Dairy Producers of the Year
Mike Larson, Ed & Barb Larson, Sandy Larson & Jim Trustem - Larson Acres
Evansville, Wisconsin
The Larson family, Evansville, Wis., has been farming in southern Wisconsin for nearly a century. Focusing on three key pillars – quality, pride and family – Larson Acres is a superior example of modern dairy farming. Milking 2,800 Holsteins in both a conventional double-20 parallel parlor and a cross-ventilated double-22 parallel parlor, the herd averages 109 pounds of energy corrected milk daily, with a 4.68% fat, 3.4% protein and 56,000 somatic cell count.
In addition to stellar production records, Larson Acres has bred 130 Excellent cows, 16 Gold Medal Dams, 40 Dams of Merit, four Gold Medal Sires and 16 regional and/or national Elite Performer Award recipients. Always looking to breed the most profitable and efficient animal possible, the Larson family were early adopters of genomic testing, but it’s not just genomics that dominates the herd. The Larson family has also seen success in the Showring, developing the Bilijean Bolivia Lyndi-ET family. Descendants of Lyndi have garnered numerous champion awards at regional and state shows as well as Junior All-American nominations.
The cows play a pivotal role at Larson Acres, but the people are just as important to the Larson family, opening their barn doors to welcome community members, industry leaders, fellow dairy producers, international guests, school children and more. They are also staunch supporters of Junior Holstein, 4-H and FFA programs throughout Rock County. Every year, the family provides animals for local kids and holds a tag sale offering show-age project heifers at reasonable prices for kids of all ages looking to purchase their own animals.
Industry People of the Year
Jim Barmore, Marty Faldet, and King Hickman - GPS Dairy Consulting LLC
Lakewood, Minnesota
The three original partners, Jim Barmore, Dr. Marty Faldet and Dr. King Hickman, founded GPS
Dairy Consulting LLC, an independent dairy nutrition and full management consulting business, from ground zero in 2009. GPS Dairy Consulting is an integrated team of over 15 independent consultants with additional support staff who work closely to provide a broad offering of services, educational events, tools, and expertise to deliver success to dairies in 10 states and internationally and has impacted more than 110 clients and 400,000 animals.
Focused on more than just nutrition, the founding partners emphasized five pillars of success for employees to share with their clients: culture, operational excellence, relationships, innovation and people development and growth. Likely, the most significant achievement of the vision and growth of GPS Dairy Consulting is building a leading model in both dairy nutrition and management expertise, while focusing on the development of the dairy farm team and people. This has been done with a keen focus on training, mentoring, peer-learning, coaching, and prioritizing the greatest assets on a dairy; the people and a new generation of dairy owners.
Working and collaborating closely with many of the best dairies in the industry has yielded numerous nationally recognized and prestigious awards for dairy clients of GPS Dairy Consulting, such as Aldo Leopold conservation practices leading land and water sustainability, milk quality, herd reproduction, cheese quality, WDE Dairy Producer of the Year and more. Aside from helping their clients’ farms be successful, inspiring change and growing leaders in the dairy industry is the hallmark of success for GPS Dairy Consulting.
International Person of the Year
Paul Larmer - Semex
Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Paul Larmer, of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, has dedicated his professional life to dairy cattle genetics, making a valuable global impact. Working specifically in the genetics industry since 1984, Larmer held positions at United Breeders Inc., Semex Alliance, and Alta Genetics Inc. before rejoining Semex in 2007 as Chief Executive Officer. As Semex’s CEO, his efforts culminated in an unprecedented 17 consecutive years of record-breaking sales and revenues, as well as delivering six Millionaire Sires to the industry.
Larmer is a recognized authority in the bovine genetics industry and international sales management. Through his expert direction, strategic planning, and the application of his marketing and business acumen, he has played a pivotal role in developing and distributing genetics and solutions for dairy producers globally. In an ever-changing world, Paul not only encouraged the use of technology at Semex but helped to implement some of the dairy industry’s most consequential developments.
He led the deployment of the genetic industry’s first activity-monitoring solution and oversaw the research and launch of the world’s first true genomic health evaluation based on immune response, Immunity+®.
Throughout his career, Larmer has overseen multiple ground-breaking research and development projects that increased efficiency, profitability and sustainability for dairymen worldwide. These projects included enhancing dairy technology and genetics in China, establishing production center(s) in Hungary and Brazil, and most recently delivering a first-in-class Methane Efficiency Index to clients globally to increase industry sustainability. As of December 2023, Larmer retired from his position as Semex’s CEO and has transitioned into the role of Executive Advisor.
