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November 27, 2015 Subscribe to our weekly dairy or livestock email newsletter at CapitalPress.com/newsletters CapitalPress.com 15 Dairy/Livestock Dairy families induct Adrian Boer into hall of fame By SEAN ELLIS Capital Press BOISE — The newest member of the Idaho Dairy Hall of Fame encouraged his fellow producers to get in- volved and speak up for the industry. “This industry is changing. (To survive), we have to get involved and we have to tell our own story,” Magic Valley producer Adrian Boer told several hundred fellow dairy- men Nov. 19 after receiving the honor during the United Dairymen of Idaho’s annual meeting. “We have to be willing to be involved,” he said. “When they ask you to be involved, don’t be saying ‘no.’” Boer’s involvement with numerous industry and com- munity groups, as well as his Sean Ellis/Capital Press Magic Valley dairyman Adrian Boer is inducted into the Idaho Dairy Hall of Fame Nov. 19 during the United Dairymen of Idaho’s annual meeting. He encouraged fellow producers to get involved and not to shy away from speaking up for the dairy industry. strong advocacy for the dairy industry, were big factors in his nomination, said UDI CEO Karianne Fallow. “The dairy hall of fame is for somebody who exhibits real leadership across the in- dustry,” she said. “He’s a life- long dairyman who has really committed to serving the in- dustry in a number of ways and he’s really been a great voice for the industry.” Boer, who has been in- volved in the Idaho dairy in- dustry for three decades and manages a herd of 5,500 cows at three operations in Jerome and Gooding, is also a mem- ber of the Idaho Cattle Asso- ciation Hall of Fame. Nampa dairyman Mike Siegersma said Boer “rep- resents everything our indus- try strives for: Leadership, in- tegrity, service, commitment, optimism and innovation. All the state’s 500 dairies are family owned and dairy hall of fame inductees are chosen by their peers. “I am humbled and ex- cited,” Boer told the Capital Press. “It’s quite an honor that fellow (producers) can bestow on dairymen across the state.” Siegersma said Boer has a long history of serving the dairy industry, including be- ing actively involved in the Northwest Dairy Association, UDI, National Milk Produc- ers Federation and several na- tional committees. He has also received NDA’s quality award for high-quality milk. “I’ve always wanted to be involved in the results,” Boer told the Capital Press. “I want to have some input into my in- dustry. Being part of a board, you do have input and you know what’s going on.” He told fellow dairymen not to shy away from public- ly addressing hot-topic issues that are important to con- sumes and retailers, such as animal care and immigration. People “want to know what we’re doing about all these things,” he said. UDI also presented Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, its “Friend of the Industry” award. The nine-term congress- man has always supported the state’s dairy industry, from the time he served on the Black- foot City council and then in the Idaho Legislature, said Nampa dairyman Adrian Kro- es. “Mike Simpson under- stands the issues faced by Ida- ho dairymen and he’s always been willing to talk and meet with us,” he said. “His influ- ence nationally gives Idaho dairymen a voice in some of the bigger issues....” Push for federal milk marketing order in Calif. enters new phase By TIM HEARDEN Capital Press Sean Ellis/Capital Press Adrian Kroes, left, and Mike Siegersma, center, who operate Sun Ridge Dairy in Nampa, received the United Dairymen of Idaho’s 2015 Milk Quality Award. Shawn Hull, right, a quality milk specialist for Zoetis, which sponsors the award, presented them with the award Nov. 18 in Boise during UDI’s annual meeting. Sun Ridge Dairy earns Idaho milk quality award By SEAN ELLIS Capital Press BOISE — Sun Ridge Dairy earned the United Dairymen of Idaho’s annual Milk Quality Award for 2015 by taking milk quality to the highest level. The Nampa dairy, owned and operated by Adrian Kroes and Mike Siegersma, earned perfect scores on all of its monthly milk quality tests over the past year. The award is based on a dairy’s monthly tests for so- matic cell counts, which are an indication of quality, and bacteria counts, which are a reflection of the cleanliness of cows and the facility. “It’s rare to have a per- fect score,” said Marv Patten, dairy bureau chief for the Ida- ho State Department of Agri- culture, which administers the award along with University of Idaho Extension. “It made it very easy to do all the com- putations to see who the grand prize winner was.” Sun Ridge beat out 12 other finalists. Dairies are nominated by milk processors and ISDA and UI officials then compare the operations’ monthly quality tests. “All of our farmers are absolutely committed to high-quality milk,” said UDI CEO Karianne Fallow. “The farmers that are recognized in this award tend to go above and beyond.” Kroes said there is no se- cret to the operation’s success other than keeping the dairy’s 3,000 cows healthy and com- fortable. “If cows are comfortable and happy and you use good protocols and you have good employees who understand the importance of cow com- fort, then you get those kind of results,” he said. Siegersma said the dairy places a big emphasis on en- suring it has good employees who are well trained and un- derstand the operation’s pro- tocols. “I think the cows are