By Sarah Mahan of This Farm Family's Life
It is hard for Alan Wright of All Wright Farms to put into
words the love he has for his family and the wonderful feeling he gets when he
works with the animals on their dairy farm.
Alan farms along with his mom, JoAnn, and father, Dan, as well as three
of his brothers, Mark, Lon and Vince, in Delaware County. He also has two other brothers and a sister who
choose to work away from the farm.
“Our farm has been in the family for a very long, long
time,” Alan explains. “We have been
farming and milking at our present place since 1933. Before that we farmed across the road where
my parents live now. We have been
milking cows on this farm for over 29,300 days!
That’s twice a day every day!”
The Wrights milk around 180 cows, and they have an
additional 15 to 20 dry cows. Dry cows
are cows that are about 8 weeks from calving. The family farm hasn’t purchased any cows or
calves since 1950! “We raise all our
heifers and they come back to be milked in our dairy herd when they calve at 24
months. We feed out the majority of our
bull calves as steers. We also raise a
few dairy goats for 4-H projects for our nieces and nephews. These are for stress relief. We enjoy being around them, “Alan says.
The farm is also made up of 1200 acres of soybeans, 1200
acres of corn, 125 acres of winter wheat and 250 acres of alfalfa hay. “600 acres of the corn we produce is used to
feed the cows. All the hay is for the
cattle, and the straw from the wheat harvest is used as bedding for the cows
and calves. We try not to buy any more
feed than we have to. We try to raise
it.”
The milk from All Wright Farms is currently processed at
either Dannon Yogurt in Minster, Ohio or Nestle in Anderson, Indiana. The price of the milk stays the same. Alan explains, “We are paid the same no
matter where it goes. The co-op calls
the milk hauler who picks it up at our farm and tells him where to deliver the
milk that day or week. We don’t have any
say about the matter. They market it and
find a buyer for our milk.”
Alan also sits on the board for the American Dairy
Association of Indiana (ADAI). “I was
asked a few years ago to represent our milk cooperative (the co-op that buys
and markets our milk) on the board of directors. There are 18 board members from different
co-ops who sit on the board. Our job is
to make sure the milk in Indiana is promoted in a way that maximum marketing
opportunities exist. We want the moms
and dads to get their children doing ‘dairy!’
Each board member must be a dairy farmer producing milk in Indiana.”
Last month Alan represented all the dairy farmers in Indiana
when he served as Rookie Milkman during the Indy 500. Each year, during the greatest spectacle in
racing, two board members from ADAI serve as the milkman and rookie each
year. “As the rookie, I got to hand a
bottle of ice-cold milk to the winning car owner, Michael Andretti, and the
winning crew chief in Victory Lane after the race. It was a great thrill and humbling experience
to represent not only the 1200 dairy farms in Indiana, but also dairy farms
throughout the nation as the Rookie Milkman.
“One of my favorite moments of the event was the chance to
ride on the American Dairy Association of Indiana float in the 500 Festival Parade. Ken Hoeing, who was the Milkman, and I got
to wave and hold a bottle of milk for about 300,000 people to see. It was so fun promoting the one thing that we
both lovemilk! Ken was such a great
mentor for me. He was always there to
help get me through interviews and let me know what to expect along the way. Next year, I will move up to serve as Milkman,
and I will get to give the winning driver a bottle of ice-cold milk in Victory
Lane. Another board member will be
chosen to be the Rookie. I hope I can be
half as good to the Rookie Milkman next year as Ken was to me,” Al says.
When asked what he wished the general public better
understood about dairy farming, Alan said, “I wish they understood how much
time and energy we put into keeping our cows and calves healthy and happy. Each day we spend more time with them than we
do our family. That is why family is so
important to me. My kids still enjoy
helping with milking and feeding. You
don’t get up in the middle of the night, 7 days a week to do the morning
milking unless you love your animals. It
is not an 8 AM to 3 PM job, but rather a 3 AM to 8 PM job. Once the love of dairy farming is in your
heart, it remains there no matter what happens.
A retired dairy farmer (if there is such a thing) will always be a dairy
farmer.”
Follow All Wright Farms on twitter: @AllWrightFarms
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