MID-WEST FARM REPORT - MADISON Pam Jahnke

Wisconsin dairy operators are being asked to finish up their 2024 Dairy Producer Survey before the end of the month. DATCP mailed the survey to licensed producers in late May 2024. The survey includes about 30 questions on various topics including herd demographics, management practices, business structure, labor, and future plans. Survey responses will provide insight into industry challenges and opportunities.

Dan Bauer, supervisor of the Wisconsin Farm Center within the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, tells Pam Jahnke that previous survey's have helped guide development of programs and policy for the state's dairy industry.

Bauer said Wisconsin dairy farms are normally very good at returning the survey.  Previous survey's done in 2020 picked up about a 40% response rate.  That survey alone helped launch the Farmer Wellness Program and development of more mental health tools available to farms and their families/employees.

If you misplaced your survey, or never received one, you can contact the Wisconsin Farm Center at 800-942-2474 or email them:  farmcenter@wisconsin.gov.
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The phrase "swarms" is catching attention but it's not about insects, it's about new technology.  Stephanie Hoff talks to Preston Rice from Madison Drones, about the recent approval to use swarms of drones to address challenges in field crops.There's so many background stories circulating at fairs in Wisconsin.  One special story involves Emmet Saddlery in Hustisford.  They started out supporting local 4-H kids interested in learning leather craft.  They still do that today, including building a very special saddle for a paralyzed farm kid from DeForest.McFarlanes and Fendt have a special crop tour coming up Aug. 7th focused on how planting technology ultimately impacts yields.  Jacob Leverich with Agco/Fendt, tells Pam Jahnke about the technology.  Paid for by Fendt/McFarlanes.Even with challenging weather - Wisconsin farmers are looking forward to good yields in their soybean fields.  Dr. Shawn Conley, UW-Extension Soybean Specialist, is looking for entries in the 2024 WI Soybean Yield Contest.  It offers cash incentives and bragging rights to the growers and their seed partners.  For Conley, it offers up great data for future research projects.  Paid for by the WI Soybean Checkoff Program.
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It's June Dairy Month -- the perfect time to remind producers that there is a Spanish for Dairy class for farmers and anyone who works with dairy farm employees. Farm and Industry Short Course Outreach Program Manager Heather Gayton has the details.
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UW-Madison's Farm and Industry Short Course program will be offering a new Farm Electrical Maintenance and Safety short course in July. Participants will learn about the laws, procedures, tools, protective gear, and other basics for staying safe while troubleshooting or maintaining electrical equipment, says FISC Outreach Program Manager Heather Gayton.
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Unseen for a few years, two major wheat diseases have re-emerged, catching farmers off guard. Damon Smith, UW-Extension Plant Pathologist says he’s starting to see diseases really taking hold and shutting the plants down early.

“We’re seeing the resurgence of stripe rust and fusarium head blight (scab),” says Smith. “After several years of relative calm, this has caught many by surprise.”

Smith says he saw the most significant severity on certain susceptible varieties in our southern locations, particularly around Arlington. As we move north, the severity decreases, which aligns with the fact that stripe rust spores generally can't overwinter in Wisconsin and instead travel from the deep south.
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Wisconsin's dairy goat industry also contributes to the state's nickname of America's Dairyland. 

The Wisconsin Dairy Goat Association traces its roots back to the 1930s. Association Vice President Anna Thompson Hajdik says Wisconsin's dairy goat heritage has gotten a new light in the last decade or so thanks to the development of new products.

"You can find goat milk in everything from your conventional cheeses to now ice creams, gelatos, there's exciting work going on in the creation of formula for babies," she says. "There's yogurt, kiefers, and other growing segments of dairy goat products, so it's an exciting time."

Wisconsin will be showing off its dairy goat heritage this fall. The American Dairy Goat Association is hosting its national convention October 19-25 in Lake Geneva.
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