MID-WEST FARM REPORT - MADISON

Winter wheat harvest has begun around Wisconsin and it looks like the crop's pretty good.  That's the quick analysis from Anastasia Kurth, Regional Crops & Soils Educator at UW-Madison Extension.  She says Wisconsin corn and soybeans are generally in good-to-excellent condition. Unlike  last year, growing degree days are slightly ahead of schedule, allowing  crops to benefit well from the current heat and humidity. Farmers have recently applied side-dress nitrogen for a mid-season crop boost. While southern rust has not been reported, growers are urged to scout for tar spot, which has already been confirmed in five neighboring states to the south and west. Soybeans are hitting their five-year average for blooming. Farmers are reminded to closely check herbicide labels, as the flowering (R1) stage dictates whether certain post-emergence herbicides can still be legally applied. This hot weather may not be ideal for people, pets or livestock but it has suppressed the risk of white mold in soybeans (which prefers cool, wet conditions), but farmers should watch for emerging Japanese beetles and monitor Western bean cutworm trap data.

Smoke is back in the forecast for all of Wisconsin to varying degrees. Stu Muck explains the drift today.  He also sees rain developing as soon as tonight.

Wisconsin Farm Technology Days concludes today in Stratford.  The show simply could not happen without volunteers.  Kiley Allan visits with one of them.  Maria Meyer is a volunteer along with her son.  It's a tradition that started the last time the show was in the area and her uncle asked her to help.  She explains that the volunteers receive compensation that goes directly to their charitable organization.  In Maria's case it's the Loyal EMS Dept.  Her son is volunteering to benefit his football team.

It's not just Wisconsin or the U.S. that's experiencing this heat.  Europe is as well.  Mike North, principal with EverAg out of Platteville, explains the milk loss we've already seen and how it's impacting the cheese market.

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Marathon County is working hard to save energy. In 2025, more than 100 local businesses,
manufacturers, schools, hospitals, and farms improved the efficiency of their facilities with support
from Focus on Energy.

Farming has played a major role in this achievement. Last year, 62 farms in Marathon County
completed more than 180 energy-saving projects, resulting in $325,000 in total savings. These
upgrades help family farms lower costs and stay strong for the future.

No Joke Dairy is a fifth-generation family farm in Marathon County that has belonged to the Redetzke family since 1911. Otto and Ottelia Redetzke built the original barn, and the farm has remained in the family for over a hundred years. Although the family stopped milking cows in 2011, brothers Matt and Sam Redetzke chose to start the dairy again in 2015. They restored the herd and brought the farm back to life. Now, four generations work side by side, making it a family-run farm.

The farm cares for 400 cattle in total, including young animals, and has a milking herd of around 200 Jersey cows. The Redetzke family also grows crops on 660 acres to feed their animals, keeping the farm self-sufficient.

Kevin Weiler, Focus on Energy advisor visits with Pam Jahnke and FTD host, Matt Redetzke, about their investments.

Energy Efficiency Upgrades with Focus on Energy
No Joke Dairy has implemented a series of energy-saving improvements in partnership with Focus
on Energy:

• Livestock Waterers (Installed in 2022 and 2023)

• LED Exterior Lighting (2023)

• Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) Vacuum Pump (2019)

• High-Bay LED Fixtures (2019)

• Annual Energy Savings: 68,710 kWh
• Annual Cost Savings: $8,671*
• Environmental impact: Reduces 108,836 pounds of CO₂ each year. This is equal to taking 12
gas-powered cars off the road or powering 10 homes for a full year
*Savings are estimated using average statewide rates and may vary by site.

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Summer may mean a break from school room activities, but it's also a break from reliable meals for many Wisconsin kids.

Hunger Task Force, headquartered in Milwaukee, works vigorously to try and make sure it's ready for the spike up in demand when those families need help.  Jonathan Hansen, chief strategy officer at Hunger Task Force, says they will be using a portion of a $2.5 million grant to help offset demands.  Hansen tells Pam Jahnke that the funding — part of a $10 million investment in Wisconsin’s 2025-27 state budget created by Governor Tony Evers and the Wisconsin State Legislature — connects local nonprofit food assistance programs with local producers to keep pantry shelves stocked with nutritious and locally produced food.  

Hansen notes that through Connecting Farms to Families, Hunger Task Force will use 100% of grant funds to support hunger relief programs across Wisconsin — uniquely providing all food absolutely free of charge — including food pantries, meal programs, nonprofit organizations, Tribal Nations and members of the Hunger Relief Federation of Wisconsin. All food purchased with the funding will come from small and mid-sized Wisconsin farmers and producers. This ensures producers have a reliable market for their crops and people across the state have consistent access to healthy food.

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Jill Welke joins us from Eau Claire to talk about the FRESH area being offered by the Marshfield Clinic.Stu Muck says warm weather is going to continue.
Pam Jahnke gets the scoop from Ashely Huhn. Their team will be at Farm Technology Days. She learns where we can find them! Paid for by Steffes.
Michelle Paul is the Equine Chair of this year’s event. She’s lined up an agenda that features a lot of horsepower! Their new trainer even and Belgian hitches are sure to amaze spectators.
John Heinberg, Market Advisor with Total Farm Marketing talks the impact of heat, volatile wheat prices and the latest impact of the Iran/US war on the marketplace.

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This year's Farm Technology Days is featuring all the horsepower. While some of the most impressive machinery Wisconsin has to offer will be on display, so will the original form of horsepower. Michelle Paul is the Equine Chair for this year's event. She walks through everything the Equine exhibits have to offer.

