Future Dairy Leader Scholarships
For the 2010 Pennsylvania Dairy Summit

Program Information

Wednesday, February 3

Sustainability & Feeding the World
Jeff Simmons, Elanco

In the next 50 years, the world will have to feed 100 percent more people with only about 1 percent more available land. Hear Simmons’ observations on the solutions and the importance of technology, which must contribute 70 percent of the additional food needed to feed our world.

Taking Strategy to Action: Building for the Future
Jim Austin, Decisions Strategies International

More than 60 Fortune 500 companies, including eight of the Fortune 10, have relied on Decisions Strategies International for their high impact strategies to profit from uncertainty. Jim Austin has more than 25 years experience in business strategy. He is well known for the article he published in the spring 2008 Progressive Dairyman on “2016 Future Scenarios for the Dairy Industry and Their Implications Today.” Mr. Austin can help farm families understand the fine balance between strategy and action to build a “living, flexible plan” for the future of their business.

Producer Showcase: Rosendale Dairy
Jim Ostrom,Rosendale, WI

Set on 2,000 acres near Rosendale in Fond du Lac County, Rosendale Dairy is a 4,000 cow dairy being developed as one of Wisconsin’s most environmentally sound, modern and efficient farms. Ostrom and his partners have 15 years of success operating large farms and share a long-standing commitment to animal health. From the farm’s free-stall barn architecture to the high-efficiency ventilation system, natural sand bedding and custom feed mixing, this Dairy is designed to maximize individual cow comfort.

Plus, Breakouts on These Hot Dairy Topics

• Immigration Policies and Your Dairy Business
• Are You Prepared for Deregulation? A Look at Alternative Energy
• Is Your Forage Maximizing Your Herd’s Potential? BMRs, Quality, Storage & the Latest Technology
• Is there life after farming for you?

Rather than a formal banquet, Wednesday evening will feature a more relaxed reception-style dinner in the exhibit area followed by a special open discussion session:

The Late Show (Dairy Style) Dairy & The News Beat

Turn on the TV, surf the Internet, or listen to the radio, and you’ll find someone who is disputing the benefits of dairy products and dairy farms. What should we do to get our story heard in a world that often puts sensationalism before fact? Kirk Sattazahn will facilitate a discussion with Harold Brubaker, Philadelphia Inquirer business reporter, and Kim Lehman, director of public relations at Pavone, a world-class PR firm, to get their perspective on this sensitive issue. A local broadcast news reporter has also been invited.

Thursday, February 4

Producer Showcase: Kulp Family Farm, LLC
Phil Kulp, Martinsburg, PA

This family has grown their dairy operation over the years to its present size of more than 2,000 cows, while they remain committed to stewardship of their animals, the environment, and their financials.

Retailing Dairy

McDonald’s - Sofia Therios- Director of Marketing, U.S.

The McDonald’s franchise is known for its ability to reinvent itself to meet finicky and changing demands of the consumer.Its latest reinvention has been very positive for the dairy industry, launching the new line of McCafe coffee drinks, which include a significant amount of milk. Hear McDonald’s perspective on the new line, the role dairy plays in their business and how they see their business and the relationship growing.

Wegman’s - Ken Cassara, VP Dairy/Frozen Foods

Dairy farmers weren’t the only ones who took new ideas away from last year’s Summit. After attending the entire two-day Summit, Ken Cassara developed a passion for sharing the dairy farmer’s story through Wegman’s Food Markets. During this session, Ken will share what has resulted from that passion -- a multi-leveled, cross-franchise campaign to connect Wegman’s consumers with where their milk comes from and with the local dairy farm families supplying their stores.

Milk Pricing: What Went Wrong & How It Can Be Fixed

In 18 short months, milk prices went from all-time highs to all-time lows, leaving dairy producers across the country reeling from the losses. In his role at Blimling & Associates, Bill Curley has seen the dairy debacle of 2009 play out first hand and will put the puzzle together to show what happened to milk prices, both domestically and internationally. Also invited is Matt McKnight from the U.S. Dairy Export Council, an organization that represents the interests of U.S. producers and processors overseas. He will discuss the export and import piece and how that affected domestic milk prices.