Trautman Family Farm

I have taken time away from the raw milk movement.

We have much on our minds that needs our focus.

The survival of our farm. Money. Need it.

Working towards getting our milk paid for - into artisan cheese.

Got the milk; got the artist, got the tank, what we don't got are ze proper permits. So I have been busy.

I would have bet money the hearings would have been canceled.

I am very happy to be wrong.

"Only 2325 Wisconsin dairies call it quits last year". - Hoard's Dairyman Feb 1 2010

Whooo! Hoooo! Party! We got'r on the run now!

But Wait. What's that number going to do when milk prices come back, cows become worth something again? The bank goes Flick! Here's another one! According to Pete Hardin of The Milkweed, stacks of them go on the market. And the big get bigger. Think the poultry and pork industry. Very vertical. A handful of farms with mega thousands of cows. For each of them: 1000 family farms must die.

Legal Raw Milk really does stand in the way of a lot of good business done at the expense  of dairy farmers, doesn't it? With Legal Raw Milk, we can say Stuff your crappy price. $70/cwt with the equipment we have now. That's $6/gallon. Safe. Our own customers.

That's $4000 - 6000 per month our herd of 22 milk cows was contributing to our farm. But imagine if it was just $1000 per month. Or $500. Ask the local hardware store, ask the local grocery, ask the implement dealer, dairy dealer, restaurants, what they think about dairyman having more money to spend at their stores would mean. That contact with the customer - that is ALWAYS a good thing. You'll have higher quality raw milk.

Give us Legal Raw Milk, and I will paint a New Golden Age of Dairy for Wisconsin. Farmers Win : We All Win. Not a decline of a couple thousand being a good thing, but gaining dairy farms being a good thing.

Support this bill by coming out to Eau Claire March 10th. Let your presence show you stand with your farmer. You have drawn the line - no more rights being taken away - give us back our rights - the right to choose what we take in our bodies. The right to support good farms.

Wisconsin -- RISE UP AND SHOW YOUR LOVE FOR OUR DAIRY TRADITION. Be there, Eau Claire, March 10th 2010 : A historic day.

Scott Trautman

Note from Scott: I started this quite some time ago. I have been thinking about it almost constantly. This, as you will see, becomes a note very much directed towards our immediate neighbors. A neighborhood who has almost entirely rejected our farm. Rejected as in supported in a meaningful way, as in purchases from our farm. Support as in, we love what you do, and will enjoy it, but only as long as it's free. Well you get the idea about how I feel on that. I'm not sitting here thinking about saving the world. I'm sitting here thinking about how I create a small world here in which my children WANT to stay here. And that of necessity includes "off the farm" - our neighbors. So back to what I wrote some time ago, and then finished here this windy, rainy March morning. - Scott

 This winter continues to drag on; I think even the snowmobilers and skiers are sick of it by now. A long, cold winter. I think spring will be extra celebrated this year; much frolicking. I must again dispel the rumor that the Trautman Men at dusk of the first full moon of spring, will whoop and holler and run the perimeter of the farm naked in celebration. Simply not true. But I sure like the idea of people talking it up. So carry on.

So other than honing our sense of humor, keeping warm, taking care of animals, what do we do. Not, unfortunately, taking vacations; not this year anyway. I can speak for myself, and I read, and I plan and I dream. What I choose to read affects my plans and dreams, and I do plan for my dreams to come true -- if only 20 years into the future. Maybe further. I don't spend a lot of time on doom and gloom, I can get that almost anywhere. I choose to put my thoughts towards the future I want. While the general attitude is one of gloom, I am hopeful. So are many others. Not coincidentally, many of them are organic farmers.

My friend Willi Lehner taught me to "not invest yourself in any particular outcome". Which the more I thought about it, is an adjunct to my existing philosophy of "not being invested in any particular idea", which I have said time and again in regards to our farming experience. I use it to refer to the deep groove of thinking many have -- ideas they accept without question, that form the foundation for the rest of their ideas (about farming), which all makes sense -- IF you accept the initial premise. And one deep societal groove of thinking is: Small Farms Don't Work. Get Big or Get Out. That last part can be attributed to one of the great evil people, surely boiling in hell if there is one, Earl Butz. He was owned by the agricultural businesses; the processors and the fertilizer and chemical makers. Imagine that; what he said sounded folksy and had a certain jingle to it, but the effects (he was the driving force behind what continues to be very, bad farm programs/policy) continue today.

Which isn't to say I believe, either, that as farmers we should be propped up to do whatever damn fool thing we want because it is somehow a right, when we're talking the 'family farm', to do stupid things and be paid well for the privilege just because it's a family farm. No, we DO need to adapt, and the age of the incompetent, dull farmer being propped up are indeed over. There have been and will be smart people with dreams and a willingness to work hard to take the place of the dullard and the whiner. They will be businesspeople, they will have ideals, they will like people, they will care about the earth, their community, their families and their own dignity. They will do what it takes to preserve the right to say NO. No, that is not what I want for my farm. NO, that is not good advice from you university jackasses, NO I will not take that price, NO I will not crawl in on my belly and take what you give me. We will have mutual, long term benefit or we will part ways.

