A new online education series funded by the Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program (PDPP), the local dairy checkoff-funded organization in Pennsylvania, will be available by late summer. Called “Discover Dairy”, the lesson plans will focus on the dairy industry in five topics: dairy and the community, dairy and the environment, milk safety, animal health, and dairy nutrition and health. Each lesson plan will include a four-minute DVD with footage filmed on several local dairies. The series sounds like a great resource for teachers! Visit the Center for Dairy Excellence to learn more.
The three farms were chosen for the project to show the diversity of Pennsylvania’s dairy industry while demonstrating the commitment that all dairy farmers – regardless of size or management style – have to animal health, milk safety, the environment, and the local community.
Star Rock Dairy, owned by the Barley family of Conestoga, is a large dairy facility with more than 1,000 cows. The Hertzler family of Moo-Echo Farms in Loysville milk about 250 cows on a seasonal grazing dairy operation, and the Bitler family from Vista Grande Farm in Fleetwood operate a more traditional dairy with 110 milking cows in a tie-stall facility.
“All three farm families involved in the project are excellent role models for Pennsylvania’s dairy farm families, and portray a positive image of the commonwealth’s dairy industry for the students who will see the video,” said Gary Heckman, Executive Director of the Center for Dairy Excellence.