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Michigan dairy farming couple honored as 2nd-generation MMPA young leaders

A Michigan dairy farming couple is the second generation of their families to represent young dairy cooperatives with the Michigan Milk Producers Association.

Dale and Lynnae Dick milk 300 Jersey and Holstein cows with seven robots at Dick Haven Dairy, and farm 1,200 acres in McBain.

“The robots played a big role for us in being able to do most of the stuff ourselves,” Dale explains. “A lot of people will say you gotta get bigger, mine and my dad’s theory was, well, if we can hire somebody, then there’s room for a family member to come back.”

The couple is the 75^th to be recognized by their cooperative and will be part of a leadership cohort supported by the National Milk Producers Federation over the next year.

Lynnae says there’s a lot to be gained from networking with other young farmers across the country as part of the program.

“I think it’s always a great way to gain perspective of how different people do things,” she says. “There are a lot of people in our generation that are kind of in that same boat too – just (figuring out) how to balance to be successful at farming and successful in raising your family.”

Dale and Lynnae first met at summer MMPA OYDC reunions with their parents in the late 1990s, then reconnected through Michigan State University’s dairy judging program.

“It’s kind of cool to have that distinction, honor,” Dale shares. “I don’t know how many there have been, where parents and then the kids follow suit to receive that honor. For us, we watched them grow up in the dairy industry and become leaders in their own respect, and to follow that and see what the next generation needs to do to continue the cooperative is kind of neat.”

The family also operates a small pumpkin U-Pick and agritourism business.