In despair, dairyman kills milking herd, then ends his life

This past year has been challenging for dairy farmers across the nation. During the course of the past year, dairy producers have seen the average value of their milking herd drop by $700 per head across the board. In many regions of the country, milk checks have been barely enough to cover feed costs while in the Western U.S. milk checks didn't even cover feed bills in some cases. Mounting debt, long hours, low milk checks, and a host of other issues have led to depression and despair on many dairy farms. Even with higher milk prices on the horizon, there is no doubt, some dairy producers feel this weight on their shoulders is simply too heavy.

With all that in mind, on Thursday, January 21, Dean Pierson of Copake, N.Y., went through his barn with rifle in hand and ended the lives of his 51 Holstein milk cows, reports the Albany Times Union. When that last task was completed, Pierson turned the weapon on himself. No suicide note was left, his wife told Paul Grondahl a reporter of the Albany Times Union.

State Police investigators told the Albany Times Union that a neighboring farmer found Pierson and the cows at 1 p.m., on Thursday. "It's horribly sad," State Police Investigator Abdul Weed told the Albany Times Union.

According to published newspaper reports, Pierson's wife would like to keep the farm going. "It wouldn't be right for all that work he put into it to go to nothing," she told the Albany Times Union.

The entire story as printed in the Albany Times Union can be seen by clicking the title of this blog.

We urge all our dairy farm families to look out for their loved ones. Keep the lines of communication open. If a loved one is acting unusual, get them help immediately.

A memorial to Dean Pierson's life is planned for January 26 and 27. The family would ask that in lieu of flowers, please consider AFSP, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 120 Wall St. 22nd Floor, New York, NY 10005.

A link to Pierson's obituary can be found at http://www.registerstar.com/articles/2010/01/25/obituaries/doc4b5cfac9158bb335410000.prt

Vermont's Cobb Hill wins North American Jersey Cheese Awards

At an event the first of its kind, it was Cobb Hill Cheese's Ascutney Mountain variety that took home top honors in the North American Jersey Cheese Awards. The awards program was held during the American Jersey Cattle Association and National All Jersey annual convention. See our last blog for more about the convention. This new event, the North American Jersey Cheese Awards, was organized by U.S. Jersey staff and the World Jersey Cattle Bureau to showcase cheese produced around the continent from 100 percent Jersey milk. A similar event, the World Jersey Cheese Festival, was held at the breed's original home on the Isle of Jersey in the English Channel last year.


Seventy-seven cheese entries from 29 producers in 15 states and Quebec were submitted to the competition. Cheeses were judged on both technical and aesthetic characteristics by a panel of esteemed cheese experts and cheese enthusiasts. Kathy Guidi, a 35-year cheese expert, Dean of the Cheese Education Guild, and President of Artisan Cheese Marketing in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, served as lead judge.

Medal winners were showcased at Sycamore Hill Gardens in Marcellus, NY, during an evening dinner and garden tour at the former Jersey farm. Of the group, 48 received either a gold, silver, or bronze medal award. Cheeses that earned between 36 and 40 points received bronze awards, those with between 41 and 45 points earned silver medals, and those with 46 to 50 points received gold medals. Guidi praised the Ascutney Mountain cheese from Cobb Hill for it's excellent flavor, texture and beautiful rind. The runner-up was Blau Wein Kase of Flat Creek Lodge cheese in Georgia. Second runner-up recognition was given to Tarentaise, a cheese from Spring Brook Farm, from Vermont. A photo of the winning Ascutney Mountain cheese is shown below.

Jersey worlds combine in upstate New York

We're keeping busy this summer bringing you coverage of each of the breeds' annual meetings. This week is no exception as we joined over 400 Jersey breeders and enthusiasts from around the country and world in Syracuse, N.Y. for the annual meeting of National All Jersey, the American Jersey Cattle Association, and the World Jersey Cattle Bureau. Activities started Wednesday and will continue through Saturday.

Wednesday evening highlighted the accomplishments of six outstanding young breeders who have developed well-established Jersey breeding programs in just their short time breeding Jerseys as all honorees were under the age of 40. Those winners included Roger and Cathleen Alexander of Liberty, Pa., Kimberly Clauss of Hilmar, Calif., Eric Daggett of Derby, Vt., Jake and Kate Hardy of Belleville, Pa., Shari Strickhouser of Elkhorn, Wis., and Ron and Nicole Wussow of Cecil, Wis.

Thursday started off with National All Jersey's annual meeting, as well as a seminar regarding Jersey beef research that was recently completed at Oregon State University. The afternoon included a visit to Silver Spring Farm, owned and operated by convention co-chairs Chuck and Sue Luchsinger. After lunch and tour, the farm was the site of the Jersey research auction which impressively raised over $18,000 for Jersey-specific research. Thursday evening showcased award winners of Jersey's top honors. This year's honorees included William and Carolyin Ahlem, Sabino Ahlem Herrera, and Ed Fisher, all of Hilmar, Calif., who were named Master Breeders. Robert and Helene Dreisbach of Mercer, Pa., were given the Distinguished Service Award and the Award for Meritorious Service was given to Ronald Pearson of Virginia Tech and Blacksburg, Va.

Be sure to watch for our August 10, 2009, issue which will have a full report of each convention, including association financial reports and convention sale reports.