W.K. Kellogg Biological Station

W.K. Kellogg Farm

Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship is coming to Michigan

The Kellogg Farm and Michigan Food and Farming Systems (MIFFS) are partnering to start a regional chapter of the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship (DGA) program, servicing Michigan, northern Indiana and northwestern Ohio. A kick-off meeting was held at the MSU. W.K. Kellogg Biological Station (KBS) in Hickory Corners on February 26th to introduce the DGA program and provide information on how to become a Master Dairy Grazier and the benefits it could bring to dairy farms.

Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship (DGA) is a non-profit organization that was started in Wisconsin, but is currently present in 11 states. Over 150 Master Graziers are currently approved across these 11 states, resulting in a large, and growing network of experts that are available to train apprentices. The DGA is an Accredited Apprenticeship program registered with the United States Department of Labor. DGA pairs experienced grazing dairy farmers (Master Dairy Graziers) with an apprentice with little to no experience but with interest in dairy (Dairy Grazing Apprentice). The apprentices get paid while learning from their mentors, gain hands-on experience, and have other training opportunities.

Apprentices that sign up for the DGA program will be mentored by an approved Master Dairy Grazier over a two year period, often times with the opportunity for advancement after the completion of the apprenticeship. The training program lays out a series of competencies that are required to successfully own and operate a grazing dairy, including:

  • Measure and manage pastures for optimal quality and quantity
  • Manage cattle appropriately-heifers/dry cows, calves, milking cows
  • Manage milking operations
  • Assess dairy nutritional needs
  • Evaluate grazing and dairy farm information for effective decision making
  • Manage soil and water resources for productivity and health
  • Manage farm business operations profitably

In addition to these core management skills apprentices will complete online courses and also be a part of peer discussion groups, pasture walks, farming conferences and networking opportunities.

Dairy farms have been an important part of rural communities and economies for a long time, but recent economic challenges and lack of new farmers has resulted in a loss of 5-10% of dairy farms per year across the U.S. (higher in recent years). Now more than ever, managed grazing is a lucrative method to feed dairy cattle due to the lower feed and infrastructure costs, and ability to tap into value added markets. DGA provides a pathway for new farmers to learn the skills needed to sustain small and medium size dairy farms on the landscape.

Misty Klotz, outreach coordinator for the MSU Kellogg Farm, will be serving as the regional coordinator for DGA, and working closely with Brook Wilke (KBS Farm Manager), Howard Straub (KBS Dairy Manager), Jen Silveri (MIFFS Director) and Paola Bacigalupo Sanguesa (MSU Extension Dairy Educator) to initiate DGA in our region. Klotz will be matching up Master Graziers with Apprentices, and assisting the partners with completion of the key aspects of the apprenticeship program.

For more information about DGA, visit the website at www.dga-national.org. Interested dairy graziers or apprentices in S.W. Michigan, N. Indiana, or N.W. Ohio are encouraged to reach out to Misty Klotz or Brook Wilke (269-671-2402 or dga@kbs.msu.edu) for more information about how to get involved.

Characteristics of a Farmer: Kera Howell

As I begin to reflect on my job at the Kellogg Farm, I’ve discovered from some of the people that I’ve met, that farmers have similar characteristics. Many people think of a farmer as someone who wears overalls and a plaid shirt, while riding around on a tractor all day doing farm tasks. Some of that may be true, but there is a lot more to farming than people may think! I grew up in an agriculture-based town so I have heard farm talk and my grandparents were dairy farmers so I saw farming on a short term basis, but I have never lived on a farm, so I’ve had a lot of learning to do while working on a farm!

The first characteristic of a farmer is that they are quite smart. Can you tell me the formula on how to calibrate a planter for soybeans and then correctly input that number into the GPS system in the tractor?  Yeah, didn’t think so. Quite a bit of math skills are needed to understand which variables to use for the particular field you are planting to get the optimal yield. Add that together with the cost of all these variables to understand what profit you will achieve with the harvest, which will contribute to a higher profit margin. Farmers are also problem solvers. Tractor won’t start? Corn seems shorter than usual? They are quick to start thinking and review previous year’s information so steps can be developed and taken to solve the present issue.

Farmers are planners. They are always thinking about the future. Even though many farmers may not love to use this word, sustainability is a huge part of how they operate and run their agriculture system. By rotating crops like corn and soybeans, they can help restore the nutrients that may have been lost within the soil and rebuild the soil health. Farmers want to be able to maximize the land they are using in an efficient way so they can count on long-term use of the land and work to create higher yields. They are also thinking about what has to be done next on the farm to make sure all the operations are running efficiently and not wasting time or money.

With that being said, farmers are always learning. Continuous research is being done by people like my bosses, Dr. Brook Wilke, Kellogg Farm Manager, and Dr. Dean Baas, MSU Extension Educator, to educate farmers on the best ways to integrate cover crops and reduce tillage on their fields so they can increase yields of their crops, improve soil health and reduce diseases/pests. A lot of farmers realize that their “old way” of doing things might not be working anymore and want to be up to date on the latest research so their agriculture systems can be improved.

