The Dairy Business Association welcomes special guests and speakers for their 10^th Annual Business Conference taking place December 1-2 at The Madison Concourse Hotel.   

Dairy producers and allied industry leaders should plan to be present promptly at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, December 1 when the conference begins.  Attendees will be greeted by DBA President Jerry Meissner who will turn the conference over to Wisconsin’s Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew J. Frank to address concerns to the many regulatory issues currently challenging the Wisconsin dairy industry.  The Dairy Business Association has been closely monitoring the regulatory climate surrounding Wisconsin’s dairy industry and is concerned about a variety of issues that, taken together, could have a catastrophic impact on the viability of the Wisconsin dairy industry.  You won’t want to miss this session!   

“We are very excited to have Secretary Frank join us for the DBA Annual Business Conference,” said Laurie Fischer, Executive Director of the Dairy Business Association.  “Dairy is the largest industry in Wisconsin, employing nearly 150,000 people and contributing $26 billion to the state’s economy.  Maintaining a viable milk supply is the foundation of Wisconsin’s dairy industry.  New and expanding regulations put that foundation at risk.” 

Regulations of great concern include restrictions on applying manure on lands designated with certain soil types using maps developed more than 40 years ago and never intended to be used for regulation.  In addition, farmers are being mandated to comply with a new technical standard for feed storage leachate collection.  DBA also has concerns that some new standards are being added and expanded without any determination that the existing standards are inadequate.  WPDES permit holders will also be required to undergo a permit modification each time as little as one acre of land is removed or added to their nutrient management plan.  Tillage setbacks from all water sites are included in the new proposed regulations…plus much, much more. 

To view a conference brochure or to register on‐line, visit www.widba.com.  All are welcome to attend.