$5 milk?!

Maybe you’ve heard the latest sensational news: milk could cost $5 a gallon by the end of the summer. Scary, huh? Chalk it up to the economy, the ethanol craze, or whatever reason one can fabricate to blame. Nonetheless, these even a more frightening reality at heart: the poor state of the dairy industry today. While you might pay $5 at the grocery store, only a fraction of that goes to the dairy farmer.

So, let’s figure up just how much the farmer is receiving per gallon. Before we do that, here’s a quick description of how milk is marketed. Dairy producers are paid per the “hundred-weight,” or per one hundred pounds of milk. There are 8.7 pounds of milk in one gallon. Currently, to make the math a little easier, we’ll round up and say that class three milk (fluid milk- the good stuff you buy in the plastic jugs) is going for $10 a hundredweight. Breaking that down, here’s an approximation of what the farmer is getting for a gallon of milk:

.87 __$__   =   __$10__   x   __8.7lbs__

        gal          100lbs             1gal

That’s right, for every gallon of milk you buy at the grocery store, a whopping 87 cents goes to the farmer. Where does the rest go? The supermarket’s pocket, the processor gets a cut, and you can’t forget the trucking company. Worse yet, though you may be paying $5 for a gallon of milk this summer, the futures market shows only a slight increase in the farmer’s share. Therefore, there will be larger profits for everyone except the farmer.

Now, not to continue to be a bearer of bad news, but that 87 cents isn’t even profit for the farmer. Far from it. By the time you take out labor costs, feed costs, cow healthcare, and other overhead costs, many dairy farmers are barely sliding by. They are using profits from past years to ride out the wave of losing money this year.

So, what can be done to solve this crisis in the dairy industry? We wish we knew. For now, it’s a matter of riding it on good management practices and doing more with less until the markets come around.

Farming- It's Not a 9 to 5 Job

The past couple of weeks, we have been reminded that farming is not for the faint of heart or for those that enjoy sleep, for that matter! Early mornings, late nights, and go-go-go in between are necessary to get the crops into the ground in a timely fashion. Since Mother Nature only provides limited windows with the right conditions, like any woman, the schedule is on her terms.

Memorial Day weekend, while many of you were enjoying cookouts and were lounging beside the pool, you might have noticed the number of tractors scurrying down the road. Farming, you see, isn't a nine to five job. It doesn't take holidays, and it quits when the job is done, not when the daylight runs out. The work ethic of American farmers is second to none. I was both amazed and impressed when during the peak of planting season, Greg would leave the house a little before 6am, not to return again until after 11p. Not only was he planting crops, but he was also feeding cows, fixing equipment, and dealing with other issues that arose. And, you know what? He's not the exception. Farmers everyday balance the same workload. 

Unfortunately, the weather didn't hold until planting was finished. The rain got to us right before the soybeans hit the ground. That means this week has been a little more relaxed, but rest assured, as soon as the fields dry up some, they'll be at it again. So, the next time you're driving down the road cussing at the tractor driving 10mph in front of you, have a little respect knowing that their job isn't all lollipops and sunshine. :) 

Greg checks seed levels in the boxes on the planter. It's important to make sure there is always enough in the boxes, or he could have to replant the rows where the seed ran out. 

Planting crops requires lot of concentration. The tractor and planter together weigh 10 tons, which means you really don't want to mess up! Also, there are about 5 controls to run at a time, in addition to steering. Multitasking is a must!

The sun is going down, but Greg is still planting. If the weather is right, farmers don't want to miss their windows of opportunity to get the crops in the ground!

Milk- it does a body good

The following article can be found in its original state at http://www.idfa.org/facts/milk/milkfact/milk5.pdf

THE IMPORTANCE OF MILK IN THE DIET 

Although milk from the cow is processed, it is not an engineered or fabricated food. It is about 87 percent water and 13 percent solids.  The fat portion of the milk contains fat soluble vitamins.  The solids other than fat include proteins, carbohydrates, water soluble vitamins, and minerals.  These nutrients in milk help make it nature’s most nearly perfect food. 

