Dairy

A national dairy industry leader talks with WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” about the World Dairy Expo in Madison this week, and some challenges facing the dairy industry.

Wisconsin has seen a significant decline in the number of dairy farms in the state, losing nearly half of the state’s dairy farms in the last 10 years. But a new state survey found the majority of dairy producers said they still plan to be milking in five years.

Wisconsin farmer groups say they’re concerned about proposed changes to the national system for pricing milk.

“Being a dairy family and living in the dairy state, we want to make sure we do those products justice,” said Heather Mullins, who uses milk byproducts to craft award-winning spirits.

Veterinary superintendent Dr. Tia Kastenson said the process will look mostly the same as it does every year, with animals coming off trailers and being settled into barns before the West Allis fairground fills with hundreds of thousands of people.

Uplands Cheese in Dodgeville and St. Isidore’s Farmstead Cheese in Osseo produce award-winning cheese through sustainable practices.

Wisconsin dairy cows heading to county fairs and other exhibitions will be required to undergo testing for avian flu this summer.

A new report from environmental groups claims that manure digesters are encouraging farm expansion and making pollution worse in Kewaunee County, but supporters argue they help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide renewable energy.

Dairy farmer Justin Peterson of Creamery Creek in Bangor says educating consumers on where dairy and other farm products come from is the key to preserving the industry.

Since its outbreak in March, officials have said pasteurization can protect commercial milk from avian flu. That’s now supported by research at UW-Madison.