Another characteristic of farmers is that they are kind hearted. Some of them may have a hard or rough exterior, but they really care about the animals and crops they are raising. Farmers put a lot of their time and energy into making sure animals are properly cared for and that crops are growing well with the resources they have. The last thing they want people to think is that they are destroying the environment or treating animals unfairly.

That point leads me to say that farmers are some of the hardest working people I’ve met. Day in and day out, they work in all types of weather to get jobs done. Most of the time, they’re up at the crack of dawn getting ready for their day and they might not leave the farm till the sun goes down at night. During the summer, there is a lot going on and they need to make sure everything is able to get done to meet their deadlines. That means working on the weekends and holidays is sometimes the only option to get crops planted or harvested, which often means they miss spending time at home with their families.

Lastly, another characteristic I’ve discovered is that farmers are wise. Even 30-year veteran farmers know how to apply their knowledge to the ever-changing world around them. This information can include anything from crops, soil, the equipment, and they gladly share this knowledge with others. No matter what their age, they will teach you a lot about working on a farm. I had very little clue about how to drive a tractor before this summer and now I’m able to help rake and clip pastures because they were willing to teach me and pass on some of their knowledge to me! If you’re curious about something within the field of agriculture, ask a farmer! Most of the time, they’re more than happy to talk to you about your curiosity and will probably even invite you out to their farm for you to see firsthand.

In the end, the next time you visit the grocery store, take a minute to stop and think about how that food got there and appreciate that someone chose to make a living to put food on your table. I’m excited to continue to work in the field of agriculture and learn more from farmers and industry professionals about how to continue to produce food to feed the future.

Rotational Grazing Mitigates Greenhouse Gases

According to data from the United Nations, livestock generate 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and cattle are responsible for more emissions than any other livestock species.

Using rotational grazing is one way livestock farmers can do their part to decrease those emissions, while saving money on feeding their herds.

“It’s hard to be a small dairy farmer these days,” said Brook Wilke, Farm Manager for the W.K. Kellogg Farm. “The prices are horrible, so you have to adapt by increasing the quality of your product, or reducing your costs, and grazing is one way to do both.”

Cows graze at KBS

Grazing cows on pasture decreases not only the economic cost of feeding cows, but also the environmental costs often associated with conventional management. When the feeding quality and efficiency of a herd of cows is improved, farmers are doing themselves and the environment a huge favor.

Cows produce methane (CH4) during their digestive process, and decomposing manure generates both methane and nitrous oxide.  While livestock like cattle produce a great deal of greenhouse gases, the grasslands they graze on also have the capacity to store those gases and prevent them from being redistributed into the air.

If cows are left to graze one area of pasture continuously, they can eat the grass down to the ground, disturbing stores of carbon. If cows are rotated between different areas of pasture, then those stores can remain intact, halting further emissions from those sources.

Rotational grazing allows cows to get the nutrients they need and maintains the health of the grass and soil over the long term, all while keeping carbon in the ground instead of releasing it into the atmosphere. With a rotational grazing system, there’s less need to feed cows grain or artificially fertilize the grass.

One study found that farms participating in sustainable agriculture practices like rotational grazing produced 19% fewer emissions than non-participating farms in the first two years, dropping to 35% fewer emissions after participating for longer than two years.

Grazing School

The W.K. Kellogg Farm’s Pasture Dairy Center uses a rotational grazing strategy for its dairy herd.

“Because of our pasture management practices, we’re a carbon sink. We’re sequestering it, which is hard to do using conventional management practices,” said Howard Straub, KBS Pasture Dairy Center Manager.

Environmentally conscious livestock farming is possible, using methods like rotational grazing. The Pasture Dairy Center manages 240 acres of pasture, which is divided up into a variety of forage mixes, and different areas are used for research experiments and comparisons.

At the Farm, data-driven management is key. From rotating cows between paddocks based on measurements of available forage biomass to irrigating based on soil moisture data from electroconnectivity sensors, Straub and Wilke are on a mission to farm smarter and more sustainably.

Straub works directly with individual farmers who are interested in adopting similar strategies to those practiced at the Farm, and the Farm offers a variety of professional development programs for farmers, like Grazing School.

The Farm’s mission, set by W.K. Kellogg, is to “operate this farm under a most modern system of farm management so that it may serve as an object lesson to the people of the region in which it is located.” Through their conservation-minded management choices and outreach efforts, the Farm’s staff are doing exactly that.

For more information on the impacts of animal agriculture on climate change, visit the KBS LTER’s website for a variety of resources. This blog post originally appeared on the main KBS website, written by Bethany Bohlen.

A cow at KBS

A legacy of conservation; a commitment to sustainability.

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