Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE- Producers, researchers and government officials will share with each other the latest information on management and conservation practices at the Discovery Farms and University of Wisconsin-Platteville Pioneer Farm bus tour. The event, sponsored by the Regional Dairy Modernization Task Force, will take place March 22 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Pioneer Farm, located on College Farm Road, seven miles from the UWP campus.

The goal of this event is to bring together people from different areas of agriculture to share new information on the interface between agriculture and the environment. "You don't often get a group together where you have the opportunity to hear many different viewpoints and opinions at the same time," said Kevin Bernhardt, professor of agribusiness at UWP. "This is a unique opportunity to see first-hand practices being used on commercial farms and to be a part of discussions of where to go from here. It's not your typical tour."

Participants will start at Pioneer Farm and from there, take a bus to tour Jim Heisner's Discovery Dairy Farm in Mineral Point and Mark Riechers' Discovery Beef Feed Lot in Darlington. Participants will then head back to Pioneer Farm for a discussion panel and farm tour.

Discovery and Pioneer Farm are both parts of the Wisconsin Agricultural Stewardship Initiative (WASI), a collaborative effort between producers, researchers, agricultural and environmental organizations and government agencies, to find production methods that are profitable, but at the same time, preserve and enhance natural resources. The role of Pioneer Farm is to test new ideas that look promising, but not yet proven to be commercially viable. Once an idea passes the tests at Pioneer Farm, it is implemented at Discovery Farms throughout the state.

Discovery Farms further evaluate the environmental and economic impact of these new methods in a commercial farm setting and create alternative management practices if necessary. Heisner is experimenting with rotational grazing while Riechers is implementing direct planting.

"The scope is larger than the scope of most other research. Most agricultural research is done on a small scale. Here, we're trying to melt information from 11 different farms," stated Chris Baxter, assistant professor of agronomy and State Extension nutrient management specialist.

After touring the Discovery Farms, a discussion panel of producers, researchers and government officials will answer questions and share information on the current research and new practices. Discussion topics will include, runoff collection, the impact of cropping systems and manure application on the amount of runoff and infrastructure for collecting data. Dennis Frame, co-director of the Discovery Farms Program and a contributor in the development of a statewide nutrient management program, will be the moderator. Members of the panel include representatives from Pioneer Farm, the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Production, the Department of Natural Resources, UW-Extension and the Natural Resources Conservation Service and producers Riechers and Heisner.

"We're bringing different parts of agriculture together, but in the end, we're all one team. The more we come together as producers, government and researchers, the better off we are in the long run," commented Bernhardt.

Events sponsored by the Dairy Modernization Task Force are already making an impact. To date, 1,353 people have participated in the events and workshops held over the past four years. From the Dairy Summit III workshop, 41 percent of the industry professionals that attended stated that the task force events were very influential in helping them help their clients. The task force seeks to improve producers' ability to achieve their farm business and personal goals and increase milk production, economic activity and the number of cows in the region.

Baxter is hopeful that this event will have an even larger impact. "The potential implications of this are huge. It could lead the way in new agriculture policies and it's right in our student's backyard," he stated.

Registration is due March 15 and is $20 in advance and $40 at the door. Anyone wanting more information about this event, or to register may contact Bernhardt at (608) 342-1365 orbernhark@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Kevin Bernhardt, professor of agribusiness, UW-Extension statewide farm management specialist, (608) 342-1365, bernhark@uwplatt.edu Prepared by: Krystle Kurdi, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194,kurdik@uwplatt.edu