Tour with Olympian Lindsay Tarpley

 

That milk is glowing!

She loved, loved the calves.

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Lindsay Tarpley came to our dairy farm today for a tour that was streamed to 3700 students! She and her kids were delightful, and thank you to United Dairy Industry of Michigan for helping share about dairy farms and nutrition!

The video is here:

https://youtu.be/QA8MyRI9xuQ

It was so much fun! Thank you to our moderator Jolene and everyone behind the scenes. There was so much planning involved - many cameras, headsets, Dan running all the mics from another city ... plus working on all the questions, coordinating everything with Lindsay ... there were five UDIM staff members alone here doing it all! (Plus, this was their second visit here - we had one to check all of the technology a month ago.)

We met Lindsay once before in 2018 when she spoke at our kids' school. That story is here. She really is a delight. She brought her kids, and they were so inquisitive and interested, and I liked them so much! It was great showing them around. Lindsay is also a fantastic speaker and advocate for dairy nutrition!

Ty and Cole left school to come to it, but Max wanted to stay, and today his class watched the video. He said they thought the calves were cute - a good review! 

I love showing people the farm, and the fact that we were able to show it to 3,700 people at the same time really makes me happy. Thanks to everyone involved!

October glory

A lot has gone on this month ...

NUMBER ONE -

I would be remiss in not making this number one, since my dad AND mom have been working really hard on it.  We're building a concrete feeding pad for our heifers to eat off of over the winter.  It required concrete pouring, welding, bolting, digging ... and we really appreciate all of the work!

             

Funniest thing about this:  My mom texted me and asked if I could go help dad bolt boards, because she had dropped one on her foot the day before and it hurt.  I said I wasn't home, but could go later. She said, 'Don't worry about it.  I'll go.  It doesn't hurt that much."  (Are my parents tough or what?!)

NUMBER TWO

Everyone on a farm has a role, and part of mine is public relations.  This month I've gone to the SXSW Eco conference in Austin, TX with U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance, hosted a tour of MSU students, and visited St Joseph Elementary and Oakview Elementary to do dairy lessons.



Funniest thing: We spent at lot of time listening to people who have never produced anything talk about how farmers are ruining the world.  And yet, every single one of them ate food produced by these same farmers ... Later, I was reading a preschool class a book about where food comes from.  It outlines each food in a lunch box from where it's grown, to how it's processed, and how it's shipped.

After each food, I'd say, 'So where did it come from?' and this adorable little boy would answer, 'From the store!' (He would have fit right in at the conference!)



Also, I ran my first race as a member of Team Chocolate Milk!  Since I love chocolate milk and do love refueling with it after races (and ... just drinking it because I love the way it tastes), this is really exciting!  More of these to come!



Funniest thing: There were cider and donuts after the race, (it was at Andy T's, so perfect for that!) but no chocolate milk.  I had to go purchase my own to make this truly chocolate milky.

NUMBER THREE

Another part of farming for us is being a part of policy work.  Kris is on the Michigan Farm Bureau's state Policy Development Committee.  This is one of eight ag boards Kris is currently serving on.   That was three days this past week, and then he spent another day at a United Dairy Industry of Michigan meeting.



(This is a picture from the Michigan Farm Bureau site. I don't follow him to his meetings and take his picture.  I swear.)

Funniest thing: Kris came down in his suit and Max said, "Where are you going?" Kris said, "I'm going to the barn, of course."  Max looked so shocked.  (These kids are still easy to fool.)

NUMBER FOUR



It is a gorgeous fall.  You can see our cattle here, across the road from our house.  It's been warm, it's been sunny, and the leaves are glorious.  It's the prettiest fall ever.

Funniest thing: I say this EVERY FALL.


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First-time visitors, long-time friends, cow giving birth to a calf on video!

Before I went to college, I never thought one thing about being from a dairy farm.  There were farms and farmers everywhere.

Once I was in college, I realized that people thought it was interesting I was from a farm, and they even wanted to visit.

One of my first farm visitors was my college friend Jodie.  She'd never been to a farm, she was from the city, and she loved seeing it.  She learned about silos, she met a big bull, and we perched up on a tractor.

So yesterday, things really came full circle, because Jodie brought her husband and kids to visit! (They had been once before, but only one was born and he was a baby.)

