Expo's History

News EditorBASF Plant Science, Charleston-Orwig, Hoard's Dairyman, World Dairy Expo

Chuck and Cindy are providing you with live updates from World Dairy Expo. But, do you know the history behind the show? I thought you would like to learn more!

Bright Lights, Big ShowOf course, when the big dairy event started it was called The Food and Agricultural Exposition and National Dairy Show and ran for 10 days in September. Its main aim was to educate consumers in raising, cooking and eating food. The dairy show seemed a “throw-in” to attract dairy folks.

After a few years of money-losing extravaganzas with big-name entertainment and public disinterest, the Food and Ag Exposition was near bankruptcy. Changes in management were made and a group of dairy cattle breeders and dairy organizations took control, raised money and revamped the event that was renamed World Dairy Expo.

One of the reasons for the ultimate success of World Dairy Expo was the efforts of the farsighted group of dairy folks to put together a world class dairy show to replace the Waterloo Dairy Cattle Congress, the longtime biggest of the big dairy cattle shows held nationally, that had fallen on hard times.

Tom and John Dalton have exhibited their Daltondale Farm Ayrshire cattle at World Dairy Expo from the beginning in 1967 — 41 cattle shows ago. The Daltons have seen it all. And, like the nearly 1,000 other dairy cattle exhibitors, they make the annual trip to Madison with their calves and cows.

Like many other longtime Dairy Expo dairy exhibitors, Tom Dalton sees it is a yearly get-together second to none.

“It’s like a high school class reunion,” he says. “We get to see old friends and meet new friends. And once you get the show ring in your blood it stays.”

2007 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
NutriDense Silage Hoard's Dairyman Magazine Charleston Orwig

Alice in Dairyland

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, BASF Plant Science, Charleston-Orwig, Dairy Business, General, Hoard's Dairyman, Podcast, World Dairy Expo

WDX AliceOur first official Milking Parlor podcast from World Dairy Expo is with the lovely and talented “Alice in Dairyland,” aka Jill Makovec.

“Alice in Dairyland is Wisconsin’s official spokesperson for agriculture,” she says. “Alice’s primary role is to educate people about the impact of agriculture here in the state.” Agriculture is a $51.5 billion industry in Wisconsin, with nearly half of that coming from the dairy industry. “So, it’s really important for Alice to do a lot of dairy related events,” said Alice. And World Dairy Expo is an especially important event since it draws so many visitors from around the nation and the world.

Alice/Jill is not just a spokesperson for the dairy industry – she comes from strong dairy industry stock. “My family has operated a dairy farm for over 100 years,” she says. Her goal after completing her year as Alice is to keep that farm operating on a smaller scale as an agritourism attraction. “This would be a great way for me to continue being Alice after my role, continue educating people about agriculture in Wisconsin, and still be able to keep the dairy farm in my family.”

Listen to Cindy’s “Milking Parlor” podcast with Alice in Dairyland here:
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3?http://zimmcomm.biz/wdd/milking-parlor-04.mp3] To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, here are some instructions.

2007 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
NutriDense Silage Hoard's Dairyman Magazine Charleston Orwig

"Bright Lights, Big Show" Ring

Cindy ZimmermanBASF Plant Science, Charleston-Orwig, General, Hoard's Dairyman, World Dairy Expo

WDX ThemeThis year’s theme for World Dairy Expo is “Bright Lights, Big Show” – as the show press materials say it represents “a brilliant place to exchange ideas, a dazzling display of dairy cattle and the brightest showcase of dairy technology, products and services geared to today’s dairy producer.”

The annual themes are a unique aspect of World Dairy Expo. The special themes were started in the late 1980’s, and each year the showring is decorated with two backdrops that correspond to that year’s theme. Themes have ranged from the simple to the extravagant, like the “Excitement is Building” theme which had a huge construction like backdrop. The World Dairy Expo is also known for having colored shavings in the show ring. This year the color is a kind of lavender, very pretty.

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
NutriDense Silage Hoard's Dairyman Magazine Charleston Orwig

Broadcasting from WDX

Cindy ZimmermanBASF Plant Science, Charleston-Orwig, Dairy Business, Hoard's Dairyman, Media, World Dairy Expo

WDX AgriTalkThe media are out in force here at World Dairy Expo and here is our obligatory photo of our friends from Agri Talk. We always include a photo of them in our coverage of events on AgWired, so its only right that they should be here as well!

