PDPW Manager's Memo

November 2022 Vol. 2

Brought to you by Dairy's Professional Development Organization®

Opportunities to learn

Managers Academy for Dairy Professionals®

March 14-15, 2023

Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

INVEST IN YOURSELF FOR THE NEW YEAR by attending the 2023 Managers Academy for Dairy Professionals® in Savannah, Georgia, Jan. 10-12, 2023. The three-day executive-level training and networking program will focus on building resilience in our changing world and help you position yourself and your business to innovate, advance and prosper. Classroom training, networking opportunities and executive-level tours make this the perfect program for dairy owners and managers, CEOs, industry directors, processors, marketers and distributors. Don’t wait — the PDPW hotel block closes on Dec. 12. Learn more and register here.

Dairy Managers Institute^®

Dec. 20-21, 2022

Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

TOP-NOTCH LEADERSHIP TRAINING WITH SIMULTANEOUS SPANISH TRANSLATION featured at the 2022 PDPW Dairy Managers Institute^® set for Dec. 20-21 at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells, Wis. Program facilitators Dr. Becky Stewart-Gross, Michael Hoffman, Dr. Kevin Bernhardt, and Linda Swindling will equip today’s managers with the skills they need to be effective team leaders. Topics include leading and managing with insight, providing positively outrageous service, and mastering financials and negotiation. Simultaneous Spanish translation will be provided for tiers one and two. Learn more and register here.

NEXUS®

Application Deadline: January 16, 2023

Showcase cutting-edge ideas to the most innovative dairy farmers in the industry. The Nexus® stage returns to the 2023 PDPW Business Conference on March 15-16, 2023, and will feature five finalists presenting their technologies and innovations. Each finalist will receive 15 minutes of stage time in the presence of the industry’s most forward-thinking dairy farmers. Attendees will have five minutes to engage in Q&A with the presenters for more details.

Application deadline is January 16, 2023. Click here for more information, including the online application.

Cornerstone Dairy Academy®

March 14-15, 2023

Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

BUILD YOUR PATH TO SUCCESS at the 2023 PDPW Cornerstone Dairy Academy®. The application-based program features three pillars of professional development facilitated by leading experts, including Dr. David Kohl, Holly Green, Hank Wagner, Dr. Richard Kyte, Tom Thibodeau and Rachel Wagner. Applications are being accepted now for the program to be held March 14 and 15, 2023, in conjunction with the PDPW Business Conference at Kalahari Resorts in Wisconsin Dells, Wis. View the flier here to learn more about the topics explored in each pillar. For more details and to apply before the January 31 deadline, click here.

PDPW Business Conference

March 15-16, 2023

Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

PLAN AHEAD NOW FOR THE 2023 PDPW BUSINESS CONFERENCE. Mark your calendar now for March 15-16, 2023, at the Kalahari Resorts in Wisconsin Dells, Wis., for two days of education, networking and connecting with like-minded, forward-thinking dairy producers and leading experts.

Sessions will be finalized in the coming weeks; keep watching for registration, hotel and speaker lineups at www.pdpw.org/businessconference.

PDPW members will also soon receive ballots and candidate information for the 2023 PDPW board member elections. Election results will be announced at the end of the business conference.

For your dairy

THE ROLE OF OXIDATIVE STRESS ON HEALTH during the dam’s transition period and the calf’s first few weeks of life are being studied by researchers at Michigan State University, along with the potential to mitigate issues with antioxidant supplementation. Oxidative stress results from the imbalance between the production of free radicals and the availability of antioxidant defenses. It can also increase animals’ susceptibility to health disorders. Oxidative stress during the dry period can also have an impact on the innate immune response of calves during the first month of life and the amount of colostrum produced. The article outlines strategies and best practices for antioxidant supplementation for cows, colostrum and calves.

Learn more here.

MANAGING COWS TO ENSURE PERIPARTAL CALCIUM HOMEOSTASIS is the focus of ongoing research led by Dr. Laura Hernandez, UW-Madison. In a recent episode of The Dairy Signal®, Dr. Hernandez reviewed the cycle of calcium production and usage for dairy cows at calving, start of production and peak production and how early-lactation cows are uniquely equipped to maintain their calcemic status when challenged with hypocalcemia. She shared strategies to manage the prepartum cow to ensure proper calcium homeostasis post-partum and highlighted ongoing research to determine the homeostatic relationships surrounding calving that indicate a healthy transition into lactation.

Watch the archived episode of The Dairy Signal here.

INVESTIGATING FETAL LOSS AS A HERITABLE TRAIT in dairy cows is the focus of research published in the Journal of Dairy Science. Researchers reviewed records of more than 59,000 confirmed pregnancy or fetal loss records across heifers and cows and found that genetic selection could be a feasible approach to reduce fetal loss in dairy cattle. The results showed that heritable traits for reducing fetal loss are not the same as current traits to select for cow fertility, so new strategies are needed. Read the full study.