Three important principles need be implemented to make sure we are in a good negotiating position -- and that is the ability to say NO.

1. Soils that produce plenty without aid of yearly fertilizers/chemicals. Soils that have been invested in to bring them back to near the quality of our native, fertile soils. Humus rebuilt, balance regained, soil life abundant and diverse. There is no quick solution, but we know how to accelerate the system. Come to our farm to see what 6 years of work can do. Then think out 20 years. And 30.

2. Minds that are always yearning for the truth; a culture of learning and honesty with each other that things just don't "happen", we take responsibility for them. We will find we don't need the crutches agribusiness offers us, for shorterm gain and longterm poverty. We will have the wisdom to think out 20 years, and beyond this single season. We will question those that have brought us to this place: the flunkies at the universities, agribusiness who's sole heartless goal is to take all the money they can. The ability to intellectually say NO, I don't buy that idea, it is contrary to nature. I trust nature got it right the first time. I need the humility to listen.

3. If we truly embrace the above, this will be easy. That is 'putting aside': putting our money away, not spending it like agribusiness would like, every last penny, every year, but putting aside to provide us the leverage to say NO. One can't say no, if one can't stick with it. It's empty and those we 'negotiate' with know it. They smile, and pretend along with us that we're important, but they know, and we can't escape the reality in the situation around us that farmers cannot say no to any price offered us. We need the money.

The community I dream of -- here -- in Stoughton, WI -- is one that celebrates our agricultural heritage and practitioners as it once did. Well that's living in the past! It was a good past -- and it was pulled from us by us. We decided on mass production over people, here and now over people, illusion of wealth over people. Our current economic situation -- and surely situations yet to come -- are a giant cosmic two by four to the head. What will it take to convince the mass of us that what we've been doing isn't working? The blows will continue to come until we figure it out or we are swept off this planet. But there are signs of hope. It isn't just a bunch of 'crackpots' anymore that don't accept the conventional idea of our non-functioning agriculture and communities. Real, sensible people look beyond right now and don't like what they see of the future, if we don't have courage to act in even small ways, now, to change it.

Right now - here -- there is our farm. And a couple more that dare farm 'differently'. But I'd say we, and shall I narrow it further to say "I", am the only one to speak of a vision -- that where there is 1 farm today, there can be 10 in 5 years, and 50 in 20, and that our farms are intricately weaved into our cultural identity, we are respected and valued, not pitied and romanticized as the legend of the 'family farm' currently is. We will not be poor; we will not be viewed as 'farm hicks' not really of this world or community, but active leaders. Our future will be won when no one has to shrillly scream "No Wal-Mart!", but instead the entire community says "what point is there to a Wal-Mart here? We have what we want already".

So this is a pipe dream? Many will say that that accept what they are told, sit zombie-like in front of their bad news delivery vehicles: papers, TV, radio, and assume the world is going to heck. Why would they not? Why they would not would come to seeing -- to start -- a single happy farm family -- prospering, talking openly about ideas -- and succeeding far beyond the time when any curmudgeon's excuse will fail. "Sure their fields look green now, but...". "Give it another 3 years, they'll get tired of all the work", "they must be cheating for it to look that good". We've heard it all, but there is an energy -- a positive energy flowing out of us, out of our farm, of health, vitality -- of hope -- of wealth -- not necessarily of the monetary kind -- but as you investors in the scam market (stock market, did I misspeak?) know -- THIS is REAL wealth, not an illusion to be snatched away.

This dream takes years -- but the work has already started. First is to actually HAVE a dream -- a vision of the future to think about, but then to put forth both thinking and effort and words towards it. The initial investment for us has been in our soils. The money -- quite a lot of it -- towards minerals and 'fixing' 50 years of mining by well-meaning but duped farmers. We have now EXCELLENT fertility -- we have WEALTH in our soils, most of which other farmers would have a hard time grasping - or valuing. The only way they would, would be for us to fail, them to get our land, and for them to vaporize all the good we've done, have fantastic crops, not know why, for a period of time, before they mined it back to what the rest is. Huh. Guess it was a fluke.

Specifics of The Dream of this NE area of Stoughton:

- acquire a reputation for excellent farmers. "There's just something about those Stoughton farmers - they're happy, they're soils are great, their animals are happy, their farms are beautiful, it is such a treat to visit them -- those people that actually live by them are so lucky..."

Sorry folks, but it's going to require importing farmers. Farmers willing to learn. Young families that desire multi-generational legacies, and are willing to work - hard - towards it.

- a community of non-farmers that gets it -- and sees, understands and values the farming community -- and their own place in the larger community. Farmers working together to help each other. Neighbors helping each other. All of us understanding "love thy neighbor" doesn't mean we have to be best pals, but that we have to look out for each other and support "the bigger picture" of what's going on around us. Otherwise it is imposed upon us, and it will not be what we would want.