WDX JankeThe second photo is the “Fabulous Farm Babe,” our friend Pam Jahnke of WTDY/Q106 Radio right here in Madison. This is her home turf and she is well-known around Expo and the dairy industry.

According to expo officials, there are over 175 media registered for the event and many from other countries.

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
NutriDense Silage Hoard's Dairyman Magazine Charleston Orwig

Hello From Expo

Cindy ZimmermanBASF Plant Science, Charleston-Orwig, Dairy Business, General, Hoard's Dairyman, World Dairy Expo

WDExpo GlobeWorld Dairy Expo is officially underway in Madison, Wisconsin and we are here to bring you the highlights. I got here early this morning and have just been amazed at it all! I’ve never been here before, so I have been just taking my time, wandering around and tasting cheese and enjoying all the sights. Chuck is on his way here, flying back from California. He will be taking over for the rest of the week, I’m just here to get things started.

Somewhere between 60-70,000 people are expected to come to the show this week from about 80 countries – thus the global display outside of the arena.

We will be bringing you podcasts on what is happening here at the expo on The Milking Parlor, as well as lots of photos and more. Stay tuned!

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
NutriDense Silage Hoard's Dairyman Magazine Charleston Orwig

Royek Crowned Pa. State Princess

News EditorCompetition, Dairy Checkoff, Education, Industry News

pa. state princessCongrats to Lyndsey Royek of Erie County is the new 2007-2008 Pennsylvania State Dairy Princess! Lyndsey was crowned on Saturday, September 29 at the 51st Pennsylvania Dairy Princess Pageant. Her royal court includes 1st Alternate Stephanie Beeman of Cumberland County and Sarah Weimer of Clarion-Venango Counties.

The contestants were judged on their public speaking skills, knowledge of the dairy industry, poise and personality. Each contestant prepared a speech and skit promoting milk and dairy products, and participated in a personal interview with a panel of four judges. The new dairy promotion team will travel the state for the next year representing the dairy industry – the commonwealth’s top agricultural industry that contributes $4.2 billion to the economy.

A junior at Corry Area High School, Lyndsey is the daughter of Walter and Lisa Royek of Corry. The Royeks milk 55 Holsteins and Guernseys, of which Lyndsey owns six, on their 250-acre farm. Lyndsey is a member of her school’s swimming and soccer teams, and is active in 4-H and the Pennsylvania Junior Holstein and Guernsey associations. Her other hobbies include dancing, reading and showing cows. An avid dairy promoter, she hopes to attend Penn State University to earn a degree in marketing and pursue a career in the field.

Two alternates were chosen to support the Pennsylvania Dairy Princess. The First Alternate is 21-year-old Stephanie Beeman from Cumberland County. An honorable mention skit winner, Stephanie is a former state FFA officer and current sophomore at Harrisburg Area Community College. She plans to transfer to Penn State University next year to study agribusiness. Beeman is the daughter of Steven and Diane Beeman of Carlisle. Her grandfather and uncle operate dairy farms and she has raised dairy heifers.

Clarion-Venango County Dairy Princess Sarah Weimer was chosen as Second Alternate after being named one of two speech winners. Sarah’s parents are Mike and Cindy Weimer of Emlenton and they operate Solid Gold Holsteins and farm 162 acres. Sarah owns 14 Holsteins and Guernseys and is active in both breeds’ state junior associations, along with her county 4-H program. A senior at Keystone High School, Sarah is also enrolled in Clarion University’s early admission program after spending part of the summer traveling in Europe with another school program.

Introducing the Milking Parlor Podcast

Chuck ZimmermanThe Milking Parlor

We’d like to introduce “The Milking Parlor” podcast, the official podcast of World Dairy Diary. The Milking Parlor will feature interviews with dairy industry leaders and producers. World Dairy Expo and our event coverage sponsors are providing us with a great platform to launch this new service. The podcast provides you with an easy way to subscribe to our audio content and get it on your computer/iPod/other mp3 player so you can listen to it when and where you want!

If you don’t have an iPod or don’t want to subscribe we’ll still post our interviews for you to click and listen just like we have been doing. Now you’ll have more choices. The first three episodes of our podcast feature interviews with our sponsors.

Cindy and I will be attending World Dairy Expo this week and posting lots of interviews here on the website and they’ll also be part of The Milking Parlor podcast. If you’re not sure how to subscribe then we’ve got some instructions for you.