It was so fun showing them the farm, seeing our kids together, and seeing it through someone else's eyes. (Or nose.  Her son didn't like the smell of the manure lagoon, which quite honestly you get used to.  I used to live by an airport and never noticed the airplanes after the first day I lived there.  Then kids would come over, a plane would take off, and the kid would point it out.  Only then would I hear it.  The smell of manure is kind of like that.  I notice it only when it's pointed out!)

A cow even had her calf right in front of them.


This video isn't edited!  We walked up and she had the calf!  This is rare for me.  Usually they want to be off by themselves and are bothered by my proximity.  It's not so easy to get a close video.

So, from college home trip to RV trip across the states - I'm glad that the farm is still the destination that provides some education and entertainment ... for generations!

As for the smell, I'll see what I can do about that for next time.

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Monsanto, pigs, and dietitians

U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance hosted a training for people in the digital community to reach a broader audience with information about food and farming.

The group, made up of USFRA staff, marketing people, dietitians, and writers, was as outgoing and fun as you would expect.

First, we went on a tour at the Monsanto headquarters in St Louis.  A side note - I thought everyone knew what Monsanto was, but this isn't the case.  You definitely know it if you're in ag, you know it if you're anti-technology ... but not everyone knows this company.  In short, they are an agricultural Fortune 500 company that sells seeds and crop protection chemicals.  They have a long history - for instance, when I was at the Smithsonian I saw an exhibition that features "Monsanto’s Dr. Robert Fraley, chief technology officer, for his contributions to agriculture biotechnology, as well as the economic benefits of genetically modified crops... Monsanto donated several items for the exhibit, including a photograph of Fraley with the world’s first genetically modified petunia and a souvenir connected to agriculture’s widely planted and adopted Roundup Ready® soybean."

They had an entire room of machines that extracted DNA from plant samples.  They had growing closets that mimicked the conditions of different places in the world - this was the Brazil room.  Hot, humid, and so bright!  We couldn't open the doors to the cooler rooms because they didn't want us to bring down the temperature, so we just looked through the windows.

Our guide, Lara, was very entertaining.  In the beginning of the tour she said, "We can't have alcohol at work, but we do have cheese and ice cream!"

(Of course, as a dairy farmer I found this especially funny.  Eat up, people.)

She also said, "Sometimes you see something on Pinterest like, we share 99.9 of our genetic material with BLANK.  And you know there's some scientist reading that saying, "That 0.1 makes a huge difference!" and crying over his PhD."

"Is 'crying over your PhD' a common phrase around here?" I asked.

"Yes, but I just have my masters, so I say 'crying over my masters," she answered.

(Best tour guide ever!)

She showed us a display with genetically engineered soybeans, bred to be resistant to the soybean looper larvae, and ones that were not.  We looked at different types of corn in greenhouses.  They walked us through how biotechnology works on a plant.  They introduced us to scientists and we got to ask them about their work.

The HQ with their 1700 employees and their dedication to farming was very interesting, and I hope they all continue to work hard, crying over their various degrees.
 
***

We continued on to the Deppe hog farm.  Why do I say hogs instead of pigs?  Because that's what they said, and they're the farmers.

This is only the second time I've been on a (pig) farm, and it was the first time for many of the attendees.

We saw them at every age, from birth to sows to pregnant sows to right before they're sold.

I held a piglet, then the older one in the next barn, and planned to try until I couldn't lift them any more ... but that was the third stop.  They are huge!

 

We learned about their 90% conception rate, rode the pig trailer, checked out their corn, and enjoyed talking to the Deppe family and team.  Thanks for the tour!

***

The next day I had the chance to speak to the group about dairy farming and the issues I get asked about - specifically how there are no antibiotics in milk, no added hormones, and how organic and conventional milk are the same nutritionally and differ only in process, not product.

                             

Randy Krotz (CEO) and Nancy Kavazanjian (chair) were also there - it was great hearing them as well.  Darrell Glaser, another Faces of Farming & Ranching, and dietitian Charlotte Rommereim also spoke.

We had a lively discussion, and I think we all enjoyed the tours and the conversation.

***

Meanwhile, back on the farm ... it's been two weeks since we started calving and we're up to 40 heifers.  That means we've had lots of bulls, too, who also need bottle feeding.  The boys and I have been trying to help out where we can, since it's a lot of work no matter how many people are helping.

