Why a Co-op?

Why do people belong to cooperatives? What do they offer that you cannot do for yourself?

We belong to a cooperative because we do not have the time to find a market for, schedule delivery and negotiate the price of our milk along with doing the work of the farm. Our co-op, Dairy Farmer's of America (DFA), does a great job of taking care of that end of the business for us. We also benefit from the numerous extras a co-op can provide it's member-owners. We have opportunites to learn more about the industry; have access to services like risk-management, information on how to best utilize grazing in our operation, and how to conserve more energy on our farms; as well as receive discounts on supplies because of the buying power of a cooperative.

It is important to remember that while the day-to-day business of a cooperative may be run by a few, the owners of it are many. Each member has an equal voice and vote in decisions being made. If they don't agree with the way things are going they can work for change or change the cooperative they belong to. Farmers are not held captive. They see the value a cooperative has in their ability to remain doing what they love to do.

Cooperatives also are of value to consumers because they set standards. They are agressive in setting standards for the quality of milk they will pay for, for animal care and for sustainability to name a few. Cooperatives strive to make sure all their members have the information they need to produce the best product they can.

Cooperatives exist for a reason--they benefit society, through those who belong to them and those who purchase the products they offer.

Planting

The crops are in and growing. We plant forages, like grasses, oats and alfalfa, as well as corn. Almost all of which we use to feed our cows.

I never realized the work it takes to plant a crop until I married a dairyman. Honestly, I didn't know much about agriculture at all until I married into it and the learning curve has been steep. For instance, cows have to have a baby to produce milk, just like humans. To some this may seem like commonsense, but to someone like me, who had no ties to agriculture before getting married, it is not common. I also learned there are steps to planting. We till or break-up our soil before we plant, then apply fertilizer (plant food) if the soil is low on minerals the plant needs, then plant the seeds and then the hardest part-we wait and hope the weather is favorable for a good start and good growth.

Our whole year of milk depends on the quality of crop we produce because cows are sensitive to changes in their diet and need good nutrition to keep them healthy. Because of this, we work closely with a dairy nutritionist to make sure that they have everything they need to stay healthy and produce a quality product. If the nutrients the cows need aren't in the things we grow, we have to spend more money to add them as supplements. (Kind of like taking vitamins.) We work hard to keep our costs down, as overhead can kill you in a small business.

Here are a couple pictures of planting a couple weeks ago. The tractor on the left is breaking up the field with a disc to get it ready to plant. The tractor on the right is planting corn.

Start of Spring

You know it is spring when you see the tractors rolling on the road and in the fields. The cows are being moved to their pasture for the summer and they are starting to lose their winter coats. I went strolling around the farm today to take in some of this springness.

Our tractors have been rolling right along with those of our neighbors. My husband has been working long hours this last week in an effort to take full advantage of the dry weather. Last year we had only a short window of weather that allowed us to plant. Unfortuantely, he had to haul manure that week and thus we didn't get all our acres planted until June. Entirely too late. This year God has been good to us. We already have one farm planted (60 acres of corn), even though we still had to harvest about 20 acres of corn there, and the manure is hauled here at home. Hopefully we will be done planting early this next week. As my husband says, "that is the goal, anyway." If he meets his goal, this will be the earliest he has been finished planting since we got married six years ago. Perhaps more than any other profession weather is a major player in getting your work done.

Here is a picture of the calves we have out on pasture so far. You might notice that there is lush green grass right behind them. They, however, prefer to lay in the dirt. Much like kids I guess.