beach, mi h 59 25,794 1,003 3.9 816 3.2 $5,564144 * rich byma Grant, mi h 895 27,123 997 3.7 816 3.0 $5,563145 * s & m dairy harbor beach, mi X 1,074 26,187 946 3.6 847 3.2 $5,560146 Greg illig & sons west branch, mi h 250 26,735 1,026 3.8 799 3.0 $5,559147 * h & K dairy bannister, mi h 483 27,284 987 3.6 819 3.0 $5,554148 mike & lynne noll Croswell, mi h 10 26,825 957 3.6 835 3.1 $5,544149 Ken mcbroom vulcan, mi h 113 24,844 1,086 4.4 763 3.1 $5,536150 dave Klamer Conklin, mi h 43 26,319 979 3.7 821 3.1 $5,535


By: Todd Byrem, Ph. D, Director, AntelBio

find it, fix it Now’s the time to take on Leukosis!

The success and sustainability of the dairy industry is extremely vulnerable to consumer percep-tions of food safety and animal

welfare. All the more reason maintaining a healthy dairy herd is critical to success. Recent surveys estimate approximately 35 percent of dairy cows in the US are now infected with the bovine leukemia virus (BLV), the causative agent of bovine leukosis. Despite the fact that 21 coun-tries have prioritized disease control and successfully eradicated BLV from their cattle populations, the US continues its long history of general disregard for the presence and impact of BLV in its dairy industry.

Significant ImpactsMalignant tumors (lymphosarcoma) induced by BLV are the largest single reason for US cattle to be condemned during slaughter inspections, and an-nual economic losses to the US dairy industry associated with clinical BLV are estimated to be $285 million for pro-ducers and $240 million for consumers. Yet, because only a small proportion of infected animals become truly clini-cal, most producers do not appreciate the full impact of BLV infection, which silently suppresses immune function and diminishes effective responses to vac-cinations and opportunistic infections. A complete description of the impact of BLV on US herds was recently assembled by researchers at Michigan State Univer-sity (MSU), and can be found at www.cvm.msu.edu/blvusa, several. Highlights of the work are discussed below.

No longer should BLV’s impact on dairy cow production be questioned. The MSU study corroborated findings of a 1996

USDA study which showed that dairy producers lose over 200 pounds of milk per cow per year for each 10 percent increase in BLV prevalence.

In addition to lost milk production, longevity is also impacted when cows are infected with BLV. The same MSU study provided evidence that as a cow’s BLV milk ELISA score increases, survival decreases; and that cows with the highest BLV ELISA score (> 0.50) are at 40 percent greater risk of dying or being culled within the next 18 months than ELISA negative herdmates. Even at lower levels, cows with antibodies against BLV are more likely to die or be culled than are BLV-negative herdmates. Clearly, by reducing milk production and decreasing survival, BLV infection is undermining the genetic potential and lifetime productivity of our dairy cattle.

Manage to ReduceGiven the relatively high preva-lence of BLV infection in most US dairy herds, culling of all cows that test posi-tive for BLV would be prohibitively

expensive. However, implement-ing management practices

have been shown to be effective at reducing transmission, and ulti-mately decreasing BLV prevalence to a level low enough to where test-and-cull programs

become feasible.

The MSU study identified several management prac-

tices positively correlated with BLV prevalence (Table 1); and so these would be great starting points for BLV control. Note that each of these practices are as-sociated with transmission of blood cells from animal to animal. Eliminating the most common pathway(s) for transfer of contaminated blood on your dairy will immediately reduce BLV transmission.

Test StrategicallyFor producers interested in implement-ing a BLV control program on their op-eration, the first step is to conduct a BLV Herd Profile. The Profile is a standardized way of sampling 40 cows that provides

“Dairy producers lose over 200 pounds of

milk per cow per year for each 10 percent

increase in BLV prevalence.”

Table 1. Management Practices Correlated To BLV Prevalence

➤ Increasing Number of Injections

➤ Reusing Hypodermic Needles

➤ Lack of Fly Control

➤ Gouge-Type Dehorning

➤ Increasing Reproductive Exams

➤ Natural Service


an accurate measure of overall herd prevalence regardless of herd size.

Herds participating in DHI can ask their DHI specialist for BLV testing on milk samples from the 10 most recently calved cows in each of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4+ lactation groups. This informa-tion is used to identify areas of potential risk for BLV transmission so that effective control programs can be developed, as-sessed, and modified over time. The BLV Herd Profile correlates almost perfectly (R2 = 0.99) to actual within-herd preva-lence obtained by testing all cattle in the herd.

If BLV prevalence is zero, producers might decide to pursue BLV-free herd certifica-tion available in some states. With very low BLV prevalence, implementation of management practices to minimize transmission, in conjunction with cull-ing or segregation of already infected cattle, should reduce or eliminate BLV in the herd in a relatively short period of time. If BLV prevalence is high, the most cost-effective approach for BLV control is likely to implement comprehensive, or at least selected, management practices to minimize disease transmission, and decrease prevalence over time.

Bigger Than Our BackyardWhile the economic impacts of BLV in US herds are significant, consumer percep-tion and international market pressures may prove to be an even greater con-cern. Regardless of the scientific merits, products produced by BLV-free cattle may be perceived as safer than those produced by infected cattle. While there is not currently evidence to support this disparity in actual safety, we do know the BLV virus is found in both muscle and milk, and that recent studies sug-

gest some lymphocyte proliferation may indeed be malignant in infected cattle. Should public concern over an animal’s BLV status begin to weigh on producer decisions, any reservoir of infection will prove to be highly problematic.

Regardless of consumer perception, concerns of animal health, well-being and efficiency are justification enough to prioritize BLV among a herd’s manage-ment decisions. When the outlook for the US dairy industry is this good, now’s the time to consider taking on the smoking gun that is BLV.

• Fat, protein, lactose and solid analysis by FTIR spectroscopy

• Up to 500 samples per hour

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Engineered for dairy laboratories and dairy processing facilities that require highly reliable and accurate instrumentation.

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3X herd owner address breed herd size milK fat fat % prot prot % value

Top 100 Dollar value herDsW i s c o n s i n

1 feltz family farm stevens point, wi h 577 34,713 1,260 3.6 1,024 2.9 $7,007 2 * rosy-lane holsteins llC watertown, wi h 939 30,171 1,300 4.3 973 3.2 $6,858 3 * Jim zoromski Custer, wi h 365 31,536 1,226 3.9 1,001 3.2 $6,814 4 bruce & brenda long new london, wi h 55 32,543 1,169 3.6 978 3.0 $6,611 5 * brickstead dairy llC Greenleaf, wi h 818 31,921 1,137 3.6 993 3.1 $6,591 6 * lashua farms iola, wi h 428 30,973 1,176 3.8 964 3.1 $6,558 7 * park avenue dairy llC merrill, wi h 493 31,334 1,095 3.5 988 3.2 $6,474 8 * wayside dairy Greenleaf, wi h 1,961 30,106 1,177 3.9 931 3.1 $6,426 9 * shiloh dairy Greenleaf, wi h 2,219 30,263 1,147 3.8 947 3.1 $6,422 10 * badger holsteins unity, wi h 1,686 28,791 1,158 4.0 935 3.2 $6,387 11 * bob van daalwyk hilbert, wi h 163 31,308 1,103 3.5 955 3.1 $6,366 12 * abel dairy farms fond du lac, wi h 1,571 30,651 1,129 3.7 935 3.1 $6,341 13 brantmeier hilrose dairy sherwood, wi h 110 30,952 1,158 3.7 911 2.9 $6,316 14 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi X 24 28,500 1,198 4.2 892 3.1 $6,309 15 * badger holsteins unity, wi X 44 26,237 1,194 4.6 899 3.4 $6,305 16 Jenlar swiss - larry & Jennifer Chilton, wi b 14 25,192 1,229 4.9 881 3.5 $6,304 17 * wegnerlann dairy llC ettrick, wi h 600 30,344 1,111 3.7 934 3.1 $6,294 18 * ledgerock dairy llC larsen, wi h 396 29,705 1,187 4.0 891 3.0 $6,292 19 * foxland farms llC Greenleaf, wi h 122 32,474 1,035 3.2 967 3.0 $6,272 20 * rusk-rose holsteins ladysmith, wi h 322 30,561 1,127 3.7 916 3.0 $6,263 21 * Country aire farms Greenleaf, wi h 3,077 30,635 1,111 3.6 919 3.0 $6,240 22 andrew & Joan meyer Chilton, wi h 104 27,469 1,178 4.3 885 3.2 $6,228 23 * dick & brian micke wrightstown, wi h 519 31,099 1,066 3.4 938 3.0 $6,217 24 * united pride dairy llC phillips, wi h 2,035 28,907 1,088 3.8 927 3.2 $6,203 25 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi b 67 25,635 1,160 4.5 890 3.5 $6,190 26 hillebrand farms Cornell, wi h 110 27,450 1,195 4.4 865 3.2 $6,189 27 * John & mark egan new london, wi h 765 31,753 1,040 3.3 943 3.0 $6,185 28 * united pride dairy llC phillips, wi X 140 25,424 1,135 4.5 899 3.5 $6,168 29 * breezy hill farms llC weyauwega, wi h 417 29,891 1,097 3.7 909 3.0 $6,164 30 * Kohn farms Krakow, wi h 321 29,527 1,113 3.8 894 3.0 $6,139 31 John & dee winkelman watertown, wi h 88 27,630 1,129 4.1 888 3.2 $6,133 t * zinke dairy farms llC brownsville, wi h 723 30,424 1,122 3.7 885 2.9 $6,133 33 * Quantum dairy llC. weyauwega, wi h 2,426 29,086 1,069 3.7 916 3.1 $6,121 34 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi h 102 28,959 1,141 3.9 872 3.0 $6,111 35 Charles maurer Chilton, wi h 110 28,444 1,076 3.8 910 3.2 $6,108 36 * dan & tim liner van dyne, wi h 428 29,969 1,010 3.4 942 3.1 $6,099 37 * marcus de Jong dorchester, wi h 493 30,491 997 3.3 947 3.1 $6,094 38 * verhoef dairy Colby, wi h 281 29,833 1,070 3.6 905 3.0 $6,089 39 * ed walter farm inc oshkosh, wi h 208 28,485 1,135 4.0 869 3.1 $6,082 40 Daryl&PamNunes Deerfield,WI H 51 28,612 1,098 3.8 889 3.1 $6,078 41 * ambrosius dairy farm seymour, wi h 116 28,169 1,095 3.9 889 3.2 $6,067 42 * pickart dairy malone, wi h 697 30,152 1,077 3.6 893 3.0 $6,061 43 twilight holsteins stanley, wi h 48 28,710 1,087 3.8 883 3.1 $6,032 44 * n-G vande hei - J Calaway de pere, wi h 347 29,032 1,096 3.8 871 3.0 $6,009 45 mark anderson waupaca, wi h 207 27,911 1,087 3.9 872 3.1 $5,982 46 * dan madden new london, wi h 401 28,299 1,036 3.7 891 3.1 $5,946 47 * seidls mtn view dairy luxemburg, wi h 1,145 28,953 1,033 3.6 891 3.1 $5,945 48 patrick & Joe murphy new london, wi h 136 27,220 1,107 4.1 852 3.1 $5,944 49 * neighborhood dairy Kaukauna, wi h 944 28,624 1,040 3.6 887 3.1 $5,942 50 * brad & laura friesen barron, wi h 193 27,270 1,034 3.8 893 3.3 $5,939 51 * abel acres inc. loyal, wi h 301 29,441 1,122 3.8 836 2.8 $5,937 52 * Kohlman dairy llC. Chilton, wi h 358 28,862 1,078 3.7 854 3.0 $5,903 53 * morning view dairy llC merrill, wi h 420 28,922 1,015 3.5 885 3.1 $5,883 54 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi h 49 29,549 1,009 3.4 886 3.0 $5,879 55 * Johnson farm llC daggett, mi h 1,609 28,146 1,027 3.6 877 3.1 $5,871 56 * trappers turn dairy scandinavia, wi h 395 27,815 1,028 3.7 865 3.1 $5,825 57 * sugar Creek llC new london, wi h 1,259 27,806 1,039 3.7 857 3.1 $5,818 58 * James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi h 479 29,918 967 3.2 886 3.0 $5,790 59 * stutzman family farms llC Conrath, wi h 327 28,362 1,039 3.7 848 3.0 $5,789 60 * stahl bros. dairy luxemburg, wi h 1,401 28,359 1,017 3.6 859 3.0 $5,783 61 steve Jankowski withee, wi h 83 27,107 1,029 3.8 854 3.2 $5,778 62 * Kinnard farms inc Casco, wi h 3,243 29,301 987 3.4 862 2.9 $5,737 63 * rickert bros eldorado, wi h 1,034 27,460 1,032 3.8 835 3.0 $5,716 64 riemer-sawall Clintonville, wi h 196 26,676 1,042 3.9 830 3.1 $5,711 t * brightside dairy llC Greenleaf, wi h 458 29,223 962 3.3 870 3.0 $5,711 66 * elusive hill dairy spenser, wi h 730 28,679 974 3.4 864 3.1 $5,710 67 * heller farm inc. alma Center, wi h 1,019 26,536 977 3.7 867 3.3 $5,708 68 hallet dairy farm llC Casco, wi h 14 25,646 1,100 4.3 797 3.1 $5,704 69 * Goodrich farms llp new richmond, wi X 20 26,521 1,005 3.8 849 3.2 $5,701 70 * blaser farms inc Gillett, wi h 588 28,080 1,004 3.6 845 3.0 $5,698



Top 100 Dollar value herDsW i s c o n s i n

71 travis marti vesper, wi h 178 27,931 925 3.3 887 3.2 $5,682 72 Jeff & Jill pinter Curtiss, wi h 89 28,078 983 3.5 849 3.0 $5,667 73 Charles & Christopher weber elmwood, wi h 158 25,538 1,037 4.1 818 3.2 $5,644 74 * Ken strack random lake, wi h 459 27,601 972 3.5 849 3.1 $5,638 75 * muenster homestead farms seymour, wi h 247 27,658 995 3.6 832 3.0 $5,625 76 don mielke menasha, wi h 18 25,938 993 3.8 835 3.2 $5,615 77 * rem-Jem dairy, llC unity, wi h 286 28,950 969 3.3 841 2.9 $5,614 78 russell letter seymour, wi h 60 27,515 1,032 3.8 799 2.9 $5,579 79 leahy farms inc brandon, wi X 138 26,323 996 3.8 820 3.1 $5,569 80 * seven oaks dairy, llC Kaukauna, wi h 869 27,850 971 3.5 829 3.0 $5,562 81 * dave & Jeremy hintz brillion, wi h 75 27,241 966 3.5 830 3.0 $5,549 82 * mike van rossum Kaukauna, wi h 540 28,108 870 3.1 882 3.1 $5,544 83 david & dawn windle withee, wi h 53 26,638 1,006 3.8 804 3.0 $5,533 84 * Goodrich farms llp new richmond, wi h 671 25,677 980 3.8 821 3.2 $5,531 85 * landstad dairy llC bonduel, wi h 413 27,335 989 3.6 811 3.0 $5,528 86 feider farms llC new holstein, wi h 266 26,629 994 3.7 808 3.0 $5,521 87 andrew s syryczuk lublin, wi h 195 26,541 996 3.8 806 3.0 $5,517 88 volkman farms black Creek, wi h 62 26,312 1,004 3.8 801 3.0 $5,514 89 ronald & nancy felten st. Cloud, wi h 193 26,023 1,012 3.9 797 3.1 $5,513 90 * Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi h 111 27,049 956 3.5 824 3.0 $5,502 91 hallet dairy farm llC Casco, wi J 71 21,956 1,096 5.0 752 3.4 $5,489 92 Ken & sharon fochs hilbert, wi h 57 26,659 952 3.6 822 3.1 $5,482 93 new-day dairy athens, wi h 80 26,286 952 3.6 818 3.1 $5,464 94 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi X 126 23,577 1,005 4.3 790 3.4 $5,448 95 pinecreek farms medford, wi h 256 25,443 993 3.9 791 3.1 $5,443 96 skyvue farm sheldon, wi h 65 25,972 949 3.7 814 3.1 $5,439 97 * James & deborah senn Campbellsport, wi h 308 27,629 947 3.4 811 2.9 $5,438 t hallet dairy farm llC Casco, wi J 55 20,984 1,096 5.2 741 3.5 $5,438 99 david & Jane pescinski Colby, wi h 59 26,234 977 3.7 796 3.0 $5,434 100 * phil robertson farms llC seymour, wi h 263 26,763 929 3.5 822 3.1 $5,433

