DAIRY NEWS – There is still time to register and attend the 2025 Wisconsin Farm Technology Tours facilitated by Professional Dairy Producers®! Three dairy farms will host tours on August 19, 20 and 21, in Casco, Wis., Waunakee, Wis., and Markesan, Wis., respectively, to provide inside looks at the latest technologies and innovations in nutrient management.
“Managing nutrients is critical to today’s dairy operations with a variety of new approaches and technologies available,” said Cassandra Strupp, PDP program manager and Richfield, Wis., dairy producer. “If you are considering making a change on your farm, this is the perfect way to see a system in action and talk directly with the dairy team that selected and is working with it every day.”
Each tour will begin promptly at their start time; attendees are to meet on site and encouraged to carpool. Registration information and more details are available at www.pdpw.org or by contacting PDP at 800-947-7379. Walk-ins are welcome, but registration is preferred so host farms can be prepared.
Tuesday, August 19, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Dairy Dreams
E3576 Cardinal Road, Casco, Wis.
Tour the dairy and learn about the Aqua System that is part of the dairy’s sustainability initiative. The system concentrates the dairy’s nutrients and separates phosphorus and nitrogen into separate pits, allowing for more specific nutrient application. They also reuse water for sprinklers and flush tanks and have reduced hauling costs and kept trucks off the road. Dairy Dreams is owned and operated by the Pagel family.
Wednesday, August 20, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Endres Berryridge Farms
6953 Hyer Road, Waunakee, Wis.
Owned and operated by Steve, Jeff and Randy Endres, Berryridge Farms Diversified Composting Manure Systems composts separated solids from liquid manure into high-quality bedding for lactating cows while maintaining high milk quality. Learn about various composting practices including edge of field, compost spreading and value-added mixes of compost and other soil amendments.
Thursday, August 21, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Double S Dairy
N3447 Marshview Road, Markesan, Wis.
See the 360 Rain system as brothers Dan and Steve Smits are implementing it. Designed to deliver bands of water, manure, leachate and-or fertilizer directly to the base of plants, 360 Rain has helped Double S Dairy save 90% in manure application cost and $50,000 a year for leachate application compared to custom application.
Up to two Continuing Education Units (CEUs) per tour are available from Dairy AdvanCE.
Professional Dairy Producers® (PDP) is the nation’s largest dairy producer-led organization of its kind, focusing on producer professionalism, stakeholder engagement and unified outreach to share ideas, solutions, resources and experiences that help dairy producers succeed.
Comments