Uplevel Dairy Podcast

Peggy Coffeen

What does it take to be a successful, profitable and competitive dairy farm business? This is the podcast for dairy owners, managers and advisors who are after their next level of success. Join Uplevel Dairy host Peggy Coffeen each week as she sits down with the industry’s leading dairy producers and thought leaders for real conversations about business, management and leadership.

  1. hace 3 días

    357 |  Inside the Minds of Dairy's Next Generation | Junior Advisory Committee Roundtable

    What’s inside the minds of the next generation of dairy leaders? We found out last week at the National Holstein Convention, where we sat down with 3 young leaders in the National Junior Holstein Association who are helping shape the future of the organization while representing thousands of junior members nationwide. Through leadership, service, and a whole lot of dedication, they're proving that the next generation is already making an impact. Mykel Mull from California, Cayden Bursiek from Ohio, and Ainsley Sellers from Pennsylvania talk about what inspired each of them to get involved with the National Holstein Junior Advisory Committee, what they've learned through serving in national leadership, how the Junior Advisory Committee gives young people a voice within the Association, and why programs like these matter so much for developing tomorrow's dairy leaders. Whether you're raising the next generation on your farm, involved in youth programs yourself, or simply want a glimpse of where our industry is headed, this conversation will leave you optimistic and inspired too. 01:36 Meet the JAC Team02:09 Ainsley’s Dairy Story02:51 Cayden’s Show Ring Roots03:25 Mykel’s Unique Path04:57 What the JAC Does07:11 Programs and Skills Built08:34 Lessons From Nationwide Networking11:22 Leaders Who Inspired Them16:01 Most Impactful Junior Programs19:45 Future Plans in Dairy and Beyond

    30 min

  2. 25 jun

    356 | Rebuilding After Tragedy: Four Cubs Farm's Story of Resilience

    When a devastating barn fire destroyed the heart of Four Cubs Farms in November 2017, the Peterson family faced a decision that would shape the future of their business for generations to come. In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen continues her conversation with Gary and Cris Peterson, Ben Peterson, and Dairy Manager Nathan Brandt as they reflect on one of the most difficult days in the farm's history—and how it became the catalyst for transformation.From the overwhelming support of neighbors and fellow dairy producers to rebuilding with robotic milking technology, the team shares how resilience, innovation, and a willingness to embrace change helped them emerge stronger than before. The conversation explores how data-driven decision making, animal welfare, technology adoption, and strategic growth are helping Four Cubs Farms remain competitive while preparing for its 150th anniversary and the next generation of leadership.This episode is sponsored by Compeer Financial.Compeer Financial is a member-owned Farm Credit cooperative serving and supporting agriculture and rural America. Their dairy team brings world-class expertise and tailored solutions to support dairy producers’ financial goals and lending needs.02:00 – The day the barn fire changed everything04:00 – Moving cows and saving the herd during the crisis06:00 – Community support and the dairy industry's response07:00 – Rebuilding after the fire and making a major decision08:00 – Choosing robotic milking technology10:00 – Bringing cows home and transitioning to robots12:00 – How the robotic dairy is organized today14:00 – Collecting and using data to improve performance16:00 – Measuring return on investment through data18:00 – Data, profitability, and continuous improvement20:00 – Solving challenges through real-time insights22:00 – Staying competitive in a changing dairy industry23:00 – Cow behavior, stocking density, and robot efficiency25:00 – Labor, technology, and future dairy strategies27:00 – Growth plans and expansion opportunities28:00 – Building the next generation of the herd30:00 – Celebrating 150 years of family farming32:00 – Looking ahead to the future of Four Cubs Farms33:00 – Lessons in resilience, leadership, and perseverance

    36 min

  3. 23 jun

    355 | Leadership Across Generations: Creating a Dairy Business Built to Last

    For nearly 150 years, Four Cubs Farms in Grantsburg, Wisconsin, has been built on a simple principle: people matter. In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen sits down with Gary and Cris Peterson, their son Ben Peterson, and Dairy Manager Nathan Brandt to explore the leadership, culture, communication, and innovation that transformed a small family dairy into a thriving 1,000-cow operation. From succession planning and employee engagement to genomic testing, feed efficiency, and building trust across generations, this conversation offers valuable lessons for dairy producers looking to create resilient businesses that can thrive well into the future. Whether you're navigating farm transition, building a team, or looking for ways to strengthen your operation's culture, this episode delivers practical insights from a farm that has successfully blended family values with modern dairy management. This episode is sponsored by Compeer Financial. Compeer Financial is a member-owned Farm Credit cooperative serving and supporting agriculture and rural America. Their dairy team brings world-class expertise and tailored solutions to support dairy producers’ financial goals and lending needs. 02:00 – Growing from 60 cows to 1,000 cows 03:00 – Roles and responsibilities within the farm team 05:00 – Cris Peterson's journey from city girl to dairy advocate 09:00 – Leadership transition and bringing in outside talent 10:00 – Nathan Brandt's path into dairy and Four Cubs Farms 13:00 – Building a team with complementary strengths 14:00 – Innovation through feed systems and grain storage 16:00 – Genetics, genomic testing, and future herd growth 20:00 – Nutrition strategies for today's high-performing dairy cows 24:00 – The role of culture in farm success 27:00 – Trust, communication, and employee retention 30:00 – Creating clarity, consistency, and rhythm across the operation 32:00 – Succession planning, growth, and preparing for the future

