By SHELLY STRAUTZ-SPRINGBORN
Michigan Correspondent

ST. JOHNS, Mich. — Michigan agricultural industry officials touted the state’s $71 billion industry during an event aimed at educating the non-farming community about farming.

Michigan State University (MSU) Extension regional director Dave Ivan was one of several speakers featured during Breakfast on the Farm on June 20 at Jandernoa’s Dutch Meadows Dairy Farm near St. Johns. The event drew more than 1,500 people for breakfast, farm tours and educational stations hosted by local farmers.
“Agriculture is leading the way as Michigan transforms itself,” Ivan said during a special VIP reception for state legislators and local officials, which kicked off the day’s activities.

“Every element of this operation represents jobs in Michigan agriculture,” Ivan said of the state’s second largest industry.
Michigan ranks No. 7 in the nation for dairy production and Clinton County, where the Jandernoa farm is located, is ranked No. 2 for the number of cows in the state.

“Agriculture means jobs,” Ivan said. “As Michigan changes, it will be the agriculture industry that leads that transformation. Michigan agriculture is on the cutting edge of where our country and state is heading.”

Agriculture and food processing employ more than one million Michigan residents, and payroll for farm workers exceeds $318 million annually. Michigan’s 53,315 farms include 10.1 million acres. With more than 125 commodities grown in the state, Michigan ranks second only to California in the diversity of crops, which means food grown close to home.

Dairy farming has changed significantly since the 1970s and 1980s, and many people are not familiar with the new technology.
At Jandernoa’s farm, recycling starts in the barn. Sand is used to bed cows in the freestall barns, and it is recovered through a recycling process so it may be reused. High-tech features in the state-of-the-art parlor include electronic scanning of electronic animal identification tags worn by each cow. This technology allows for accurate record keeping including animal nutrition information, milk production records, reproduction information and more.
What hasn’t changed in the dairy industry is that many farms are family-owned small businesses.

Velmar Green of Green Meadow Farms, Inc., in Elsie was one of the expert family farmers on hand to talk about farming with event participants. He said the day was aimed at “showing the public what dairy farming is all about in the 21st Century.

“It rained last night and you wouldn’t know it,” he said. “This farm is as well as any other business at preserving the environment. We want to show people how we care for our cattle and our environment.

“Dairy farming is a business,” Green said, “but we aren’t laying off people. We are consistent. We take the good with the bad. We are a very stable industry – the cows have to be taken care of every day.

“We are not contributing to the downturn in Michigan’s economy, we are supporting the economy,” Green said. “Agriculture is a very important part of the state’s economy. People should think very seriously about cutting the MDA (Michigan Department of Agriculture) budget because it supports a vital part of Michigan’s economy.”

The state’s agriculture industry is still reeling from a May 5 executive order issued by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, which reduced the MDA budget by $6.8 million. The budget cuts caused severe reductions in funding for county and state fairs, horse racing, Right to Farm, the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP), the state’s bovine tuberculosis program, conservation districts, pesticide and plant management, laboratory services, management services and other programs.