I Am Indiana Agriculture: Tom Landrum

By Sarah Mahan of This Farm Family's Life

Tom Landrum is a Dairy Farm Supervisor for the Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH). The third-generation dairy farmer resides on the family farm in Dearborn County.  The farm was purchased in 1916 by Tom’s grandfather.  “We milked cows up until 1990 when a tornado destroyed seven barns.  Since then, I have kept dry cows (a cow that isn’t lactating) and heifers on my farm while another dairy farmer milks the lactating cows.  My wife, Judy, has been a part of the farm operation since we married in 1979.  Judy drives tractors and helps manage the operation.  I have shown our Registered Milking Shorthorns at state, regional, and national shows since 1956.  I worked at Farm Credit Services for 30 years. After retiring from Farm Credit Services, I began working for BOAH in 2007 as the state farm supervisor.”

Tom Landrum (center) was recognized for his service to the Indiana State Board of Animal Health and the citizens of the state by Board Chairman Lawrence Stauffer, DVM (left) and State Veterinarian Bret D. Marsh, DVM (right).

Each Grade A dairy farm must be inspected by BOAH at least twice annually to check for compliance with state and federal regulations to produce milk for public consumption.  The division has 11 dairy inspectors who regularly visit each farm for compliance.  This involves evaluating cow care, equipment care, sanitation, and timeliness.  “The dairy division has the enforcement power to regulate dairy farms and ensure the milk they produce is safe and wholesome,” Tom says.  Inspecting a farm is no small task.

“The inspection begins at the mailbox,” Tom explains.  “We check for cleanliness of the entire operation.  We use a 19-point check system to score the cows, milk house, milking parlor, surrounding barns, water wells, and medication cabinets.  We inspect for proper care, proper location and administration of medications.  We look especially at the equipment condition and cleanliness.  We also monitor milking conditions, milk storage, milk sampling, and milk hauling.  All of these must meet the state and federal standards.  My job impacts Hoosiers by being a reliable safety net for milk.” 

BOAH’s dairy division permits and inspects Indiana’s 1200-plus dairy farms, 37 processing plants, 500 milk haulers (drivers), and more than 350 tanker trucks.  Indiana’s dairy farms range in size from 20 to 3000 cows, but, regardless of size, all farms receive the same level of inspection by BOAH staff.  “Dairy inspectors are also responsible for inspecting dairy product processing facilities in Indiana.  Every tanker load of milk is tested before processing to verify no contamination by antibiotics that may have been used on the farm.  Milk is the most highly regulated and closely inspected food product on the market.”

On modern dairy farms, the milk is never touched by human hands and is not exposed to contaminants.  “My job is important because the public wants to know where their food comes from and how the animals are treated.  I get to see and monitor much of this.  Dairy farmers are good, hardworking people, and I enjoy being around them.  Not many people see as many dairy farms and cows as I do.  I enjoy people and ‘good’ cows.” 

From Dairy Farm to Grocery Store

By Abby Cropper, Dietetic Intern at Winners Drink Milk

Last month, I had the opportunity through the Indiana Dietetics Association Annual Meeting to visit and tour the Kelsay Dairy Farm in Whiteland, Indiana.  I’m a complete rookie when it comes to dairy farming.  So, I attended a presentation about dairy farms before we left for the tour. The presentation touched on milk transportation, milk processing/tasting, and milk labeling.  I had no idea about the great lengths that are taken to keep our milk safe and get it to the stores in a timely manner.  The whole process would not be able to happen without the hauler, the tanker, and the processing plant. I’m not quite sure why I never thought about it, but milk is the only food that is never touched by human hands! How cool is that?!

As I mentioned, these farmers and haulers put a lot of effort into keeping the milk safe. I could see that firsthand during the presentation and when I toured the farm.  The milking equipment delivers milk directly from the cows to a refrigerated holding tank.  When the milk comes out of the cow, it is 100 degrees Fahrenheit and the holding tank cools it down to 38 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit.  Before this milk can leave the tank to go to the processing plant, a certified milk hauler tests the milk and the tanker truck is tested, as well. 

On the other end of things is nutrition.  We all have heard how nutritious milk is for the body.  The calcium, the vitamin D, and the seven other essential nutrients that help nourish your body.  But, how does the cow stay healthy to give us this milk?  Cows eat nearly 100 pounds of food and drink 25-50 gallons of water each day – that’s a bathtub of water!  Eating all of this food takes almost seven hours a day.  There was a nutritionist who designs the cows’ diet and changes it as needed.  As a future dietitian, I enjoyed learning this component of running a dairy farm.  For a cow to be able to produce that much milk and have her body stay healthy, I knew their diet needed to be well-balanced at all times. 