For example: Few people can afford land these days. The Few that can: Are developers. And developers develop, and that's not what people around here want. But they believe nothing can be done. Wrong answer. A community of people -- neighbors with a common interest in seeing our neighborhood survive, thrive according to OUR vision, not some developers: Each of us can contribute, say, $5000 into a REIT -- Real Estate Investment Trust -- which can then purchase strategic farmlands as they come for sale. Then the community of investors -- which is hopefully just the community -- in owning the property -- has the right to decide how it is used. Then the work will start:

- Make a plan for the land, with a mind towards beauty, recreation, habitats, ecology. And possibly development -- on our terms.

- Plant trees, encourage ponds/wetlands, not farm fencepost to fencepost.

- Be creative in gaining grants et al program monies for "doing the right thing". You'd be surprised how much is out there.

- engage an organic farmer longterm to improve the soil and bring visually interesting things to the land. Such as pastures, and animals. Give them the ability to make money; a lower rent for the first couple years, then a rent that everyone can live with, higher than the 'just farmland' price, to reflect the investment made. Everybody wins: farmers, investors, neighbors. How about that?!

And the community has an investment in the farms and land. Why, we had better purchase from those farms, and work on our investment, right? Right! Keep the money in the community, feed our community high quality food, give them a constant good feeling from their surroundings. What is that worth?

Neighbors of mine: There could well be such an opportunity that I know of. To start a new farm -- or should I say, bring a farm back from the dead. One farm - ours - does not a movement make. But two. Then a third, how long before there is a real momentum, a tipping point? Yes I know -- years away -- maybe even a generation away.

But the things we can do now - invitations from the community, to progressive farmers. We want you here. We'd like you to farm here. We have a plan. We know what we want this to be, and you're an important part of making that happen. We support our farmers, and they most surely support us. "mama isn't happy, aint nobody happy" -- mama nature aint happy, or farmers aint happy -- well, at least lets experiment with what if farmers WERE happy, HERE.

Folks, I read. I dream. I plot. I observe -- even and especially the enemies of the world we'd like to see. How do they do what they do? What if we used their 'tactics' for good instead of evil, to benefit the whole instead of the one? And the biggest what if we have: What if we gave a damn about each other and trusted each other and worked -- in this small way in this small place towards a better future.

So it's hard to shut me up, if you can't tell from what I've already written. Joel Salatin put it best, he describes himself as an evangelist. I would say so am I. It is easy to say of me, oh he's just so much talk. Funny thing, though, is I've been talking this same way since we moved to the farm, about what we were going to do here, with this farm. And funnier still, it's all happened as I said it would. LOOK at our FARM and see the words put into action. Now it's time to go beyond our farm. Same deal? He's just talk? I know what I'm capable of.

But what about this community, right here? What are you capable of? I can see the possibilities -- I saw it real clear during the August 2005 tornado cleanup. This community CAN come together, but it takes one helluva 2x4 up side the head to do it. And then the natural entropy is to drift back, leaderless, to our homes, our little world, life as usual.

How did you feel, folks? How did it feel to come together and know you were really making a difference, and you weren't running a tally in your head about who was doing what and who you liked and who votes different than you do, but you just for a brief moment, loved thy neighbor as thyself. How did that feel? How'd you like to feel like that all the time, only without having to have wholesale destruction to get it? Do you have the courage?

"Family Farm" has, like so many other good things, had the good mined out of it for purposes of selling you something. Monolithic companies want you to be convinced that they are some warm fuzzy collection of family farms, when they have merely taken this good thing and used it only for their marketing -- hoping people will not check too closely, and just buy the warm image. Meanwhile family farms keep being eroded away by these same companies and their predatory practices. That's not what I want to talk about. But keep that in mind -- family farms are not dead -- but they need YOUR HELP NOW. - Scott

Well folks, ours IS that family farm you have in your mind -- it's me, Scott, wife Julie, and our kids - Ian 10, Quinn 8, Lilly 5 that are the heart&soul and labors of this farm. Here's the farm, here's the family, debate over.

This farm does not work if not for everyone pitching in. There is simply too much work to be done, too many things where one person cannot possibly do the thing alone, nor be timely enough to keep all the balls in the air. Each of us has our competencies, and our roles. We back each other up, we can do certain of each other's jobs, and there are those things that only that person can do. And the very best of things is "Team Trautman" jobs -- all of us together.

Team Trautman Jobs: Rounding up cattle that have gotten out of their area. We use polywire electrified fencing to keep groups of cattle in their areas. This fencing is easily moved from place to place for fresh grass or shelter. But on occasion something happens and that group of cattle gets out.

I can remember back to our first year with cattle: 2003, it was only 4 steers, and they were out A LOT, and we were complete nincompoops in handling them. Now, here 5 years later, it just isn't a big deal, and it's fairly rare that they're out at all. WE have changed most of all, not the cattle.

So we look out the window of our house and see some cattle outside their area. The call goes through the house, " OUT!". Might be "Little Steers!" or "Cows" or "Heifers", or horrors, "Pigs OUT!" (pigs aren't really that difficult but they aren't herd animals like cows, either). Whomever is there jumps to get their coat/boots on, we grab a roll of polywire string. It takes 2 people to operate a string -- one on the spool end, one on the end. We let out the spool, up to several hundred feet -- and get behind the group of out cattle, and then walk them back to where they belong. They respect the string, even if there is no charge on it. If we catch them early, they aren't very far from where they belong. The worst case is when they aren't even together as a group -- but have broken off in small groups. This is when it takes awhile to get them back in. Or get in the woods -- ahem -- a string is not possible in the woods, you need open spaces.

