2026 Conference Information
"Safety & Progress: Strengthening Michigan’s Dairy Industry Together"

7:30 - 8:00 am      Registration (Coffee, Danishes & Bagels provided)

                                    

8:00 - 8:15 am      Welcome 

                             Carl Kohlhoff, MDIC President

 

8:15 - 8:45 am      MDARD Update

                             Dr. Tim Boring, Director, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD)

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8:45 - 9:30 am      Dairy Economics Update

                             Danny Munch, Economist, American Farm Bureau Federation

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9:30 - 9:45 am      Dairy Distillery Project

                   Nicolas Gutierrez Riera, Sustainability Manager, Michigan Milk Producers Association

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9:45 - 10:00 am    MSU Dairy Farm

                             Joe Domecq, Coordinator - Dairy Education Programs, Michigan State University

 

10:00 - 10:15 am  Break
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10:15 - 11:00 am   Fluid Milk Sensory Experience

                    Amanda Moore, Director of Quality and Food Safety, QCS Purchasing Cooperative​

 

11:00 - 11:30 am  What To Expect If You Get Pulled Over (Geared toward truck drivers and farm vehicles)

                   MC Officer Lance Powell, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, Michigan State Police

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11:30 - 12:45 pm ​ Banquet Luncheon & Awards

                             Steve Lehman, Michigan Milk Producers Association

 

12:45 - 1:15 pm    Processor Highlight

                             Gary Smith and Josh Hall, Managing Partners, Leelanau Cheese Company

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1:15 - 1:45 pm      Producer Highlight

                             Carla Wardin, Owner, Evergreen Dairy

                                  

1:45 - 2:15 pm      Biosecurity Practices

                             Paola Bacigalupo Sanguesa and Michael Metzger, Michigan State University Extension

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2:15 - 2:30 pm      Break

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2:30 - 3:15 pm      Antibiotic Prevention Panel

  Moderated by Tajalli Hodge, MDARD; Brad Crandall, Crandall Dairy Farms LLC; Justin Olsen, Dairy Farmers of

  America; Brendan Christ, Foremost Farms; and April Skinner, Charm Sciences, Inc

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3:15 - 3:45 pm       Dairy Program and DORIS Update

                             Jeremiah Kosto, Acting Dairy East Regional Supervisor, MDARD

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3:45 - 4:00 pm      Raffle & Adjourn

                             Pat Mitchell, Ecolab