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herd owner address Cow id sire id milK fat fat % prot prot % value

3 0 5 D a y l a c T a T i o n s

Top Dollar value holsTein coWs by agem i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o

Jr. Two-Year-Old nor-bert farms bremen, in odetta observer 35,851 1,569 4.4 1,332 3.7 $8,873larry e. haywood hastings, mi 5630 bogart 32,615 1,664 5.1 1,099 3.4 $8,164Cary dairy farm battle Creek, mi 7080 owen 35,316 1,477 4.2 1,077 3.0 $7,693rodney daniels whittemore, mi 3362 bookem 38,511 1,476 3.8 1,067 2.8 $7,683river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 1738 37,022 1,491 4.0 1,044 2.8 $7,614 Sr. Two-Year-Old KentFolkema Fremont,MI 2831 Muffin 35,917 2,012 5.6 1,199 3.3 $9,343dan, paul & nate elzinga zeeland, mi 2475 sirius 41,027 1,803 4.4 1,271 3.1 $9,205lew-max holstein llC belding, mi 4762 niagra 47,639 1,646 3.5 1,337 2.8 $9,172fred & pat beer milford, in 3208 bronco 42,800 1,630 3.8 1,293 3.0 $8,924mark vanderhyde - spartan farm sparta, mi 5094 Juniper 39,329 1,735 4.4 1,196 3.0 $8,753 Jr. Three-Year-Old nor-bert farms bremen, in spruce dorcy 59,170 3,362 5.7 2,113 3.6 $16,022nor-bert farms bremen, in Cordeli million 38,460 2,028 5.3 1,372 3.6 $10,062nor-bert farms bremen, in liv malicieux 38,729 1,994 5.1 1,302 3.4 $9,723nor-bert farms bremen, in Clovis lawn boy p-red 38,751 1,781 4.6 1,386 3.6 $9,573nor-bert farms bremen, in bentley boulder 39,171 1,795 4.6 1,375 3.5 $9,566 Sr. Three-Year-Old nor-bert farms bremen, in Gabby deann 40,538 1,972 4.9 1,356 3.3 $9,897nor-bert farms bremen, in Kia shottle 36,454 1,988 5.5 1,239 3.4 $9,448nor-bert farms bremen, in bridget altabaxter 37,124 1,882 5.1 1,267 3.4 $9,327nor-bert farms bremen, in Glorian Chime 36,487 1,807 5.0 1,239 3.4 $9,049pasch mbm weidman, mi lionkin lion King 41,863 1,612 3.9 1,290 3.1 $8,864 Four-Year-Old nor-bert farms bremen, in Connie Colby 56,896 2,784 4.9 2,008 3.5 $14,326nor-bert farms bremen, in paris million 42,624 2,498 5.9 1,573 3.7 $11,903nor-bert farms bremen, in Candace altabaxter 40,202 2,132 5.3 1,440 3.6 $10,567Carson acres llC hesperia, mi Cal nathan 45,600 2,086 4.6 1,263 2.8 $9,842river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 9849 Juniper 36,868 1,976 5.4 1,198 3.2 $9,269 Five-Year-Old nor-bert farms bremen, in Glamina Jardin 38,190 2,344 6.1 1,352 3.5 $10,680nor-bert farms bremen, in selita airraid 41,278 1,936 4.7 1,415 3.4 $10,049nor-bert farms bremen, in farrah Cole 37,501 1,974 5.3 1,311 3.5 $9,701highland dairy llC sebewaing, mi 7355 46,909 1,712 3.6 1,381 2.9 $9,479dan, paul & nate elzinga zeeland, mi 2156 marion 45,214 1,870 4.1 1,264 2.8 $9,365 Aged Cows nor-bert farms bremen, in eva Jet stream 42,006 1,911 4.5 1,504 3.6 $10,340oesch swiss lane alto, mi 6010 lyle 40,800 2,340 5.7 1,195 2.9 $10,097nor-bert farms bremen, in aria drake 39,093 1,847 4.7 1,320 3.4 $9,471wilson family farm Carson City, mi 242 boliver 35,995 1,914 5.3 1,201 3.3 $9,136Crandall farms llC battle Creek, mi 1472 activist 37,143 1,945 5.2 1,168 3.1 $9,089

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attentiveness to DetailE. Kuyers & Sons Dairy

For the family owned and operated E. Kuyers & Sons Dairy in West Olive, Michigan, consistently achieving a Rolling

Herd Average (RHA) over 30,000 pounds with three-times-a-day milking boils down to paying attention to every detail.

“Paying close attention to the details all the way through is very important,” said herdsman Roger Headley. “The biggest things are taking care of your calves and dry cows. If you have those things, everything else falls into place.”

Owned by Roger’s uncles, John and Phil Kuyers, the 160-cow herd has been A.I. bred since its beginning. “They had a herd bull one year, probably 30 years ago,” Roger recalled, adding that the bull charged one of the workers and that was the end of the herd bull. “I do think the genetics are better with A.I. Sure, you can pick the best bull out of the herd, but did he get the best traits?”

Quality calf care is recognized as an important step towards the success of the dairy to continue their genetic investment. Heifer calves are raised in a greenhouse style barn in pens bedded with sand and straw. The open barn features a transition pen where calves are grouped before being moved into the heifer barn. “That transition pen has made a big difference,” noted Phil. “I think it helps limit their stress before the move.”

Calves are fed one gallon of colostrum, up from two quarts based on the recommendation of long-time herd veterinarian Dr. Bob Vlietstra of West Michigan Veterinary Service. After that they receive a gallon of milk twice a day along with a pelleted feed. At the first sign that a calf is not drinking, she receives a bolus to help boost immunity. “If you catch any illness early enough it helps a lot,” said Roger. “We have very minimal calf mortality, maybe one (loss)

a year.”

“It’s all in how you raise your animals,” Roger continued.

“We don’t treat many calves, and if you keep that up you don’t have sick cows and they come into milk nicely.” The herd is on

a yearly vaccination and deworming program,

and birds are scared off the property in an effort

to prevent disease transmission and keep the cows and facilities clean. Waterers are scrubbed once a week, and the bedding is replaced frequently to help keep somatic cell count low. Hooves are trimmed every six weeks by a local hoof trimmer, and the dairy has its own hoof trimming chute so they can maintain the hooves between scheduled trims.

Ventilation is important and could be an issue in the Kuyer’s old hip roof barn, but 17 fans in the freestall areas keep the cows comfortable. “We have redone all the freestalls over the last two years, and had all the roll-up curtains installed three years ago,” noted Phil. The milking parlor

also features the roll-up curtains on the East and West-facing sides, making it one of the coolest places on the farm on a humid summer day.

“Because we don’t have headlocks, we do everything in the parlor,” Roger said, including pulling blood weekly for pregnancy testing. The holding area of the parlor features misters, and cows are soaked with the hose on summer days to cool them down. Roger has actually timed each milking group in the parlor to see just how long the cows are away from their feed. “Our biggest group only stands for 30 minutes at each milking, so a total of one and a half hours the entire day – that’s a big plus,” said Roger, suggesting that minimizing time in the parlor is important to allow the cows to keep eating, resting, and making milk.

“From the calf to the maternity pen to fresh cows, paying attention

to the details all the way through is the most

important thing you can do.”

➤ Roger Headley and Phil Kuyers


The dairy has worked with Nobis Agri Service for about 30 years to ensure that the herd is receiving the correct nutrition. The farm’s custom cropping is done by Rocket Harvesting, and the dairy purchases wet brew, a byproduct of beer, from a local brewery to mix into the feed when temperatures are above freezing. “It’s a wetter feed, so they can’t sort through it,” said Roger. Feed is pushed up five to six times a day, with Roger noting, “The more you do it, the more milk you’ll get.” Pushing up feed frequently is important as the herd is about ten percent overcrowded and doesn’t have the recommended bunk space per cow.

“When your barn is full, you need to get rid of somebody,” noted Roger. “The DHI info helps us with which cows to keep.” For instance, one goal of the dairy is that first lactation cows must reach 25,000 pounds of milk to remain in the herd. “The low (producing) ones can’t stay - we just don’t have the room,” said Roger. “That cutoff will probably go up now that we’re using sexed semen and will be getting more heifers. Top heifers turn into top cows.”

The dairy has been using DHI since 1984. “We wanted a tool to help us step up the herd and know what the cows were doing,” Phil said of their decision to start testing. “You can’t improve your herd without that information.” Phil and Roger agree that one of the biggest benefits of DHI is knowing somatic cell count scores and being able to use that information to make culling decisions. “When our somatic cell was high, we culled the top two every month until it was back down,” added Roger.

The herd began using PCDART this past summer. “We are getting our DHI results faster now that we’re not waiting for the mail,” noted Phil. “Bob, our vet, wanted

PCDART – he’s very comfortable using it. Plus it was time for us to have a little technology.”

“Everything is in there (PCDART), not just in a notebook or my brain,” added Roger. “You put a cow number in and you can see everything about her. It is faster than looking things up in the notebook, and we’ll learn to use it more.” Phil added that their DHI Specialist, JoEllen Meerman, has been helping them learn the program when she’s on the farm each month.

The herd’s nutritionist, Chad TerAvest, and Dr. Vlietstra use PCDART to access the herd’s DHI data. “They are a good team to have and they help us with our management decisions,” Roger noted. “Working closely with your vet and nutritionist is important when you’re trying to improve milk quality.”

The genetics program at E. Kuyers & Sons has always had an emphasis on pounds of milk, fat and protein, and recently they began using Select Sire’s genetics for the diversity of sires. “We want to stay away from inbreeding, and Select is all outcross for us,” Roger said of their decision to change. “We now have a large variety of bulls we can use.”

“When we wanted to increase milk even more, the other bull studs didn’t have the selection we needed,” added Roger. “The money is in the milk and components. (If a bull offers) Much less than 2,000 pounds milk I won’t use it.” Phil added that they have always chosen high milk bulls, and they have seen the improvements in their heifers over time.

The dairy just had their first group of heifers genetically tested in June 2014. “We wanted to see where our top animals are,” said Roger. “Our milk production is already high, so where

do we go from here? Expansion isn’t really an option, so now we can see what to improve.” The genetic testing was suggested by Ed Nichols, NorthStar Team Leader, as the dairy’s next step for genetic progress and Dr. Vlietstra agreed.

Now the dairy is using the genomic information and breeding the top 50 percent of the heifers with gender SELECTed™ semen. The genomic test results are given to NorthStar Select Mating Service (SMS) Evaluator Steve Reed who provides mating recommendations based on their pedigree.

The herd’s high production and progress was recognized in 1997 when the Kuyers received the Michigan DHI Progressive Dairy Producer of the Year award. The Kuyers team’s unwavering attention to details and teamwork with industry professionals has kept the herd’s RHA over 30,000 pounds for the past eight years. “From the calf to the maternity pen to fresh cows, paying attention to the details all the way through is the most important thing you can do,” noted Roger.

Jennica Vander Boon, NorthStar Cooperative

2014 DHI Annual Performance Summary 15

herd owner address Cow id sire id milK fat fat % prot prot % value

3 0 5 D a y l a c T a T i o n sTop Dollar value holsTein coWs by ageW i s c o n s i n

Jr Two-Year-Old feltz family farm stevens point, wi 1481 42,039 1,534 3.6 1,222 2.9 $8,435feltz family farm stevens point, wi 1416 41,892 1,425 3.4 1,196 2.9 $8,094hoffman’s happy holsteins llC peshtigo, wi 1990 lightning 38,368 1,489 3.9 1,155 3.0 $8,045feltz family farm stevens point, wi 1374 44,037 1,256 2.9 1,217 2.8 $7,821feltz family farm stevens point, wi 1422 40,429 1,300 3.2 1,192 2.9 $7,789 Sr Two-Year-Old rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 4680 o man 43,377 1,923 4.4 1,325 3.1 $9,697rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 4678 planet 44,723 1,835 4.1 1,397 3.1 $9,790hoffman’s happy holsteins llC peshtigo, wi 1880 durbin 45,065 1,685 3.7 1,232 2.7 $8,834hoffman’s happy holsteins llC peshtigo, wi 1882 socrates 39,578 1,806 4.6 1,135 2.9 $8,680rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 4637 planet 40,866 1,673 4.1 1,296 3.2 $9,012 Jr Three-Year-Old abel dairy farms fond du lac, wi 8789 dunston 38,038 1,987 5.2 1,142 3.0 $9,091rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 4479 o man 40,268 1,749 4.3 1,320 3.3 $9,265Johnson farm daggett, mi 235 turn 38,382 1,838 4.8 1,167 3.0 $8,861badger holstein unity, wi 585 logan iron 40,563 1,681 4.1 1,298 3.2 $9,034hoffman’s happy holsteins llC peshtigo, wi 1870 42,665 1,604 3.8 1,302 3.1 $8,900 Sr Three-Year-Old feltz family farm stevens point, wi 1095 44,002 1,926 4.4 1,315 3.0 $9,672rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 4251 o man 44,241 1,732 3.9 1,299 2.9 $9,185badger holstein unity, wi 4146 logan iron 40,532 1,797 4.4 1,288 3.2 $9,252feltz family farm stevens point, wi 848 45,920 1,616 3.5 1,363 3.0 $9,189hoffman’s happy holsteins llC peshtigo, wi 1656 amateur 42,378 1,738 4.1 1,251 3.0 $8,998 Four-Year-Old Rosy-LaneHolsteins Watertown,WI 4140 Alfie 48,087 1,834 3.8 1,411 2.9 $9,873rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 3905 boliver 44,524 1,859 4.2 1,382 3.1 $9,784shiloh dairy Greenleaf, wi 5727 altawildville 39,265 2,030 5.2 1,269 3.2 $9,681Quantum dairy . weyauwega, wi 8786 42,780 1,797 4.2 1,366 3.2 $9,570shiloh dairy Greenleaf, wi 5840 altajayz 42,836 1,803 4.2 1,338 3.1 $9,477 Five-Year-Old Country aire farms Greenleaf, wi 6561 ernie 42,387 1,979 4.7 1,261 3.0 $9,568milk source Genetics Kaukauna, wi lalia shottle 42,035 1,928 4.6 1,269 3.0 $9,482badger holstein unity, wi 3556 ramos 42,686 1,800 4.2 1,336 3.1 $9,462rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 3867 o man 38,853 1,834 4.7 1,414 3.6 $9,798rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 3583 ramos 38,687 1,880 4.9 1,303 3.4 $9,475 Aged Cows rosy-lane holsteins watertown, wi 3166 o man 40,589 1,967 4.8 1,356 3.3 $9,886thompson’s Golddust dairy de pere, wi 595 megaton 45,917 1,682 3.7 1,443 3.1 $9,639Jim zoromski Custer, wi 802 marmax 44,432 1,671 3.8 1,337 3.0 $9,197united pride dairy phillips, wi 2569 potter 44,397 1,730 3.9 1,207 2.7 $8,832brantmeier hilrose dairy sherwood, wi victori Goldwyn 43,255 1,720 4.0 1,169 2.7 $8,654



Top herDs by size anD Dollar valuem i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o