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
NutriDense Silage Hoard's Dairyman Magazine Charleston Orwig

Using New Media to Cover WDX

Chuck ZimmermanAudio, BASF Plant Science, Beef Checkoff, Charleston-Orwig, Dairy Business, Hoard's Dairyman, Media, Podcast, World Dairy Expo

Bright Lights, Big ShowWe will be bringing you daily coverage of World Dairy Expo this week here on World Dairy Diary thanks to a sponsorship package put together by Charleston-Orwig of Hartland, Wisconsin.

CEO Lyle Orwig says they are a marketing and communications agency that has been serving agriculture since 1992.

“We work nationally and internationally with clients who market products to producers as well as conducting issues management programs for everyone basically from the farm gate to the dinner plate,” said Orwig.

Charleston-OrwigBeing located in Wisconsin, Orwig says they have close ties to dairy production and many clients within the industry. “Clients like Arm & Hammer Animal Nutrition, BASF Plant Science that markets NutriDense in the silage industry, Dairyland Seed, Hoard’s Dairyman,” said Orwig. “We also do projects for the Holstein Association, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Smithfield Foods which also owns Packerland Packing now, and also with Westfalia-Surge which markets milking machine and dairy hygiene products.”

Orwig says World Dairy Expo is the perfect opportunity for dairy product marketers to interact with dairy industry professionals, but they realize not everyone can make it to Madison for the show. “But virtually every producer is interested in learning how to save money or be more efficient in their production,” he says. To reach those producers who can’t be there, they decided to sponsor coverage on World Dairy Diary, especially in podcast form – kicking off our new dairy podcast “The Milking Parlor.”

Listen to Cindy’s “Milking Parlor” podcast with Lyle here:
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3?http://zimmcomm.biz/wdd/milking-parlor-03.mp3]

BASF NutriDense at WDX

Chuck ZimmermanAudio, BASF Plant Science, Charleston-Orwig, Feed, Nutrition, Podcast, World Dairy Expo

Bright Lights, Big ShowOne of the exhibitors at this week’s World Dairy Expo, and one of the sponsors of our coverage this year, is BASF Plant Science’s NutriDense.

Jerry Weigel, with BASF Plant Sciences global nutrition and tech services, says NutriDense is a nutritionally-enhanced corn that contains a stacked set of output traits that enhance animal feed performance.

“Instead of going in and simply increasing the amount of starch, we’ve tried to improve all the constituents of corn silage, in particular the digestibility,” said Weigel.

NutridenseWeigel says they will be providing information about NutriDense to dairy producers who visit their booth at World Dairy Expo and having a little fun with it as well. “We’ll be offering a quiz on their knowledge of ag trivia and NutriDense with the chance to win a free cheese sandwich and a milk shake at the Badger Dairy Club Cheese Stand.”

In addition, Weigel says they are having an “Ag Bag” promotion. “The dairymen have an opportunity to get a free “Ag Bag” with the purchase of 20 bags of NutriDense for silage and if they register by December 15 they also receive a free all-weather jacket.” Producers can register for the promotion at the booth.

BASF Plant Science is also a sponsor of the World Dairy Expo Virtual Farm Tours this year. They will be sponsoring the tour on October 6 of Double Dutch Dairy in Shelby, NE.

Listen to Cindy’s complete audio interview with Jerry here:
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3?http://zimmcomm.biz/wdd/milking-parlor-02.mp3]

Stay tuned to World Dairy Diary this week as we bring you start to finish coverage of World Dairy Expo, sponsored in part by BASF Plant Science’s NutriDense.

Plant Protein Could Fight Mastitis

Chuck ZimmermanAnimal Health, Research

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are testing a plant-produced, therapeutic protein, which thwarts bacteria that cause inflammatory udder disease in dairy cows. They turned a laboratory-produced plant virus into a delivery vehicle that carries a specific gene. The target gene expresses large quantities of a protein called CD14. When the virus reproduces itself inside plant cells, it generates CD14.

ARS Dairy ResearchThe researchers designed the virus to use the plant as a patent-pending “biofactory” that rapidly accumulates usable quantities of the therapeutic CD14 protein. A tagging system—which the researchers built into the technology—allows high levels of the CD14 protein to be harvested from mashed leaves. Potentially, fifty plants could provide enough purified protein to treat a herd of 500 cows.

In the ARS photo, plant pathologist Rosemarie Hammond and molecular biologist Lev Nemchinov (right) point out to molecular biologist Dante Zarlenga the virus symptoms on a plant containing the CD14 gene.

Read more from ARS.