Sander (left) & Rolf Penterman welcome
Showcase guests and introduce their
operation.

The Alta Advantage® Showcase left Madison and World Dairy Expo on Day 6 and rolled into Thorp, Wisconsin to visit Dutch Dairy. Brothers Sander and Rolf Penterman who own Dutch Dairy hosted the Showcase guests from 22 countries, proudly showing their dairy, cows, and future plans. The quality of both dairy management and the cows made an impact among the Showcase guests, but it was the “entrepreneurialism of the progressive dairyman” that was truly on display.

In the past four years, Sander and Rolf bought and transformed the originally run-down and bankrupt dairy into a profitable and efficient enterprise.

A young dairyman admires the daughters
displayed in the Performance Pen at Dutch
Dairy. Seasoned dairymen and
up-and-comers alike enjoyed the
Showcase program.

At the same time, the risk of U.S. dairy farming is reflected in generally higher interest rates compared to Holland. Higher financing charges obviously put pressure on cash flow, and demand higher levels of efficiency and “out of the box” thinking. The Pentermans are being creative and enterprising in how they try to maximize revenues for the business.

While many dairymen are choosing herd expansion, the Penterman brothers decided to take a “step up the value ladder” instead with the construction of a small cheese plant to produce farmstead cheeses for nearby consumers. “Cheese can help smooth revenues and make more profit. We are trying to reduce the market volatility we face a little bit,” says Rolf. Once completed, the plant will produce cheese at a rate of 1200 lbs. per week.

Ensuring cow comfort and paying attention to detail are both key to Dutch Dairy’s transition cow program, which was the subject of a producer panel moderated by AltaPreg Consultant Dr. Chet Rawson. Joining Sander on the panel were Travis Bishoff and John Freund, who each manage other Alta Advantage® partner herds in the area. Common among the three dairy managers was a specific focus on the cows in transition. Watching production and monitoring temperatures is important, but so is observing how cows are eating after milking and how they are using the free stalls.

Comfort is key at Dutch Dairy – not only
for fresh cows but calves well. Weaned
calves are housed in a bright, clean vinyl
roof quonset with ample space.

Uniform quality – that was the
observation of Showcase guests at
Dutch Dairy.

The Performance Pen displaying daughters being tested in the Alta Advantage® program once again captured the attention of onlookers. The 2nd lactation AltaJUDICIAL was one of the top producers in the herd at 112 lbs per day early in the lactation; this cow is tremendously powerful, deep bodied and open ribbed. That frame, along with a strong fore udder, deep cleft, and tremendous feet and legs made this particular cow the favorite daughter on display, but also showed a great example of what AltaJUDICIAL can do for progressive dairymen. Favorite sires voted by the Showcase guests were AltaJUDICIAL, AltaSTANDOUT, AltaADAM, and AltaMAXIE – the close votes and shared popularity testified to the uniformity of the cows that the Alta Advantage® program produces.

The stop at Dutch Dairy showed a lot – great cows, top management, entrepreneurship, and innovation. The dairy managers also explained the valuable partnership with the Alta Advantage® program. “If the cows do great, I don’t have to see them everyday,” says Sander. “We are getting good productive and trouble-free cows from the program.” Confidence in genetics and the value they can create is a must for a dairy that is moving into cheese production and marketing. On this point Sander notes they are getting “better more reliable bull evaluations for the commercial dairy.” With a cheese plant near completion, this Alta Advantage® partner is moving toward use of sires with higher components and fat – genetic products marketed fittingly in Alta’s CheeseMaker line-up.

Sander Penterman, co-owner of
Dutch Dairy, an Alta Advantage®
partner.