Latest News From Farmer Resilience

Farm kids have learned to quickly survey what needs to be done and take the lead to get it done. No questions asked. This is one reason farm kids stand out. They have learned to get tough during tough times.

As we celebrate International Women’s Day, I think of the many strong dairy women we have working on farms all across this great nation. For all of you farm girls out there, continue to shine bright.

One thing adversity teaches us is how to persevere. Dig deeper. Plow harder. At least this is what dairy farmer, Todd Benedict, has learned when he faced two nightmare situations—a barn fire and losing his milk market.

Happy heavenly birthday to my father, Bob. He would also have said that all of you, too, have found success, as you are part of the 2% club that is feeding the world.

All I can say is God bless American dairy farmers. You work hard despite the hardships that come your way. We need dairy farmers to continue to push forward to produce nutritious dairy products to feed the world.

Success is often shaped by values, found through hardships and the stimulus for momentum. If we learn anything from our 2023 Milk Business Award winners, it’s there is no cookie-cutter formula to achieve success.

Elle Purrier St. Pierre was fired and fueled to become the best version of herself. The Vermont dairy farmer recently broke her own U.S. record in the women’s indoor mile at a race in New York City.

I encourage you to look at the star players on teams, and when you get to know more about them, more times than not, you’ll learn they learned all they needed to excel in sports from growing up on a farm.  

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is no stranger to supporting farmers and is known to hold a special place in his heart for dairy, having served as president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC).

I challenge you to find another industry that offers the same blessings as the dairy industry. Editing will not only remind you of the goodness, but it also will provide you with the fuel to tackle the year ahead.

Fifteen years into growing a farm and a family together, everything changed for Ron and Sherri Prins and their four young kids. A diagnosis made the couple lean on their faith and on one another more than ever before.

Sadly, the future includes fewer farms. If you are part of that statistic, likely you'll always identify as a farmer, but find something to get you out of bed once the cows leave and provides you a sense of purpose.

What about the moments in between the times the sun rises and sets? The moments that aren’t as bright and certainly are not Instagram-worthy, but they do help shape our children for their future.

Three National Young Cooperators share about their journey with training and leadership development that has helped propel them forward.

As the holidays approach and we gather around the table for a family meal, try not to use the opportunity to gather as time for a business meeting. It’s very important to create separation between family and business. 

It’s easy for kids to think that money grows on trees. However, kids who grow up on a farm have a front-row view of understanding the true financial cost it takes to run a family business.

God bless grain cart drivers. They are great mind readers, understanding all those hand signals that are hard to interpret and hard to see, and the person who generally takes all the blame.

This past January, Val Lavigne became one of Dairy Management Inc.'s (DMI) newest board members. Leading up to this point, Lavigne has always been intrigued with checkoff and involved in her local efforts. 

Matt Budine has found better solutions and motivated positive changes to young dairy professionals that have gone through the Dairy Challenge, and more than 1.1 million cows touched by Progressive Dairy Solutions.

Sometimes the biggest inspiration comes in the smallest packages. This certainly holds true for Brynn Grewe. The pint-size dairy farm girl serves as a true inspiration, as she embodies strength, grit and perseverance.

Many of us are in the fast lane with kids graduating and we're getting a lesson on just how fast time goes. Thank your children for all the help they do on the farm and start thinking about who their replacement will be.

Working with family can be both challenging and rewarding. However, tensions can build if clearly defined roles and responsibilities are not established for each person. The good news is there are ways to navigate.

Sometimes life doesn't go the way it was planned. Most farmers understand this all too well. But sometimes life’s curveballs provide opportunities to grow and learn. This holds true for the Dinderman family of Illinois.

It's no wonder farmers experience higher levels of anxiety and depression because of the many factors they deal with that are out of their control. But how does that affect their family? A new study sheds light.

Think of your own success story, even if your path wasn’t straightforward. The industry is great because of all our great leaders who have continued to push hard, driving their businesses forward.

Farm life is far from simple, and this especially holds true for dairy farms that operate 24/7, 365 days a year. The rate of suicide among farmers is three and a half times higher than among the general population.

