GENOA - More than 250 farmers from across the country and around the world were on the moove in Cayuga County Thursday.
Jason Rearick / The Citizen
Team leader for Alta Genetics, Pete Hamming, right, lectures on increasing the conception rate in dairy cows as Alta Genetics' district salesman, Pete Howe, holds up information on conception rates during a tour of Ridgecrest Dairy in Genoa Thursday morning.
Team leader for Alta Genetics, Pete Hamming, right, lectures on increasing the conception rate in dairy cows as Alta Genetics' district salesman, Pete Howe, holds up information on conception rates during a tour of Ridgecrest Dairy in Genoa Thursday morning.
Alta Genetics organized a tour showcasing several upstate farms, including four in the county.
“The goal for this is to grow in the large family farm business,” said Gary Gardner of the Calgary, Alberta-based Alta. “This particular group of farmers in this area are exceptional.”
New York has a reputation for large-scale family farming done in an environmentally and efficient manner, he said.
“People from all over the country want to see it,” Gardner said.
The company that specializes in artificial insemination originally planned on about 100 farmers showing up. The response proved overwhelming, Gardner said.
Beyond the marketing aspect, the tour also supports some of Alta's customers by making examples of them.
“We want to be a partner with these dairies,” Gardner said.
Throughout the morning, visitors listened to Ridgecrest Dairy owner/operator Dave Galton and dairy manager Dan Osborne speak about their methods for herd and land management while roaming the grounds, some with translators.
“I'd like them to come here and see the high quality of the cattle we have,” Osborne said before five busloads arrived for the second stop of the day. “We run a really clean, well-presented dairy.”
Some highlights of the farm, which was built from the ground up in 2003, include state-of-the-art ventilation and sand bedding.
“This dairy really was designed for cow comfort,” Osborne said. “They live longer and they produce longer.”
Visitors seemed to like what they saw.
“The thing that sticks out to me is the condition of the animals,” said Phil Mlsna, a Wisconsin farmer and dealer.
He said he was impressed with the overall health of the cows he had seen on the tour so far.
“We are always interested in the things other people do,” said Ard Koopmans, a Netherlands native with a dairy farm in North Carolina. “A lot of farms here are at least trying to do something with manure.”
He said he particularly was interested in a biodigester on a farm earlier in the tour, which began Wednesday and concludes today in Buffalo.
Patterson Farms, Oakwood Dairy and Scipio Spring Dairy were the other Cayuga County farms included in the tour.
Staff writer Shane Liebler can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or shane.liebler@lee.net
“The goal for this is to grow in the large family farm business,” said Gary Gardner of the Calgary, Alberta-based Alta. “This particular group of farmers in this area are exceptional.”
New York has a reputation for large-scale family farming done in an environmentally and efficient manner, he said.
“People from all over the country want to see it,” Gardner said.
The company that specializes in artificial insemination originally planned on about 100 farmers showing up. The response proved overwhelming, Gardner said.
Beyond the marketing aspect, the tour also supports some of Alta's customers by making examples of them.
“We want to be a partner with these dairies,” Gardner said.
Throughout the morning, visitors listened to Ridgecrest Dairy owner/operator Dave Galton and dairy manager Dan Osborne speak about their methods for herd and land management while roaming the grounds, some with translators.
“I'd like them to come here and see the high quality of the cattle we have,” Osborne said before five busloads arrived for the second stop of the day. “We run a really clean, well-presented dairy.”
Some highlights of the farm, which was built from the ground up in 2003, include state-of-the-art ventilation and sand bedding.
“This dairy really was designed for cow comfort,” Osborne said. “They live longer and they produce longer.”
Visitors seemed to like what they saw.
“The thing that sticks out to me is the condition of the animals,” said Phil Mlsna, a Wisconsin farmer and dealer.
He said he was impressed with the overall health of the cows he had seen on the tour so far.
“We are always interested in the things other people do,” said Ard Koopmans, a Netherlands native with a dairy farm in North Carolina. “A lot of farms here are at least trying to do something with manure.”
He said he particularly was interested in a biodigester on a farm earlier in the tour, which began Wednesday and concludes today in Buffalo.
Patterson Farms, Oakwood Dairy and Scipio Spring Dairy were the other Cayuga County farms included in the tour.
Staff writer Shane Liebler can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or shane.liebler@lee.net
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