This And That Thursday- 1

A new baby is born! Yes, my blog is hatching a new feature. "This And That Thursday" will become a weekly feature where I will update you on what's happening on the farm, in our lives, with our dairy promotion, you know, life in general. This gives me an opportunity to share what we have been doing, but sometimes our tidbits don't require an entire blog post to fill you in. Thus, "This And That Thursday" is born!

Remember back in August when I launched My Very First Giveaway? I later announced Randy K. W. as the winner. Randy was nice enough to snap this photo at the Dairy Goodness Bar, at the Minnesota State Fair, where he presented his coupons for the 4 free malts he won. I bet he didn't mind receiving the 4 admission tickets to the Fair either. 

It is obvious how far the irrigation water reached at the corner of this field.

This week I was again contacted by WCCO Radio, our local CBS affiliate, about the effect the drought is having on farm crops, as we near harvest. I explained that we are in the moderate drought (some crop damage) area, but farmers just 50 miles north of us are seeing severe drought (crop loss likely) conditions. We at Bremer Farms are blessed to have mostly irrigated land, but Mother Nature's FREE water is even more of a blessing. I also shared how soybean farmers are affected by the drought since dry weather restricts the soybean pod from filling to the fullest. Our dry fall may also affect how much fall tillage (preparing the soil for spring planting) we are able to do.

We are baling our third crop hay. Farmer John has been baling round bales to feed our dairy cows and steers. You can read more about baling at Hey Hay, Looky Here!

And two baby girls joined the herd! Meet Annabelle. She stole my heart. Shhh...don't tell the others.

Learn more about dairy at Dairy Makes Sense

Proud Dairy Farmer in St. Louis- part 1

This is a summary of the presentation I gave last week at the Show Me the Blog in St. Louis, Mo.

Greetings from Minnesota! I am one of the 4,500 Dairy Farmers of Minnesota. I live on a true family farm. My in-laws, husband, daughter, son, and I all have active roles on our farm, and three of us work off the farm as well. My daughter is an 8th grade English teacher, my son is employed by our local television station, and I am an Elementary School educator.

So why am I here? Why do I blog? Twenty years ago, while hosting a school group on our farm, after explaining what we do to care for our animals and our land, and describing a typical day on our farm that begins at 6AM and ends about 14 hours later, a 3rd grader asked, "What is your husband's REAL job?" That really got me to thinking how important it is for us, as farmers, to tell our story. Not only do we need to share the farm to food story with children, but adults as well. So I began speaking to organizations, classrooms, and began serving on County and State dairy boards. When Midwest Dairy invited me to their social media workshop last February, it seemed like the perfect next step, and the gentle nudge I needed to enter the world of blogging.

What is the goal of my blog? I want to educate, inform, and entertain my readers. Being an educator myself, I look at every moment as a teaching moment. Recently my husband and I spent a day at the Minnesota State Fair sharing our story in the "Moo Booth." We shared what we do each day on our farm to keep our cows happy and healthy. Folks shared concerns with us, and asked many questions. They were also pretty surprised to discover that our farm is only 20 minutes from downtown Minneapolis and right across the street from a golf course! We connected with many consumers that day and by including these discussions on my blog, I could reach an additional audience.

My second goal is to inform. I bring attention to issues that affect farmers, and that can affect you. A current discussion involved the drought. Yes, it can possibly affect our income, and yes, we are concerned about having enough to feed our animals, but it will also touch your lives when you grocery shop. Another of my recent posts brought up the question of producing enough food for our ever-growing population. The world's population is expected to triple from 1970 to 2050, yet the amount of farmland will stay about the same. I feel one of our jobs as farmers is to encourage consumers to find out where their food comes from. I like to give my readers something to think about.

If you know my family, the entertainment part is easy. I include family stories into most of my posts. I also bring Hannah Holstein, my stuffed cow, along on many of my adventures. She's with me today at Show Me the Blog. Wave, Hannah! When I'm out and about, people often ask about her, and it is a great way to introduce my blog and my reason for writing.

I am a proud Dairy Farmer, and I'll share my dairy story whenever and however I can. My blog, My Barnyard View, gives me the opportunity to reach a greater audience to educate, inform, and entertain.

My next post will discuss the questions I was asked after my presentation, and I will also share what Bode Dairy and Midwest Dairy shared in the remainder of our presentation. Stay tuned...

What's the BIG Deal?

What's the BIG deal?  "The news media keeps talking about the worst drought in 50 years, but it's green and lush here in my part of the world." This is the attitude many people may have in my area of Minnesota. We have not seen the severe drought conditions like many parts of the United States are experiencing. However we, as consumers, need to remember that our food doesn't just come from the "farm next door." Don't be deceived by the view outside your window. This drought will affect everyone. 

Dairy farmers are experiencing economic disaster. Based on a report by the USDA's National Agriculture Statistics Service, dairy farmers lost 24 cents on every gallon of milk produced in May and June of this year. This is due to the severe drought and sky-rocketing feed and fuel costs.

What about the consumer? The effects of the 2012 drought will likely result in a significant increase in food prices for a period of time. Well, doesn't that mean more money for the farmer when the grocery prices go up? Dairy farmers do not set the price for their milk, and are therefore unable to pass along their expenses. Milk prices are set by the federal government once each month. Retail prices in your grocery store are determined by supply and demand.

Despite these conditions and challenges, we dairy farmers will continue to work hard and are dedicated to providing you with the best quality, nutritious products available! Now THAT'S a BIG deal!

Check out Midwest Dairy Association

When It Rains, It Pours!

I wish the title of this post was a commentary about the weather, but sadly it is not. Unfortunately, we are in need of rain here in Minnesota, but more about that in a moment. My plan is to post on my blog once or twice a week and as you can see, it has been longer than that, much longer. When it rains, it pours is in reference to the busy, crazy times going on here. In the past 2 weeks I have helped plan and execute a retirement celebration for our Pastor of 31 years, sewed 6 costumes for my son's work and a pirate costume for my daughter, and helped construct a booth and a float for our annual summer festival in town. Whew! All of this on top of the day-to-day duties that continue. I'm not complaining, in fact, I look forward to this kind of additional "busyness." I love working with family and friends to accomplish goals, and we've accomplished a lot in the last 2 week. Now, about the weather...

According to the National Weather Service- Climate Prediction Center, "The drought and heat arrived at a critical time for Midwestern agriculture, especially corn. The combination of heat and dryness has severely reduced the quality and quantity of the corn and soybean crop, with 38 percent of the corn and 30 percent of the soybeans rated as poor or very poor as of July 15 by NASS/USDA. Some states, such as Kentucky, Missouri, and Indiana, had  over 70 percent of their corn adversely rated. Unfortunately,drought is expected to develop, persist, or intensify across  these areas, and temperatures are likely to average above normal."  

Although not as desperate, our area is praying for rain too. We have had some, but not enough to provide the moisture we need. Our farm is fortunate to have mostly irrigated land. Granted this watering system is not free like what Mother Nature provides, but it is a welcome back-up plan for this dry, hot weather. 

My prayer is that rain will be provided and we will see relief from the heat so that farmers can continue to FEED THE NATION that we are so proud to do!

PS- I am still sporting the "Rambo" look. See my previous post for an   explanation.