I wonder what is the magic formula that will allow dairy farms to continue making it. I don’t have a magic 8 ball that can tell us that, but what I can tell you all is that part of the formula requires resiliency.

Time is such a thief of joy, especially when it comes to raising kids. One day, you bring them home from the hospital with all the hopes in the world and then next you realize they become all that you have imagined.

In the aftermath of a mass shooting earlier this year on the campus of Michigan State University, the university’s dairy has served as a place for comfort by inviting students to de-stress by petting MSU cows and calves.

Bad times don’t last forever. Neither do good days. The mood of the industry quickly changed from an upbeat tone in 2022 to a sad melancholy note this summer.

Raising teens isn’t for the faint of hearts. Raising teens is not easy and while many of those years are spent watching our children thrive on and off the farm, other times we are just trying to survive.

Are you interested in being more effective in business and personal interactions? Are you tired of butting heads with that annoying person on your team? JD Fiechtner, DVM, shares tips to “Be Better Than Before.”

Negativity breeds negativity, right? Remember that. But the same can be said about positivity. Positivity can grow if we choose it too. Flip a switch on your mind, that will turn up cheerfulness on the farm. 

Producers feel exhausted dealing with the highs and lows of the industry. Add in the current state of the dairy economy with low milk prices, and it’s not too surprising that mental health is also impacting producers.

Gar-Lin Dairy Farm is thrilled to have Luke Bryan make his way back for the second straight year as a tour stop at their dairy farm in Eyota, Minn. Gar-Lin Dairy Farm will again host the show on Sept. 23, 2023.

Twenty years, Scott and I were married on our family dairy farm. It all goes by quickly, especially when you build a family and expanded a farm simultaneously. It’s all kind of a blur.

Two things have had a huge impact on Jeff Corle’s life—music and dairy cows. After high school, Corle headed south to Nashville, to pursue his dream of working in the music industry.

Adversity is a character test. From low milk prices, rising interest rates, weather and supply chain hiccups, farmers are used to dealing with adversity and things beyond their control. Our character is challenged daily.

An ongoing march to pay farm workers more continues to unfold in the state of New York as agriculture labor regulations have drastically changed. From farm owners to farm workers, this has all led to confusion.

Tucked in the rolling hills of a quaint New England town, Fairholm Farm in Woodstock, Ct., a century-old farm’s recipe for success also includes technology and securing additional profit sources.

Often times, life reveals a path greater than anything we could have planned on our own. That’s how it worked out for Cindale Farms when they embarked upon the journey to Southern Craft Creamery.

A winning tradition unfolds in the midsection of the country each Memorial Day weekend for the biggest motorsports event in the world. The Indy 500 is a tradition that Indiana dairy farmers get to help orchestrate.

Undercover video campaigns, staging protests at grocery stores and posting graphic content on social media are common activist tactics, but here's a look at a recent trend of court cases – and unfortunately, “wins."

An estimated 12,000 youth were injured on farms, with 4,000 of these injuries due to farm work in 2014. Sydni Mell and her brother Sam, both who grew up on a Wisconsin dairy farm, understand that statistic all too well.

Farm moms are in the fields, milking cows, feeding calves, paying the bills and somehow still manage to put supper on the table. They are very involved in their community and show up at their kid’s school events.

I wish grandpas never had to die. Especially the ones that sported bib overalls and rubber boots. I promise you this, the younger generation will reshare your stories and remember your advice long after you are gone.

When the going seems tough, don’t give up. Be brave, even when milk prices drop, feed prices rise and the next chapter of your farm seems like an uphill battle. Remember, the younger generation is watching.

In celebration of National Ag Day and National Ag Week, the 2023 Feeding the Economy report shows just how vital the industry is to U.S. families, communities and the world.

Imagine receiving a phone call from the government telling you to euthanize your entire herd. That’s the nightmare Art Schapp, owner of Highland Dairy in Clovis, New Mexico, wished had never come true.

It is hard to think about what our dairy operation could look like three to five years from now. Consider moving one thing on your to-do list off for another day and make time to talk about the future of your dairy.