D Is For Dairy3ForMe

Dear Students of Fair Oaks Elementary,

        Thank you for inviting me to come to your school to talk about what I do as a dairy farmer. I love talking about our farm and our cows. It was exciting to share my dairy story with 437 students and teachers!

     It was fun to tell you about my crazy family and how all of us, except Farmer John, work away from the farm as well. I hope you enjoyed hearing the story about Toby Gerhart of the Minnesota Vikings when he spent the day working on our farm!

     You were such a well behaved audience. I could tell you were really listening to my story. It makes me happy to know you want to learn about where milk comes from and how it gets to your school and grocery store.

    

      I thought it was really fun when we did the milk song, because you were so enthusiastic! Did your hands hurt after clapping so fast? 

    Thanks for completing the pledge cards I sent to your school. Your teachers did a great job of explaining that to stay healthy we should eat 3 servings of milk, cheese, or yogurt each day. 

     I thought it was really cool how many of you earned a reward of smoothies for being respectful, caring students! And how great that the yummy Strawberry-Peach Smoothies were prepared by the  Fuel Up To Play 60 team!

     Thanks to the FUTP60 team for everything you have done this school year to help keep your school active and eating right. And a special thanks to Mrs. Wetzel for being your advisor and helping with all the great activities you have completed this year.

Wishing you all a happy, healthy summer! 

Mrs. Bremer

Have you pledged to have your Dairy 3ForMe like the kids and teachers of Fair Oaks Elementary? 

If you haven't, CLICK HERE.

Also, CLICK HERE  for a chance to win a Dairy Good Cookbook from My Barnyard View. 

See you tomorrow!

Rochester Rocks Dairy and FUTP60

Rochester, Minnesota is well known for some pretty great things; the Mayo Clinic,  the University of Minnesota Rochester, and some really wonderful students at Riverside Central Elementary! I recently visited with 130 of these super kids and their teachers about life on my farm.

 I shared my PowerPoint about my family, our animals, what we feed our animals,

 
what we do each day, how we grow their food, 

and how we milk our cows.

Then I spoke about the importance of dairy foods in our daily diet. Did you know that dairy is part of your recommended food intake, and we should have 3 servings every day of milk, cheese, or yogurt? The smart students of Riverside Central knew this. :)

I even taught them a little song to help them remember to have their Dairy 3 For Me every day. It goes like this- 

A special thank you goes out to Ann Winkels, Riverside Central's physical education teacher and Fuel Up To Play 60 coach. She not only realizes the importance of her students eating healthy and having a farmer share where the students food comes from, but she also encourages at least 60 minutes of activity each day. The day I visited, Ann planned a full day of healthy eating and fun activities for the kids, including Zumba, CrossFit, Hip Hop, and even a ping-pong exhibition by an Olympic hopeful! Great job Ann! Thanks for including this dairy farmer in your FUTP60 Day.

And to all of you, here's your chance to pledge to eat #Dairy 3 For Me.

From now through May 27, 2016, anyone taking the pledge through Midwest Dairy.com will be automatically entered to win one of three weekly prizes – an immersion blender to help get their three servings every day. All pledges are also eligible for the grand prize – a $250 retail gift card to help stock up on dairy essentials at the grocery store.

You're the Cow Lady!

"You're the cow lady!" 

This was how I was greeted by a kindergartener at William Byrne Elementary when I recently paid a visit to their in-school breakfast. But this wasn't the only greeting I received that morning. 

I was also greeted by farm pictures the kids had colored welcoming me to their school. The cafeteria walls were coated in these colorful works of art which hung along side posters sharing the importance and freshness of milk. But that's not all...

Students also created their own smoothie flavors! There were many great flavor combinations, but I think this one was my favorite. Perhaps it was the name that won me over.

I was invited to William Byrne to visit with the students at their in-school breakfast.  William Byrne participates in the Fuel Up To Play 60 program. Fuel Up To Play 60 is a program funded by the National Dairy Council and the National Football League in collaboration with USDA, that empowers students to take charge in making small, everyday changes at school. Students are encouraged to change the way they look at food and nutrition, and change their attitudes about physical education.