So minimum 2 people to operate a string. If only one? And it does rarely occur, well, different tactics necessary. Very difficult. 3 people is better, and 4 is great, especially if it's the crack Team Trautman group. Ian, 10, is now of a maturity and experience where it is effortless for him to join the group. Quinn, 8, is pretty good, but needs more guidance, and his personality is such that he can drift off into Quinn-land (just like dad can find himself in Scott-land). And even Lilly -- 5 - can help handle string.

Two people -- two points make a line -- we move the cattle next to the area they got out of. If some are still in, we have to leave it closed, so a person there to open the existing area string when we get the cattle back over there is useful.

"Be a post" -- we can get the animals next to the area where we want them, and either we have a plastic post in hand, and create a triangle (with area -- remember a line has no area -- very small geometry lesson here), attach each end of the string on the existing area string, open the old area up, and the cattle go back in. Be a post is that third point in the middle that makes it a triangle rather than a line.

We also use that triangle if we need to herd animals across the farm, to create a pathway, a big V, with which they stay in and we can navigate that wherever it needs to go. Otherwise, if only that line, we'll often use existing structures -- be they the perimeter fence, or a line of bales, or another string, to keep a wedge going.

We can always make it work with however many we have, but the more we have, and the better we're coordinated, the better it works. "Cattle out!", the orders fly -- Julie, you go get the string over by the shed -- Ian, go close the front gate and meet your mom back by the barn -- Quinn, you go over and put their old fence back up and prepare to open it, Lilly -- you unplug the fence and then find me. Lilly -- you're in the middle, Ian - go bring those two around back to the group. You get the picture. And bang -- 5-10 minutes later, everyone's back where they should be, no problem. A non-event.

We work together often -- so we know the job, we know how to communicate. Often it's a subtle hand gesture, hand signals we've practiced to know what to do when we can't hear each other, like around tractors. Could your family work together if they had to? Would they be in practice to be able to do it efficiently? Ours is, and it's because we have to be, and, because I think it's so very very cool and pleasurable.

Some of the warmest feelings of pride I have are when our family works together -- Team Trautman -- and I do say that on occasion to give the troops the reminder that we need to work together ("hey guys, I need Team Trautman today!"). In my upbringing, and many family's lives, there is probably teamwork between mom and dad (or not), but the kids, probably not. We cultivate and it is fact that we need each other, there is no point to individuals, we share, we work together, we're a team, and there is joy in our work. I take a special pride that my wife and I can work together - efficiently and effectively, without a whole lot of drama. (sure, some drama, but it's not MY fault, ha ha ha, oh yes it is)

A farm is good for that -- a family farm -- a farm like ours -- where it is designed from the ground up that we CAN work together. A giant grain farm, confinement operation -- are you kidding me? Keep the kids AWAY. Mom probably has very little to do with it. Hire someone as "labor". Man that sounds like work to me rather than the vocation that a family farm is to us. By design -- small tractor that our sons can operate, small animals like chickens that young children can safely be around, very mellow animals and teaching from an early age to respect and handle, say cattle and pigs. The Amish are experts at this -- training from an early age -- and we have learned this from them, and in the history and stories of what the family farm used to be -- is for us and others - and can still be.

We work in small teams -- like me & my oldest son Ian. Giving bales. One on the tractor (me), and Ian opens the electric fence to let me in. Rather difficult to do alone, given the cattle are standing just on the opposite side of the fence, and on the "out" side of the fence is their food, which they definitely want, and now. Loading straw bales in the bale chopper on the back of the little loader tractor, building up the bedding pack. Recently Ian was pleased to find out that he could do the most pushups -- by far -- of anyone in his class. Guess why? That's right, physical activity out on the farm -- moving bales around -- often about as big as he is. He's really good at using his weight to lever the bales where they need to go. What is your kid doing? Exercising his thumbs on the dumb machine? (computer games). Yes, our kids do that too, but we limit it. And it isn't kick them off that go sit in front of the dummy box -- the TV. I feel bad that too many kids don't have the opportunities ours do to be physically active, nor the will of the parents to have them be physically active. They will pay for it throughout their life.

Having a relationship with your kids is about spending time with them. We don't have the money or the inclination to purchase our fun, nor shuttle them to umpteen "activities" here there and everywhere, what we have are things to be done on the farm that need more than one person to do. I need help (which you may well take meaning beyond). It's in those moments that we work together that we talk about stuff -- what's going on, the questions of life, that just naturally occur. I can't make them happen, stuff them into a vacation or allocated "quality time", they just have to happen. And we get stuff done -- a very, very efficient operation the true family farm is.

Julie does the same -- she has a special bond with our daughter, Lilly. Lilly was born on the farm, she has been a little farmer all her life. That first summer she was born -- 2003 -- she was strapped to the passenger seat of the gator out doing chores with her mom. She helps mom gather eggs, hold string, whatever thing she can do to help. And as you can imagine, she is, for her age, quite good help, and is beyond many of her age group in her ability to understand and act on instructions. And because she has been around it all, I would wager she will pick up activities a good 2 years before where her older brothers would have.

