Posted: 01.13.2011

With privilege - comes responsibilities - and Wisconsin's Professional Dairy Producers want to stress that message during their upcoming annual meeting.

In a teleconference call with the media on Wednesday - Eric Hillan, PDPW President and Ladysmith area dairy farmer said that all farmers have to remember they're involved in an industry where trust means everything. 

Hillan said, "We are privileged to be in an industry where producers remain independent professionals, and our businesses are largely family-owned, many through generations, but that privilege comes with responsibility."

Hillan continued by pointing out that todays consumers want to trust todays farmers.  Consumers want to believe in the systems that dairy farmers put in place - they want to hear dairy farmers messages and be confident in the product that ends up on their dinner table.  

That goal, in part, is why PDPW issued what they called a "Clarion Call"  to ask for all dairy producers to join the group and tell their story.  Aside from encouraging more membership, Hillan also said that PDPW wants all dairy farmers to think about a few key day-to-day messages.
·         Stay focused on what you can control.
·         Learn by networking with other producers, and
·         Be confident in what you do every day.

Also on the conference call was PDPW Vice President, Mark Diedrichs of Malone and Ag Economist, Dr. David Kohl.  Kohl told the gathered media that he's very excited to return to Madison for the 2011 PDPW Annual Meeting, March 15-16 at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison.  Kohl has been in attendance at the annual gathering since it's inception.

Kohl says skill development needs to always be updated.  He said it requires 2-6 hours of education a week just to stay abreast of all the latest cutting edge techniques.  Kohl said the PDPW annual meeting and conference not only provides growers with that education - but it also helps them recharge their batteries.

Kohl also expressed optimism about what the dairy industry will experience in 2011 - and well beyond.  Kohl said, "You know there's no one size that fits all.  I don't care if you're traditional, natural or organic or operate a very large complex type of farm business.  I think there's going to be more opportunity in the next 10 years then there's been in the past 30 years - regardless of your business model (large-small, conventional-organic)."  Kohl continued that it will take discipline however.  "One of the things that's very important is to assess what you do well and use those skills to form a blueprint success champion type of business structures that will be sustainable not only in the short run - but for the long run too."

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