Dairy Farm Successful- Washington State Family Moves Dairy to North Dakota

At a time when dairy farms in the state continue to rapidly fade away, a Washington family has gone against the grain successfully after moving their herd of 440 Holstein cattle to North Dakota one year ago.

By MARVIN BAKER, Minot Daily News

Staff Writer

[email protected]

http://www.minotdailynews.com

(Thanks to Tom Rolfstad for passing this along- Russ)

Thatás a little larger than the stateás average family dairy farm, however, Ole and Jessica Johnson, with nine children, make sure the kids are involved in the operation, a move they say is helping them succeed as a family and as dairy operators.

"This has caused us to be more cohesive and as a family, we have become closer," Jessica Johnson said. "Itás important they know that what they do makes a monumental difference. They take ownership and thatás huge for the kids. The way we figure it, if we put our family first, God will bless us with the rest."

The Johnsons were milking 400 cows on eight acres near Grandview, Wash., when they decided four years ago that they needed more space for their growing family and herd. Their Grandview farm didnát even have a barn, only corrals. They found 900 additional acres in south-central Washington near Yakima, but as Jessica put it, the struggle was too great to maintain it.

She said there is a seven-year process to break ground, had they decided to build a barn, and a moratorium on water well drilling made the move even more difficult. She added people are using any type of excuse to sue farmers over runoff or smell. It just became too restrictive.

Meanwhile, Ole, who was a Land Oá Lakes delegate, had plenty of connections in the dairy business and put the word out.

"We heard about a lot of dairies and our goal was to get space," Jessica said. "So, we put the kids in the van and took off. We visited dairies in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Kansas and Nebraska and everyplace we went, we looked at vacant dairies. The kids were with us and they had a voice. Ole heard that this one was for sale. He took a tour and was intrigued. He kept talking about it. We came back with the kids and even though it was 10 below zero, the kids loved it."

The Oliver County farm included 300 acres where the cows didnát have to be confined like they were in Grandview. Jessica believes the animals are now more content, because after a period of adjustment, they are producing as much milk, 68 to 72 pounds each, that they did in Washington.

"This year went so fast," Jessica said. "We looked for so long and then it finally happened."

Ironically, the NorthWestern Dairy at Parshall was being built at the same time and the Johnsons were asked if they were interested in operating it. They turned down the offer because the couple desperately wanted a farm they could expand for the children.

"We thought about it but didnát want to answer to 60 investors," Jessica said of the Parshall dairy. "Instead, we built this for our kids. Itás more work, but itás more rewarding. This is for us, and the kids enjoy agriculture. When we saw this place we knew we liked it."

Moving the animals went a lot smoother than one would expect. Thirteen semitrailer loads of cows and three semitrailer loads of equipment were moved the 1,132 miles in late April 2003. Ole spent about a week in North Dakota before the cows arrived prepping the new facility. He immediately began milking after the first wave of 65 cows arrived. Currently, the Johnsons are milking 215 cows that are producing about 29,000 pounds of grade A milk every other day.

And in order to get all the cows milked in a timely fashion, Jessicaás parents, Gene and Eunice Hopfauf, along with several family friends moved to Center to help out. In all, Oliver Countyás population jumped by 17 people. Gene Hopfauf is the head maintenance man and Eunice milks two shifts a week.

"Itás a three-generation farm now," Jessica said. "We could do it just as a family, but we want to make sure we have fun so the kids have a life."

Oldest daughter Kaylee, 16, is now one of the head milkers on the night shift. She said she thoroughly enjoys the lifestyle the family has come to know in central North Dakota.

"I like the opportunity to work (in the parlor) instead of just with the calves," Kaylee said. "I love everything about it because I love animals. Thereás no way Iád move back. This is where I want to stay. I love North Dakota and I have grown closer to my family after starting this."

Jessica added she wonders how many 16-year-old teens would want to milk cows these days, or even make such a statement. But the key is that Kaylee is as important to the dairy farm as Ole or Jessica.

"The kids love it and we keep maintaining positive dialogue," Jessica said. "Kaylee knows sheás important to this operation."

Second daughter Kortney, 14, scrapes manure from the barn and assists her grandfather with tractor maintenance. Sheás also learning how to feed rations to the animals. She loves the maintenance, her mother said.

Skyler, 12, helps his sister with cleaning the barn and feeding heifers. Michaela, 11, pushes cows out of the barn after theyáre milked and feeds calves. Noah, 8, pushes cows and gets feed ready for the herd. Levi, 6, feeds calves, while Seth, 5, Luke, 3, and Landon, 16 months, are a bit too young to be in close proximity to the Holsteins.

"They tend to hang out and help in their own way," Jessica said.

And because the kids are homeschooled, Jessica said the milking schedule, school schedule and family time is optimum.

"It works great," she said. "Theyáve adjusted to North Dakota pretty well."

Michaela certainly agrees with her motherás comment.

"I like it here because thereás a lot of space," she said. "I miss my friends and the mountains, but it is really pretty here."

According to Jessica, this is one family that is quite unlike the stereotype of those who want to leave farming and/or North Dakota, despite colder winters than central Washington.

"I’ve always loved North Dakota," she said. "After traveling in all the states, we liked North Dakota the best. The mountains in Washington and Idaho are one thing, but people have so much pride here. Agriculture is appreciated here. You can tell."

One of the family employees, Trenton Bower, 21, wintered with the Johnsons and was going to head back to Grandview when the snow melted. Heás still here and intends to stay on and learn all he can about dairying and animal husbandry.

Others may follow suit, according to Jessica.

"I have friends in Washington who love to hunt and this is pheasantsville," she said. "Another family in Washington is looking seriously about coming out here. Theyáve visited here four times in the past year. They donát know how to make it work, but again, they want it so bad for their kids."

As an added bonus, Ole was recently elected to the board of directors of the North Dakota Dairy Coalition, an agency based in Richardton that advocates new and improved dairy operations within the state. The knowledge of family, animals and efficiency should surely help the coalition.

According to Jessica, existing dairy operators need to realize they are not slaves to the farm.

"They never take vacation," she said. "But itás a catch 22, theyáre not willing to put money into efficiencies to get away. More could go to grade A milk and itás not a very big deal and thereás more money in grade A milk. Itás mostly just making the barn cleaner. And, it doesnát cost a lot to hire someone, even for one shift. It all helps.

"I want the kids to love this life," she added. "I donát ever want them to leave and never come back. If youáre efficient enough, you can do this and make family time."

(Marvin Baker is a staff writer for the Minot Daily News. His "On the Road" feature appears Mondayás in the Minot Daily News.)

CENTER ­ According to Oliver County Extension agent Rick Schmidt, Ole and Jessica Johnson have not only changed the scope of dairy farming from Center to New Salem, theyáve brought an awful lot of expertise about dairying with them from Washington state.

Schmidt called the Johnsons very intelligent and hard working. He said they are good patrons to local businesses and the kids are involved in 4-H and athletics.

"Itás looking good," Schmidt said of the farm northwest of Center. "Theyáve cleaned up the farm well."

Schmidt said he and the Johnsons communicate often and he sometimes helps them with forage issues, even though the Johnsons are getting advice from a nutritionist in Washington.

He said the Johnson dairy could serve as a model for the future of dairy farming in North Dakota.

­Marvin Bake