Dairyman of the Year: Pete Kappelman
Pete Kappelman owns and operates Meadow Brook Dairy Farms LLC in Two Rivers, Wis., with his wife, Shellie. Home to 470 Registered Holsteins and Brown Swiss, Meadow Brook Dairy maintains a rolling herd average of 32,000 lb. of milk, 1,100 lb. of fat and 1,000 lb. of protein while managing 1,100 acres of alfalfa, corn, wheat, rye, grass and oats.
Active in his community, Kappelman serves on the board of directors for Immanuel Lutheran Church, the Economic Development Corporation for Manitowoc County, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Alumni Association and Farm Wisconsin Discovery Center. He is also an active 4-H club leader and girls’ basketball coach. Kappelman has impacted the national and international dairy industry through multiple terms as the board chairman for Land O’Lakes Inc., service to the U.S. Dairy Export Council and the National Milk Producers Federation’s board of directors in addition to time as the ag policy adviser to the U.S. secretary of agriculture and the U.S. trade representative.
Believing in the importance of providing people with the tools, education and livestock that are needed to make a long- term, sustainable difference, Kappelman has participated in several service trips to Africa and other developing countries as well as dedicated time as a board member for Heifer International.
Kappelman has been recognized with numerous awards including the Wisconsin Dairy Farm Family of the Year, Wisconsin Outstanding Young Farmer Award and Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation’s Young Farmer Achievement Award. The Kappelmans have three grown children, Beth, Mitch and Erin, and two grandchildren.
