In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy podcast, host Peggy Coffeen sits down with Lexie Nunes, a dynamic young professional in the dairy industry, for the Young Leaders series. Lexie shares her journey from her beginnings on a family dairy farm in Central California to her role as a Customer Support Specialist at Milc Group. Lexie’s story began as a reluctant participant in dairy judging, pushed by her mother, which eventually led to her becoming an All-American dairy judge at World Dairy Expo. Th...
Sep 10, 2024•22 min•Season 2Ep. 154
Freedom. Who doesn’t want more of that? A phone that rings less. Fewer fires to put out. A team you can trust to take care of things as if it were their own, so that you can focus on the tasks and plans that move your business forward. My guest today not only values freedom, but fights for it, as a major in the South Dakota National Guard. And he’s taken what he has learned about leadership to empower his team to solve problems, make sound decisions and take ownership of the operation. I met up ...
Sep 05, 2024•35 min
We catch up with Young Leader Brianna Meyer at Siemers Holsteins in Newton, Wis., just days after completing her summer internship at this newly built facility. Find out how she expanded her skills from the 130-cow robot dairy she grew up on in Chilton, Wis., to integrating with a high-performing team on a 5,500-cow dairy, and how these experiences have prompted this aspiring large animal veterinarian to head into her sophomore year at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a burning desire to...
Sep 03, 2024•26 min
If you are someone who is looking to gain confidence for yourself or help build confidence in people you manage or coach, or maybe even the kids you are raising, there are some nuggets in this book that I believe you will find valuable and useful. And that’s why I’m sharing with you on this bonus Uplevel Dairy Podcast today the cliff notes and my own key takeaways from the book, The Confident Mind by Nate Zinsser. This book was suggested to me by Clare Alderink, he really found value in it as he...
Aug 31, 2024•17 min•Season 2Ep. 151
Mindset Mini-Series: This week on Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we’re bringing back a few of your favorite conversations from top performers in the dairy business. Everyone has two lives. The second one starts when you realize you only have one. A positive mindset is easy, when things in our lives our easy. But when we realize we are facing the battle of our lives, for our lives, there is no greater test of faith, perseverance and hope, And our guest today shares his personal journey over the course of...
Aug 28, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 150
Mindset Mini-Series: This week on Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we’re bringing back a few of your favorite conversations from top performers in the dairy business. Back on Episode 100, Clare Alderink, manager at Ryzebol Dairy in Michigan, joined Tommy Oesch from Swiss Lane Farms to talk about doing hard things, like running 4 miles every 4 hours in 48 hours, the 75 hard challenge … and if you recall, Clare also mentioned he was training for an upcoming marathon. Well, I caught up with Clare just days a...
Aug 27, 2024•35 min•Season 2Ep. 149
Mindset Mini-Series: This week on Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we’re bringing back a few of your favorite conversations from top performers in the dairy business. Dairy manager Scott Blevins shares the habits, routines and principles that build his resilience and endurance to stay on top of his game while managing 6,500 cows, 6,600 youngstock and a team of people at Wiese Bros. Farms in Greenleaf, Wisconsin. What you’ll learn: - Staying physically, mentally and spiritually strong - Finding balance in ...
Aug 26, 2024•40 min•Season 2Ep. 148
Record-high yields in the fields for grain corn & beans Soybean meal is soft And could the best year yet be ahead for dairy farmers? Let’s find out on the UPlevel Dairy Podcast, with our guest Curtis Bosma from HighGround Dairy. Get your August Market Report Here: https://www.highgrounddairy.com/august-2024-dairy-producer-market-update/ Grab your copy of the FMMO Whitepaper here: https://marketing.highgrounddairy.com/fmmo-recommended-decision-analysis-white-paper Curtis from High Ground Dair...
Aug 22, 2024•24 min•Season 2Ep. 147
Do you ever stop and think about those people that never had to help you along the way? But they did. The ones that reached out with encouragement, that advocated for you when they didn't have to. The ones that believed in you at times when you didn't even yet know believe in yourself. Well, my guest today is one of those people. She is a woman who has done exactly that for so many youth in the dairy industry. And at one point in time, I was one of those, and that's why it's my greatest pleasure...
Aug 20, 2024•54 min•Season 2Ep. 146
Join me for this bonus feature with Mike and Ben Jones from Trillium Hill Dairy in Wisconsin, who have revolutionized feed pad design by creating a system that efficiently separates rainwater from manure leachate. This innovation helps dairy farms reduce hauling costs, minimize environmental impact, and significantly cut down on infrastructure expenses. Let's dive into this conversation to discover how their design could benefit dairy operations around the country. In this episode, Mike and Ben ...