Both Julie and I will "grab a child" and go to our chores. Or more than one. We'll split it up. Or send a couple children out with some chores they can do. They know they are important to our operation here. They are a part of it, and I dream of a day that they choose to be an adult part of this family farm. I admire any family that can work together. I know they must have done something right along the way to make the environment such that they can. That relationship can be many things; boss-employee, partners, and the boss can be the child or the parent. I dream of that day, way far away, when it's "Oh dad, we've got it covered, go play with your grand kids, we'll get this done".

Before you think this is some extended online bragging Christmas letter -- these relationships and activities have taken work, and haven't been without their frustrations and failures and conflicts. It is a work in progress. They get better in time through practice. I hope I get more patient and better to work with in time too. I have much to learn about patience and control (of myself).

This farm is a family farm by design -- on purpose for a long term goal.

This farm is an organic farm - supporting the long term purpose of sustainability - a hopefully multi-generational farm that through our success, our happiness, our ability to happily work together, our children will be drawn to this life.

This farm is a small farm, where children can be involved. We knew this was a startup business, and startup businesses of any kind -- much less the known work of a farm -- are long days. I've done it before, and I know it's 16 hour days. I was unwilling to do it at this time without my family - and miss out on those moments that pass so quickly in a child's life. Poof -- they're adults, where did the time go, where was I. I am here -- they are here -- we're together as much as is possible.

The work towards all this started on day one and was not an afterthought. I hope and pray for your family -- that you will find purpose, purpose in good, and find ways to work, live, love and laugh together as we do. May you have your own "Team Trautman" and know the life pleasures of your family.

Scott

Postscript, 12/6/08, 6:45am: Parenting in action, I just had a conversation with Quinn our 8 year old. I'm having to work on him to get him to be a willing and enthusiastic participant, in farm and home life and especially school. Nothing new there -- same issues at about the same age with his older brother Ian.

So Quinn has lately expressed that "Dad likes Ian better than me", and this morning, when I asked him specifically to be my "Right hand man" this morning, he tells mom "I did it the last couple times". So I had a parenting moment and went up to his room to discuss it with him -- and made my points of, No, I don't like our brother better than you, but that he's older and can do more things than you can and he has a good attitude, and "who cares?" if you did it the last couple times, we don't keep track around here of who does what when to keep even, we ALL help out as we can whenever we can, and finally, I asked YOU to help ME because I want to spend time with you and work with you so you can do the kinds of things your brother can.

So then I come here and write this -- while making some oatmeal, and the small act that proves the value -- his brother Ian hears the timer go off, rushes into the kitchen and takes it off the burner. No one asked him to, he just did it. That's the kind of team we're building here, and these are the moments of joy in paradise I am grateful for -- Scott

This document was created back in early 2007 as we considered dairy seriously and searched for assistance to make this happen. Some of the timelines are now way off, but most are still in line, and the ideas have now been proven with a year of milking cows. We will indeed modify some ideas to better suit "reality" and the situation, but by and large, everything mentioned here works. One of the larger changes is the seasonality: From spring freshening, to fall freshening, that due to considerations that everyone, especially organically, wants to freshen in springtime, and so there is a glut of milk. Fall freshening actually comes out working to our favor in many ways that I'll discuss at a future time. -- Scott

Trautman Family Farm Artisanal Dairy Initiative

Project mission:

For Trautman Family Farm to add the last critical peice of our farm sustainability puzzle (100% farm produced income) through artisanal dairy: reap the rewards of our hard work to date: in remineralizing our soils, becoming certified organic and very capable farmers with a strong direct market following and marketing appeal.

Ours is by design a family farm, and it is our strongest desire to keep it that way, and to involve our children for now and the future in our operations, through strategic partnerships, such as cheesemakers, buttermakers and other dairy artisans, who appreciate excellent quality milk, from a farm with a great story. We will do our part: make excellent grassfed organic milk, along with learn from and interact with diary artisans to come up with excellent products -- both for the high end market, and with an eye for our local market, in an effort to revitalize our local farming community and make excellent food a reality for all people and not just the affluent.

History:

Scott’s grandparents farmed in North Dakota, and he spent quality time there as a child, and not surprisingly has had a lifelong love of farming. In highschool, in very suburban Bettendorf Iowa, he ran an ad in the paper to work on a farm, found that job, and even rented ground and raised pigs with the farmer’s equipment & facilities, one of his first entrepenurial ventures.

With the realities of "getting into" farming, starting to farm at that time (mid 80’s!) would have been near impossible, so off to college and eventually a business degree, with then work with computers in a business setting. This work culminated in 10 years, from 1994 to 2004 as owner of Global Dialog Internet, a small company serving south central Wisconsin with Internet services; known for superior customer service and innovation. During this time the now Trautman family moved in 2002 to a farm outside of Stoughton, 40 acres square, with later additions of 30 acres (now in transition to organic) plus another 40 acres in rented land. Through “dangerous reading”, and frustration with the Internet work, the family moved the direction of farming, and in 2003 started towards organic certification, planted the whole farm to pastures, and started grazing steers, raised a few laying hens and broilers. The Internet business was sold in 2004, and has allowed us the ongoing capital to proceed with our farm plans.