As a dairy farmer, and a mom, it made me smile to see the healthy dairy filled breakfast the kids received. Milk, cheese sticks, yogurt, and fruit smoothies all gave these students a super start to their daily  Dairy 3 For Me. 

Thank you to the students of William Byrne for the invitation to visit your breakfast. Thanks also to Miss Tracy and the staff for getting your kiddos so enthused about  meeting a farmer and learning where their food comes from. Lastly, I would like to thank the kitchen staff for the great job they do of incorporating healthy dairy foods in all the meals served.

If you are a farmer, I encourage you to visit schools in your area. You will be amazed at the excitement you generate! Kids want to know you, and the story behind the dairy foods we produce.

If you are not a farmer, I encourage you to contact a farmer- invite a farmer to your school or event and ask questions. We LOVE to share our story!

Visit Midwest Dairy and take the Dairy 3 For Me Pledge. 

Milk And Middler-Schoolers

Most of my school visits to talk about being a dairy farmer happen at elementary schools. Recently I was invited to speak at Maplewood Middle School. For you non-Minnesotan's, Maplewood is considered a suburb of St. Paul, with a population of nearly 40,000 so farmin' country it is not. 

 

I began with my Powerpoint presentation, sharing about my family, our farm, and what we do each day. I talked about feeding our animals, the milking process, and what happens when animals get sick. We moved on to a discussion of dairy foods and how they get to the grocery store. 

Even though the teacher suggested the students hold their questions until the end of my presentation, I kept getting interrupted with questions... and I loved it! I witnessed enthusiasm and great questions from these middle-schoolers along with a strong desire to learn more about dairy farming and where their food comes from. Here are some of my favorite questions-

Q.- When you buy 1% milk, what is the other 99%?

A.- All types of milk are 100% milk. The percentages included in the names of the milk indicate how much fat is in the milk by weight. All of these milks contain the nine essential nutrients found in whole milk but less fat.

Q.- I've heard that we are supposed to drink chocolate milk after sports. Why?

A.- Chocolate milk contains a combination of carbohydrates and protein to help replenish exhausted muscles after exercise, and provides potassium and sodium that help your body re-hydrate. And, there's an added bonus- chocolate milk is natural, and less expensive than sports drinks!

And now it was time for me to ask the students some questions...

Me- "Why do you think I go to schools to talk about dairy farming?"

Them- "So we can find out what you do and why it's important for us to drink milk?"

Me- "That's right. As you probably know, not everything you read or see on social media or TV or the internet is always true.

 (Them...laughter)

Me- " If you have a concern about your dog or cat, who do you talk to?" 

Them- "The vet."

Me- "If you have a question about your car, who do you talk to?"

Them- "A mechanic."

Me- "So if you have a question about your food, why wouldn't you talk to a farmer?"

(Them- heads nodding yes.)

Mission accomplished!

Maplewood Middle School knows the importance of milk and  

participates in the Fuel Up To Play 60 program.

Thanks to  Michele, Miss Martha, and the students of Maplewood Middle school for a moovelous time!

Malts and More!

It's worth the wait at the Dairy Goodness Bar!

The Dairy Goodness Bar, proudly brought to you by Minnesota's dairy farmers, is a fair-goers favorite food stop. The Dairy Bar will be serving up malts, sundaes, and cones, as well as milk, yogurt, Greek yogurt, cheese sticks and fresh cheese curds. What a great way to get some of your 3-Every-Day servings of dairy while visiting the Minnesota State Fair.

Some tasty MALT facts -

• In 2012, more than 115,400 malts were served throughout the fair.
• Strawberry is the number one fruit flavor. The 2012  MN Sate Fair used 6,990 pounds of strawberries and 3,690 pounds of rhubarb-strawberry.
• Malt flavors are chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, rhubarb-strawberry, apple-caramel, raspberry and blueberry! Are you drooling yet?
• Minnesota-grown apples and strawberries come from Pine Tree Orchard in White Bear Lake, MN.

The Dairy Goodness Bar is located in the Dairy Building, right next to the Princess Kay of the Milky Way butter head carving booth, an added benefit while waiting for your treat!

Also, thanks to everyone who entered My Very First Giveaway!

The winner of 4 Minnesota State Fair tickets and 4 malt coupons is

Randy K. W.

Congratulations and see you at the FAIR!