Showcasing dairy on a national stage

ELK MOUND, Wis. — Hosting the head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on their dairy farm to kick off National Dairy Month, celebrate World Milk Day and discuss health issues facing rural America was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Kevin Gilbertson and his family.

Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden held a round table listening session June 1 at Gilbertson Farms Inc. near Elk Mound. The Gilbertsons milk 650 cows with nine DeLaval robotic milking units. Three generations of the family operate the farm, including David and Mary, their sons, Kevin, Brian and Eric, and Kevin’s sons, Brandon and Kaleb.

“We decided to open up our farm to host Secretary Kennedy because it is important for us to portray a positive image of agriculture,” Gilbertson said. “We’re proud of the farm our family has built over the years, and it is important for us (to) share that heritage.”

Highlighting the hardworking dairy farm families in his district is gratifying for Van Orden.

“For decades, rural America has been forgotten by Washington,” Van Orden said. “It’s abundantly clear by the (number) of cabinet-level secretaries that are coming here to Wisconsin, that the Trump administration cares about rural America.”

While putting his family’s farm in the national spotlight was not an easy decision, Gilbertson said having the ear of Washington policymakers was worth the effort.

“I told the secretary and congressman that I want better labeling of milk,” Gilbertson said.
“There is a definition of milk, that it comes from a mammal. Products made from almonds, soybeans, oats or other plants should not be able to use the term milk. That confuses a lot of people. They think it’s healthier when, actually, it isn’t.”

As a dairy farmer, Gilbertson said he has been pleased with the advocacy Kennedy has done for dairy products.

“I thank this administration and Secretary Kennedy for highlighting milk as a nutritious food for the American people, and for putting it at the top of the food pyramid,” Gilbertson said. “There is nothing that can match milk as a source of good nutrition, and the secretary understands that.”

Kennedy said that returning whole milk to American schools was also important.

“We deprived two generations of children whole milk,” Kennedy said. “Whole milk has all the micronutrients they need for brain growth, physical development (and) bone development. … President Trump, because of his leadership, is bringing whole milk back to American schools, and also just good food, real food — food that comes from farms.”

Earlier this year, the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act lifted federal restrictions on serving full-fat dairy products in schools. Combined with updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans, this change now allows schools to offer whole milk as part of federally funded meal programs.

Gilbertson said he was pleased Kennedy saw the value of multi-generational family farms like his.

“This is a six-generation farm; it’s been here since 1875,” Kennedy said. “They’ve made generational investments in this farm, everything from the quality of the herd to tractors, trucks and very sophisticated robotics. These are investments that a new farmer simply could not get the financing for. It’s absolutely critical that we save these old farms, because once they’re gone, there is no rebuilding them.”

Gilbertson said he was grateful for the investments his father made that were geared towards enticing him and his brothers to farm. The family has continued to make investments to make dairy farming an appealing career choice for the next generation.

“We’ve been here 151 years, and each generation has made those improvements so the next generation wants to come back,” Gilbertson said. “My dad put in a parlor and built a freestall barn after a windstorm in 1981 to allow more flexibility for our whole family. I was only 6 years old at the time, but I have told my dad I would never have come back to the farm if he had stayed in a stanchion barn.”

The robot investment was made to bring the sixth generation home, Gilbertson said.

“I didn’t build the robotic facility for my children, but I wouldn’t have done it without them,” Gilbertson said. “My oldest son, Brandon, is a cow person, and cow people thrive in robotic situations — they can focus on managing the health aspects of the herd, and that is what he loves to do. My youngest son, Kaleb, is mechanical and has taught himself so much about the robots (that) he can do most of our maintenance and repair work. The robots helped make farming an attractive career choice for each of them.”

Thanks to Kennedy and Van Orden’s visit, the Gilbertsons got to show the world their modern family dairy.

“We’re just five family members working together — my brothers, my sons and me,” Gilbertson said. “We have two full-time employees that we consider family. My kids have been helping on the farm since they were young, and now they’re out here working alongside us.”