10-74 Cows 1 * nor-bert farms bremen, in b 16 31,940 1,514 4.7 1,118 3.5 $7,899 2 steve landis Goshen, in h 31 27,603 1,232 4.5 877 3.2 $6,318 3 doug & scott long Clayton, mi h 66 29,494 1,104 3.7 935 3.2 $6,275 4 tim baker byron Center, mi h 72 27,694 1,062 3.8 905 3.3 $6,051 5 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi b 10 25,021 1,061 4.2 869 3.5 $5,886 6 potgeter dairy farms allendale, mi h 68 27,597 1,068 3.9 837 3.0 $5,804 7 bob baker hastings, mi h 58 25,074 1,166 4.7 781 3.1 $5,783 8 Calvin bodeis mayville, mi h 61 26,840 1,016 3.8 847 3.2 $5,720 9 * Charles ramer new paris, in X 28 25,281 1,042 4.1 830 3.3 $5,698 10 * Juengels Corner oak Grand blanc, mi h 16 27,136 950 3.5 878 3.2 $5,696 75-149 Cows 1 * nor-bert farms bremen, in h 106 30,873 1,398 4.5 1,071 3.5 $7,454 2 tim & sandy verhage allegan, mi h 75 31,478 1,157 3.7 974 3.1 $6,559 3 darrell & bonita richard Goshen, in h 75 28,740 1,223 4.3 888 3.1 $6,351 4 * Country dairy new era, mi h 111 27,797 1,265 4.6 855 3.1 $6,309 5 Jeff & alisha bigler lakeview, mi h 110 28,804 1,156 4.0 900 3.1 $6,250 6 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi X 91 29,518 1,094 3.7 925 3.1 $6,215 7 * Jeff alexander hanover, mi h 111 30,390 1,071 3.5 920 3.0 $6,153 8 starward farms sebewaing, mi h 90 28,530 1,107 3.9 902 3.2 $6,147 9 devon & doreen zimmerman Claypool, in h 146 28,496 1,072 3.8 911 3.2 $6,103 10 robert lee marion, mi h 124 26,613 1,195 4.5 839 3.2 $6,083 150-299 Cows 1 * e. Kuyers & sons west olive, mi h 161 34,870 1,350 3.9 1,090 3.1 $7,458 2 * dan, paul, & nate elzinga zeeland, mi h 240 31,399 1,170 3.7 955 3.0 $6,514 3 Jeff Knuver fremont, mi h 158 31,010 1,178 3.8 930 3.0 $6,433 4 * Kent inniger middleton, mi h 233 31,083 1,097 3.5 952 3.1 $6,339 5 harold dodde falmouth, mi h 250 29,430 1,153 3.9 921 3.1 $6,329 6 * pasch mbm weidman, mi h 272 30,989 1,115 3.6 928 3.0 $6,286 7 * first farms ionia, mi h 280 31,308 1,103 3.5 924 3.0 $6,248 8 * doug westendorp nashville, mi h 246 31,412 1,040 3.3 954 3.0 $6,224 9 Greg pluger marion, mi h 162 29,136 1,117 3.8 896 3.1 $6,151 10 * ryan litwiller middleton, mi h 260 29,390 1,079 3.7 915 3.1 $6,142 300-499 Cows Crandall farms llC battle Creek, mi h 303 32,307 1,197 3.7 990 3.1 $6,716 2 * steve benthem mcbain, mi h 331 31,586 1,124 3.6 932 3.0 $6,327 3 * bill & lisa bowerman Quincy, mi X 317 28,902 1,137 3.9 918 3.2 $6,277 4 * brand dairy farm waterloo, in h 381 30,081 1,086 3.6 940 3.1 $6,260 5 * harry & Gary sanborn hubbardston, mi h 458 30,665 1,086 3.5 919 3.0 $6,185 6 * buning dairy llC falmouth, mi h 356 30,348 1,080 3.6 921 3.0 $6,176 7 * mark & becky iciek Gladwin, mi h 304 29,703 1,093 3.7 915 3.1 $6,176 8 * rodney daniels whittemore, mi h 466 29,307 1,154 3.9 875 3.0 $6,155 9 earl & Jeff horning manchester, mi h 415 29,621 1,094 3.7 908 3.1 $6,151 10 * matt Grams harrisville, mi h 302 29,625 1,000 3.4 923 3.1 $6,001 500-999 Cows 1 * wilson family farm Carson City, mi h 731 30,090 1,238 4.1 977 3.2 $6,736 2 * lew-max holstein llC belding, mi h 553 32,502 1,205 3.7 952 2.9 $6,591 3 * Chapin family farms remus, mi h 699 31,311 1,171 3.7 927 3.0 $6,409 4 * Cary dairy farm battle Creek, mi h 987 31,948 1,155 3.6 930 2.9 $6,391 5 * dick van rijn deford, mi h 664 30,374 1,031 3.4 925 3.0 $6,084 6 * Jeff brenner hopkins, mi h 713 27,986 1,082 3.9 856 3.1 $5,911 7 burke larsen scottville, mi h 527 27,426 1,091 4.0 847 3.1 $5,891 8 * petro farms Gobles, mi h 958 28,828 1,011 3.5 872 3.0 $5,823 9 bob,mike, & matt Cnossen falmouth, mi h 512 27,713 1,059 3.8 846 3.1 $5,820 10 * andrews university berrien springs, mi h 756 28,547 1,043 3.7 847 3.0 $5,796 1000+ Cows 1 * highland dairy llC. sebewaing, mi h 2,827 31,029 1,168 3.8 941 3.0 $6,453 2 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi h 1,210 29,856 1,058 3.5 915 3.1 $6,100 3 * autumn vista dairy mc bain, mi h 2,047 29,524 1,093 3.7 890 3.0 $6,079 4 * doug benthem mcbain, mi h 1,041 29,276 1,110 3.8 862 2.9 $6,008 5 * rich-ro dairy st Johns, mi h 3,218 27,742 1,055 3.8 883 3.2 $5,952 6 * bebow dairy inc st. louis, mi h 1,230 28,690 1,045 3.6 876 3.1 $5,912 7 * Jeff shriver & max Carlson fremont, mi h 1,404 28,485 1,060 3.7 864 3.0 $5,898 8 * brent robinson Caro, mi h 1,515 28,451 1,047 3.7 870 3.1 $5,892 9 * winkel dairy llC mcbain, mi h 1,060 28,965 1,058 3.7 850 2.9 $5,844 10 * river ridge dairy Co.inc Coopersville, mi h 1,355 27,047 1,127 4.2 812 3.0 $5,834


2014 progressive dairy producer award WinnerFeltz Family Farm

Ken Feltz made a conscious decision to change his attitude about farming many years ago. “Everyone wants to drive a

tractor when you’re young,” he laughed. “But milk pays the bills, so I changed my attitude about it.”

When Ken and his wife Jackie purchased the Stevens Point, Wisconsin farm from Ken’s father, they had a little bit of ev-erything. “We were a typical Wisconsin dairy farm with 50 cows, chickens, ducks, crops, and five kids,” recalled Ken. While Jackie worked at a local bank, Ken made an effort to milk more cows to produce more income.

“We tried to operate everything on a cash flow basis,” he said. “Every time we had cash, I’d buy more cows. Cows are a wonderful investment.”

Today, the fourth generation dairy is being recognized for their production improvements over the past five years with the NorthStar DHI Services Progres-sive Dairy Producer of the Year Award. Established in 1975, the Progressive Dairy Producer of the Year Award recognizes the herd that has shown the greatest total increase in dollar value over the past five years.

With a rolling herd average (RHA) on twice a day milking of 34,824 pounds of milk and somatic cell count (SCC) score below 85,000, the dairy focuses on producing a lot of high quality milk from their 550 Holstein cows.

“I think it comes down to three things,” noted Ken. “Genetics, environment, and feed.”

Though Ken worked as an A.I. technician for two years after high school, his herd has always been bull bred, noting that the genetics is just one part of the equa-tion.

The dairy keeps about 20 bulls at a time, purchasing them at a year old. Three bulls are put in with a group of cows for two weeks at a time. Bulls are then al-lowed to rest for four weeks.

“At each of our monthly meetings with the employees, we go over safety. We don’t take any risks,” Ken noted. “Any sign of aggression, bellowing – they are sold immediately.”

The entire reproduction program at Feltz Family Farm is natural. “When the cows are ready to get pregnant, the bulls are there,” Ken said, adding that they don’t do any synchronization. The herd aver-ages about 200 days in milk (DIM) with a 15 month calving interval, but Ken be-lieves in keeping the cows as stress-free as possible. “I’m not forcing them to get pregnant, and they milk really well,” said Ken. “We’re not stressing them more when they are peaking.”

With the gains in milk pro-duction, Ken does feel that the genetics of the herd are improving all the time. Feltz Family Farm sells all of its calves and purchases all replacements. “Our first calf barn was so frustrat-ing,” Ken remembered of the barn with just one fan and poor ventilation. “My dad raised all his calves

and steers, but we quickly realized it was not one of our strengths.”

Ken began purchasing heifers from neighbors and other sources, but they proved to be very inconsistent. Recently he connected with a local supplier from whom he purchases a majority of the re-placement heifers, and he feels they are receiving more consistent genetics.

“We set a goal at our meetings to only buy fresh heifers,” he said. “For the last two years, we’ve been buying heifers 30 days fresh, milking 100 pounds, and less than 100 cell count. It sounds impossible, but they are out there.”

As with the fresh heifers, the rest of the herd is held to high standards through-out their lactations. Using NorthStar’s DHI Services since 2008, Ken relies on DHI data and PCDART to help guide management decisions.

“The SCC Hotsheet is the return on investment with DHI - it’s the key to

➤ Feltz Family Farm hosted the 2014 Wisconsin Farm

Technology Days.


“We couldn’t achieve our

low cell counts without DHI.”

DHI,” Ken noted. When he receives the email with the Hotsheet, Ken prints it and heads to the barn to pull the top cows for testing and/or treatment. “It’s a very helpful tool,” said Ken. Beyond SCC and the Hotsheet, the dairy looks primarily at peak milk in each group and DIM.

While Ken does all the data entry into PCDART, his son Jared and herdsman Hector Perez use PocketDairy Android to access the information out in the barns. “PocketDairy is very helpful to have when we’re out looking at cows,” said Jared, who hopes to take the dairy into its fifth generation.

“Jared surprised me the other day with it (PocketDairy),” Ken added. “He gave me information on a cow that I didn’t know.”

“Everything we do, we evaluate the value it provides us,” said Ken. “It does come up at our monthly meetings, is there some-thing else we could put that money into that provides more value than DHI? The answer is no. We couldn’t achieve our low cell counts without DHI.”

“I think our drop in cell count recently is a combination of everything,” Jared added. “From what our herdsman is doing in the parlor, to our monthly meetings, the sand that we’re bedding with, and cow health – it all adds up.”

“We made a decision to lower cell count at one of our meetings,” Ken noted. The dairy’s monthly meetings have been conducted consistently since Jared graduated a year and a half ago from the University of Wisconsin River Falls. The herd’s veterinarian, Paul Meagher with United Veterinary Service, and nutritionist Dave Strebe attend the meetings along

with the eight fulltime milkers, longtime employee Kelly

Sankey, Hector, Jared and Ken.

“We can sit here all day and say ‘those guys need to do this better,’ but what good

does that do?” said Ken. “When we get everyone

working together as a team, we’re pulling for the

same goal. We have to make it their goal as well.”

Udder prep and milking procedures are part of every meeting. An incentive pro-gram is in place for meeting SCC goals. Focus on achieving this goal is ever pres-ent through ongoing training and English and Spanish milking protocol posters that Jared created that serve as a constant reminder.

“The better we treat the cows, the better they milk,” Ken noted.

The freestall barns have rubber flooring for cow comfort and stalls are bedded with sand. “We saw this coarse sand at another dairy, and searched for a source locally,” said Ken. Though the cost per load is higher than the finer sand they had been using, the dairy purchases just two loads a year and is finding that it drains better and stays drier. “Our SCC has held well with the coarse sand and it works with our sand separator.”

Beyond SCC, maintaining healthy cows is a priority for the Feltzs. The herd regularly tests for BVD through milk samples. “Paul has been here since I started,” Ken said. “He’s more than our vet – we are fortu-nate to have him on our team.”

The dairy currently works with the nutritionist to provide optimal nutrition for each group of cows. “We are fanati-cal about the feed quality,” said Ken. The

farm’s large fields of pure alfalfa are irri-gated because of the sandy soil. While the dairy does chop their hay fields, all other harvesting has been custom done for the last five years.

“It would take us three weeks to harvest corn, and these guys get it done in a just a few days,” Ken said. “It keeps the quality consistent when it’s done that quickly.”

The dairy has begun using drive over piles instead of bunkers for storing feed. “With the bunkers, no matter how well we lined the concrete there was some spoil-age on the sides,” Ken noted. “There’s no spoilage with the drive over piles.” Now, with the custom harvesting, Ken says it’s hard to contain the amount of feed coming in such a short amount of time in the bunkers so the drive over piles are working better for the dairy.

Kelly takes samples of the alfalfa for testing every two weeks. “Moisture is the same every time,” Ken said. Keeping their feed consistent for the cows is a top prior-ity for the Feltzs.

Ken originally found the dairy’s hay source in Canada when he went search-ing for wheat straw for the dry cows. Now, they source wheat straw locally but still purchase about 12 loads of hay from Canada each year. Three pounds of hay are fed per cow for a fiber source. “Good quality feed is the key to healthy cows,” said Ken.

Since 2010, Feltz Family Farm has in-creased milk production by over 4,400 pounds, fat and protein grew by more than 150 pounds each, and dollar value has grown by $801, all while decreasing SCC by 75,000. “We are committed to and passionate about the one thing we do, and that’s milking cows,” Ken said. “It’s a lifestyle choice.”



Progressive Dairy Producer of the Year AwardThe Progressive Dairy Producer of the Year Award is presented to the producer who has shown the greatest total increase in dollar value over the previous five years. All producers using NorthStar’s DHI Services are eligible for this award.