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Making our way through the month of July in Wisconsin also means that we're starting to get harvesting on that winter wheat crop. Dr. Shawn Conley sat down with Kiley Allan. He's the state Soybean and Small Grain Specialist for UW-Madison. He explains where we're at with this year's crop.

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Technology is always bringing something new to production agriculture.  Drones are a great example.  This technology continues to be refined and innovated into multiple tasks on today's farm.  Bob Bosold visits with Jeremy Jones from American Drone in Marshfield.  He explains how new tools are always being added to what these machines can do.

Dangerous heat this week across Wisconsin. Stu Muck says unlike other fronts, this one will stay dry and miserable for man and beast.

It's board meeting time for Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin.  Janet Clark, board chair and dairy farmer from Eldorado says that it's good when the board can pause and take a look back at what's been accomplished.  Some of the highlights that Clark points to are all the personal interactions during June Dairy Month activities, and the success they've found with trade missions.  Paid for by Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin.

Miss Wisconsin USA is using agriculture as her platform for interaction with the public.  Olivia Lulich is an agriculture instructor in Viroqua and the current Miss Wisconsin USA.  Through her appearances and social media, she's keeping the conversations going.

A new tool's available to try and help the state's dairy operators manage the heat this week.  Chris Vagasky, Research Program Manager with WISCONET, the state's weather network, says the "Cow Comfort Index" should help.  It takes several weather elements together to give farmers a "real feel" of what the animal is experiencing.  It's customized by geography and available on the wisconet.wisc.edu website free of charge.

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No one in Wisconsin enjoys the heat and humidity that seem to be circling back.  Now, Wisconsin dairy operators have a new tool to help them establish the "real feel" of that weather on cattle.

Chris Vagasky, Research Program Manager for Wisconet, says the state now has 79 weather stations dotting the state.  Each generates real-time weather data that can give guidance on animal handling and care.  Wisconsin is following models from other states and global systems, but uniquely creating tools specifically for the state.  

The "Cattle Comfort" tool available on the Wisconet website is the result of collaboration with dairy scientists in Wisconsin, and partnerships with dairy operations in Brillion, Darlington, De Pere, Durand, Marshfield, Montana, Rice Lake, and Wittenberg. 

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America's Dairyland has had a problem.  It's estimated that dairy operations have an estimated 5,000-10,000 year-round immigrant laborers, rather than temporary seasonal visa holders, that help keep cows milked and fed.  There's no federal work program that applies to that unique situation.  Recently the U.S. Dept. of Labor announced some clarification on H2A governance and how it can be used.  It clarified that dairies should qualify for that tool.  Sam Moheban, immigration attorney at Ruder Ware law firm in Wausau, says that's good news but shouldn't lull dairies into a false sense of security.  Pam Jahnke finds out what he means.

Over 2 inches of rain reported in places like Belgium, Valders and the Green Bay area yesterday.  Stu Muck says that moisture is leaving after today, but heat is right behind it.  Muck say we'll easily be back in the 90's by the weekend.

Over 700 youth from 44 states and Canada, plus around 2,000 head of cattle are making the Junior National Hereford Show a success in Madison.  A mom and Hereford enthusiast from Lancast, WI, is keeping things rolling.  Kiley Allan talks with Jaclyn Bevans, board member of National Hereford Women, about the benefits exhibitors see beyond the ribbons and trophy's.  Bevans puts the accents on the family time spent preparing animals, and the skills youth participants are picking up in the 1400 skill based contests they've held this week too.

HoHum.  That sums up the dairy market story lately.  Why won't if budge?  Ryan Yonkman, vice president of EverAg, joins Pam Jahnke to talk it through.  Yonkman says consumer demand is flat at best.  Pizza sales have continued to slip, and the European Union is giving the U.S. plenty of price competition.  The good news is that U.S. dairy product continues to move in the export space, but will it continue.  Yonkman says a lot will depend on how the "holiday" buying season ramps up in the next few weeks.  He notes that schools will be starting to come back online in August, and the Labor Day holiday can be an indication of early holiday demand.

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Sharing the great story of Wisconsin's beef industry can go in many different directions for many different audiences.  Dollars, however, are limited.

That's one of the challenges facing Tammy Vaassen, executive director of the Wisconsin Beef Council.  Vaassen, along with other state staff leaders, will be at the Summer Business Conference of the Cattlemen's Beef Board learning about projects that might fit with Wisconsin's direction.  Presenters will be from several different partners that contract with the Cattlemen's Beef Board.  Each with a particular area of expertise.

Vaassen explains to her board members and producers the simple fact that there's not as many cattle in the U.S. today as there has been.  That directly dictates the operating budget for the Wisconsin Beef Council.  By investigating partnerships with other checkoff funded partners, Vaassen can parlay her limited budget into a bigger bang for Wisconsin producers buck.  Any ideas that she believes are worth pursuing will be shared with her Wisconsin board members for final decision on funding.

In the past, for example, the Wisconsin Beef Council has used these partnerships to create reverse trade missions.  Brining foreign buyers to Wisconsin to learn about the unique system of beef production the state offers.  Vaassen and the staff at the Wisconsin Beef Council welcome questions or suggestions from producers or industry leaders.  The staff will be on hand in the Beef Tent at Wisconsin Farm Technology Days sharing educational materials with passersby.  You can also find more at their informative website - beeftips.com

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