According to the USDA, 98% of U.S. dairy farms are family owned and operated, sometimes by multiple generations of the family.   The families deeply care for the land and the cows. The farmers are working constantly to provide us with safe, healthy products by keeping their farm and cows safe and healthy.  I have so much appreciation for the fresh milk that is put into our grocery store coolers each day.  What more could we ask for?  So, when you pour your milk (skim, 2%, chocolate, whatever!) be thankful for the hard working dairy farmers who got it to your table!

Girl Scout Cookies and Milk: The Inside Scoop

By Guest Blogger:  Denise Derrer, Full-time Public Information Director for the State Board of Animal Health and Part-time Girl Scout Troop Leader

If you haven’t been asked to buy a box of Girl Scout cookies yet, you probably haven’t been out of the house lately! It’s that time of year again when girls all over Indiana are racking up orders for Samoas, Tag-a-Longs and (my personal fav) Thin Mints.

When those cookies arrive in a couple of weeks, nothing will complete snack time like a tall, cold glass of milk. Have you thought about what goes into making sure that milk is wholesome and safe for everyone to enjoy?

The Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH) manages Indiana’s dairy inspection program. Every day, inspectors are visiting dairy farms and the processing facilities that pasteurize, manufacture and package the milk, cheese, yogurt and ice cream we all enjoy. Since this is something few people ever really see, I thought I’d give you the “inside scoop” on what some of my coworkers do in the field.

Milk is among the most highly inspected and regulated food products on the market. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration sets the standards by which all milk must be produced. State agencies, such as BOAH, work with the farmers and plant operators of all sizes—from mom-and-pop to international companies—to make sure final products are safe.

By law, farms must be thoroughly inspected at least twice each year. Sometimes our inspectors make spot checks or revisit operations that need to correct issues from a previous inspection.

Inspections start with a general look at the farm itself: 

Is the place generally clean? Are rodents and pets kept out of the milking facility? Are weeds kept trimmed? Are the cows free of manure? Do the doors to the milk house seal tightly? Are there paper towels at the sink? Do employees wash their hands?

Those questions only scratch the surface of what’s involved in a farm inspection. There’s so much to look at!

Every piece of milking equipment is closely scrutinized. BOAH dairy inspectors look like detectives, armed with flashlights to help them peer into bulk tanks to make sure no protein residue accumulates on the sides. They’ll disassemble the stainless steel pipes, pumps and hoses to verify the insides are getting proper daily cleanings. Gaskets and seals are inspected. Thermometers are checked to ensure they are accurate, and milk is kept below 40 degrees.

Inspectors also verify any medications used on the farm are approved for use on dairy cattle. Meds must be stored properly, have the veterinary labels attached and not be expired.

Likewise, inspecting a dairy plant (where milk is bottled or cheese is made) is much like inspecting the milking facility portion of the farm—only with a lot more pipes and tanks. And I mean a lot. Some of these plants take many, many hours to inspect, often in the wee hours of the morning, when the bottling operation is shut down.

Those inspections do not even cover all the product testing that goes on to ensure product safety.

Four types of tests are completed regularly to ensure dairy products are safe:

1. Somatic cell counts, which are an indicator of the general health of the cows. Only healthy cows may be milked.
2. Bacteria levels, which can affect the shelf-life, quality and safety of the product. Each load of milk must be tested as it is delivered to the processing plant to ensure it meets federal standards. Dairy cooperatives (which buy the milk from farmers) test the milk at the farm-level another five to six times a month to ensure their herd is producing top-quality milk. Cheese makers will frequently test their finished products for other organisms to ensure they are safe to eat.
3. Antibiotic drug residues, which is an issue of food safety. Just like people, cows can become ill. And, like people, they may be prescribed medications to help them heal. Milk from cows being treated cannot go into the human food chain, yet the treated cows still have to be milked daily. That means their milk has to be dumped. So the milk supply is checked frequently (and multiple times) to ensure no mistakes were made. Milk is tested for drug residues on the farm, again on the truck as it arrives at the processor (before it is unloaded), and again as the final product at the plant.
4. Water quality, because the water used to clean the equipment and nourish the cows must be free of contaminants, including bacteria like e. coli.

All of these factors, together, help determine if a dairy farm or processing facility meets the standard to ship milk or dairy products. Any time the operation doesn’t meet the standard, the milk will be rejected. That is why farmers and plant operators work so hard to make sure they produce high-quality, safe products.

So, when you sit back to enjoy those Girl Scout cookies with a glass of milk, don’t just thank a farmer. Thank an inspector, too!

If you'd like to win some Girl Scout Cookies and Milk this week, visit us over on our Facebook Page and tell us your Favorite Girl Scout Cookie Flavor. Winner will be chosen at random on Facebook.