Fortunately at that time, too, we embarked on an agressive soil reminerilization & fertility program, and through extensive effort and education, that effort today reaps fantastic rewords in quality and quantity forages. Those investments will continue to pay for many many years.

Each year since 2003, we have added new dimensions to our operation, testing the waters and starting small to minimize our expenditures in ill concieved directions. We know from the past four year's works - that our strengths are in grazing and marketing, and in the diversity of animal related products, such as chicken, eggs, pork & beef -- all with grass as a focus. Grassfed-Organic is "the place to be", and we are there. From our "toe in the water" start in 2003 -- with only 4 steers, 200 broilers & 30 hens -- to in 2006 finishing 44 steers, 600 broilers and 20 hogs, all of which sold off the farm, not at farmer's markets or wholesale. We always run out of product before our next harvest. New customers average 1-2 per week. Our ability to meet demand - not finding customers is our limitation. Especially with Scott's background in technology, we utilize the Internet extensively for marketing and efficiency. As we are in the "place to be" with our products, we capitalize on new technologies such as YouTube videos, blogging to spread the word.

Our limitation to sustainability at this time is either enough land (we estimate between 2-300 acres as a certified organic direct market farm), or with less (more is NOT available currently) with maximizing our production (working well) and income -- which is where dairy fits in, along with our other direct market farming efforts. It is also important for us to have both product and customer diversity; this provide us the most resilience in a quickly changing market and conditions.

We are adaptive, learn and adjust very quickly. Our biggest asset: Julie and Scott are one great team - working together on the farm. We make friends easily, through our sincere love of farming and people and social networking. Small companies -- and farms -- that are successful -- can adapt to changing conditions more easily than large companies/farms. Rather than smallness being a liability, smallness = nimbleness, adaptability. In fact we have strategically chosen our practices and markets that do not "scale up" to large farms well -- and organic grassfed dairy is one that large companies will not be able to effectively "be big" at -- it requires the skills and reactiveness of -- you guessed it -- a family farmer that really knows their animals and can't be put off on low skill employees or in technology.

Having a family focus -- changes the nature of our decisions, as we plan for a future including our children, instead of just on this year's crop & how many houselots would have to be sold to retire someday. The whole package together - the products, and the "green-ness" - is one that people are actively rooting for -- for our success, in contrast to the conventional wisdom that family farms are in decline and cannot succeed in today's market. We show that does not have to be the case - with our success.

Dairy Initiative Plan ===============

"Make great milk and they will come"

First and most importantly -- make a great product for a willing market. And grassfed organic is that market, and the quality forages and management brings the quality product. It is our desire to be excellent dairymen -- but also know the world of the dairy artisan to better serve them. We are very quick and deep learners; it is not usual for the dairyman to get together with the artisan, but our desire is to break that detachment between the production of the milk and the product.

We anticipate partnering with one or more cheesemakers -- we bring the excellent milk. A possibility is to create an on-farm cheesemaking facility; with proximity to Madison & cheese facilities & bring in even "guest" cheesemakers, I'm confident we can find the right situation.

We would absolutely entertain a partnership where a cheesemaker puts a facility on our farm and makes the cheese. Surely there are budding cheesemakers looking for just this situation.

We anticipate that cheese made from our milk would be in the $10-20+ per pound retail range - high end. It would also be relatively scarce -- there will only be so much. Also some innovative marketing possibilities that I could discuss at another time to expand the market -- for example a cheese auction online on Ebay.

We anticipate -- with the whole package including milk, our farm, us in marketing support -- that we conservatively should earn $35 per 100wt fluid milk. I think it will be higher, but this is a reasonable starting point for discussion.

"Surround ourselves with excellence and success"

With the great products -- we will be of interest to those that can judge what is excellent, and do special things with that excellence. Artisanal cheesemakers such as the Willi Lehners of Bleu Mont Cheese, Uplands Cheese, Bob Wills -- and many more -- that know what excellence is and can help guide us, and we can take the responsibility and have the interest in their world -- and shape our work to best meet the artisan's needs -- all of them -- product and logistics and marketing as examples. As opposed to current situation with most dairy farms, which is "Will you please take my milk?". We can and will go far beyond that with initiative, enthusiasm and ideas.

"Quality is your best marketing: Customer service is right behind that"

We "get it" with customer service -- all too often those "artists" that are excellent, have a certain despise for the customer. We love people, we treat others as we wish to be treated. We know our customers beyond their interest in our products --- they truly become our friends --- and we work very hard to make it easy to work with us, which has meant great customer loyalty and a willingness for our customers to come to the farm rather than us having to spend valuable time at farmer's markets et al marketing our products.

"Our family farm is a marketing asset"

We would preserve our name -- Trautman Family Farm -- in the end product, because it would be to the artisanal dairy professional's interest to do so. We "clean up good" so to speak -- and are excellent ambassadors. A true family farm -- as we like to say -- we ARE that farm pictured on the side of the milk carton or on the cheese label. A happy family farm with happy animals.