2014 Feltz Family Farm, Steven’s Point, WI2013 J & D Brenner Farms, Hopkins, MI

2012 Kent Inniger, Middleton, MI

2011 Rosebrugh Dairy, West Branch, MI

2010 Larsen Farms, Scottville, MI

2009 Reid Dairy Farm, Jeddo, MI

2008 Touchdown Dairy, Marion, MI

2007 Randy & Carol Erickson, Bear Creek, WI

2006 River Ridge Dairy, Coopersville, MI

2005 Mibelloon Dairy, St. Louis, MI

2004 John & Andy Sweet, Stockbridge, MI

2003 Crandall Dairy Farms, LCC Battle Creek, MI

2002 Jason Shinn & Sons, Croswell, MI

2001 Perry Cisco, Hudson, MI

2000 Gilde Farms, Lake City, MI

1999 Tim & Sandy VerHage, Allegan, MI

1998 Gross Farms, Weidman, MI

1997 E. Kuyers & Sons, West Olive, MI

1996 Frank Vanderwal, Lake City, MI

1995 Jim Hardy, Saranac, MI

1994 Stamp-Dale Farms, Marlette, MI

1993 Larry & Wayne Webster, Elsie, MI

1992 Earl & Jeff Horning, Manchester, MI

1991 Bush Farms, Swartz Creek, MI

1990 Nobis Dairy, St. Johns, MI

1989 Arndt Farms, Deckerville, MI

1988 Videto Vista Farm, Spring Arbor, MI

1987 Watercrest Farms, Northville, MI

1986 Boge Dairy, Shepherd, MI

1985 Butler Farms, Fowlerville, MI

1984 Stanley Fay, Stockbridge, MI

1983 Edwin Bretschneider Jr. Ludington, MI

1982 John Wykes, Litchfield, MI

1981 Mel & Rod Stofer, Leslie, MI

1980 Louis McNeilly, Barryton, MI

1979 Ken McBroom, Vulcan, MI

1978 Terry & Jean Nugent, Lowell, MI

1977 Dr. Clint Meadows, Hickory Corners, MI

1976 Dorman Stout, Clayton, MI

1975 Richard Wright, Corunna, MI

Add cows to check manually, by RFID or with a PCDART generated list All data needed cowside is on one screen Easy to navigate: shows last cow done, next cow in list and current cow View or Enter Repro, Health, Remarks, Protocols assigned and Chores done cowside

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Top herDs by size anD Dollar valueW i s c o n s i n

10-74 Cows 1 bruce & brenda long new london, wi h 55 32,543 1,169 3.6 978 3.0 $6,611 2 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi X 24 28,500 1,198 4.2 892 3.1 $6,309 3 * badger holsteins unity, wi X 44 26,237 1,194 4.6 899 3.4 $6,305 4 Jenlar swiss - larry & Jennifer Chilton, wi b 14 25,192 1,229 4.9 881 3.5 $6,304 5 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi b 67 25,635 1,160 4.5 890 3.5 $6,190 6 Daryl&PamNunes Deerfield,WI H 51 28,612 1,098 3.8 889 3.1 $6,078 7 twilight holsteins stanley, wi h 48 28,710 1,087 3.8 883 3.1 $6,032 8 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi h 49 29,549 1,009 3.4 886 3.0 $5,879 9 * Goodrich farms llp new richmond, wi h 26 25,818 978 3.8 871 3.4 $5,718 10 hallet dairy farm llC Casco, wi h 14 25,646 1,100 4.3 797 3.1 $5,704 75-149 Cows * muenster homestead farms seymour, wi h 102 32,846 1,148 3.5 972 3.0 $6,544 1 brantmeier hilrose dairy sherwood, wi h 110 30,952 1,158 3.7 911 2.9 $6,316 2 * foxland farms llC Greenleaf, wi h 122 32,474 1,035 3.2 967 3.0 $6,272 3 andrew & Joan meyer Chilton, wi h 104 27,469 1,178 4.3 885 3.2 $6,228 4 hillebrand farms Cornell, wi h 110 27,450 1,195 4.4 865 3.2 $6,189 5 * united pride dairy llC phillips, wi X 140 25,424 1,135 4.5 899 3.5 $6,168 6 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi X 126 28,876 1,152 4.0 876 3.0 $6,150 7 John & dee winkelman watertown, wi h 88 27,630 1,129 4.1 888 3.2 $6,133 8 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi h 102 28,959 1,141 3.9 872 3.0 $6,111 9 Charles maurer Chilton, wi h 110 28,444 1,076 3.8 910 3.2 $6,108 10 * ambrosius dairy farm seymour, wi h 116 28,169 1,095 3.9 889 3.2 $6,067 150-299 Cows 1 * badger holsteins unity, wi h 209 29,176 1,142 3.9 944 3.2 $6,390 2 * bob van daalwyk hilbert, wi h 163 31,308 1,103 3.5 955 3.1 $6,366 3 * verhoef dairy Colby, wi h 281 29,833 1,070 3.6 905 3.0 $6,089 4 * ed walter farm inc oshkosh, wi h 208 28,485 1,135 4.0 869 3.1 $6,082 5 mark anderson waupaca, wi h 207 27,911 1,087 3.9 872 3.1 $5,982 6 * brad & laura friesen barron, wi h 193 27,270 1,034 3.8 893 3.3 $5,939 7 riemer-sawall Clintonville, wi h 196 26,676 1,042 3.9 830 3.1 $5,711 8 travis marti vesper, wi h 178 27,931 925 3.3 887 3.2 $5,682 9 Charles & Christopher weber elmwood, wi h 158 25,538 1,037 4.1 818 3.2 $5,644 10 * muenster homestead farms seymour, wi h 247 27,658 995 3.6 832 3.0 $5,625 300-499 Cows 1 * Jim zoromski Custer, wi h 365 31,536 1,226 3.9 1,001 3.2 $6,814 2 * lashua farms iola, wi h 428 30,973 1,176 3.8 964 3.1 $6,558 3 * park avenue dairy llC merrill, wi h 493 31,334 1,095 3.5 988 3.2 $6,474 4 * ledgerock dairy llC larsen, wi h 396 29,705 1,187 4.0 891 3.0 $6,292 5 * rusk-rose holsteins ladysmith, wi h 322 30,561 1,127 3.7 916 3.0 $6,263 6 * breezy hill farms llC weyauwega, wi h 417 29,891 1,097 3.7 909 3.0 $6,164 7 * Kohn farms Krakow, wi h 321 29,527 1,113 3.8 894 3.0 $6,139 8 * dan & tim liner van dyne, wi h 428 29,969 1,010 3.4 942 3.1 $6,099 9 * marcus de Jong dorchester, wi h 493 30,491 997 3.3 947 3.1 $6,094 10 * n-G vande hei - J Calaway de pere, wi h 347 29,032 1,096 3.8 871 3.0 $6,009 500-999 Cows 1 feltz family farm stevens point, wi h 577 34,713 1,260 3.6 1,024 2.9 $7,007 2 * rosy-lane holsteins llC watertown, wi h 939 30,171 1,300 4.3 973 3.2 $6,858 3 * brickstead dairy llC Greenleaf, wi h 818 31,921 1,137 3.6 993 3.1 $6,591 4 * wegnerlann dairy llC ettrick, wi h 600 30,344 1,111 3.7 934 3.1 $6,294 5 * dick & brian micke wrightstown, wi h 519 31,099 1,066 3.4 938 3.0 $6,217 6 * John & mark egan new london, wi h 765 31,753 1,040 3.3 943 3.0 $6,185 7 * zinke dairy farms llC brownsville, wi h 723 30,424 1,122 3.7 885 2.9 $6,133 8 * pickart dairy malone, wi h 697 30,152 1,077 3.6 893 3.0 $6,061 9 * neighborhood dairy Kaukauna, wi h 944 28,624 1,040 3.6 887 3.1 $5,942 10 * elusive hill dairy spenser, wi h 730 28,679 974 3.4 864 3.1 $5,710 1000+ Cows 1 * wayside dairy Greenleaf, wi h 1,961 30,106 1,177 3.9 931 3.1 $6,426 2 * shiloh dairy Greenleaf, wi h 2,219 30,263 1,147 3.8 947 3.1 $6,422 3 * badger holsteins unity, wi h 1,686 28,791 1,158 4.0 935 3.2 $6,387 4 * abel dairy farms fond du lac, wi h 1,571 30,651 1,129 3.7 935 3.1 $6,341 5 * Country aire farms Greenleaf, wi h 3,077 30,635 1,111 3.6 919 3.0 $6,240 6 * united pride dairy llC phillips, wi h 2,035 28,907 1,088 3.8 927 3.2 $6,203 7 * Quantum dairy llC. weyauwega, wi h 2,426 29,086 1,069 3.7 916 3.1 $6,121 8 * seidls mtn view dairy luxemburg, wi h 1,145 28,953 1,033 3.6 891 3.1 $5,945 9 * Johnson farm llC daggett, mi h 1,609 28,146 1,027 3.6 877 3.1 $5,871 10 * sugar Creek llC new london, wi h 1,259 27,806 1,039 3.7 857 3.1 $5,818


cow comfort, teamwork & genetics Rosy-Lane Holsteins, LLC

Refining the environ-ment for cows and people has allowed Rosy-

Lane Holsteins to consistently achieve high production. “Cow comfort is all encompassing,” agreed Jordan Mat-thews and Lloyd Holter-man, two of Rosy-Lane Holsteins’ owners. “But it extends beyond the cows. You have to have good people and provide a good place to work as well.”

Located just outside of Milwaukee in Wa-tertown, Wisconsin, Rosy-Lane Holsteins is owned by Lloyd and Daphne Holter-man, Jordan Matthews and Tim Strobel. This non-family partnership manages one of Wisconsin’s top producing herds. Today, the dairy is home to 939 Holsteins with a rolling herd average on three-times-a-day milking of 30,171 pounds of milk, 1,300 pounds of fat and 973 pounds of protein. While Jordan and Lloyd concentrate on the herd, Tim manages the crops and nutrient management and Daphne heads up accounting and public relations.

Delivering Cow Comfort ConsistentlyWhile focusing on cow comfort to achieve top production isn’t a new tactic, the team at Rosy-Lane has implemented some distinctive ideas and thought processes that make it unique. “We’ve created a simple system and strive for it to be implemented perfectly 100 percent of the time,” said Lloyd. Jordan added, “It’s taking care of all the little details. There’s no fufu dust. Just keep it basic and deliver it the same every time.”Creating a ‘spa-like’ environment for the cows is how Rosy-Lane believes they

can achieve top performance from their herd. Keeping the

environment quiet – both in sound and move-ment – is a top priority. “We want silence in the barns. We only want to hear the fans and the clink of the headlocks,”

said Jordan.

The farm’s stockmanship training helps emphasize the

spa environment. Jordan added, “We want our staff to work at a certain pace and ‘tune into’ moving cows. We know we can move cows efficiently with-out speeding them up or adding stress.”

At Rosy-Lane cows are housed by size and milking speed, resulting in 12 groups with 60 to 84 cows per pen. Grouping herdmates this way allows milking units to be put on and come off about the same time, minimizing the amount of time animals spend in the holding pen.

“The holding area is a bottleneck that prevents cows from eating, drinking and lying down,” noted Jordan. “We strive to

minimize the time cows spend in the holding area and right now that’s 45 minutes or less.”

One cow per freestall is another goal at Rosy-Lane. Stalls are bedded with washed sand, which is groomed three times a day. “Making sure every stall is usable is important. Maintaining stall comfort is a priority,” said Jordan.Like other farms, extra care is taken to ward off heat stress. After Lloyd and Jor-dan explored different cooling options, they found one that resulted in more effective cow cooling, while conserving water.

In the parlor, showerheads are positioned above each milking stall and spray 65 de-gree water from the hips forward on each cow, keeping the water off the udders. Cows can be drenched up to four times while they are in the parlor.

“With the old way of soaking, cows didn’t get water down to their skin like this,” re-called Lloyd. “Now we can use the water most efficiently for the cow and us.”

“Cow comfort is all encompassing - it

extends beyond the cows. You have to

have good people and provide a good place to

work as well.”

➤ Jordan Matthews, Tim Strobel, Lloyd and Daphne Holterman


The new soaking system has proven to be a more effective way to cool cows. “We haven’t seen the dives in milk production and our repro is better,” agreed Jordan and Lloyd. “We don’t see cows huffing and puffing. It really is the coolest thing for heat stress.”

“We have to make the herd feel comfort-able every day,” stated Lloyd and Jordan. “We have to feed on time, provide clean water, keep the flies away, keep the hot sun off of them, and groom the stalls. The list goes on and on. It’s not just one thing – it’s everything.”

Teamwork Delivers ResultsConsistency at Rosy-Lane Holsteins begins with hiring and developing a team of great employees. “We want to provide the best place to be an employee,” said Jordan. “And we want to create a culture where the best people want to stay here. We are not only competing for employees with other farms, but also city jobs.”

To create that culture, the Rosy-Lane owners emphasize training and continu-ing education. All employees at the dairy are regularly trained in stockmanship, and the milking staff receives specific training. Additionally, Jordan ‘walks along’ with milking staff providing extra hands-on training. Employees are also encouraged to attend at least one outside training

opportunity each year. Jordan hires milk-ing parlor staff and looks for people with positive attitudes who are willing to learn.

“We want our staff engaged,” said Jordan. “We don’t want the animals to be nervous when we enter the pens and it starts in the calf barn with animals trusting people. Tracy Loos, calf care manager and her staff, ensure that this happens.”

Rosy-Lane has no formal incentive plan for employees, but team members stay motivated to hit key benchmarks. “We measure the profitability of the dairy each December and, if we meet our benchmarks, we share the success with our team. We all have to work as a real team to be profitable. Everyone has to be focused on the cows,” said Lloyd. One such goal currently is to ship 100 percent of the milk produced. “That means no dump cows. All the milk has to be the highest quality so it can all go in the tank,” explained Jordan. “We’ve done a pretty good job of meeting this goal. In the first 10 months of this year we went 232 days with 100 percent of the milk in the tank. That’s what can happen when everyone works together.”

“We pay people based on how easy they make our life,” explained Lloyd. “The high-est paid people return the most profit to our business.”

Genetics Set The StageAlong with great teamwork and ex-ceptional cow comfort, the owners at Rosy-Lane cite genetics as a reason for their high milk production achievements. Since 1993, Lloyd has selected sires for Net Merit and maintains that Rosy-Lane should have high producing cows, and healthy cows, using this selection criteria.

“Genetics are important, but until you get the environment right and people per-forming tasks consistently and correctly 100 percent of the time, they won’t make a big difference,” stated Lloyd.

While Rosy-Lane is proud of their high production, they are quick to point out that profitability is the real driver. One of the goals to help the farm reach its profit potential is for the cows to produce 1.7 pounds of milk for every one pound of dry matter fed. The dairy has been using this benchmark for the past three years and, through enterprise accounting, is able to evaluate and adjust quickly to focus in on their goal. “The higher this number goes, the more profitable we are in the long run,” said Lloyd. “I wouldn’t say our overall system is the best – but it’s what works best for us.”

Rosy-Lane Holsteins LLC

➤ 939 cows 3X 30,171M 1,300F 973P

➤ 143 current & former cows with 200,000 lbs. milk lifetime

➤ 90 bulls sold to U.S. and foreign A.I. companies

➤ Participates in National Dairy FARM (Farmers Assuring Responsible Management) Program

Rosy-Lane Mission:To care for our animals by balancing production and profitability, while protecting natural resources (air, land and water) and providing a comfortable living for our family and employees. Specifically, we provide superior Holstein genetics to worldwide markets; utilize and experiment with profitable and environmentally sound technologies for plants and animals; maintain an economically viable business unit with future potential; and produce high-quality milk and receive maximum returns with minimal inputs.

