Kansas Dairy selected to give virtual farm tour
Royal Farms Dairy of Garden City has been named one of only eight dairies to give a virtual farm tour presentation at the 2010 World Dairy Expo, the world’s premier dairy conference, Sept. 28 – Oct. 2 in Madison, Wis.
As a virtual tour presenter, Royal Farms Dairy will give a 30-minute pictorial overview of their Garden City facility to Expo attendees, who include dairymen from across the world. Royal Farms’ presentation will cover a variety of topics, including feeding, milking, quality controls, herd health, profitability, herd genetics, facilities and calf raising.
This is the first time a Kansas operation has been selected for a virtual farm tour presentation at the World Dairy Expo. Last year’s Expo featured virtual tour presentations by dairies in Wisconsin, California, Iowa and Argentina.
The Kansas Department of Commerce sponsored Royal Farms Dairy’s application. The company stood out among Kansas dairies in 2010 for its outstanding resource conservation efforts, as well as its leadership in economic and community development in the Garden City and Dodge City areas.
“We’re very proud and excited that Royal Farms Dairy has been chosen to lead a virtual tour at the World Dairy Expo,” said J.J. Jones, agriculture marketing specialist for the Kansas Department of Commerce. “Not only is this a great opportunity for Royal Farms Dairy to promote their operation, but it gives us a chance to promote the entire state of Kansas as an ideal location for dairy farming. You can’t ask for a bigger stage than the World Dairy Expo.”
Royal Farms Dairy has emerged as a steward of land and resources through its water conservation efforts. The dairy minimizes water usage by using each gallon multiple times. Water that is used to cool milk is also used to flush pens and holding areas. Ultimately, this water is then stored in a lagoon until it is used to strategically fertilize and irrigate 1,600 acres, including the dairy and a neighboring farm’s fields. Royal Farms Dairy hopes to increase the number of irrigated acres to 2,720 acres in 2011. For their efforts, they have been honored with the Kansas Banker’s Association Environmental Stewardship Award.
In a state where crop production is dominant and very few families make a living on less than 1,000 acres, Royal Farms Dairy is able to employ 62 people, milk 6,200 cows and house 5,600 heifers – all on the net consumption of water equivalent to 1-2 circles of irrigated corn.
The World Dairy Expo serves as the world’s premier forum for dairy producers, companies and organizations to come together to compete and exchange ideas, knowledge, technology and commerce. The event takes place each year in Madison, Wis. For details, visit www.world-dairy-expo.com.
Today’s announcement is the latest good news for the Kansas Dairy Initiative, which was initiated by the Kansas Department of Commerce and the western Kansas Rural Economic Development Alliance to promote Kansas as an ideal location – and the “new frontier” – for dairy farming. For more information, visit the campaign hub at www.DairyInKansas.com.
“Kansas has a lot to offer dairy farmers,” Jones said. “Whether you’re an existing Kansas farmer or an out-of-state dairyman looking for a great new site, Kansas is an ideal location to establish and grow a dairy farm.”
For details, contact Joe Monaco, public information officer with the Kansas Department of Commerce, at (785) 296-3760 or jmonaco@kansascommerce.com.
Dodge City avoids recession
CNN recently ran a story on why Dodge City, Kansas has avoided the recession that has impacted so many U.S. cities and communities. View this story and see why Kansas is Dairy’s New Frontier for not only your dairy, but your family.
Advocates say Kansas ideal for dairy industry
Published 3/26/2010 in Local News
By SHAJIA AHMAD
sahmad@gctelegram.com
Though many dairy producers nationwide have been struggling to stay in business during the economic recession, Kansas dairy advocates say now is a prime time to open a dairy farm and that the Sunflower State is the ideal location to do so.
Organizers with the Kansas Dairy Initiative — an effort to attract new dairy farmers to the state — hosted a day-long tour of three area dairies Thursday, where local operators and state commerce officials provided facility tours and a first-hand glimpse into a dairy’s daily operations: how milk is extracted, processed and transported.
At the 960-acre Royal Farms Dairy about 15 miles east of Garden City, where about 50,000 gallons of milk are produced daily, dairy operator Steve Irsik said that abundant dairy feed supplies in the region, limited competition for space, a dependably dry climate and a growing regional milk market should be attractive to out-of-state dairy producers looking to relocate or those looking to go into the business.
“There’s a real synergy here between grain producing farmers and dairymen,” Irsik said to the group of about 15 local business leaders and dairy producers. And, Irsik added, ongoing efforts to bring a $90 million large cheese factory to nearby Dodge City would require nearly 7 million pounds of milk per day and similar ventures are in the works in the Texas panhandle and New Mexico.
The national dairy crisis has taken a heavy toll on dairy farm families nationwide, and the National Farmers Union estimates at least 2,000 small and large dairies have gone out of business over the last several years due to low producer prices and nationwide surplus production of milk — and therefore dairy products. In addition, decreased demand worldwide connected with the world financial meltdown has exacerbated the challenges facing America’s dairy producers, even in this corner of the state, Irsik added.
But dairy advocates also said that despite the closure of a few western Kansas dairies — Sante Fe Dairy in Grant County, which closed in 2008, and West Kansas Dairy in Hamilton County, which closed in 2009 — the operations in Kansas continue to be strong. Of just more than 400 dairy farms across the state, more than 20 dairies milking more than 1,000 cows are primarily concentrated in the western half of the state, and about 22 of them are continuing to produce just more than 65 percent of the state’s supply, according to Jody Wacker, a dairy coordinator with the Kansas Livestock Association.
Wacker said that despite high supplies of milk nationally, there is a relatively low “spirit of competition” locally because the success of local dairies is intricately tied to the success of local economies. In addition, the success of local dairy producers strengthens commodity prices for farmers across the region, she said.
“There’s no competition here for feed, land, facilities, etc. — there’s no way we’re near that in western Kansas,” she said.
The tour was hosted by the Kansas Department of Commerce and the western Kansas Rural Economic Development Alliance (wKREDA). Guests also toured Plymell Dairy in Finney County and Forget-Me-Not Farms in Gray County.
The three dairies chosen for the tour have three different business models and structures so that participants can get a feel for the entire dairy industry in Kansas, J.J. Jones, an agricultural marketing specialist with the state commerce department, said.
County paves way for cheese factory
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