CARE bill could hinder our youth leasing programs

One of the most successful opportunities to get nonfarm youth excited about the dairy industry we've witnessed is leasing programs through 4-H, FFA, or breed groups. These leasing programs give youth without a farm background a chance to work with a project animal, gain experience on farms, and potentially find a career they love. You'd be surprised how many people working in the dairy industry didn't actually grow up on dairy farms, yet were introduced through a youth project.

H.R. 3564, the Children's Act for Responsible Employment (CARE), introduced by representative Lucille Roybal Allard (D-Calif.) could eliminate exemptions in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The FLSA allows nonfarm youth ages 12 to 17 to work on farms in safe conditions under certain circumstances with parental consent. CARE does not currently create an exemption for youth working with youth programs for 4-H or FFA. This means that youth could technically still lease animals and show at the county fair, but not work on your farm in exchange for the lease or in preparation of the local fair.

The goal of the original bill was to prevent the common employment of children of migrant workers. However, our industry may suffer a loss of future leaders if nonfarm youth are legally not allowed to work with us on our farms.

The cost of being Wisconsin's largest dairy farm

Controversy aside, Rosendale Dairy is a sight to behold. With over 4,000 cows already under one roof, construction has begun on Phase II of the farm plan which would add another 4,000 cows and make Rosendale the single largest dairy operation in Wisconsin. An Elanco program held at the farm allowed us to get an inside look at the new dairy which has been under scrutiny of environmental activists over the last year.

After facing much opposition and being held to the government’s highest design standards, the trio of owners Jim Ostrom, John Vosters, and Todd Willer went above and beyond the law to build a sustainable, low-carbon footprint, large-scale farm. And large it is. The cross-ventilated barn, part of Phase I, is seemingly endless with row after row of cattle.

Maybe the most interesting part of the $70 million farm investment is the cutting-edge technology. An 80-cow DeLaval rotary milking parlor gives each cow a nonstop, seven-minute ride around the huge parlor room three times a day. Ostrom says by the end of the summer they will be using a robotic teat dipper for postdipping to minimize waste and reduce labor.

Other farm features include a drive-in commodity shed where two mixers are being filled at any given time and an on-site manure-processing facility where dried manure solids are produced and sold to local farmers.

Rosendale is expected to provide nearly 70 permanent local jobs and contribute over $40 million in purchases per year from local contractors and vendors. Omro Dairy, Omro, Wis., and Tidy View Dairy, Kaukauna, Wis., are also owned by the partnership.