3X herd owner address herd size milK fat fat % prot prot % value

Top proTein breeD herDs by Dollar value Wisconsin

Ayrshire 1 * larry & linda schwartz van dyne, wi 12 19,800 746 3.8 642 3.2 $4,278 2 tim busch Cecil, wi 46 19,328 751 3.9 613 3.2 $4,174 Brown Swiss 1 Jenlar swiss - larry & Jennifer Chilton, wi 14 25,192 1,229 4.9 881 3.5 $6,304 2 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 67 25,635 1,160 4.5 890 3.5 $6,190 3 * Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi 12 23,895 935 3.9 811 3.4 $5,377 4 * larry & linda schwartz van dyne, wi 65 21,376 830 3.9 733 3.4 $4,824 5 Charles & Yvonne weihrouch melrose, wi 29 17,009 729 4.3 599 3.5 $4,050 6 brad dietsche & family Colfax, wi 44 17,383 723 4.2 597 3.4 $4,033 Jersey 1 hallet dairy farm llC Casco, wi 71 21,956 1,096 5.0 752 3.4 $5,489 2 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi 77 19,886 1,003 5.0 730 3.7 $5,181 3 don mielke menasha, wi 50 19,941 1,013 5.1 724 3.6 $5,180 4 * Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 601 18,417 883 4.8 747 4.1 $4,967 5 bill seyller fond du lac, wi 36 16,405 842 5.1 597 3.6 $4,286 6 russell Karl neillsville, wi 10 16,585 786 4.7 625 3.8 $4,271 7 spring Creek farms inc hixton, wi 94 17,059 800 4.7 595 3.5 $4,192 8 andy dums rib lake, wi 59 16,488 776 4.7 603 3.7 $4,164 9 mark madson oconto, wi 66 14,955 768 5.1 576 3.9 $4,029 Red & White 1 bill seyller fond du lac, wi 55 23,684 853 3.6 737 3.1 $4,912 Mixed Breeds 1 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi 24 28,500 1,198 4.2 892 3.1 $6,309 2 * badger holsteins unity, wi 44 26,237 1,194 4.6 899 3.4 $6,305 3 * united pride dairy llC phillips, wi 140 25,424 1,135 4.5 899 3.5 $6,168 4 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi 126 28,876 1,152 4.0 876 3.0 $6,150 5 * Goodrich farms llp new richmond, wi 20 26,521 1,005 3.8 849 3.2 $5,701 6 leahy farms inc brandon, wi 138 26,323 996 3.8 820 3.1 $5,569 7 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi 126 23,577 1,005 4.3 790 3.4 $5,448 8 don mielke menasha, wi 68 21,928 1,006 4.6 761 3.5 $5,324 9 * larry & linda schwartz van dyne, wi 214 24,419 870 3.6 788 3.2 $5,151 10 herr-lane holsteins newton, wi 66 24,115 902 3.7 758 3.1 $5,104 11 * maly farms bryant, wi 542 24,059 916 3.8 747 3.1 $5,093 12 wes weaver sheldon, wi 122 23,315 910 3.9 707 3.0 $4,920 13 auburnvale swiss fremont, wi 215 22,382 860 3.8 734 3.3 $4,904


Ayrshire 1 * larry & linda schwartz van dyne, wi 12 19,800 746 3.8 642 3.2 $4,278 2 tim busch Cecil, wi 46 19,328 751 3.9 613 3.2 $4,174 Brown Swiss 1 Jenlar swiss - larry & Jennifer Chilton, wi 14 25,192 1,229 4.9 881 3.5 $6,304 2 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 67 25,635 1,160 4.5 890 3.5 $6,190 3 * Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi 12 23,895 935 3.9 811 3.4 $5,377 4 * larry & linda schwartz van dyne, wi 65 21,376 830 3.9 733 3.4 $4,824 5 Charles & Yvonne weihrouch melrose, wi 29 17,009 729 4.3 599 3.5 $4,050 6 brad dietsche & family Colfax, wi 44 17,383 723 4.2 597 3.4 $4,033 Jersey 1 hallet dairy farm llC Casco, wi 71 21,956 1,096 5.0 752 3.4 $5,489 2 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi 77 19,886 1,003 5.0 730 3.7 $5,181 3 don mielke menasha, wi 50 19,941 1,013 5.1 724 3.6 $5,180 4 * Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 601 18,417 883 4.8 747 4.1 $4,967 5 bill seyller fond du lac, wi 36 16,405 842 5.1 597 3.6 $4,286 6 russell Karl neillsville, wi 10 16,585 786 4.7 625 3.8 $4,271 7 spring Creek farms inc hixton, wi 94 17,059 800 4.7 595 3.5 $4,192 8 andy dums rib lake, wi 59 16,488 776 4.7 603 3.7 $4,164 9 mark madson oconto, wi 66 14,955 768 5.1 576 3.9 $4,029 Red & White 1 bill seyller fond du lac, wi 55 23,684 853 3.6 737 3.1 $4,912 Mixed Breeds 1 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi 24 28,500 1,198 4.2 892 3.1 $6,309 2 * badger holsteins unity, wi 44 26,237 1,194 4.6 899 3.4 $6,305 3 * united pride dairy llC phillips, wi 140 25,424 1,135 4.5 899 3.5 $6,168 4 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi 126 28,876 1,152 4.0 876 3.0 $6,150 5 * Goodrich farms llp new richmond, wi 20 26,521 1,005 3.8 849 3.2 $5,701 6 leahy farms inc brandon, wi 138 26,323 996 3.8 820 3.1 $5,569 7 * ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi 126 23,577 1,005 4.3 790 3.4 $5,448 8 don mielke menasha, wi 68 21,928 1,006 4.6 761 3.5 $5,324 9 * larry & linda schwartz van dyne, wi 214 24,419 870 3.6 788 3.2 $5,151 10 herr-lane holsteins newton, wi 66 24,115 902 3.7 758 3.1 $5,104 11 * maly farms bryant, wi 542 24,059 916 3.8 747 3.1 $5,093 12 wes weaver sheldon, wi 122 23,315 910 3.9 707 3.0 $4,920 13 auburnvale swiss fremont, wi 215 22,382 860 3.8 734 3.3 $4,904

cow comfort & Teamwork

Bebow Dairy Farms’ cows and their comfort are top priority. “If you put your cows and your people first, then everything will

come,” said herd manager Stephan Van-derhoff. Originally from the Netherlands, Stephan began managing the St. Louis, Michigan dairy in 2007.

“When I started, we were milking maybe 500 cows, and it was very hands-on,” recalled Stephan. “Now, we’re milking 1,200 and I’m managing more.” Along with managing Bebow Dairy, Stephan now also oversees Central Michigan Milk Production (CMMP), an 800-cow dairy owned in part by Bebow Dairy.

Due to current facility limitations at CMMP, all cows and heifers are freshened at Bebow Dairy and transitioned back to CMMP after an average of 15 days. Bebow Dairy purchases and raises all of the heifer calves and sells them back to CMMP at freshening.

“To get it all organized (managing both farms) put stress on our system,” Stephan noted. While Stephan is in regular con-tact with CMMP’s manager Rena Mc-Donald to ensure operations are running smoothly, having the right people in place, including Bebow Dairy’s Herds-men, Scott Deal and Spenser Wilman, has allowed the dairies to grow. Scott focuses on the fresh cows, while Spenser manages the herd’s reproduction pro-gram. The management team’s attention to detail means cow comfort is top notch at both dairies.

Stephan believes cow comfort should be a top priority, stating, “The better you

take care of your cows, the better they take care of you.” That philosophy is carried over to the dairies’ employ-ees. “Every so often, a pat on the back for the employees goes a long ways,” said Scott.

Along with routine milk-ing procedure, the herd works closely with a dairy nutritionist to ensure each group of cows is receiving optimal nutrition. Animals are grouped by size, and each group has their own sized freestalls bedded with sand. “As we built the barns, we focused on stall design for the different groups,” Stephan added. Ensuring that the freestall areas had enough water space and fans was another important part of designing the barns for Stephan.

“We stepped everything up a notch in 2009,” Stephan said of the year they began using NorthStar’s DHI Services. He utilizes the information gained from Be-bow Dairy’s monthly test date with DHI Specialist Deb Hanes to guide manage-ment decisions. Because the herd takes weights off of their AFI system daily as well as once a month for their DHI test, samples are collected every other month.

“With the (somatic) cell counts, I can look at individual cows,” said Stephan. “If they are high test after test, I use that infor-mation for culling decisions.” The dairy’s nutritionist also receives the herd’s DHI results and creates a report with the cur-rent herd profile.

“That snapshot we get every month from the nutritionist is a huge benefit (of DHI),” noted Stephan. After each test day, the management team meets with the nu-tritionist to review the data. “We look at the fresh cows’ and heifers’ performance, reactions to ration and group changes, and the components at different stages,” said Stephan. The nutritionist then makes suggestions for improvement based on any opportunities he sees within the DHI information.

“We can see what our cows are doing (producing) on a daily basis with our AFI milk meters, but with DHI and PCDART you can look back year after year and see what each group of cows was doing,” said Stephan. “Each DHI test date is a time stamp of the herd at that moment, and you can look at the seasonal changes and peak milk changes year after year.

Bebow Dairy Farms, Inc.

➤ Julie Ainsworth introduces Stephan Vanderhoff and Scott Deal at a visit to Bebow Dairy during the Select Sires National SMS Evaluators Conference.

Continued on page 28

You build a long history of the herd and can easily look back in PCDART to see those changes.”

Bebow Dairy also uses their DHI samples for Johne’s testing through Antel-Bio’s Johne’s Milk ELI-SA. Each DHI test day, Stephan provides a list of cows to go dry in the next 60 days and their samples are marked for Johne’s testing. “There was a lot of Johne’s in the herd when I started,” remembered Stephan. “We started a ‘get rid of’ program, and it’s minimized now.” Any cows that test positive are identified with a red ear tag to notify employees that her colostrum should not be collected.

“We pool colostrum and can’t afford to feed Johne’s colostrum,” noted Stephan. “Johne’s has a lot of negative impacts so the test is worth the cost.” An added benefit of using DHI samples for Johne’s testing is the convenience. “I just make the list and it’s taken care of,” Stephan added. “It’s very easy.”

Bebow Dairy tracks all DHI and Johne’s test results using PCDART. “You need a good management system with a bigger herd,” Stephan said. Information regard-ing breeding and calving dates, medica-tions administered and resulting meat and/or milk withholding, and any other pertinent information is entered into PCDART, which is then downloaded to the AFI system.

“You don’t have to be a computer genius to use PCDART – it’s pretty straight forward and really easy to build reports,”

Stephan noted. An added benefit of us-ing PCDART is the local technical support available. “It’s handy to have someone

on the team who knows you,” added Stephan. “Doug (Brook, North-

Star DHI Training Coordi-nator) knows our dairy

and our people.”

Bebow Dairy uses about 75 percent Select Sires genetics for the breeding pro-

gram, and Stephan admits he is very picky

about the bulls they use. He studies the new

proofs when they become available and schedules a meeting

with NorthStar’s Select Mating Service (SMS) Evaluator Julie Ainsworth, Team Leader Ed Nichols, and Direct Service Representative Nicole Hoff to discuss the bulls. “Together we make a final list of ones to use,” Stephan said. “We’ve worked together long enough that they know what we’re looking for.”

Stephan prefers high reliability, daugh-ter-proven bulls with high Net Merit (NM$) and medium stature. “We have to keep size in check, large cows just don’t fit in our system,” added Stephan. “We look at the high NM$ bulls, and, within those, look for high milk and good com-ponents.”

“To build the correct cow, we couldn’t just continue picking bulls – we needed a program,” noted Stephan, who began working with Julie for mating recom-mendations in 2009.

“Our herd is now more even through-out,” said Stephan, noting the biggest improvements he has witnessed are with the herds’ feet, legs and udders. “Julie

knows our cows, knows the bulls, and knows when to pull in other bulls to correct things. Without her, we’d go too much towards one thing (trait).”

Mating recommendations are down-loaded into PCDART, and the list of cows to breed is printed from AFI daily. “We have had more consistent and quality work with the breed sheet,” said Stephan. “Spenser is really strict on keeping our semen inventory correct and staying true to the matings.”

In 2009, the dairy also began using Select Sire’s Program for Genetic Advancement (PGA). “Economically it is a good deal,” Stephan said. “We want to use proven bulls, but in order to get to proven they have to be tested. We want to be a part of that testing and help get these bulls proven.”

Stephan also utilizes NorthStar for repro-duction records analysis. “Julie keeps our repro results in check,” Stephan added. Julie evaluates the herd’s reproduction program and offers suggestions for im-provement. “She’s another set of eyes in the herd and offers suggestions. It helps because you think you’re doing well but you find you could improve some things.”

NorthStar’s team approach factored into Stephan’s decision to work primarily with the Cooperative. “It’s a good team,” Stephan noted. “It’s not just one rep out selling semen – it’s the whole package with (DHI) testing, AntelBio, and the genetics. We know the people and they know us. Their teamwork is smooth and it all works together. It is the whole pack-age.”

“We can see what our cows are doing on a daily basis with our AFI milk meters, but

with DHI and PCDART you can see trends for

what each group of cows is doing.”


Continued from page 27


Ayrshire 1 * nor-bert farms bremen, in 11 23,483 1,040 4.4 810 3.4 $5,601 Brown Swiss 1 * nor-bert farms bremen, in 16 31,940 1,514 4.7 1,118 3.5 $7,899 2 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi 10 25,021 1,061 4.2 869 3.5 $5,886 3 Gary & Cory nielsen Coral, mi 15 20,967 934 4.5 749 3.6 $5,111 4 * K d Carnahan farms inc butler, in 22 20,054 790 3.9 689 3.4 $4,556 5 * Green meadow farms inc elsie, mi 25 20,363 767 3.8 649 3.2 $4,356 6 thad Coning Goshen, in 148 18,119 753 4.2 617 3.4 $4,182 Guernsey 1 verl a weaver Goshen, in 35 19,441 980 5.0 683 3.5 $4,947 Jersey 1 * petro farms Gobles, mi 25 23,998 1,019 4.2 790 3.3 $5,483 2 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi 128 20,073 957 4.8 721 3.6 $5,047 3 * zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 60 21,223 934 4.4 717 3.4 $4,991 4 * susan Green eslie, mi 52 19,308 924 4.8 725 3.8 $4,982 5 * brent robinson Caro, mi 43 19,238 932 4.8 680 3.5 $4,827 6 * d & p dairy marlette, mi 21 19,713 922 4.7 670 3.4 $4,772 7 taylor Creek farm llC pickford, mi 11 18,809 853 4.5 676 3.6 $4,634 8 * roger deters fremont, mi 101 17,837 889 5.0 648 3.6 $4,597 9 * walnutdale farms wayland, mi 690 17,292 880 5.1 654 3.8 $4,595 10 zeinstra farms llC shelbyville, mi 147 17,430 849 4.9 668 3.8 $4,582 11 John & delores dunks union City, mi 132 17,548 883 5.0 645 3.7 $4,570 12 lyle burkholder nappanee, in 99 17,512 846 4.8 626 3.6 $4,416 13 * nick Clark prescott, mi 23 19,128 829 4.3 624 3.3 $4,386 14 richard thomas middlebury, in 15 16,574 827 5.0 598 3.6 $4,258 15 * michael heckaman argos, in 160 16,169 798 4.9 599 3.7 $4,194 16 * John & Cynthia adam Goshen, in 30 17,697 755 4.3 619 3.5 $4,190 17 * richlo dairy farms engadine, mi 35 16,561 764 4.6 608 3.7 $4,157 18 James van buskirk Carleton, mi 112 15,121 727 4.8 595 3.9 $4,013 Mixed Breeds 1 * nor-bert farms bremen, in 139 29,850 1,361 4.6 1,037 3.5 $7,233 2 * bill & lisa bowerman Quincy, mi 317 28,902 1,137 3.9 918 3.2 $6,277 3 * larry e. haywood hastings, mi 91 29,518 1,094 3.7 925 3.1 $6,215 4 * petro farms Gobles, mi 120 27,995 1,043 3.7 874 3.1 $5,894 5 * sparks Quaker acres fremont, mi 251 29,027 1,009 3.5 878 3.0 $5,844 6 * messing dairy bad axe, mi 264 26,195 1,036 4.0 854 3.3 $5,785 7 bruce martin whittemore, mi 132 25,944 1,020 3.9 839 3.2 $5,690 8 * fisk farms sand lake, mi 215 27,438 941 3.4 879 3.2 $5,683 9 * matt Grams harrisville, mi 27 23,782 1,046 4.4 821 3.5 $5,659 10 * tony rosbrugh west branch, mi 561 28,007 991 3.5 842 3.0 $5,657 11 * laeder dairy harbor beach, mi 386 27,004 978 3.6 837 3.1 $5,600 12 * s & m dairy harbor beach, mi 1,074 26,187 946 3.6 847 3.2 $5,560 13 * Charles ramer new paris, in 284 25,133 990 3.9 796 3.2 $5,453 14 * Cole apple farm bancroft, mi 40 25,729 926 3.6 817 3.2 $5,397 15 arland Carter Crystal, mi 108 25,137 898 3.6 814 3.2 $5,318 16 * Chris & mike rasmussen edmore, mi 865 25,498 899 3.5 798 3.1 $5,263 17 seth ponstein hamilton, mi 83 25,443 922 3.6 772 3.0 $5,214 18 robert Knynenburg Custer, mi 254 23,382 928 4.0 759 3.2 $5,158 19 * arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 923 24,154 880 3.6 765 3.2 $5,083 20 twin river dairy inc freeport, mi 327 22,486 919 4.1 744 3.3 $5,073 21 Cal & barb marshall lupton, mi 345 23,698 906 3.8 746 3.1 $5,063 22 tracy & theresa sohn north branch, mi 114 23,693 847 3.6 756 3.2 $4,971 23 Gary & Cory nielsen Coral, mi 89 22,520 884 3.9 733 3.3 $4,954 24 * walnutdale farms wayland, mi 2,216 22,060 864 3.9 745 3.4 $4,952 25 robert & veronica dallas harbor beach, mi 205 23,115 863 3.7 733 3.2 $4,914 26 * richlo dairy farms engadine, mi 327 23,494 834 3.5 742 3.2 $4,887 27 Kathy frye logansport, in 12 22,947 847 3.7 732 3.2 $4,873 28 * richlo dairy farms engadine, mi 362 22,869 828 3.6 729 3.2 $4,819

3X herd owner address herd size milK fat fat % prot prot % value

Top proTein breeD herDs by Dollar valuem i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o


family TraditionOneeda Farms, LLC

Registered Holsteins are synonymous with the Hibschman family. Dating back to 1929

when Joe Hibschman’s grandfather Clee became a lifetime member of the Holstein Association, the family has dedicated their breeding program to developing high quality Holstein cows. “I don’t think we’ve done anything out of the ordinary, we just try to do the best we can,” said Joe.

