June Dairy Month kicked off Saturday in South Dakota with a tour of MoDak Dairy in Goodwin. Greg Moes is co-owner of the 2,000 cow dairy. He says they’ve been doing open houses for years as a way to show consumers how milk is produced by farmers in a safe and responsible manner. He says that includes using antibiotics only to treat sick animals. Plus, that milk is not co-mingled with the rest of the herd’s milk.
He says they also use DNA testing technology to improve the productivity and health of their cows.
And on a 90-plus degree day, Moes says it was a good opportunity to show consumers how they keep animals cool and comfortable to promote higher milk production.
Moes buys more than 20,000 bushels of dry corn annually in the local area, in addition to minerals and other supplies for the dairy. They also have 35 employees on their payroll and all that generates economic activity for the local community.