Our newest marketing catchphrase says it, too --

"With every taste an invitation -- to see how very special our products are from Trautman Family Farm".

Come see us -- really -- and you will see content, clean animals, well thought out ideas throughout the farm. But -- you will see too -- that we are not an antiseptic planned "show farm" -- it is obvious that real work is done here by a real family, but certainly with a mind to visitors. That is a powerful marketing tool -- especially in the face of competition by large companies. No invitations to the farms there.

MARKET

I won't spend much time discussing the general market for organic or grassfed: They are growing very quickly, and certain events (E Coli for example) even in the past year have only focused more interest. But it is important to note that organic and grassfed is a grassroots movement -- there is no marketing board supporting this, this grows from the people on up. I believe very strongly that we are at the cusp of a wave of change -- very similar to the Internet revolution we participated in starting in 1994.

We have found that our customer base includes a wide range of people, but the most exciting and fastest growing segment is the young educated families -- that have not had health crises that bring them to more natural foods, but by desire to start their families right with healthful food, but also in support of their beliefs about farming, the environment & social justice. These are families that could be customers for 40 plus years!

PRODUCTS

Some flexibility here as of yet. With a high fat & protein milk, fat up to 7% -- we are thinking towards

- Grassfed organic butter (very little in the market right now)
- Grassfed organic raw milk cheeses that preserves as much of the original milk qualities as possible
- generally, products that accent the unique and healthful qualities of grassfed milk
PRACTICES OVERVIEW

We are a very adaptive farm; and much of this comes from absorbing information from trade resources, other farmers and media. In so doing, we have identified practices that satisfy many areas -- marketing, family life & sustainability. Dairy is no different, and it is intended, but with option to adapt to the situation -- to implement the following practices in dairy, based on success of individuals in this area, New Zealand, and in general from those that question everything about what they do -- as we do.

OAD (Once A Day) milking: First reaction by most dairyman: you're crazy. All the more reason to question it. It is being practiced very successfully in Wisconsin, and has the very important quality family life component to it; not "chained to milking" as much. Milk components are very high over 7% butterfat. NOT 50% less milk; 30% less milk, but put the whole equation together and result is a 10% decrease in net profit.

Calf on Cow: Works on so many levels, with the right situation, a Johne's free herd being very important, and a clean, grass environment another. Result is hugely healthier calves, larger and more productive; often they are starting to eat grass at 2 weeks old. Great for heifers and what will be beef steers: that will perform to their peak on grass, without need of grain and the associated health side-effects of feeding grain. This too is being done very effectively by "crazy people" throughout the state, and most dairyman -- for their own convenience needs -- and not the best interests of their animals -- will not even think any further about this. Another advantage to the small farm - it will not scale up to a 400 cow dairy.

100% Grassfed: We have found that customers desire 100% grassfed. They are open to being educated about using "small amounts of grain", but we find it a distracting conversation to have. With our superior quality forages -- and an understanding of the design of the cow -- quality forages are what produce the greatest quality of milk, and best health and longevity. Less milk? Yes. But more than made up in quality. CLA levels at their absolute highest. I am confident in the next few years research will find yet more reasons why grassfed is superior to any other feed system -- except for quantity of milk.

Seasonal: Which goes with 100% grassfed. The best health and milk quality situations are created in growing grass seasons. This too combines with our family focus and ability to "take a break" from milking in winter.

100% cow needs focused dairying: We believe strongly in the management philosophy that these cows are not here to do our bidding, but ours theirs. As a good manager does: How do we as managers provide the best impediment free environment to do their job? Vs. the arrogance of man and our need to bend things to fit our convenience. There truly is a difference in how you think of things if you take this attitude. For example:

Cows don't belong on concrete. Their hooves are not meant for it.
Cows don't want to be (covered) in their own manure; it causes stress
Cows digestive systems were not meant to process grain, and grain causes a great many health issues and definitely affects milk.
Cows want to eat fresh grass; there is no stored feed that can match it; it also happens to be the cheapest way to feed a cow.
A Family sized Dairy

That would end up being at most 50-60 cows; with our other products, we anticipate a number between 30-40, which would be a great number for us to know our animals very well, create a reasonable income & volume of milk to work with in a small-batch environment.

Our first year we anticipate starting with 10-20 cows; building to 30-40 within 2 years, with the likelihood of some aggressive culling to better meet our situation's best cow traits.

Jersey/Jersey cross are the best choice. Within Jersey, NOT the highest producers. The Amish in general seem to have the right goals: Easy Keepers. Surely there will be discovery and focusing on traits as time goes on. Focus on quality and adaptability to our situation.

TIMELINE:

Overall:

2007: Learning, planning, product determination, milking facility building & staging. What a crazy busy year, but fun, too!
2008: Start to milk, work out the bugs, continue building the network; build excitement 2009: Start making value added product
2010: Start winning some awards & with our other mature business aspects, be cashflow positive
2011: Look out, here we come!