Aug 15, 2024•11 min•Season 2Ep. 145
In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, host Peggy Coffeen visits Trillium Hill Dairy, where she sits down with owners Mike and Ben Jones. They delve into their journey of incorporating a manure digester and innovative sand separation system while maintaining their preferred sand bedding. The Jones brothers explain the problems they encountered, the solutions they developed, and how these advancements have revolutionized their dairy operations. Mike and Ben recount their expansion from a 4...
Aug 13, 2024•41 min•Season 2Ep. 144
Often here on the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we talk about business, management and challenges that dairy producers are overcoming every day, but today, we’re taking a little turn down a different path, to a side of the dairy business that’s built upon pedigrees that are deeper than the valleys of northern Vermont, carefully curated cow families and spirited competition, and our guide on this journey is a man who has dedicated his career to developing and marketing dairy cattle genetics - who took a...
Aug 08, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 2Ep. 143
Are you ready for an economic downturn? In this episode, we visit with a banker who cut his teeth during the 1980s farm crisis, as he shares what the most profitable farmers are doing right now to bullet-proof their balance sheets. Lynn Paulson, director of agribusiness development with Bell Bank, walks us through the key indicators he is keeping a pulse on, including: Farmland values and sales trends Why he’s watching the machinery market U.S. debt and the global economy And he shares a couple ...
Aug 06, 2024•42 min•Season 2Ep. 142
In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy podcast, I am joined for part 2 of my conversation with Dr. Don Niles, a veterinarian turned dairyman, to talk more about his significant contributions to dairy farming and sustainability in Northeast Wisconsin. Dr. Niles shares his passionate journey from city life to dairy farming, emphasizing the importance of innovative practices, cow comfort, and environmental sustainability, with particular focus on how Peninsula Pride Farms—a farmer-led watershed initi...
Aug 01, 2024•39 min•Season 2Ep. 141
Join me on this episode of the Uplevel Dairy podcast as I sit down with the groundbreaking, Dr. Don Niles. From his humble beginnings as a veterinarian in Wisconsin to transforming the dairy world, Dr. Niles shares his incredible journey. This episode delves into the experiences that shaped his career, his partnership with visionary dairyman John Pagel, and the innovative practices they implemented at Dairy Dreams that set new standards in cow comfort and dairy management. In this episode, Dr. N...
Jul 30, 2024•51 min•Season 2Ep. 140
How do you define your purpose? Your “why” for what gets you out of bed every day? In this episode, we pick up where we left off with Jack Pirtle, the dairyman from Roswell, New Mexico, in a conversation that cuts deep for anyone who has ever hit rock bottom, anyone who has struggled with their faith, anyone who realized they were the ones who needed to change. Jack shares with us his very personal journey to define his own purpose, connect with his faith, and become the man God is calling him t...
Jul 26, 2024•38 min•Season 2Ep. 139
So much of dairying is built upon legacy - a history of families that have milked cows for generations. But our guest today is not one of them. In fact, this New Mexico crop farmer literally became a dairyman overnight … and you’ve got to hear the story of how it all happened and how Jack Pirtle from P-7 Dairy has continued to innovate and adapt in an ever-changing marketplace - like changing over his entire herd from Holstein to Jersey, and some of the technologies that are saving him time and ...
Jul 25, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 139
11 months of lower milk production, yet making it up in protein and fat. The perfect storm that’s brewing in the grain market. And how to get a grip on your true profitability by managing your margins. That’s what we are covering today with Curtis Bosma in the HighGround Dairy July Monthly Market Insights on the Uplevel Dairy Podcast. This episode is brought to you by HighGround Dairy: Find out how the markets are moving and how it could impact your bottom line. HighGround Dairy offers comprehen...
Jul 23, 2024•28 min•Season 2Ep. 138
Dairy management consultant Pauly Paul has been getting more calls than ever from dairy farmers facing this challenge: They just received notice from their bank that they have 90 days to find a new lender, and they don’t know what to do. Whether you are in this situation yourself, or you want to position yourself to stay out of it, Pauly is here today to walk you through the action steps he is helping producers take to put together a plan and walk them through financially trying times. This epis...
Jul 18, 2024•18 min•Season 2Ep. 137
In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we are discussing the complexities of family farm transitions with Jay Retzer, with Compeer Financial. Join Jay and me as we explore both successful and challenging scenarios of passing down farm ownership, management, and leadership across generations. Jay shares his wealth of experience working with dairy farm families, shedding light on the importance of early planning, effective communication, and involvement of the next generation in management....