    35 min

  4. 18 jun

    354 | Lessons from a Father-Daughter Vet Duo: The Next Generation of Dairy Care

    Today on the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen visits with father-daughter veterinarians Dr. Paul Meagher and Dr. Amanda Onan of United Veterinary Services in Northeast Wisconsin about how dairy practice evolved from reactive emergency work to proactive, team-based consulting. Dr. Paul shares his path from a North Dakota dairy farm to nearly 40 years in mixed and large-animal practice, mentors who emphasized prevention, and lessons learned from top producers: the right mindset and decision-making with a consultant team, high-quality forages, and consistency. Dr. Amanda reflects on riding on after-hours calls as a child, emphasizes aligning larger dairy crews around shared goals, and predicts AI-driven tools such as calving-detection cameras and expanded monitoring. They discuss communication, humility, and “living in the light” through positivity and learning from negatives. This episode is brought to you by Heritage Vet Partners. Heritage Vet Partners is the nation’s leading veterinary partnership, specializing in mixed and large animal practices.  Heritage Vet Partners provides a unique partnership model that preserves local practice legacies, serving dairy and other livestock producers and companion animal owners through shared services, data, and strategic growth. Learn more at HeritageVetPartners.com 02:10 Paul's Path to Practice 03:16 Mentors and Preventive Shift 04:59 Amanda's First Farm Call 06:45 Supporting Her Vet Dream 08:55 Learning From Top Producers 10:44 Three Keys to Success 16:54 From Firefighting to Consulting 19:20 Data and Record Analysis 24:15 Future Tech and AI 27:32 Family Support and Grandpa Life 30:04 Lessons Living in the Light

    38 min

  5. 16 jun

    353 | The Young Dairy Manager Changing Herd Health One Insight at a Time

    Shelby Jacquier Washburn, is a fourth-generation dairy farmer and managing partner at Laurel Brook Farm in East Canaan, Connecticut, describes returning from an equine business program during COVID to help manage a 1,500-cow herd and 1,800 acres each of corn and hay/haylage while raising all young stock. In today's conversation, she explains how accepting a 200-tag Nedap trial led to whole-herd collars (Nedap Now) that detect health issues 12–24 hours earlier via rumination, eating time, and milk deviations, informing earlier treatment and culling decisions, identifying lameness, and paying back about half the system cost in a year through reduced hospital time. Data prompted diet changes for fresh cows, improved heats and overall cow brightness, new transition protocols (moving pre-fresh cows two days before due date) that boosted colostrum supply, and heat-stress monitoring that revealed the parlor as a hotspot, leading to added evaporative cooling, fans, and water. This episode is part of the High-Performance Mindset Series powered by Nedap. Nedap is future-proofing dairy farming with smart technologies in activity monitoring, cow locating, milk metering, sort gates, and AI-powered camera systems. Nedap is improving life on the farm by putting the right cow in the right place at the right time, every time. 00:47 Meet Shelby Jacquier Washburn 01:14 From Horses to Dairy 03:41 Collars Across the Herd 05:03 The 200 Tag Leap 07:11 Fresh Cow Insights 09:08 Diet Tweaks Big Wins 11:18 Transition Monitoring Shift 12:20 Colostrum Turnaround 14:32 Heat Stress Hotspots 16:48 What's Next in Tech 21:16 Future in Connecticut

    24 min

  6. 11 jun

    352 | Redefining What Leadership Looks Like on the Dairy with Annie Vannurden

    How do you lead multiple dairy operations, oversee teams across several states, and still make it home for supper with three young children waiting for you? In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen sits down with Annie Vannurden, Managing Partner and COO of Silver Streak Dairies, part of the Pace Ag Group. Annie shares what it takes to create consistency across multiple dairy sites while building a culture centered around accountability, communication, employee development, and cow care. From managing site leaders and implementing systems that support growth to navigating the realities of motherhood while pursuing ambitious business goals, Annie offers practical insights for dairy producers, managers, and anyone leading teams in agriculture. Whether you're growing a dairy business, building leadership skills, or trying to balance family and career, this conversation is packed with actionable lessons and honest reflections from someone living it every day. This episode is brought to you by Zoetis. As the world’s leading animal health company, Zoetis is dedicated to helping producers achieve healthy animals, healthy dairies and healthy food through their world-class portfolio. For more information, visit ⁠DairyWellness.com.⁠ 01:42 Meet Annie Van Irden 01:59 Inside Pace Ag Merge 03:43 COO Day To Day 06:52 Consistency Across Sites 10:18 Clarity And Communication 12:55 Maturity And Priorities 13:52 People Wins And Expansion 17:49 Work Hat Home Hat 22:06 Boundaries And Presence 26:32 Mentors And Influence 31:44 Support System At Home 35:13 Planning Routines Calendar

