Success Stories

The Glover Family Farm

In the fall of 1996, the Glover brothers, Ed and Ron, made a potential life-changing decision for their families. With a rolling herd average of 16,000 pounds and high accounts payable, the Glovers were struggling to make ends meet. Morale was low and stress was high. The Glovers had to make one of two choices: exit the dairy business or solicit significant help.

Ed and Ron's family ties to the farm and a love for the land helped them make the decision to solicit help to improve their farm situation. Excited by what they learned about the team concept, Ed and Ron started a team of their own and by the spring of 1997, the team was in place and functioning. Ed asked Enos Tice, nutrition consultant of Milkin' Menus to be the team coordinator. Other team members included the farm's accountant, loan officer, crop consultant, and veterinarian.

About the Glovers

Ed and Ron Glover are the second generation to manage the 60-cow dairy farm located in southwestern Pennsylvania. Ed and Ron formed a partnership in 1982 and made two changes to the family operation.

1. A 54-stall freestall barn was constructed.
2. The family beef and sheep enterprises were sold to allow the farm to focus solely on the dairy.

Ron is 57 and his brother, Ed, is 42. Ron's wife and grown children are employed off-farm. Ed's wife is employed off-farm. They have three children ages 18, 16, and 11. All plan to attend college and it will be years before any could return to the farm.

Getting the Team Started - A S.W.O.T. Analysis

At the first team meeting, a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis was completed for the business. The team looked carefully at all aspects of the dairy. After completing the analysis, they came up with several objectives to improve the farm situation. They were the following:

• Increase milk production
• Lower calf mortality
• Lower the age at first freshening
• Implement a heifer management program
• Increase cow comfort
• Lower somatic cell count
• Implement TMR
• Harvest better forages
• Lower accounts payable

Productivity & Profitability

These goals were not all addressed at once, but over a three-year period the Glover Farm achieved nearly all of these objectives:

• Milk production increased considerably from 16,000 lbs to 25,000 lbs. (and was still rising in 1999.)
• The Glovers are selling their calves to a contract raiser with first option to buy them back as spring heifers.
• The introduction of sand bedding and the removal of barn siding improved cow comfort and lowered SCC.
• The purchase of a TMR mixer not only improved the nutritional program significantly, but also became a great tool for budgeting feed costs.
• Agway introduced a new cropping program that increased yield. The advisory team encouraged harvest timeliness to improve overall forage quality. The Glovers no longer rent additional acreage and have opted to contract out many aspects of the crop work concentrating more on the cows.
• At 20,000 pounds production, a BST program was implemented.
• As production and profit per cow continued to increase, Ed decided to cut cow numbers from approximately 75 to 60. This cow number was a better match for the facilities and workforce. It also made the work life of Ed and Ron more enjoyable.

These improvements helped boost production and pay down debt!!!

The Future

Ed and Ron have new optimism about dairy farming. They are no longer pressured by debt and were able to purchase a silo unloader and generator in 1999, while staying current with accounts payable despite the low milk price. They continue to work with their dairy advisory team. The new goals for 2000 were to address reproduction, dry cow management, and milk production. "It's time to look at the future of our dairy." With the help of the team, the Glovers are exploring options for the future: expansion, the possibility of hiring a part-time worker to allow for time away from the farm, and milking 3 times per day. Team coordinator Enos Tice comments, "One of the reasons why the Glovers have had so many successes is due to their willingness to implement changes suggested by the team in a timely manner. Teams that don't make progress typically have problems adopting new ideas and practices."

Congratulations to the Glovers and their advisory team!

Frosty Hollow Farm

"To be successful, I know that I have to surround myself with successful people."

This is what Doug Smith, partner in a 600-cow dairy operation, made a reality. The successful people that Doug talks about are his Dairy Advisory team members.

The Frosty Hollow Advisory Team was formed a year ago through Penn State's Dairy Advisory Team project. Doug Smith first called on his agribusiness advisors to assist him with his expansion, and since the expansion, the team is working on new goals that will keep his business viable for the future.

"I have high expectations of my team members and I hold them accountable." Doug values the support of the team, the new ideas and advice that they bring, and especially the open communication around the table.

Team members that meet on a monthly basis are Tamera Smith (Wife and partner), Daniel Smith (Father and partner), Beverly Smith (Mother and partner), Gary Dean (Purina Mills), Beth Moore (Coordinator), Shawn Orczeck, DVM (Widmann and Itle Veterinary Associates), John Replogle (PFB Members' Service Corporation), Jolene Rush (Recorder), and Enos Tice (Milkin' Menus).