happy because they’re well cared for and well fed,” he said. “It’s certainly not our goal to win a quality award. We just want to produce a good product and take care of our employees and our cows.” Sun Ridge Dairy was nominated by Sorrento Lac- talis’ cheese-making facili- ty in Nampa. Sorrento has a progressive bonus program that pays dairies a premium for good somatic cell counts, Kroes said. Sun Ridge uses those premi- ums to reward its employees. “Sorrento has a signifi- cant somatic cell bonus pro- gram (and) that allows us to pass that premium straight on through to our employees,” he said. Shawn Hull, a quality milk specialist for Zoetis, which sponsors the award, told sev- eral hundred dairymen during UDI’s annual meeting Nov. 18 that “the experience we provide the cow is directly re- lated to the quality of milk she produces.” “They have their cows in the right place,” he said about the award finalists. Idaho dairy producers see robotic milking systems as inevitable By SEAN ELLIS Capital Press BOISE — Idaho milk pro- ducers say it appears obvious that robots are coming to the state’s dairies sooner rather than later. The widespread use of ro- botic milking systems now seems inevitable, Nampa dairyman Adrian Boer said af- ter listening to a two-hour pre- sentation on the issue Nov. 18 during the United Dairymen of Idaho’s annual meeting. “Like it or not, that’s where our future lies. We’re going to be milking cows (by) robotics,” Boer said. “I total- ly believe that’s where we’re going. For me, it might be five to 10 years away, but I can see it’s on its way. That will be the future of the dairy industry.” Boer was one of a few hun- dred producers who listened to presentations on robotics by three of the industry’s lead- ers in that area: Lely, GEA and DeLaval. GEA sales consultant Jeff Manning said robotic milking system technology is develop- ing rapidly, driven in part by operators’ desire to address labor shortages and reduce costs. “In 10 years, this discus- sion will be totally different on robotic milking,” he said. Robotic milking systems largely eliminate the human element. Cows are induced to be milked at robotic stations through the use of feed and sensors attached to the equip- ment can immediately tell the operator if the cow is in heat or pregnant, how it’s feeling, and what the animal’s exact feeding needs are, said Fran- cisco Rodriguez, a DeLaval marketing manager. “There won’t be any hu- man involvement at all,” said New Plymouth dairyman Alan Myers, who is construct- ing a six-unit robotic milking system on his operation. “It sounds crazy for a cow to go in there and milk herself but if you’ve ever been late milking, the cows are stand- ing at the gate and they’re let- ting you know, ‘It’s time and I want to be milked,’” he said. The robotic systems im- prove milk production, reduce feeding and labor costs and allow an operator to get the most out of their herd, said Mike Mulder, a Lely product specialist. “The whole industry is looking at (robotics),” Myers said. “There’s a lot of interest in it.” Myers’ new facility should be done by the end of January and cows will start being in- troduced to it by early Febru- ary, he said. “We’re excited. We hope it works and we’re pretty confi- dent that it will,” he said. Myers said labor is what’s primarily driving interest in dairy robotics. The push for a federal milk marketing order in California is entering a new phase, as a nine-week USDA hearing in Clovis, Calif., reached its con- clusion Nov. 18 and the par- ties will now begin preparing written documents. Court reporters who took copious notes during the hearing are putting together an official transcript due out for review by early January, opening briefs are due to the USDA by March 31 and reply briefs must be filed by May 16, the parties say. The federal government will then issue a preliminary decision as to which, if any, proposal to endorse, which will kickstart a public com- ment period before a final de- cision is issued and published in the Federal Register. A producers’ vote on a marketing order will likely take place in 2017. “Probably between 18 months and 22 months is a safe estimate” for the remain- der of the process, said Anja Raudabaugh, chief executive officer of Western United Dairymen. “One of the bene- fits to the producers is this is set up in a very arduous fash- ion so nothing can be missed. “It is to producers and to everyone involved the great- est advantage that the time to promulgate the rule is so lengthy,” she said. “It ensures accuracy across the board, and it gives economists the time they need to do their analysis … The impacts are going to be pretty significant.” Rachel Kaldor, executive director of the Dairy Institute of California, hopes the hear- ing transcripts make clear the group’s point that California’s industry structure, compe- tition for milk and distance from markets make compar- isons to Midwestern prices “inaccurate.” The institute, which represents processors, has made its own proposal for a marketing order. “California is the largest dairy-producing state in the U.S., representing 20 percent of the nation’s milk supply,” she said. “It’s critical that the hearing record reflect the re- alities of our state’s milk pro- duction, processing and mar- keting situation.” The parties’ comments come after a hearing in Clovis that included extensive wit- ness testimony and 194 exhib- its. 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