             

Through all of us - seed companies, individual farmers, educators - we're all trying to produce, market, and sell food ... because we all like to eat.  There is so much that goes into all of this, from education to bottle feeding a calf.  I celebrated my return with ice cream, and the only way I'd cry into my masters would be from happiness that these are my coworkers.

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Middle East and Midwest

 

Today we hosted a tour for women scholars from the Middle East!  Marilyn Thelen from MSU Extension brought them, along with MSU associate professor Andrey Guber.

They were interested in manure management, crop and soil sciences, and women-owned farms.  Of course, coming from another country, their questions were different than the ones I usually get.

Along with specific manure and soil questions, we discussed my role on the farm, women's roles on farms in general, income, taxes, and ownership.  (They told me that at home, if a husband/wife team owns a farm and he dies, she gets 1/8th of the farm.)

The calves were appropriately adorable, the cows were calm, and the women were cold.  I asked what they liked best about their trip so far, and one mentioned the beautiful fall leaves.  We are having a gorgeous fall.  (I say this every fall ... and take the same pictures.  This is a picture from this year and a picture from last year.  I can't help myself.)

It was a really interesting and enjoyable tour.  Thank you to our visitors and to Marilyn Thelen for bringing them.

Meanwhile on the farm ...

Kris has an policy development meeting for Michigan Farm Bureau for the next three days.  Farm Bureau's role is to 'represent, protect, and enhance the business, economic, social and educational interests' of their farmer members.  Kris said, "The day runs from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.!  Of course, that's shorter than my normal day."

We're hauling manure right now, because we want to get it on all our fields that we just harvested so we can work it in.  The conditions are good because the ground isn't wet yet either.  Most farms are hauling manure continuously around here now for the same reasons.  You can see and smell the work going on!

We're getting ready for fall.  The grass isn't really growing any more, so we brought most of the cattle in from the pasture.  (The heifers are still out on it.)  We're going to rent a neighbor's facilities and keep some heifers there over the winter.  Basically, just like our visitors today, it's getting cold and we know we need to all get inside!


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Go Green!

Today Professor Miriam Weber Nielsen from Michigan State University brought her Introductory Dairy Cattle Management class to our farm.

They make a yearly visit, and every year the students are always engaged and interested.  Great conversations!

Kris and I talked about our farm, and the students had specific questions - different than what people not involved in agriculture ask - like what pasture grass we grow, if the calves ever suck on each other, what specific feed we use, the benefits of pasture, about growing our own feed, what kind of illnesses the calves get, how we work with natural bull breeding, etc.

They all have different interests too - one student came from a 50-cow dairy farm, and she wants to be involved in cow care.  Another came from a farm but wanted to learn all about cropping, because it's new to him.  Another wanted to work somewhere like the MSU extension office.

Miriam also mentioned to the students that part of the reason she brings a class to our farm is because Kris and I are good communicators.  All that talking I did through all my college classes is finally seen as a positive, instead of a negative!  If you wait long enough ...

Thanks again to Dr. Weber Nielsen and our beloved MSU!  If you ever need us to take this bus to football games, we're in.

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Entertainment

Kris worked from 6:00am to 9:00pm today. And when I say worked ... he really was working all the time, except for the few minutes where I forced encouraged him to apply sunscreen.

Calves galore - 11 today! Picking them up in the truck. Chasing in the mothers. Feeding the calves. Loading up some feed we're selling. Repeat. My dad worked most of the day too ... and he's twice Kris' age. Will Kris be able to do this physical of work when he's my dad's age? Let's hope! (Of course, we are raising all these boys. One of them better be able to lift a calf onto a truck bed at some point. Next year? Maybe with intense training and a serious growth spurt.)

I did my part as dairy communicator hosting a friend, her husband, and her two-year- old son Jack. (It's tough work, but Kris can't do the physical labor AND show people around the farm.) Jack loves tractors. He loved sitting in them. All of them. We were pretty sure he'd never tire of it. As they left, his dad said, "I don't think Disney World would be any better." We laughed. Then as they were getting in the car - minutes after he exited a tractor - Jack said, "When can we go to the farm?" Ha! It may not be a theme park, but it's cheaper ... and closer.

And check out these rides! It's hard to beat sitting on an early 90s parked tractor! Take that, tea cups.