FAQs

To best support your local promotion and education work and align in-state consumer messaging, Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and Dairy Market Inc. (National Dairy Check Off) have tested consumer-facing messaging that consumers are needing to hear, learn and experience to build their trust in dairy, and ultimately build demand for dairy.

Foundational key messaging will bring focus to Champions of Dairy with key messages, resources and grant funding to build a stronger, unified voice for dairy.

The narrative and messages are foundational to Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin youth and local promotion messaging. These messages will be applied to all future Champions of Dairy funding programs, support resources and marketing activities to ensure a consistent dairy voice across the community, state and national levels. These messages can be a starting point for future promotions around Dairy is good for My Body, My Community and My Planet based on audience and community.

Learn more about key messages

The new “Promotion Partner” logo to help your community’s dairy farmers see their check-off dollars at work in local promotion.

We want want to communicate with all officers and members of each Champions of Dairy group. If you have a  member who does not have an email address, please list an officer who has an email address or none@none.com

If an officer serves more than one roll on the officer team, please fill out each position accordingly. 

In order to receive your funding you need to:

• Complete and submit the online Dairy Promotion Grant Application. Upon application approval, your treasurer will then receive a copy via email of a Promotion Purchase Order – aka the expectations and legalities of use of funds. 
• Sign and return the Promotion Purchase Order agreement (see example below). The sooner you sign and return this PPO, the sooner grant funding can be dispersed.   
• Funds dispersed via check or EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) 

While it is true that the number of farms in Wisconsin is shrinking and the size of individual farms is growing, many of these farms are being combined with multiple family members or merged between families. 95% of Wisconsin dairy farms are still family owned.

Almost all farms, no matter the size, use technologies that focus on improving energy, water, and land use efficiency — it’s what keeps the farm going. In fact, thanks to increasingly efficient and innovative dairy farming practices, producing a gallon of milk in 2017 requires 30% less water and 21% less land and a created a 19% smaller carbon footprint than it did in 2007.

Some farms use solar energy to decrease their reliance on fossil fuel power plants. Some target their biggest energy use (milk cooling) and use plate coolers and ground water to reduce their energy needs. Many in Wisconsin also employ on-farm bioenergy systems that capture methane from manure (held in air-tight tanks or lagoons) to create renewable energy. Overall, Wisconsin dairy farms try to use less and protect their community’s land and water because it’s what keeps Wisconsin dairy farming strong.

Cows do produce methane as part of their digestion processes, mostly through burps, and farmers are working with nutritionists to reduce the fermentation that causes these burps. Wisconsin also has more on-farm bioenergy systems that capture methane from manure than any other state.

A dairy cow needs ~45 gallons of water a day to produce 12 gallons of milk, and farmers know they can’t waste a drop. The average dairy farmer recaptures and reuses each gallon of water up to 4 times on their farm.

The Wisconsin Dairy Colorywhey is a hanging sculpture created as a tribute to Wisconsin’s hardworking dairy farmers. Made up of 222 aluminum hoops that include 84 hand-illustrated images and discs of colored felt as well as contoured mirrored acrylic and fiber-optic mesh, The Colorwhey tells the story of Wisconsin’s extraordinary heritage and the enormous impact dairy and cheese have in our state and throughout the world.

Each color represents a different piece of our dairy story. Starting with green and blue for the land and water that form the foundation of our terroir, the piece moves to purple for the cows, pink for the generations of family farmers who care for those cows, and white for the milk itself. Gold depicts the craftsmanship of cheesemaking, while amber represents cheese, our masterpiece.

Because each color represents a separate piece of Wisconsin dairy that weaves together to create one story, the piece is a ‘colorway’ depicting the deep tradition and heritage that defines our state. The name is also a playful nod to our obsession with cheese and the craftsmanship behind it.

Steph Hagens is a multi-disciplinary Wisconsin artist whose work blends storytelling and sustainability into immersive art experiences that speak to the deep connection between humanity and the natural world. The Wisconsin Dairy Colorwhey weaves her family’s textile roots with the transformation of milk, creating a rich tapestry that tells Wisconsin’s dairy story.