The office walls at Oneeda Farms, LLC are adorned with Purple Banners and plaques for accomplishments that include Premier Breeder, Grand Champion Female and Reserve Grand Champion Female from various shows including the Indiana State Holstein Show, the Northeast Indiana Dairy Show and the Elkhart County Fair to name a few. But their accomplishments don’t end in the show ring; they also excel in producing quality milk having earned the Foremost Farms Excellent Quality Award for 13 of the past 14 years.

In 1943 Joe’s dad, Oliver purchased land and established Oneeda Farm where it resides today in Syracuse, Indiana. Over the years the herd and facilities have expanded from a stanchion barn to a comfort stall barn, to its most recent renovation in 1999 which includes a 192 freestall barn and a double eight parlor.

Today the herd includes 212 Registered Holsteins with a rolling herd average on three-times-a-day milking of 28,843 pounds of milk, 1,089 pounds of fat, 892 pounds of protein with a dollar value of $5,957. The Oneeda herd is classified every seven months and has a BAA of 104.9%.

Both the operation of Oneeda Holsteins and

the philosophy behind the herd’s breeding program rely on generations of family to get the work done. “We look at cow families first,”

said Roger regarding how sires are selected

for the breeding program. Joe added, “We also pay

attention to fat percent. We can get milk out of cows, but we need to breed for components.”

Over the years, Oneeda Farms has bred 51 excellent cows, 13 Gold Medal Dams and 10 Dams of Merit. Great cow families have played a role in these accomplishments and one cornerstone cow family for the herd was Oneeda Bell Kay (EX-90-2E-GMD-DOM) with lifetime credentials of 244,410 pounds of milk with 9,113 pounds of fat. “Kay actually traces back to my grandpa’s herd (Clee) and a lot of our current herd traces back to Kay and I think that’s kind of neat,” said Joe.

Over the years Joe and his family have been recognized numerous times for developing high producing, high type cows. In 1977, the Oneeda herd received its first Progressive Breeders Registry Award from the Holstein Association, an honor that continued for the

next 21 years. In 1979 the family received the Elkhart County Outstanding Farm Family Award; and in 1991 Joe received the Indiana Holstein Association Master Breeder Award, and was named Indiana DHIA Dairyman of the Year.

Developing great cow families involves many aspects, including getting calves off to a great start, and Joe was quick to say, “Roger does an excellent job taking care of calves.” With a divide and conquer approach to get the work done, Roger is responsible for the calves and vaccination programs.

Calves are fed six pints of colostrum as soon as possible after birth. Typically calves are fed their mother’s milk, but colostrum replacer is used when necessary. After the first few days of life, calves are moved to hutches and started on grain right away. At about two months of age, calves are moved to group housing pens in the old tie stall barn where they live until approximately eight months old, at which time they are moved to a custom heifer grower. Heifers

“We look at cow families first”

➤ Joe and Roger Hibschman and Jeff Prough


are bred A.I. and return home one to two months before calving.

Equally as important to starting calves off right is good comfort, and Joe noted, “We work at it all the time – it plays a big role.” In 1999 the Hibschman’s moved the herd from a comfort stall barn to the current freestall facility. At that time sand bedding was introduced and the Hibschman’s agree it’s a key component for cow comfort and managing SCC. Stalls are cleaned at every milking and are filled every two weeks. Along with good udder prep and automatic take-offs, Roger and herdsman Jeff Prough work with new hires on milking technique and agree all these elements play a role in producing quality milk.

The Oneeda team uses DHI and PCDART to help manage various aspects of the dairy. Along with monitoring SCC, Jeff creates custom PCDART reports for vaccination schedules, pen movements and much more.

A good fresh cow program is also a key contributor for producing quality milk. Fresh cows are temperature checked daily for up to 30 days post freshening, and those that show a

visual indicator are also tested for ketosis. “We don’t have too many fresh cow problems,” agreed Roger and Jeff. “ If we have problems it comes in spurts and follows over-crowding.”

Since 1991 Joe and his family have developed the Oneeda prefix into a well-known and reputable line of cattle capturing the interest of dairymen across the globe. Supporting several dairy sales a year, Joe is pleased to see Oneeda genetics go on and perform well for others. A few highlights from 2014 include Oneeda Rocco Tawny-Red, now owned by Topp-View Farms, being named Intermediate Champion, Grand Champion and Best Udder of Show at the Ohio State Red and White Show; and Oneeda Cntnd RachelRea-Red, owned by Milksource Genetics, was fifth Senior Two-Year-Old Cow at World Dairy Expo.

In January 2015, Joe is retiring and leaving behind a legacy of high type and high production genetics. As Roger steps into his role as the fourth generation owner he plans on introducing his own prefix, Rneeda and has a tremendous foundation to work with.

➤Oneeda Bell Kay (EX-90-2E-GMD-DOM) Lifetime: 2830d 244,410M 9,113F

➤Oneeda Blitz Kizzy Kay (EX-90) Descendent of Oneeda Bell Kay 3-05 3x 365d 50,930M 1,705F 1,486P 1st IN Milk & 1st Protein


Ayrshire nor-bert farms bremen, in tetra burdette Jr 2 yr. 21,274 1,134 5.3 764 3.6 $5,612 h., s., & C. sayles perry, mi 891 modem sr 2 yr. 18,063 789 4.4 665 3.7 $4,444 nor-bert farms bremen, in brandy Kellybuck Jr 3 yr. 22,764 1,063 4.7 785 3.4 $5,549 larry e. haywood hastings, mi 4584 ramius sr 3 yr. 28,121 1,204 4.3 865 3.1 $6,216 brandon & Corey fleming Jackson, mi 2810 herman 4 yr. 19,770 828 4.2 620 3.1 $4,374 nor-bert farms bremen, in valetin shipley 5 yr. 26,377 1,306 5.0 918 3.5 $6,626 h., s., & C. sayles perry, mi 842 Kodiak aged 27,992 979 3.5 906 3.2 $5,874 Brown Swiss nor-bert farms bremen, in pepper wonderment Jr 2yr. 29,559 1,312 4.4 1,032 3.5 $7,104 Green meadow farms inc elsie, mi 3692 mandel sr 2 yr. 31,794 1,290 4.1 1,054 3.3 $7,160 nor-bert farms bremen, in style legacy Jr 3 yr. 31,431 1,569 5.0 1,121 3.6 $8,027 nor-bert farms bremen, in alexis wonderment sr 3 yr. 33,196 1,850 5.6 1,189 3.6 $8,923 nor-bert farms bremen, in adison vigor 4 yr. 34,209 1,679 4.9 1,220 3.6 $8,673 nor-bert farms bremen, in airis agio 5 yr. 37,733 2,098 5.6 1,380 3.7 $10,240 wilson family farm Carson City, mi onyx pollyden aged 30,090 1,232 4.1 981 3.3 $6,738 Guernsey verl a weaver Goshen, in megan 68027809 Jr 2 yr. 21,478 927 4.3 663 3.1 $4,773 verl a weaver Goshen, in tatiana 68016205 sr 2 yr. 17,441 862 4.9 575 3.3 $4,256 verl a weaver Goshen, in emily aaron Jr 3 yr. 22,735 1,639 7.2 819 3.6 $6,949 thurow farms llC scottville, mi 421 sr 3 yr. 23,893 1,087 4.5 838 3.5 $5,815 verl a weaver Goshen, in bella director 4 yr. 20,313 1,129 5.6 753 3.7 $5,550 verl a weaver Goshen, in lily 68010055 5 yr. 22,906 1,359 5.9 747 3.3 $6,059 verl a weaver Goshen, in Cubie les aged 15,246 929 6.1 616 4.0 $4,539 Jersey petro farms Gobles, mi 7462 blade Jr 2 yr. 21,324 1,138 5.3 818 3.8 $5,827 larry e. haywood hastings, mi 5661 tbone Jr 2 yr. 22,612 1,141 5.0 813 3.6 $5,827 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5888 legal sr 2 yr. 23,990 1,397 5.8 897 3.7 $6,724 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5602 leland sr 2 yr. 26,507 1,392 5.3 874 3.3 $6,649 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5635 Jr 3 yr. 23,072 1,319 5.7 901 3.9 $6,559 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5411 leland Jr 3 yr. 21,838 1,221 5.6 876 4.0 $6,236 larry e. haywood hastings, mi 5227 tbone sr 3 yr. 26,395 1,249 4.7 1,023 3.9 $6,901 bill & bob Gruppen zeeland, mi 1813 triumph sr 3 yr. 35,763 962 2.7 1,080 3.0 $6,573 brent robinson Caro, mi 2476 iatola 4 yr. 33,746 1,521 4.5 1,015 3.0 $7,539 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 4526 4 yr. 27,419 1,397 5.1 998 3.6 $7,141 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 53837 5 yr. 28,960 1,237 4.3 978 3.4 $6,727 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 3173 5 yr. 23,592 1,368 5.8 894 3.8 $6,645 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 31770 aged 27,928 1,237 4.4 1,016 3.6 $6,862 amber black howard City, mi daisey aged 29,102 1,279 4.4 971 3.3 $6,794 Milking Shorthorn brent robinson Caro, mi 4772 landover Jr 2 yr. 24,139 959 4.0 700 2.9 $5,009 d & p dairy marlette, mi 2263 Clay sr 2 yr. 23,081 878 3.8 677 2.9 $4,733 thad Coning Goshen, in 1112 stetson Jr 3 yr. 20,896 792 3.8 638 3.1 $4,374 brent robinson Caro, mi 4072 landover sr 3 yr. 19,231 1,011 5.3 643 3.3 $4,860 brent robinson Caro, mi 3526 4 yr. 28,290 1,153 4.1 868 3.1 $6,116 SamBok Defiance,OH Babe 464866 5yr. 21,931 850 3.9 706 3.2 $4,771 SamBok Defiance,OH Rhoda Nugget Aged 21,251 800 3.8 720 3.4 $4,708 Red & White river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 1683 rocket - red Jr 2 yr. 27,996 1,308 4.7 802 2.9 $6,204 petro farms Gobles, mi 6993 arudolf-red sr 2 yr. 31,061 961 3.1 966 3.1 $6,092 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 3887 lawn boy p-red Jr 3 yr. 33,330 1,058 3.2 1,008 3.0 $6,487 river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 95 sidney-red sr 3 yr. 31,401 1,263 4.0 955 3.0 $6,719 river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 9741 raid-red 4 yr. 32,204 1,359 4.2 988 3.1 $7,064 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 3337 5 yr. 37,760 1,309 3.5 1,065 2.8 $7,300 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 3387 life - red aged 28,978 978 3.4 838 2.9 $5,622

herd owner address Cow id sire id aGe milK fat fat % prot prot %

Top Dollar value proTein breeD coWs by agem i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o 3 0 5 D a y l a c T a T i o n s

value


Ayrshire nor-bert farms bremen, in tetra burdette Jr 2 yr. 21,274 1,134 5.3 764 3.6 $5,612 h., s., & C. sayles perry, mi 891 modem sr 2 yr. 18,063 789 4.4 665 3.7 $4,444 nor-bert farms bremen, in brandy Kellybuck Jr 3 yr. 22,764 1,063 4.7 785 3.4 $5,549 larry e. haywood hastings, mi 4584 ramius sr 3 yr. 28,121 1,204 4.3 865 3.1 $6,216 brandon & Corey fleming Jackson, mi 2810 herman 4 yr. 19,770 828 4.2 620 3.1 $4,374 nor-bert farms bremen, in valetin shipley 5 yr. 26,377 1,306 5.0 918 3.5 $6,626 h., s., & C. sayles perry, mi 842 Kodiak aged 27,992 979 3.5 906 3.2 $5,874 Brown Swiss nor-bert farms bremen, in pepper wonderment Jr 2yr. 29,559 1,312 4.4 1,032 3.5 $7,104 Green meadow farms inc elsie, mi 3692 mandel sr 2 yr. 31,794 1,290 4.1 1,054 3.3 $7,160 nor-bert farms bremen, in style legacy Jr 3 yr. 31,431 1,569 5.0 1,121 3.6 $8,027 nor-bert farms bremen, in alexis wonderment sr 3 yr. 33,196 1,850 5.6 1,189 3.6 $8,923 nor-bert farms bremen, in adison vigor 4 yr. 34,209 1,679 4.9 1,220 3.6 $8,673 nor-bert farms bremen, in airis agio 5 yr. 37,733 2,098 5.6 1,380 3.7 $10,240 wilson family farm Carson City, mi onyx pollyden aged 30,090 1,232 4.1 981 3.3 $6,738 Guernsey verl a weaver Goshen, in megan 68027809 Jr 2 yr. 21,478 927 4.3 663 3.1 $4,773 verl a weaver Goshen, in tatiana 68016205 sr 2 yr. 17,441 862 4.9 575 3.3 $4,256 verl a weaver Goshen, in emily aaron Jr 3 yr. 22,735 1,639 7.2 819 3.6 $6,949 thurow farms llC scottville, mi 421 sr 3 yr. 23,893 1,087 4.5 838 3.5 $5,815 verl a weaver Goshen, in bella director 4 yr. 20,313 1,129 5.6 753 3.7 $5,550 verl a weaver Goshen, in lily 68010055 5 yr. 22,906 1,359 5.9 747 3.3 $6,059 verl a weaver Goshen, in Cubie les aged 15,246 929 6.1 616 4.0 $4,539 Jersey petro farms Gobles, mi 7462 blade Jr 2 yr. 21,324 1,138 5.3 818 3.8 $5,827 larry e. haywood hastings, mi 5661 tbone Jr 2 yr. 22,612 1,141 5.0 813 3.6 $5,827 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5888 legal sr 2 yr. 23,990 1,397 5.8 897 3.7 $6,724 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5602 leland sr 2 yr. 26,507 1,392 5.3 874 3.3 $6,649 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5635 Jr 3 yr. 23,072 1,319 5.7 901 3.9 $6,559 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 5411 leland Jr 3 yr. 21,838 1,221 5.6 876 4.0 $6,236 larry e. haywood hastings, mi 5227 tbone sr 3 yr. 26,395 1,249 4.7 1,023 3.9 $6,901 bill & bob Gruppen zeeland, mi 1813 triumph sr 3 yr. 35,763 962 2.7 1,080 3.0 $6,573 brent robinson Caro, mi 2476 iatola 4 yr. 33,746 1,521 4.5 1,015 3.0 $7,539 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 4526 4 yr. 27,419 1,397 5.1 998 3.6 $7,141 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 53837 5 yr. 28,960 1,237 4.3 978 3.4 $6,727 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 3173 5 yr. 23,592 1,368 5.8 894 3.8 $6,645 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 31770 aged 27,928 1,237 4.4 1,016 3.6 $6,862 amber black howard City, mi daisey aged 29,102 1,279 4.4 971 3.3 $6,794 Milking Shorthorn brent robinson Caro, mi 4772 landover Jr 2 yr. 24,139 959 4.0 700 2.9 $5,009 d & p dairy marlette, mi 2263 Clay sr 2 yr. 23,081 878 3.8 677 2.9 $4,733 thad Coning Goshen, in 1112 stetson Jr 3 yr. 20,896 792 3.8 638 3.1 $4,374 brent robinson Caro, mi 4072 landover sr 3 yr. 19,231 1,011 5.3 643 3.3 $4,860 brent robinson Caro, mi 3526 4 yr. 28,290 1,153 4.1 868 3.1 $6,116 SamBok Defiance,OH Babe 464866 5yr. 21,931 850 3.9 706 3.2 $4,771 SamBok Defiance,OH Rhoda Nugget Aged 21,251 800 3.8 720 3.4 $4,708 Red & White river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 1683 rocket - red Jr 2 yr. 27,996 1,308 4.7 802 2.9 $6,204 petro farms Gobles, mi 6993 arudolf-red sr 2 yr. 31,061 961 3.1 966 3.1 $6,092 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 3887 lawn boy p-red Jr 3 yr. 33,330 1,058 3.2 1,008 3.0 $6,487 river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 95 sidney-red sr 3 yr. 31,401 1,263 4.0 955 3.0 $6,719 river ridge dairy Co. inc Coopersville, mi 9741 raid-red 4 yr. 32,204 1,359 4.2 988 3.1 $7,064 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 3337 5 yr. 37,760 1,309 3.5 1,065 2.8 $7,300 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 3387 life - red aged 28,978 978 3.4 838 2.9 $5,622

