Jim Dickrell

Jim Dickrell is the editor Dairy Herd Management and is based in Monticello, Minn. He has 27 years of publication experience, and also operated his family’s Wisconsin family dairy farm for three years following graduation from the University of Wisconsin—River Falls. He also holds a Masters Degree from Hamline University, St. Paul, Minn.

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More research needs to be done to determine whether less confinement will lead to healthier animals and greater food safety.
Lely to assemble robotic milkers in Pella, Iowa.
At issue is the market stabilization program, which would require producers who voluntarily sign up to cut production during times of low margins.
On a weighted average based on volume shipped, the hauling charges have not changed, averaging about 30¢/cwt.
March cow numbers totaled 9.266 million head, up 86,000 cows (0.9%) over a year ago.
Dairy price supports and MILC payments favored by smaller Michigan dairy producers.
One big reason that cull prices remain so high, despite more dairy cows going to slaughter, is that total U.S. red meat production was down 4% in March.
Even though dairy cow numbers were up last year, they weren’t enough to offset declining beef cattle numbers.
Herds with 300 or more cows will need 180 days of manure storage.
Brothers finalize buy-sell agreements.
The critical control point in preventing MRSA spread is cow-to-cow and cow-to-human is hygiene.
On a day-of-business basis, they sent roughly the same number: 12,420 head/day in 2012 and 12,450 head per day in 2011.
The plant will take in two million pounds of milk per day and be capable of producing 250,000 pounds of whole milk powder.
The “30x20” effort hopes to grow the state’s milk production to 30 billion pounds by 2020, a 15% increase over the next eight years and a doubling of the annual rate of growth.
The program has gained widespread support from key organizations, including Elanco, the U.S. Dairy Export Council, the Center for Advanced Energy Studies/Idaho National Laboratory, USDA, the World Wildlife Fund, MilkPEP and the Dairy Research Institute.