    37 min

  7. 9 jun

    351 | Robots, Faith and Resilience: Transforming Tradition at Silver Spirit Farm

    Today on the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy sits down with Sam Fessenden, a Cornell dairy science graduate with a PhD focused on the CNCPS model who worked with nutritionists globally before partnering with his wife Brenda and her parents, Craig and Cathy, to rebuild dairying at their Southeast Minnesota site. In this conversation, Sam shares early mentorship near Cornell, how consulting and barn tours informed their tech-forward design, and how they converted a former 70-stall stanchion operation into a 120-cow, sand-bedded, two-robot, largely automated free-flow barn launched in 2020 while welcoming their first child. He discusses feeding non-pelleted homegrown corn through robots, lessons from managing cows daily (manure observation and feed inventory realities), choosing open-minded advisors, patience in growth decisions, guidance for generational transition, resilience through cost control, extra acres, and value-added black calf raising, and how faith and family motivate raising three kids on the farm. This Episode is brought to you by Adisseo This episode is sponsored by Uplevel Dairy Podcast Founding Partner Adisseo, a global leader in nutritional solutions and premier provider of rumen-protected methionine for dairy producers who want to optimize milk production, capture more value from components, and maintain the health of their high-performing herds. Learn more at ⁠https://www.adisseo.com/en/⁠ 01:44 Sam’s Dairy Roots 05:31 Cornell Mentors and Models 08:42 From Consulting to Minnesota 09:24 Rebuilding the Dairy Site 11:49 Designing a Robot Barn 13:45 Automation and Feeding Hacks 16:32 Consulting Lessons Applied 19:02 Choosing the Right Advisors 21:25 Patience and Farm Values 23:17 Succession and Growth Plans 26:14 Resilience and Black Calves 30:46 Family First and Faith

    34 min

  8. 4 jun

    350 | Ice Cream, Show Cows and Family Values: The Vandoske Dairy Farms Story

    Today, Peggy Coffeen visits Bob and Tara Vandoske at Vandoske Dairy Farms in Cleveland, Wisconsin, to discuss how their 700-cow family dairy farm has grown into diverse business segments, including County Line Creamery, an on-farm ice cream store with viewing windows and open barn access, and a cattle boarding/show-cow facility. They share the farm’s multi-generational history, their three children’s roles (including show involvement and work responsibilities), and how these ventures create next-generation opportunities and consumer connection. Bob explains the creamery grew from COVID-era interest in local food, progressed through careful planning, and started by bringing in products rather than processing milk. They describe the boarding business’ unexpected growth, recent dairy facility upgrades including a new double-12 parallel parlor, and the importance of faith, teamwork, and relationships. NutriQuest nutritionist Jeff Rortvedt, highlights the farm’s multiple enterprises and Bob’s investments in cow care and the future. This episode is brought to you be NutriQuest. The NutriQuest Dairy Nutrition Team is a group of experienced nutritionists committed to serving dairy producers by partnering with them to develop an un-biased, customized nutrition program that delivers maximum profitability, achieved through a holistic approach, engaging in all aspects that influence nutrition program success. The NutriQuest Dairy Team is committed to serving the dairy industry and delivering their customers’ consistent results with a high return. Learn more at nutriquest.com/dairy-nutrition-solutions 01:49 Vandoske Farm Story 03:06 Kids and Farm Roles 04:51 Why Not 10000 Cows 05:33 County Line Creamery Idea 08:33 Planning the Build Out 11:05 Why Ice Cream Wins 12:27 Cattle Boarding Begins 15:37 Designing the Show Barn 18:11 Busy Saturdays and Events 21:02 Three Years of Rapid Growth 21:30 Heavy Decisions and Faith 21:51 Hardest Choices and New Roles 24:17 Dairy Upgrades and New Parlor 27:43 Raising the Next Generation 29:44 Future Plans and Tractor Time 35:25 A Nutritionist's Perspective

    38 min
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What does it take to be a successful, profitable and competitive dairy farm business? This is the podcast for dairy owners, managers and advisors who are after their next level of success. Join Uplevel Dairy host Peggy Coffeen each week as she sits down with the industry’s leading dairy producers and thought leaders for real conversations about business, management and leadership.

Información

  • Creador
    Peggy Coffeen
  • Años de actividad
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodios
    353
  • Clasificación
    Apto
  • Copyright
    © 868329
  • Mostrar sitio web
    Uplevel Dairy Podcast

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