Ryan Curtis's Blog

And the winner is ...

It's always fun to give out prizes for a contest. The hard part is that there is only one first place. We had a great response at the polls, 243 votes, and the final numbers were really close. In fact we had a tie for third place. Without further adieu, here are the final results for Contest 2010.

First place goes to Leslie Ann Batistich, who won the Proud to Dairy engraved iPod nano.

Second place goes to Katherine… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on June 28, 2010 at 12:15pm — No Comments

You choose the winner

We are entering the final stretch of the Proud to Dairy Contest 2010. We have had some great submissions and have narrowed it down to these five finalists. Now it is up to you to vote for your favorite. Pick your favorites in order of preference; first, second and third. The photo with the most votes will win*. Voting will close June 28 at 10:00 a.m. EDT. We will announce the winners June 28 at 2:00 EDT.

Let's see the finalists.

A. "The Pyle Family" submitted… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on June 22, 2010 at 8:30am — No Comments

Ohio Farm Bureau is a proud advocate

Everyone likes an advocate, especially if they are advocating for you. One advocate group has repeatedly earned its reputation of helping farmers. Ohio Farm Bureau (OFB) has been instrumental in working with farmers across agriculture to promote ag, advocate for farmers and lobby legislation to improve farming; not hurt it. Most recently OFB had their hands full dealing with media asking questions about the Mercy For Animals footage that was taken on an Ohio… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on June 14, 2010 at 9:30am — 1 Comment

Contest 2010 is here!

Proud to Dairy is holding a photo contest. The criteria is really quite simple. Post a creative picture featuring the Proud to Dairy logo. Put the logo anywhere, on anything or anyone in a way that might be creative or interesting. You may post multiple photos, so have fun with it and enjoy the contest. Make sure you keep checking out the Proud to Dairy site to see what others are submitting. Photo editing is also an element that can add flair to your… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on May 20, 2010 at 9:00am — 2 Comments

Dairy Goddess aims to connect to consumers through social media, farmstead cheese

The Dairy Goddess label hasn't always been attached to Barbara Martin, though many people know her as that now. Before she became the social media diva for the dairy industry, Martin actually ran through some horrible luck… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on May 14, 2010 at 10:00am — 3 Comments

Milk and Festas

This is one of our Portuguese cooking class. Pam Real came with her friend Dot Jones. She enjoyed eating filhoses and drinking milk with the kids.

The following text was sent to us by Mary S. Fernandes.

I want to talk about my 4-H Portuguese cooking class. It has been so much fun. My kids know that every time we have a cooking class that we will have milk. In our last class, we made… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on May 13, 2010 at 9:00am — 1 Comment

Could nutrition and comfort improve your herd’s RHA?

By Kelsey Holter

The following is a review of the Midwest Regional Dairy Challenge. Kelsey originally wrote this for Progressive Dairyman and it will be in the March 2 issue.

Despite the cold weather and snow on the ground, 66 students came out to participate in this year’s… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on February 26, 2010 at 4:23pm — No Comments

I believe in Professional Dairy Producers Foundation

In my mind, believing isn't seeing, it's hoping for an outcome or future. When belief becomes action, it takes on a passion or power that can change the future. The Professional Dairy Producers Foundation (PDPF) was founded, and sustained, on the belief in a better future.

"That's what it's about, producers and industry leaders getting behind it," says Shelly Mayer, Executive Director of PDPF. "What is amazing and inspiring is… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on February 11, 2010 at 4:30pm — No Comments

Pennsylvania is Proud again!

The Center for Dairy Excellence is letting it's members know they are Proud to Dairy. Check it out to see what they wrote and if you are planning on attending the Dairy Summit, make sure you take notice of Proud to Dairy and the great work that Center for Dairy does.

Added by Ryan Curtis on January 27, 2010 at 3:01pm — No Comments

Virtual Farming

With all the online games out there, you may not have heard about the game that allows you to get a Certificate of Sustainability for your online farm. The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture has set up an online, informational farming site that has games that teach players about farming in the U.S.

"The My American Farm virtual education program is anticipated to engage millions of youth, teachers and… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on January 14, 2010 at 11:31am — No Comments

Looking back on Issue 2

I saw this article referenced on Twitter and wanted to check it out. It is a good representation of what can happen when producers and Agriculture join together and let their voice be heard. I also think we can't assume it's over. We need to keep going. Speak up, Speak often and show your pride. Be Proud to Dairy.

