Story & photos by Jeff Stoker, Illustration by Ray Merritt

ABOVE: Greg Moes of MoDak Feeds Inc. explains the dynamics of the feed business that he runs with his brother, Jim. In addition to keeping up with their growing business, the Moes milk 500 cows at their family dairy, MoDak Dairy.

ABOVE: Cows relax in NorSwiss Dairy’s compost barn, run by Annelies and John Seffrood. The Seffrood’s aerate the compost once a day and have found a substantial decline in their bedding straw needs. They’ve also cut the number of times they clean the barn from four to one per year, removing only 600 tons of manure and straw annually.

 

ABOVE: A calf enjoys a warm summer day on Old Tree Farms, owned by Frido and Sonja Vanderpaalen. The Vanderpaalens, immigrants to the U.S. from the Netherlands, recently expanded their dairy from 500 to 900 cows.

 

ABOVE: This 110-foot by 600-foot hoop barn houses roughly 500 cows at Providence Dairy, owned by Sako and Wiedie Vandermeer. The barn style provides natural ventilation and light.