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herd owner address Cow id sire id aGe milK fat fat % prot prot % value

Top Dollar value proTein breeD coWs by ageW i s c o n s i n

3 0 5 D a y l a c T a T i o n s

Ayrshire damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi lilly Jr 2 Yr 25,106 930 3.7 745 3.0 $5,126 damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi teal sr 2 Yr 25,492 997 3.9 734 2.9 $5,235 damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi tipsy b b Kellogg Jr 3 Yr 29,704 1,457 4.9 875 2.9 $6,827 tim busch Cecil, wi rain Conn sr 3 Yr 26,329 1,015 3.9 831 3.2 $5,652 Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi Joy modem 4 Yr 27,007 1,330 4.9 851 3.2 $6,430 zinke dairy farms brownsville, wi 1045 eagle 5 Yr 33,167 1,290 3.9 978 2.9 $6,883 damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi ashlyn wilton aged 41,860 1,279 3.1 1,327 3.2 $8,271 Brown Swiss abel dairy farms fond du lac, wi 9594 Jr 2 Yr 32,186 1,082 3.4 978 3.0 $6,415 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 700 power surge sr 2 Yr 25,204 1,278 5.1 905 3.6 $6,504 shiloh dairy Greenleaf, wi 307 wonderment Jr 3 Yr 38,496 1,569 4.1 1,269 3.3 $8,658 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 655 vance sr 3 Yr 31,105 1,405 4.5 1,084 3.5 $7,521 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 607 agenda 4 Yr 31,877 1,561 4.9 1,079 3.4 $7,854 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 581 denver 5 Yr 32,991 1,741 5.3 1,101 3.3 $8,345 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 7ms power surge aged 29,601 1,249 4.2 1,054 3.6 $7,049 Guernsey matt brahmer spring valley, wi Cozy sr 2 Yr 17,196 798 4.6 501 2.9 $3,831 seth hunt barron, wi faith Yogibear Jr 3 Yr 17,057 848 5.0 563 3.3 $4,176 bob & nancy Johnson baldwin, wi mya sr 3 Yr 17,228 786 4.6 578 3.4 $4,098 matt brahmer spring valley, wi pixie 68007256 4 Yr 18,066 919 5.1 578 3.2 $4,399 dale & becky voelz leopolis, wi Gdlookn Challenge 5 Yr 17,507 945 5.4 689 3.9 $4,874 matt brahmer spring valley, wi hershey aged 17,254 731 4.2 556 3.2 $3,893 Jersey tidy view dairy . freedom, wi 44326 plus Jr 2 Yr 29,804 1,189 4.0 921 3.1 $6,412 don mielke menasha, wi eon region Jr 2 Yr 22,403 1,333 6.0 753 3.4 $6,020 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 2281 limit sr 2 Yr 27,960 1,188 4.2 1,015 3.6 $6,750 ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi serenit sambo sr 2 Yr 24,160 1,224 5.1 892 3.7 $6,325 ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi 201 barbarian Jr 3 Yr 31,046 1,549 5.0 1,158 3.7 $8,120 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 2042 marshall Jr 3 Yr 29,220 1,338 4.6 1,121 3.8 $7,497 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1991 louie sr 3 Yr 29,710 1,471 5.0 1,162 3.9 $7,951 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1909 blackstone sr 3 Yr 27,860 1,326 4.8 1,149 4.1 $7,564 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1721 Jacinto 4 Yr 26,060 1,432 5.5 1,042 4.0 $7,373 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1932 Kirby 4 Yr 29,690 1,201 4.0 1,137 3.8 $7,260 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1615 Jacinto 5 Yr 31,460 1,452 4.6 1,233 3.9 $8,196 hallet dairy farm Casco, wi 1107 fiesty 5 Yr 27,321 1,397 5.1 927 3.4 $6,870 ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi darling King aged 28,310 1,396 4.9 978 3.5 $7,071 tidy view dairy . freedom, wi 30548 honour-p aged 35,029 1,169 3.3 1,065 3.0 $6,965 Milking Shorthorn landstad dairy bonduel, wi 2998 nitro exp Jr 2 Yr 20,154 657 3.3 602 3.0 $3,932 Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi nice poker sr 2 Yr 20,863 675 3.2 662 3.2 $4,207 Charlie & Katie bue alma Center, wi Chicago Jonathan Jr 3 Yr 23,313 930 4.0 811 3.5 $5,360 Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi nalah Kourt sr 3 Yr 24,680 926 3.8 758 3.1 $5,162 allen oberstadt fremont, wi 570 Jp 4 Yr. 20,398 716 3.5 648 3.2 $4,240 peissig twin oak farm dorchester, wi apricot King 5 Yr 16,075 627 3.9 499 3.1 $3,435 Charlie & Katie bue alma Center, wi 6078 red ruben aged 21,725 780 3.6 737 3.4 $4,733 Red & White James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi 1066 Jordan-red Jr 2 Yr 32,053 1,072 3.3 888 2.8 $6,049 James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi 715 logan-red sr 2 Yr 32,138 1,000 3.1 929 2.9 $6,047 rickert bros eldorado, wi 3009 luke-red Jr 3 Yr 33,793 1,231 3.6 915 2.7 $6,519 milk source Genetics Kaukauna, wi siren advent-red sr 3 Yr 32,453 1,322 4.1 925 2.9 $6,745 James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi 459 martin - red 4 Yr 33,774 1,174 3.5 909 2.7 $6,370 herr-lane holsteins newton, wi reece arudolf-red 5 Yr 27,648 1,141 4.1 884 3.2 $6,145 herr-lane holsteins newton, wi sandy life - red aged 34,565 1,145 3.3 944 2.7 $6,447

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Top Dollar value proTein breeD coWs by ageW i s c o n s i n

Ayrshire damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi lilly Jr 2 Yr 25,106 930 3.7 745 3.0 $5,126 damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi teal sr 2 Yr 25,492 997 3.9 734 2.9 $5,235 damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi tipsy b b Kellogg Jr 3 Yr 29,704 1,457 4.9 875 2.9 $6,827 tim busch Cecil, wi rain Conn sr 3 Yr 26,329 1,015 3.9 831 3.2 $5,652 Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi Joy modem 4 Yr 27,007 1,330 4.9 851 3.2 $6,430 zinke dairy farms brownsville, wi 1045 eagle 5 Yr 33,167 1,290 3.9 978 2.9 $6,883 damian & Kiley ullmer seymour, wi ashlyn wilton aged 41,860 1,279 3.1 1,327 3.2 $8,271 Brown Swiss abel dairy farms fond du lac, wi 9594 Jr 2 Yr 32,186 1,082 3.4 978 3.0 $6,415 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 700 power surge sr 2 Yr 25,204 1,278 5.1 905 3.6 $6,504 shiloh dairy Greenleaf, wi 307 wonderment Jr 3 Yr 38,496 1,569 4.1 1,269 3.3 $8,658 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 655 vance sr 3 Yr 31,105 1,405 4.5 1,084 3.5 $7,521 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 607 agenda 4 Yr 31,877 1,561 4.9 1,079 3.4 $7,854 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 581 denver 5 Yr 32,991 1,741 5.3 1,101 3.3 $8,345 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 7ms power surge aged 29,601 1,249 4.2 1,054 3.6 $7,049 Guernsey matt brahmer spring valley, wi Cozy sr 2 Yr 17,196 798 4.6 501 2.9 $3,831 seth hunt barron, wi faith Yogibear Jr 3 Yr 17,057 848 5.0 563 3.3 $4,176 bob & nancy Johnson baldwin, wi mya sr 3 Yr 17,228 786 4.6 578 3.4 $4,098 matt brahmer spring valley, wi pixie 68007256 4 Yr 18,066 919 5.1 578 3.2 $4,399 dale & becky voelz leopolis, wi Gdlookn Challenge 5 Yr 17,507 945 5.4 689 3.9 $4,874 matt brahmer spring valley, wi hershey aged 17,254 731 4.2 556 3.2 $3,893 Jersey tidy view dairy . freedom, wi 44326 plus Jr 2 Yr 29,804 1,189 4.0 921 3.1 $6,412 don mielke menasha, wi eon region Jr 2 Yr 22,403 1,333 6.0 753 3.4 $6,020 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 2281 limit sr 2 Yr 27,960 1,188 4.2 1,015 3.6 $6,750 ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi serenit sambo sr 2 Yr 24,160 1,224 5.1 892 3.7 $6,325 ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi 201 barbarian Jr 3 Yr 31,046 1,549 5.0 1,158 3.7 $8,120 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 2042 marshall Jr 3 Yr 29,220 1,338 4.6 1,121 3.8 $7,497 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1991 louie sr 3 Yr 29,710 1,471 5.0 1,162 3.9 $7,951 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1909 blackstone sr 3 Yr 27,860 1,326 4.8 1,149 4.1 $7,564 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1721 Jacinto 4 Yr 26,060 1,432 5.5 1,042 4.0 $7,373 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1932 Kirby 4 Yr 29,690 1,201 4.0 1,137 3.8 $7,260 Jenks Jersey farm marathon City, wi 1615 Jacinto 5 Yr 31,460 1,452 4.6 1,233 3.9 $8,196 hallet dairy farm Casco, wi 1107 fiesty 5 Yr 27,321 1,397 5.1 927 3.4 $6,870 ron & nicole wussow Cecil, wi darling King aged 28,310 1,396 4.9 978 3.5 $7,071 tidy view dairy . freedom, wi 30548 honour-p aged 35,029 1,169 3.3 1,065 3.0 $6,965 Milking Shorthorn landstad dairy bonduel, wi 2998 nitro exp Jr 2 Yr 20,154 657 3.3 602 3.0 $3,932 Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi nice poker sr 2 Yr 20,863 675 3.2 662 3.2 $4,207 Charlie & Katie bue alma Center, wi Chicago Jonathan Jr 3 Yr 23,313 930 4.0 811 3.5 $5,360 Garrett & Kelly holewinski pulaski, wi nalah Kourt sr 3 Yr 24,680 926 3.8 758 3.1 $5,162 allen oberstadt fremont, wi 570 Jp 4 Yr. 20,398 716 3.5 648 3.2 $4,240 peissig twin oak farm dorchester, wi apricot King 5 Yr 16,075 627 3.9 499 3.1 $3,435 Charlie & Katie bue alma Center, wi 6078 red ruben aged 21,725 780 3.6 737 3.4 $4,733 Red & White James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi 1066 Jordan-red Jr 2 Yr 32,053 1,072 3.3 888 2.8 $6,049 James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi 715 logan-red sr 2 Yr 32,138 1,000 3.1 929 2.9 $6,047 rickert bros eldorado, wi 3009 luke-red Jr 3 Yr 33,793 1,231 3.6 915 2.7 $6,519 milk source Genetics Kaukauna, wi siren advent-red sr 3 Yr 32,453 1,322 4.1 925 2.9 $6,745 James & Joseph rieden mount Calvary, wi 459 martin - red 4 Yr 33,774 1,174 3.5 909 2.7 $6,370 herr-lane holsteins newton, wi reece arudolf-red 5 Yr 27,648 1,141 4.1 884 3.2 $6,145 herr-lane holsteins newton, wi sandy life - red aged 34,565 1,145 3.3 944 2.7 $6,447

Holstein rosy-lane holsteins llC watertown, wi 1348 arlinda 10 413,212 11,898 2.9 11,245 2.7 Daryl&PamNunes Deerfield,WI Dacia Outside 9 392,100 13,096 3.3 10,475 2.7 badger holsteins unity, wi 1383 altamalachite 9 381,490 12,120 3.2 11,020 2.9 tidy view dairy llC. freedom, wi 8234 Convincer 9 364,828 11,766 3.2 10,514 2.9 brantmeier hilrose dairy sherwood, wi princes lee 4 349,217 13,787 3.9 10,400 3.0 Kinnard farms inc Casco, wi 4301 windbreaker 7 345,211 10,086 2.9 8,983 2.6 badger holsteins unity, wi 61 score 12 340,640 12,485 3.7 10,242 3.0 rusk-rose holsteins ladysmith, wi Caper foundation 8 339,460 11,868 3.5 9,697 2.9 brickstead dairy llC Greenleaf, wi 1486 talisman 8 338,793 11,132 3.3 10,210 3.0 Kinnard farms inc Casco, wi 3620 bergwil 9 322,516 9,804 3.0 9,164 2.8 Kohlman dairy llC Chilton, wi 1024 8 318,301 11,004 3.5 8,437 2.7 hopeless dairy inc sheldon, wi 4175 9 317,226 10,729 3.4 9,103 2.9 rusk-rose holsteins ladysmith, wi lori mtoto 10 312,093 11,583 3.7 9,101 2.9 bob van daalwyk hilbert, wi sheryl dutch boy 7 310,494 11,427 3.7 9,422 3.0 tidy view dairy llC freedom, wi 8228 hilton 9 308,901 8,745 2.8 9,604 3.1 Kinnard farms inc Casco, wi 4057 tommy 6 307,756 9,048 2.9 8,422 2.7 pebble Knolls dairy brandon, wi 748 9 307,581 12,410 4.0 9,123 3.0 Kohlman dairy llC. Chilton, wi 639 wizard 10 306,700 10,181 3.3 8,747 2.9 ronald & nancy felten st. Cloud, wi 8 11 303,202 13,301 4.4 10,103 3.3 badger holsteins unity, wi 226 sailor 10 303,167 11,111 3.7 8,848 2.9 tidy view dairy llC. freedom, wi 10327 9 302,525 10,085 3.3 8,298 2.7 stutzman family farms llC Conrath, wi 253 Granger 8 302,316 9,941 3.3 8,769 2.9 Brown Swiss timothy & rebecca Krueger stanley, wi whiskey denmark 8 254,006 10,291 4.1 8,355 3.3 twinkle-hill brown swiss watertown, wi 372Jenn blue Chip 7 222,590 8,714 3.9 7,319 3.3 auburnvale swiss fremont, wi Cicili the edge 7 220,330 8,282 3.8 6,724 3.1 robert roden west bend, wi 110 10 201,566 7,804 3.9 6,126 3.0 Red & White bill seyller fond du lac, wi beth sovereign-red 8 283,041 10,687 3.8 8,288 2.9

herd owner address Cow id sire id laCt. # milK fat fat % prot prot %

Top liFeTime coWs For milk proDucTionWisconsin

USI Midwest648 Monroe NW, Suite 300

Grand Rapids, MI 49503616-288-4100 | www.usi.biz

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At USI, we combine proprietary analytics, broad experience and national resources to custom-fit an insurance program that meets your needs. For decades, your local USI office in Grand Rapids has been providing the risk management solutions and services that NorthStar Cooperative Inc. counts on to protect their businesses and employees. We’d like to do the same for you.