For your business mind

RECORDKEEPING TOOLS PROVIDE A FOUNDATION FOR MANAGEMENT DECISIONS. A new calendar year is a good time to review a farm’s financial records and electronic systems. An article from the University of Wisconsin Extension highlights examples, including spreadsheets with farm-focused templates and accounting software programs with add-ons and specific features tailored to farm businesses. Farmers should seek advice from professionals and compare each system’s features, phone or online support services, and prices for the software and add-on modules. Learn more here.

CHANGING ONE WORD CAN IMPACT HOW YOU APPROACH A CHALLENGE, according to author Angela Duckworth. Those mainly focused on overcoming obstacles don’t ask “whether” to chase a goal but “how” to chase it. It starts by differentiating a dream from a goal, then breaking down the strategy, tactics and timeline for meeting that goal. This tactic will set an individual on a path to achieving the objective regardless of challenges. Learn more in the full article.

The Dairy Signal

KEEP TUNING IN TO THE DAIRY SIGNAL. With a rapidly growing global audience, The Dairy Signal™ is well over three years into bringing a wide array of valuable information to the dairy industry. From leading experts across dairy and agricultural industries to researchers at universities and government agencies, The Dairy Signal continues to bring insights on the most pressing issues in today’s marketplace. The 60-minute sessions air every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with recorded episodes available for free at www.pdpw.org. Click here to tune in to archived sessions.

Presenters and topics covered recently include:

November 15

Trace minerals and vitamins are often overlooked in transition nutrition due to more focus on protein or energy. Hear about the important role trace minerals and vitamins play in a cow’s immune response and a calf’s survival and health.

Dr. Robert Van Saun, DVM, Professor of Veterinary Science and Extension Veterinarian, Penn State University

November 16

Listen to this discussion on all things biosecurity, including the on-farm practices that can minimize disease risk. Bring your questions for a hearty conversation on this critical topic.

Dr. Heather Roney, DVM, Cattle Health Programs Veterinarian, Wisconsin DATCP

November 17

Cart or the horse? How do calcium and serotonin impact peripartal calcium homeostasis? Learn about how calcium is regulated in the transition period and the essential role dry-cow feeding plays in preventing postpartum calcium issues and more.

Dr. Laura Hernandez, Ph.D., Professor of Lactation Physiology, Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison

November 22

Since it’s not possible to completely avoid conflicts, how can you manage, minimize and even use conflict as a competitive advantage in your business? Understand where conflict comes from and how to optimize it in this interactive session.

Liz Griffith, Market Development, Human Resource Consultant, Encore Consultants
Tim Schaefer, CFP, Certified Family Business Advisor, Certified Professional Business Coach, Encore Consultants

November 23

Hear what might impact dairy and commodity markets, exports and more as 2022 winds down. This informative discussion answers dairy producers’ question on what they should be thinking about as we head into 2023.

Ben Buckner, Grains Analyst at AgResource Company

November 29

A new generation of automation in agricultural machines and equipment has the potential to mitigate labor shortfalls across the dairy industry. However, the promise of these new technologies also comes with risks. Listen to an overview of what’s ahead and how it might impact farms of every size.

Dr. John Shutske, Professor and Extension Specialist in Biological Systems Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison

November 30

The November “Rising Stars – Graduate Research Showcase” episode features research connecting calves’ feeding behavior and health, and the potential for artificial intelligence and data from automatic calf feeders and other technologies to diagnose and monitor disease in calves. Sponsored by Balchem.

Dr. Melissa Cantor, PhD, Post-doctoral Fellow, Department of Population Medicine, University of Guelph

Dairy currents

GROCERY STORES ADDING GATHERING SPACES to draw shoppers into stores and keep them there longer. An article from Modern Retail highlights a trend in grocery stores across the country to add “third spaces” like restaurants, pubs, and spaces for hosting cooking demonstrations and events. The goal is to encourage shoppers inside the stores as online grocery delivery and curbside pickup become more common, as well as to create environments similar to local farmers markets. Read the full article for examples and details.

STUDY TAKES NEW LOOK AT YEARS OF RED-MEAT RESEARCH and highlights several notable concerns about studies that previously linked red-meat consumption to health problems such as heart disease, stroke and cancer. Scientists at the University of Washington reported only “weak evidence” of a connection between unprocessed red meat and colorectal cancer, breast cancer, type 2 diabetes and ischemic heart disease, and no connection at all between red-meat consumption and stroke risk. Learn more in this article and the research summary.

FDA PUBLISHES NEW RULE ABOUT TRACEABILITY PROTOCOLS for foods considered vulnerable to contamination, such as produce, cheeses, eggs, nut butter, seafood and deli salads. Effective Jan. 20, 2026, new recordkeeping requirements for production and supply chain will be in place for those who manufacture, process, pack or hold these foods. Some exceptions are in place for small farms, stores and food service entities. The goal is to improve speed and efficiency in identifying contaminated food and ingredients within the value chain. Learn more here.