In Wisconsin, farming means taking care of the cows, the soil, and the water so our families and communities can thrive for generations. Our focus on caring for Wisconsin has global impacts, but at its heart, it is personal and local. For The Colorwhey creator, Steph Hagens, sustainability is an integral part of her work. Using recycled and upcycled materials along with natural pigments and low-impact practices ensures her work embodies the values it represents.

The Wisconsin Dairy Colorwhey is located in the TruStage MarketReady Hall of the Madison Public Market. Visitors can view the sculpture from the hall itself or from the mezzanine level between the bustling vendor space and the light-filled event hall.

Work on The Colorwhey began in the spring of 2024 and was completed in the early summer of 2026. Artist Steph Hagens visited dairy farms, met with cheesemakers, and attended World Dairy Expo, the premier forum for the global dairy community, in addition to conducting her own extensive research into the history and craftsmanship of Wisconsin dairy farming and cheesemaking. During this time, she
 

Created as a community gathering space that celebrates Wisconsin food, culture, entrepreneurship, and local makers, the Madison Public Marketplace was a natural home for Wisconsin dairy’s story. Because The Wisconsin Dairy Colorwhey encompasses the long history and deep impact of dairy in our state, such a large sculpture needed to be hung where it could be fully enjoyed without crowding other works of art.
 

Our glacially nourished soil and water, combined with our climate, are perfect for producing the best milk on the planet, the pivotal ingredient for the more than 600 varieties, types, and styles of world-class cheese Wisconsin crafts. We also have the only Master Cheesemaker program outside of Switzerland and win more awards for our cheese than Italy and France combined.
 

Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin is a farmer-owned and farmer-directed non-profit organization created to increase the sale and consumption of Wisconsin milk and dairy products.

The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB) officially changed it's name to Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin in 2017.

This change represents the organization's new strategic mission, vision and identity; more firmly aligning our organization with the efforts of Wisconsin's dairy farmers to expand growth opportunities domestically and around the world. Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin communicates the people we represent: the hard-working dairy farmers of this state who produce the quality dairy products that consumers love.

The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (now Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin) was formed in 1983.

for every 100 pounds of milk produced and marketed in the state, 10 cents goes to Dairy farmers of Wisconsin to promote Wisconsin-produced dairy products. An additional 5 cents goes to the National Dairy Promotion & Research Board for dairy promotion activities at the national level.

No, though many members of our organization are dairy farmers or come from dairy farm families, you don't have to be a dairy farmer to work for DFW. Our organization is overseen by 25 dairy farmer board members that are elected by dairy farmers in their districts. These farmers meet regularly to review DFW's strategy, programs and finances of the checkoff dollars. The marketing, research and promotion programs are executed by the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin staff.

No, we are no affiliated with Dairy Farmers of America, which is a national dairy cooperative. Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin the marketing and promotion arm for Wisconsin dairy farmers as part of the state's dairy checkoff program.

Checkoff Dollars are the funds given to Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin by Wisconsin dairy farmers to help promote our state's dairy products and fund continuing dairy research initiatives.

Visit the Checkoff at Work section of our site for information on our the Checkoff Dollars are being spent, recent statistics and the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin Annual Report.

Dairy products, like milk, cheese and yogurt, are an excellent source of calcium, vitamin D and protein, all of which are vital components of a balanced diet for growing children and adults alike.

Most Wisconsin dairy cows enjoy modern dairy comforts like spacious, temperature controlled living spaces, open access to grazing fields and water, and nutritionst developed meals. In fact, they eat healthier than most people!

As technology continues to evolve many farms are also moving to a self-milking system, in which cows can choose when they want to be milked. Learn more about our dairy cows here.

Visit the Promote Dairy section of our site to find grassroots ways to help DFW spread the dairy word, subscribe to our newsletter, or purchase Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin gear. Or, visit our events calendar to see what else is going on.