2024 Dairy Day Presentations
Dairy Lameness
Presented by: Mark Gerber, Dairy Technical Sales Specialist, Zinpro
Description coming soon!
Mark grew up on a dairy farm in Michigan before attending Michigan State University and Grand Valley State University. He worked for 13 years with a US feed manufacturing company, 3.5 years with Diamond V in Wisconsin and 22 years with Zinpro in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, and Ontario.
Presentation begins Thursday January 4th, 2024 at 10:00 am.
Changes to the SNF Policy and Managing Milk Production
Presented by: Kristin Benke, Chief Business Officer, Dairy Farmers of Ontario
An update will be provided on changes to markets and production and the subsequent changes to producer payment.
Kristin Benke joined Dairy Farmers of Ontario in 2008 and has worked in a variety of areas of the organization during her time with DFO. She was promoted to the position of Chief Business Officer at Dairy Farmers of Ontario in December 2021, and is currently responsible for economics and policy, quota, and billing and payment. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree at Queen’s University in Economics and has a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Guelph.
Presentation begins Thursday January 4th, 2024 at 11:15 am.
DFO Update
Presented by: Mark Hamel, Producer, Vice Chair & Board Member - Region 11, DFO
Mark will give an update on DFO activities over the last year.
Mark lives on a family-operated dairy farm west of Elmwood, Ontario. Along with his son Matt, 4th generation, and daughter in-law Larissa they milk 140 purebred Holsteins. Currently Mark is a Dairy Farmers of Ontario Board Member representing Region 11, Bruce and Grey Counties and also the DFO Vice Chair. Mark is a Past Chair of Gay Lea Foods Co-operative as well as Howick Mutual Insurance Company. Mark contributed to the development of the Indonesia Dairy Co-operative Initiative by travelling to Indonesia to meet with government officials and dairy representative over a 3-week period in 2014. Mark is a graduate of the Advanced Agricultural Leadership Program.
Presentation begins Thursday January 4th, 2024 at 1:15 pm.
Dairy Code of Practice Update
Presented by: Steve Runnalls, Board Member, Dairy Farmers of Ontario
This presentation will share details about updates and revisions to the dairy code of practice.
Steve Runnalls farms with his family near Earlton Ont on 800 acres, milking 65 cows along with 250 ewes and cash cropping. He is a board member for Dairy Farmers of Ontario and was part of the Dairy Dode of Practice Committee.
Presentation begins Thursday January 4th, 2024 at 1:45 pm.
Hoof Health
Hoof health is a major concern in the dairy industry. Don't miss out on this panel of experts who each will approach the subject from a different perspective: including that of a veterinarian, researcher, nutritionist, and hoof trimmer.
Panelist: Cynthia Miltenburg, Lead Veterinarian, Animal Health and Welfare, OMAFRA
Cynthia is a veterinarian and graduate of the Ontario Veterinary College where she earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Doctor of Veterinary Science degrees. She spent several years in large animal practice before completing graduate research focused on strategies to improve transition cow health and immune function. Cynthia is currently Lead Veterinarian Animal Health and Welfare with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs where she provides expertise in veterinary science, epidemiology, and disease prevention and control related to animal, public, and environmental health with an emphasis on bovine health and welfare. Cynthia also co-leads the Bovine Ontario Animal Health Network, which works to coordinate preparedness, early detection, and response to animal disease.
Panelist: David Kelton, Professor Emeritus at the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph
David Kelton holds the DVM, MSc and PhD degrees, all from the University of Guelph. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, a national body that advises the government of Canada on health policy through a One Health lens. He is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph. He held the Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO) Dairy Cattle Health Research Chair for 10 years, is a founding member of Canadian Bovine Mastitis Network and Dairy at Guelph, a past-president of the National Mastitis Council, and the Chair of the International Dairy Federation Standing Committee on Animal Health and Welfare where he also chairs the IDF Working Group on Paratuberculosis. He has co-authored more than 290 manuscripts in refereed journals and trained more than 40 graduate students. His research interests include paratuberculosis, mastitis and lameness, with a focus on their detection and control in dairy herds and their impacts on health, productivity and welfare.
Panelist: Matt Groen, Dairy Technical Services Specialist, Cargill Animal Nutrition
Matt Groen has been with Cargill Animal Nutrition for 11+ years and currently works in Dairy Technical Services. He supports their dairy farm consultant sales team in Ontario, the Maritimes, and the Western Provinces with training, ration balancing, dairy records management, and troubleshooting. He is involved in new product and technology development for Cargill and he also works directly with producers, servicing key dairy farm accounts. He is involved in coaching the University of Guelph Dairy Challenge Team and also serves on the Board of the North American Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge Competition.
Panelist: Mark Gerber, Dairy Technical Sales Specialist, Zinpro
Mark grew up on a dairy farm in Michigan before attending Michigan State University and Grand Valley State University. He worked for 13 years with a US feed manufacturing company, 3.5 years with Diamond V in Wisconsin and 22 years with Zinpro in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, and Ontario.
Panelist: Christian Nagel, Owner, Nagel Hoof Care
Christian grew up on a dairy farm locally and graduated from Ridgetown College in 2004. He started hoof trimming in 2003.
Presentation begins Thursday January 4th, 2024 at 2:50 pm.
And don't forget to take a look at the list of On-Demand presentations which you can watch throughout the conference and for the thirty days following! Use the button on the left to browse full details for those!
Check out the program for other conference days using the buttons below.