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2014 DHI Annual Performance Summary 35


herd owner address Cow id sire id laCt. # milK fat fat % prot prot %

Top liFeTime coWs For milk proDucTionm i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o

Holstein lew-max holstein llC belding, mi 2189 10 400,745 11,752 2.9 11,398 2.8 tim baker byron Center, mi iris best bet 7 389,783 16,405 4.2 12,000 3.1 Country dairy new era, mi 10003 bunker 10 385,650 12,559 3.3 11,500 3.0 John Ybema hopkins, mi 168 13 382,259 14,232 3.7 10,242 2.7 lew-max holstein llC belding, mi 1995 breton 10 376,151 13,810 3.7 9,767 2.6 doug westendorp nashville, mi 1104 blitz 8 371,900 12,368 3.3 9,764 2.6 arden & nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 2752 8 359,997 12,303 3.4 10,489 2.9 dick van rijn deford, mi 601 Garth 9 356,994 9,215 2.6 10,042 2.8 dick van rijn deford, mi 375 9 345,881 11,119 3.2 9,039 2.6 dave & rick tacoma falmouth, mi 435 mathie 8 345,872 11,907 3.4 9,464 2.7 oesch swiss lane alto, mi 871 10 340,319 9,707 2.9 9,680 2.8 e. Kuyers & sons west olive, mi 2443 Courier 8 336,983 11,499 3.4 10,269 3.0 max & mike finkbeiner saline, mi 1170 9 336,964 11,978 3.6 10,401 3.1 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 7423 9 335,019 10,832 3.2 8,886 2.7 steve benthem mcbain, mi 256 Jurassic 8 328,767 12,283 3.7 8,857 2.7 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 5739 Cool 10 326,435 12,098 3.7 9,383 2.9 tony rosbrugh west branch, mi 980 13 326,135 13,286 4.1 10,078 3.1 dave beuschel Conklin, mi 15 Granger 8 326,091 11,063 3.4 9,516 2.9 HofflandDairyLLC Clayton,MI 1126 12 322,841 9,722 3.0 9,257 2.9 harold dodde falmouth, mi 1519 dane 8 321,797 11,764 3.7 8,945 2.8 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 122 7 320,600 10,147 3.2 8,759 2.7 oesch swiss lane alto, mi 3598 warrior 10 320,406 12,743 4.0 8,900 2.8 Gordon dick mcbain, mi 843 mathie 9 320,066 13,411 4.2 9,123 2.9 Cary dairy farm battle Creek, mi 4199 brass 9 319,537 11,359 3.6 9,110 2.9 oesch swiss lane alto, mi 3583 talisman 8 317,839 12,026 3.8 9,213 2.9 lew-max holstein llC belding, mi 2518 marmax 7 317,262 10,894 3.4 8,936 2.8 arlyn walt Coopersville, mi 11565 zebo 10 316,817 11,905 3.8 9,479 3.0 lew-max holstein llC belding, mi 2430 stormy 7 316,153 10,771 3.4 8,355 2.6 Green meadow farms inc elsie, mi 5014 Charles 11 314,232 12,901 4.1 9,448 3.0 dan, paul & nate elzinga zeeland, mi 1640 saturn 7 312,168 10,261 3.3 8,263 2.6 Chris & mike rasmussen edmore, mi 1118 equity 8 311,355 10,381 3.3 8,201 2.6 harold dodde falmouth, mi 1455 dane 10 310,660 11,840 3.8 9,043 2.9 Gilde farms llC lake City, mi 839 metro lance 9 309,420 11,481 3.7 8,720 2.8 first farms ionia, mi 718 link 9 309,040 10,442 3.4 8,370 2.7 laeder dairy harbor beach, mi 72 8 308,371 12,801 4.2 8,864 2.9 Choates belly acres Cement City, mi 592 9 308,245 10,711 3.5 9,120 3.0 dean davenport durand, mi doreta lantz 8 307,086 12,062 3.9 9,864 3.2 walnutdale farms wayland, mi 7825 10 306,742 10,402 3.4 9,274 3.0 duane & Janet molhoek falmouth, mi 1289 manat 10 305,434 12,350 4.0 9,611 3.1 bob, mike, & matt Cnossen falmouth, mi 2337 magnum 10 305,089 15,389 5.0 9,309 3.1 mike bosscher mcbain, mi 32 leader 9 304,571 11,832 3.9 9,144 3.0 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 9343 alton 7 303,614 11,090 3.7 8,083 2.7 sam Yonkman mcbain, mi 620 sd morris 9 303,535 11,113 3.7 8,673 2.9 tubergen dairy farm llC. ionia, mi 1016 mathie pedro 9 303,154 9,049 3.0 8,229 2.7 Cambria farms hillsdale, mi 1969 7 302,861 11,220 3.7 8,949 3.0 Jeff & alisha bigler lakeview, mi 438 Calvin 9 302,126 10,834 3.6 9,400 3.1 doug,& scott long Clayton, mi nancy stomatic 9 302,006 13,139 4.4 10,205 3.4 HofflandDairyLLC Clayton,MI 1876 Bond 8 300,902 10,928 3.6 9,167 3.0 Ayrshire h., s., & C. sayles perry, mi 1335 willy 15 339,944 14,596 4.3 11,410 3.4 Brown Swiss Gary & Cory nielsen Coral, mi 15 andy 9 271,978 10,298 3.8 8,700 3.2 thad Coning Goshen, in 682 absolute 11 256,126 9,901 3.9 8,223 3.2 bill & lisa bowerman Quincy, mi 33d Jump start 9 253,384 6,374 2.5 7,703 3.0 bill & lisa bowerman Quincy, mi taben Jolt 8 209,095 8,019 3.8 6,695 3.2 tony rosbrugh west branch, mi 2384 10 207,854 10,237 4.9 7,588 3.7 Jersey zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 10045 8 233,609 8,452 3.6 7,205 3.1 CraigMartin Charlotte,MI Sunflow 5 213,455 4,281 2.0 3,988 1.9 zwemmer dairy farm llC elkton, mi 1041 8 204,897 6,634 3.2 5,891 2.9 Red & White arden and nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 2946 8 263,332 8,111 3.1 7,868 3.0 arden and nicholas eadie Conklin, mi 2905 redwood *rC 7 257,710 9,365 3.6 7,464 2.9 Good med-o-bloom Caledonia, mi 9669 drambuie-red 6 221,060 9,573 4.3 6,517 2.9


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herd owner address breed herd size milK fat fat % prot prot % value sCC aCtual3X

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DHI Annual Summary 2014_Layout 1 9/25/2014 3:26 PM Page 1

andrew & Katie houk unity, wi h 41 22,154 841 3.8 682 3.1 $4,662 50,000 david & Jaime owen pulaski, wi h 69 25,084 938 3.7 766 3.1 $5,223 57,000 brooks dairy farms waupaca, wi h 235 25,722 990 3.8 789 3.1 $5,432 67,000 dry hill dairy stanley, wi h 57 25,591 929 3.6 776 3.0 $5,246 67,000 pete & brenda bricco marion, wi h 57 23,864 938 3.9 753 3.2 $5,162 68,000 dale & becky voelz leopolis, wi h 58 23,269 908 3.9 740 3.2 $5,041 70,000 * Kohn farms Krakow, wi h 321 29,527 1,113 3.8 894 3.0 $6,139 71,000 dennis blazek oconto falls, wi h 174 26,143 916 3.5 825 3.2 $5,409 72,000 * loren hanson elk mound, wi h 243 24,930 983 3.9 781 3.1 $5,378 72,000 andrew s syryczuk lublin, wi h 195 26,541 996 3.8 806 3.0 $5,517 77,000 * ledgerock dairy llC larsen, wi h 396 29,705 1,187 4.0 891 3.0 $6,292 81,000 WebersFarmStore Marshfield,WI H 187 24,408 829 3.4 777 3.2 $5,018 81,000 travis marti vesper, wi h 178 27,931 925 3.3 887 3.2 $5,682 82,000 * haslow farms loyal, wi h 325 24,004 924 3.9 712 3.0 $4,976 82,000 mark anderson waupaca, wi h 207 27,911 1,087 3.9 872 3.1 $5,982 83,000 feltz family farm stevens point, wi h 577 34,713 1,260 3.6 1,024 2.9 $7,007 84,000 ronald & nancy felten st. Cloud, wi h 193 26,023 1,012 3.9 797 3.1 $5,513 86,000 * floyd & Calvin brandt bryant, wi X 126 28,876 1,152 4.0 876 3.0 $6,150 87,000 leahy farms inc brandon, wi X 138 26,323 996 3.8 820 3.1 $5,569 87,000 feider farms llC new holstein, wi h 266 26,629 994 3.7 808 3.0 $5,521 89,000 wolf farms llC bonduel, wi h 263 23,472 885 3.8 705 3.0 $4,859 89,000 * seidls mtn view dairy luxemburg, wi h 1,145 28,953 1,033 3.6 891 3.1 $5,945 90,000 * abel acres inc loyal, wi h 301 29,441 1,122 3.8 836 2.8 $5,937 90,000 andrew & Joan meyer Chilton, wi h 104 27,469 1,178 4.3 885 3.2 $6,228 91,000 twilight holsteins stanley, wi h 48 28,710 1,087 3.8 883 3.1 $6,032 91,000 hillebrand farms Cornell, wi h 110 27,450 1,195 4.4 865 3.2 $6,189 93,000 Claude Court seymour, wi h 26 20,839 791 3.8 659 3.2 $4,451 96,000 * seven oaks dairy, llC Kaukauna, wi h 869 27,850 971 3.5 829 3.0 $5,562 97,000 RandySchofield Spencer,WI H 106 23,627 908 3.8 742 3.1 $5,052 97,000 pinecreek farms medford, wi h 256 25,443 993 3.9 791 3.1 $5,443 98,000 * stutzman family farms llC Conrath, wi h 327 28,362 1,039 3.7 848 3.0 $5,789 99,000


Jacob & elaine Jahfetson baraga, mi h 25 19,360 725 3.7 610 3.2 $4,105 30,000 Kathy frye logansport, in X 12 22,947 847 3.7 732 3.2 $4,873 45,000 lyle & Carla weaver Goshen, in h 66 21,439 768 3.6 635 3.0 $4,315 51,000 lyle burkholder nappanee, in J 99 17,512 846 4.8 626 3.6 $4,416 54,000 matt seeley shepherd, mi h 83 27,165 943 3.5 836 3.1 $5,521 55,000 * wilson family farm Carson City, mi h 731 30,090 1,238 4.1 977 3.2 $6,736 64,000 dave long elsie, mi h 46 26,179 843 3.2 782 3.0 $5,085 65,000 Jeremy beebe whittemore, mi h 148 20,059 774 3.9 610 3.0 $4,220 66,000 * winkel dairy llC mcbain, mi h 1,060 28,965 1,058 3.7 850 2.9 $5,844 67,000 Ken meekhof mcbain, mi h 195 27,084 1,017 3.8 860 3.2 $5,774 68,000 al reisbig Jr & sons ionia, mi h 402 24,761 863 3.5 760 3.1 $5,032 69,000 leroy zimmerman Carson City, mi h 69 25,791 967 3.7 800 3.1 $5,423 69,000 * lemajru dairy farm llC west branch, mi h 133 25,125 940 3.7 796 3.2 $5,342 71,000 Claytop holsteins howard City, mi h 240 24,572 982 4.0 776 3.2 $5,354 72,000 potgeter dairy farms allendale, mi h 68 27,597 1,068 3.9 837 3.0 $5,804 72,000 tim & sandy verhage allegan, mi h 75 31,478 1,157 3.7 974 3.1 $6,559 72,000 randy & Cindy dragt howard City, mi h 208 25,000 920 3.7 779 3.1 $5,232 73,000 Gilde farms llC lake City, mi h 208 28,102 972 3.5 837 3.0 $5,597 74,000 tjerk & ramona okkema blanchard, mi h 375 27,087 951 3.5 843 3.1 $5,564 74,000 * duane & Janet molhoek falmouth, mi h 178 28,817 1,029 3.6 876 3.0 $5,878 75,000 bob, mike, & matt Cnossen falmouth, mi h 512 27,713 1,059 3.8 846 3.1 $5,820 76,000 dave & rick tacoma falmouth, mi h 282 28,975 969 3.3 912 3.1 $5,884 76,000 * e. Kuyers & sons west olive, mi h 161 34,870 1,350 3.9 1,090 3.1 $7,458 76,000 stuart farms lowell, mi h 370 27,678 1,038 3.8 863 3.1 $5,838 77,000 * Cary dairy farm battle Creek, mi h 987 31,948 1,155 3.6 930 2.9 $6,391 78,000 * Crandall farms llC battle Creek, mi h 303 32,307 1,197 3.7 990 3.1 $6,716 78,000 * rodney daniels whittemore, mi h 466 29,307 1,154 3.9 875 3.0 $6,155 79,000 Jerry folcik wilson, mi h 85 23,810 973 4.1 733 3.1 $5,163 80,000 hardy spring lake farms stanton, mi h 205 27,573 1,106 4.0 845 3.1 $5,918 82,000 nienhuis dairy farm zeeland, mi h 314 25,898 934 3.6 785 3.0 $5,294 82,000 ladine farms bellevue, mi h 129 28,664 1,033 3.6 872 3.0 $5,870 83,000 * Kurt Chase hastings, mi h 607 27,420 944 3.4 826 3.0 $5,487 84,000 Jeff Knuver fremont, mi h 158 31,010 1,178 3.8 930 3.0 $6,433 85,000 * wirth farms evart, mi h 633 27,954 964 3.4 846 3.0 $5,612 86,000 heritage farms wayland, mi h 185 26,470 825 3.1 799 3.0 $5,113 87,000 fritz dairy farm inc west branch, mi h 274 25,977 969 3.7 825 3.2 $5,525 88,000 Jonas zimmerman wakarusa, in h 120 25,778 1,102 4.3 811 3.1 $5,763 91,000 * rene dekker ubly, mi h 1,276 28,438 1,016 3.6 867 3.0 $5,812 91,000 sperry dairy farm llC Coldwater, mi h 166 26,838 1,023 3.8 843 3.1 $5,721 93,000 * Chad beck west branch, mi h 493 27,418 1,046 3.8 820 3.0 $5,689 94,000 sallie majeske Grant, mi h 25 20,292 707 3.5 598 2.9 $4,029 94,000 south view farms inc Claypool, in h 339 22,506 879 3.9 682 3.0 $4,749 94,000 beattie dairy farm holton, mi h 316 23,194 914 3.9 734 3.2 $5,031 95,000 * dan & bill easterday Camden, mi h 373 26,786 929 3.5 845 3.2 $5,520 95,000 dean martin nappanee, in h 128 24,384 864 3.5 755 3.1 $5,012 95,000 harold dodde falmouth, mi h 250 29,430 1,153 3.9 921 3.1 $6,329 95,000 * lew-max holstein llC belding, mi h 553 32,502 1,205 3.7 952 2.9 $6,591 95,000 dan dezeeuw mcbain, mi h 140 27,039 990 3.7 851 3.1 $5,680 96,000 * Gordon dick mcbain, mi h 269 29,518 1,041 3.5 881 3.0 $5,930 96,000 * Jeff shriver & max Carlson fremont, mi h 146 26,925 1,081 4.0 820 3.0 $5,762 98,000 Gerard antuma spruce, mi h 364 23,016 843 3.7 719 3.1 $4,815 99,000 * nick Clark prescott, mi h 192 21,323 845 4.0 667 3.1 $4,606 99,000 seth ponstein hamilton, mi X 83 25,443 922 3.6 772 3.0 $5,214 99,000

herDs unDer 100,000 scc & ≥ 4,000 Dollar valuem i c h i g a n , i n D i a n a & o h i o

3X herd owner address breed herd size milK fat fat % prot prot % value sCC aCtual

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2014 northstar cooperative dhi annual performance summary 2014

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