"Last December, hundreds of Ohio farmers representing all 88 counties met to vote on Ohio Farm Bureau’s policies for 2009.… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on December 31, 2009 at 11:00am — No Comments

Liz Doornink is up for Ag Woman of the Year

Ag Connect has nominated Liz Doornink for Ag Woman of the year. She is the only dairy woman up for the award. Here is her bio.

Liz Doornink is the co-leader of AFACT, American Farmers for the Advancement and Conservation of Technology. Her family owns Jon-De Farm, Inc., a dairy farm in Baldwin, Wisconsin. Liz is passionate about the dairy business and has an… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on December 15, 2009 at 3:30pm — No Comments

PDMP is proud to connect dairy producers and policy makers

If you had a senator visit your farm one afternoon, what would you talk about? What would you ask and what to help him/her to understand? You probably haven't really thought about it because you don't really think it will happen. It happens a lot in Pennsylvania, with the help of PDMP.

Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania (PDMP) wants to educate producers, help them network within the industry and advocate… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on December 10, 2009 at 10:00am — No Comments

CityBoy's 12 Days of Christmas

Watch CityBoy and company sing his version of the 12 Days of Christmas on the dairy. Just a little background. CityBoy is a humorous look at a city-dweller "gone country" and his foul-ups at his dairy. Check out his… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on December 8, 2009 at 2:57pm — No Comments

You need to vote to help these students

There is a video contest going on right now! Alpharma is hosting a video contest for ag students and our fellow dairy friends have entered, but they need your help. Go to this link, and register so you can vote for your favorite video.

Added by Ryan Curtis on December 4, 2009 at 9:44am — No Comments

Proud Dairy Challenge participants find ways for dairy producer to make more than $150,000 extra a year

Dairy Challenge is a unique event that gives students the opportunity to be a consultant for the day. And in the regional dairy challenge competitions, teams are made up of students from a variety of schools in that area. Students are asked to evaluate and collaborate with complete strangers to come up with viable, profitable recommendations for the dairy farm they visit. They present their findings to a panel of… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on November 13, 2009 at 4:00pm — No Comments

Proud to ACT for the future

One thing that sets humans apart from other species is our ability to communicate complete thoughts through words. That communication helps us to organize efforts, combine thoughts to make new ideas and share feelings. Communication is very important in every business and industry because that's how we inform someone else about what we offer and why it's important. In the dairy industry, there are many people that focus on communications. As the industry and society as a whole change, we need… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on November 12, 2009 at 10:00am — No Comments

Beaver Springs, Pennsylvania is Proud to Dairy

Producers all over the country are proud to dairy. Another producer has found a new way to share that pride at her local fair. With a little help from Proud to Dairy, Susan Hauck, proud dairywoman and mother of a Pennsylvania county dairy princess, and the Eager Beaver Dairy 4-H club were able to display their pride at the Beaver Community Fair.

“We hung up Proud to Dairy posters throughout the dairy barn at the fair grounds and the show ring and told people what it was… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on November 5, 2009 at 3:48pm — 1 Comment

PDPW is a proud organization

Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin (PDPW) is focused on helping dairy producers succeed through learning and sharing information. As part of that mission they have launched a new website, www.pdpw.org with lots of tabs and resources to help producers catch up on happenings in the industry, not just in Wisconsin.

"We welcome dairy producers and leaders from anywhere, because they are part of that network [we are building]." says PDPW's Executive Director Shelly Mayer. "We all… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on October 8, 2009 at 1:19pm — No Comments

Milk Talk September 30, 2009

Written by the Milk Lady.

I went to see Doctor Bjarnason last week. Doctor Bjarnason has the perfect solution for the over supply of milk. In the morning, give every child a dairy product for snack at 10:00 am. This will be an energy boost. He said give them cheese, milk or yogurt. He also said that kids would do better in school if kids were not hungry. The kids will learn with more ease. For ADD kids, a midmorning snack will benefit them too. This is certainly worth trying. If this… Continue

Added by Ryan Curtis on October 2, 2009 at 11:00am — No Comments

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