By Sarah LaCount, NEAFA Executive Committee
After a stretch of wacky weather, it finally feels like spring has arrived—and may even be here to stay across New York and the Northeast. As we move into the busy planting season, it’s fitting that the past month has been full of planning, learning, and collaboration through key industry events. March brought both the Northeast Dairy Management Conference and the Herd Health and Nutrition Conference, each drawing strong attendance from farmers, nutritionists, and industry professionals.
Over the past two years, I have had the privilege of serving as co-chair of NEAFA’s Education Committee. For this year’s Herd Health and Nutrition Conference, in partnership with PRO-DAIRY, we developed a program focused on timely, relevant topics with practical application. Sessions covered areas such as cow behavior, silage management, and strategies for feeding for higher components. We explored high components from both scientific and economic perspectives, concluding with a panel discussion featuring conference speakers alongside a nutritionist and producer who shared real-world insights, practical goals, and answered audience questions.
At a time when farm profitability is more critical than ever, our goal was to provide information that helps farms reach their full potential. Whether through improving forage quality and yields, designing systems that align with a cow’s innate behavior, or defining and refining nutritional and genetic strategies to maximize feed efficiency and components, we hope attendees left with ideas they can implement on their farms as they navigate an ever-evolving industry.
Just prior to the Herd Health and Nutrition Conference, NEAFA held its Annual Business Meeting. During the meeting, we welcomed three new members to the board—Sean Dieumegard, Jim Carter, and Aurelio Henriques—and we are excited about the perspectives and experience they bring to the organization. I was also elected to serve as Secretary, following the completion of Mike Thresher’s term. I’m grateful for the opportunity to take on this role and to contribute more directly as part of the executive committee. As someone who did not grow up on a farm or within a traditional agricultural background, I hope to help NEAFA connect with a wider audience of representatives and consumers who may not fully understand who we are, what we do, and why our work matters.