Immediate Timeline:
2007-January into February: Discovery & Business Plan, starting training such as "Production of Safe Dairy Foods" Feb 16,17. Mid February: Discovery session with DBIC with preliminary business plan. February into March: Continued immersion and networking. Find grants, consultants et al for business plan. Complete financial projections. Mid-March: Trip to New Zealand on a Babcock scholarship to research above dairy innovations, very popular already in New Zealand April: Finalizing business and implementation plan. May-July: Mostly farming, but chipping away at milking facilities & equipment plans August: Complete financing Finalize milking facilities & equipment plans, sign vendor contracts, look to November build (I suspect this could slip) Have found and purchased our cows Sept-Feb 2008: Being prepared for a whole lot of work and catchup; finish milking facility, loafing/bedding pack area Attend Beginning dairy farmer short course (late October start) Other training/seminars/continued education Mar-April 2008: Let's start milking cows
CHALLENGES:
- where to ship milk year 1; quantity not huge
- assuring our cows are inline with our programs & we don't need major culling & purchase to adjust
- managing all the technical requirements
- staying financially disciplined
- balancing life and work
- all the things that will come up that we haven't even thought of yet

OVERALL:
- A balancing of farm ventures in cattle both beef and dairy, hogs and chickens provides a resiliency, a balanced "ecosystem" and stimulating environment and a nice product mix. - A balance in dairy of give and take: Less milk, better quality, higher price, superior calves, excellent longevity & superior marketability. We will definitely discover the balance point. - We are not concerned about our ability to market our products; we already are to great success.
- We desire to stay "family" -- which is not to say we won't be a part of strategic partnerships; hopefully we will with other family farms in the area for the future. This unit necessarily will remain and flourish as a family farm, and not grow to a ....not family farm, which would erode the credibility of what we're doing. "don't get greedy"; think within the family, think to the future.
- The "best of the best" focus has both costs and rewards. We believe the rewards far outweigh the costs, especially in the social and market conditions of 2007
- By doing "all the right things" -- we are aiming to win awards and spread our message beyond our farm. We can only legitimately do that with success of our own farm
- There surely will be trials, and it will take work and discipline for it to be successful, but with our skills, situation, and the tremendous amount of help available to us, an excellent shot at success
- Our current financial situation is reasonable (this said by someone who tends to the conservative and dislikes debt), we will surely have some tight times for at least 2007 and 2008, if not longer, but we are best motivated by adversity. We will need loans to fully implement our vision, but again we have a great team working with us to clearly evaluate the business proposition.
- We have a realistic expectation of the time and energy and sacrifice this will take. As our whole family will necessary be involved -- we get our "quality time" in work time.
- We embrace that activity is not accomplishment; that we will have the discipline, and create the situations to think our actions through, and not back ourselves into corners.
- For all the confidence we show here -- we know humility -- and are open to change, and not afraid to say "I'm sorry" and "I was wrong". We are committed to being open minded and flexible.
- We understand that for all the great planning one does -- that things will come up, things will change, there will be unexpected changes. And we would say that this sure makes life interesting, and indeed that we are at our best when we have to make the best of things. Stuff happens; we deal with it.
- We are optimistic people, and we waste no time or energy being critical of others, we focus ourselves on "what can we do in our own small way to change the world for the positive?"

Indeed the most radical and revolutionary thing we can do is to succeed.

Strengths:
- a strong entrepreneurial and business background
- problem solving and technical background that allows quick adoption of new ideas; a hunger for learning
- excellent communication abilities with strong networking for a solid marketing focus
- passionate love of farming and to share our enthusiasm and knowledge with others
- a relatively short time farming: no bad habits or preconceived limitations to overcome
- a super family team that works together efficiently and effectively and in respect of each other’s strengths
- the incredible resources at hand in Wisconsin to help people like us succeed
- proximity to Madison: for customers, resources & artisans
- excellent reputation and momentum through our current product offerings; excellent customer service focus
- ability to sell all our products without leaving the farm through strategic marketing and excellent quality products that make it worthwhile for people to come here for them.
- reasonable capitalization and access to funds for expansion.
- the hard work of organic certification and soil fertility at the home farm are done; quality simply will not be an issue.
- lots of help from the many many friends we’ve made along the way.
- access to some of the finest minds anywhere in soils and forage and dairy nutrition (my Midwestern BioAg network)
- the discipline of the organic way: solving farm problems instead of masking symptoms & taking the long view
- understand the hard work ahead and what we're getting into. We love our work!

Weaknesses:
- inexperience in dairy, but have quickly learned and adapted and will be using this year before we start strategically to gain experience and expertise.
- ability to expand land-wise; countered by “heavy thinking” to maximize income per acre, with available expansion, “icing on the cake”. Long term lobbying efforts for new lands have been made.

Concerns:
- (short term) shipping milk 1st year somewhere as we work through the kinks
- managing the myriad of details in
logistics issues of getting milk to a processing facility from a single farm or
assembling a processing facility here and finding the right dairy artisan partner and
complying with health and safety regulations
- managing our time to add this venture to an already fairly full schedule
- even with a year off start date, so very much to do and learn
- managing our cash-flow in 2007,8 until we come fully "online" with dairy income in 2009
- managing innovative dairy practices with a limited support network with those new practices
- a maddening amount of administrivia in support of farm dairy production?