Jul 16, 2024•34 min•Season 2Ep. 136
If you listened to Ep. 134 with New Mexico dairyman Eric Palla, you got a glimpse inside the strategies and decisions that have guided growth, expansion and diversification of Palla Dairies, from consolidating facilities to hiring a key manager, to raising all of their own replacements, combined with genomic testing to optimize their beef x dairy strategy. Eric’s back with us today, and we get a glimpse of how this forward-thinking dairyman and businessman views the future of his dairies and the...
Jul 11, 2024•28 min•Season 2Ep. 135
Long before New Mexico ever made it on the map as a top 10 dairy state, one family packed their bags like pioneers and headed East - from California to Clovis. Eric Palla was just a small boy at the time, as his father Wayne staked out a dairy and a dream that today includes 11,000 cows across three facilities, with two located in New Mexico and one in west Texas. And that ‘s not all. In addition to the dairy, the family also farms 15,000 acres and operates a 1,300-head cow-calf herd. What were ...
Jul 09, 2024•48 min•Season 2Ep. 134
It’s July 4, independence day, and if you’ve been following the US Olympic trials, you may know that one of our own – a dairy farmer – has made TEAM USA once again. Ellie Purrier St. Pierre who grew up on a Vermont dairy farm, clenched her spot last week in the 5000 m race and will be heading to Paris later this month. But Ellie is so much more than an athlete. Working alongside her husband Jamie, she lives and breathes dairy farming as much as she does running, and together, the couple support ...
Jul 04, 2024•41 min•Season 2Ep. 133
From growing up on a dairy farm to leading the efforts for Wisconsin’s pivotal livestock siting law, Laurie Fischer, founder of the American Dairy Coalition, began her lobbying career as a grassroots voice for dairy farm growth and expansion. Her relentless efforts to serve dairy producers have taken her all the way to Capitol Hill. Hear how this unwavering advocate for dairy farmers and former executive director of the Dairy Business Association has led change, navigated the political process, ...
Jul 02, 2024•43 min•Season 2Ep. 132
In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, I am continuing the conversation with Tommy Oesch from Swisslane Farms to discuss the intricacies of transitioning ownership, management, and leadership from the senior generation to the current generation on the farm. This episode provides valuable insights into maintaining a clear vision, aligning generational goals, and the continuous process of improving leadership and team management in the dairy farming business. Tune in to hear more on: How To...
Jun 27, 2024•30 min•Season 2Ep. 131
In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, I am sitting down with Tommy Oesch, a partner at Swisslane Farms in Michigan. This conversation was so good, that I am breaking it down into two parts for you. Today, you will hear Tommy as he discusses the complexities and challenges of transitioning ownership and management of a dairy farm from one generation to the next. Tune in to hear more on: The necessity for critical family conversations, The importance of working elsewhere before returning t...
Jun 25, 2024•28 min•Season 2Ep. 130
US milk production declines, The influence of heat stress and bird flu on supply, Significant shifts in the CME futures market for Class 3 and Class 4 milk. And … the risk management you don’t want to miss. That’s what we are covering today with Curtis Bosma in the HighGround Dairy Monthly Market Insights. June 30th marks the application deadline for a Dairy Revenue Protection (DRP) policy with a new agency. Find out how the markets are moving and how it could impact your bottom line and grab yo...
Jun 20, 2024•19 min•Season 2Ep. 129
Back in Ep. 123 of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we visited with California dairyman Steve Shehadey, as he shared the innovations in renewable energy and sustainability that have earned Bar 20 Dairy in the San Joaquin Valley the 2023 Innovative Dairy Farmer of the Year award and positioned this family business for the future. Well, today, we are going to meet the future of Bar 20: Steve’s daughter, Bonney - who represents the fourth generation of this family business, and who plans to make her own ...
Jun 18, 2024•34 min•Season 2Ep. 128
For going on five generations, the King family in New York has been known for dairy farming excellence as Kings-Ransom Farm. Just over a decade ago, they diversified their business to bring back bottled milk to serve their local consumer with not just a great-tasting product, but also a high-value connection to their farm. Hear from Jan King how they have grown from 40 to now more than 400 bottled milk customers, and what it’s been like to enter the processing sector and build Kings Brothers Dai...
Jun 14, 2024•38 min•Season 2Ep. 127
From retail to restaurants, dairy is finding its way into more menu options and consumer products than every before, and it’s not by accident. Behind the scenes, Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) is at the table with the leading fast-food chains and food service providers, striking wins that result in strategic and incremental marketplace growth for dairy products and ingredients. If you’ve ever had a “Grimace Shake” or a Taco Bell cheese shell, you can thank our guest, Paul Zieminsky, group executive...
Jun 13, 2024•45 min•Season 2Ep. 126