Milk products contain high quality proteins.  The whey proteins constitute about 18 percent of the protein content of milk.  Casein, a protein found only in milk, contains all of the essential amino acids.  It accounts for 82 percent of the total proteins in milk and is used as a standard for evaluating protein of other foods.  Protein is needed to build and repair body tissues and to form antibodies which circulate in the blood and help fight infection. Milk contains the following nutrients: calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and potassium. The calcium found in milk is readily absorbed by the body.  Phosphorus plays a role in calcium absorption and utilization.  Phosphorus is needed in the proper ratio to calcium to form bone.  Milk provides these two minerals in approximately the same ratio as found in bone.  Milk is also a significant source of riboflavin (vitamin B2) which helps promote healthy skin and eyes, as well as vitamins A and D. 

In adults, a calcium deficiency, along with other factors, may result in bone deterioration called osteoporosis.  The recommendations for calcium is 1,000 milligrams for adults, 1,300 milligrams per day for adolescents, 500-800 milligrams per day for young children and 1,200 milligrams per day for adults over 51 years of age.  It is difficult to obtain adequate calcium without milk and milk products in the diet. About 73 percent of the calcium available in the food supply is provided by milk and milk products.  The following daily consumption of milk group foods is suggested: 

• Children, 3 cups 

• Teenagers, 4 cups 

• Adults, 3 cups 

• Adults over 50, 4 cups

Enjoy your glass of milk today!

Rain, rain go away

Mother Nature showered us with more precipitation today. This brings us to almost 2 inches since last week. Most people think that rain benefits farmers, which in most situations, it definitely does. However, this time of the year, it can create unneeded pressure. You see, farming is all about timing. Corn should be in the fields at a specific time of the year (about two weeks ago). Every day it's is planted late, yields can decrease. Too much rain=not able to get in the fields=stress for the farmers who want to see their crops grow well. 

Rest assured, however, that farmers will not jump the gun to get into the fields before the conditions are right. Going into the fields while the ground is still wet could cause compaction of the soil (the soil will pack down). Compaction can never be completely reversed, so the soil forms a dense layer, and roots cannot push through it. Also, a dense layer hinders soil drainage. Basically, compaction is bad news.

So, until the rain stops falling, we'll find other things to work on. Fortunately, there are always jobs to do! :) 

Welcome to Dial Dairy Farm!

We're glad you've stopped by to read our blog! This is a new effort to connect our neighbors, both locally and globally, with what's happening on our farm. We hope through this venue, we can promote dairy production as an industry that cares about its animals and consumers. Feel free to ask questions at any time.

In the meantime, allow us to introduce ourselves. Dial Dairy began in its current form in 1982 as a venture between Allen and Diane Hartschuh, who own and operate the farm today. The farm has been in the Hartschuh family for four generations. Allen and Diane have three sons: Greg, Brian, and Jason, all who are involved on the farm in some aspect. Greg graduated from The Ohio State University in 2006 and has been employed full-time on the farm since then. He handles equipment maintenance and manages the farm's crops. Brian is in his second year of vet school at OSU and works with herd health and occasional milking. Jason, the youngest, is a freshman at Ohio State, majoring in animal science and agricultural education. He also works extensively with the cows. Greg's wife, Rose (another Buckeye!), works off of the farm as an agricultural education instructor, but she stays connected to the farm in various ways (especially with the its web presence!) 

Top- Allen and Diane.

Middle- The boys. Left to right: Jason, Greg, Brian.

Bottom- Greg and Rose.

The farm is located in rural Ohio, which enables the fertile farmland to produce crops to feed the cows. Dial Dairy produces almost all of its own feed for the cows, which produce natural fertilizer to keep the crops growing. :) It's a cycle, you see. Right now, we are milking around 150 cows, and we also keep replacement heifers to work into the milking rotation. It keeps us busy!

You can look for updates on our blog to keep current on the latest efforts. Hopefully this will be a collaborative process from all of the family members so you can see a variety of viewpoints! Questions and comments welcome.

Until the next post, email us at DialDairy@gmail.com, check out our fan page on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter!