Sustainability Stories

Dairy Sustainability

Wisconsin dairy farmers are constantly working to protect the land they know and love. On a national scale, Wisconsin dairy farmers set the stage for sustainability, committing to achieve greenhouse gas neutrality and improved water quality by 2050. On the community level, dairy farmers serve as leaders, educating both their communities and other dairy farmers on new, innovative practices to protect the land. In Wisconsin, there are over 40 dairy farmer-led watershed groups that work tirelessly to protect thousands of acres of land and water.

Farmer Stories

Want to talk with one of these or another industry-leading dairy farmer in your coverage area to learn more about their sustainability achievements? 
Contact Liz Fitzsimmons at 608-203-7280 / lfitzsimmons@wisconsindairy.org
 

Medford, Wis.

Tomandl Farms 

Education and conservation are the two absolutes for Joe and Christy Tomandl—after all, they met in college while they were studying to become teachers for agricultural curriculum, and now use that same foundation to help preserve their farmland. With backgrounds in education, they knew conservation would be key to longevity, creating an in-depth conservation plan by rotationally grazing cattle, restoring the wetland near their farm and purposely grazing cows to help protect the woodland. Because of their work, Tomandl Farms exceeded the soil conservation requirements set by Wisconsin’s Farmland Preservation Program, earning a gold standard designation and a 2022 Leopold Conservation Award. It doesn’t stop there—the Tomandls use their background in education and passion for conservation to educate others through the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship, registered as a national apprenticeship by the U.S. Department of Labor in 2015, training more than 200 farms across 15 states in the art of preservation.

Monticello, Wis

Voegli Farms, Inc.

Innovation and protection are the cornerstones of Bryan Voegli’s approach to farming. With six generations and the family’s beloved Brown Swiss cows, Bryan’s love for farming and taking care of his animals runs deep—but this starts with taking care of the land. Bryan’s passion for dairy means that his goal is for everyone to fall in love with it the way he has, requiring some innovation and conservation for the next generation. Because of this, Voegli Farms is heavily active in the local watershed group, which works to ideate solutions to protect their local waterways for generations to come.

Ixonia, Wis

Zwieg’s Maple Acres 

Kyle Zwieg is in the business of looking towards the future—after all, without the land, there’s no farm. Zwieg’s Maple Acres is a seventh-generation dairy farm, and with a long history, their goal is to preserve the land for years to come, which is why sustainability comes first. Since 2011, Zwieg’s Maple Acres has been a meaningful contributor to the Tall Pines Conservancy, chartering a conservation easement on their land to protect it from further development. Any funds from the easement were reinvested into the farm. Zwiegs served as one of 15 pilot participants in the Protection of Agriculture Conservation Easements (PACE) Program, quickly becoming leaders in the farm community. They also chartered a watershed group, Farmers for Lake Country. With a rich history of conservation and leadership, the Zwieg family hasn’t slowed down, constantly looking for opportunities to make an impact on their local community and in America’s Dairyland.

Additional Stories