On the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen visits Cooper Legacy Dairy near Clovis, New Mexico, a 2,000-cow operation run by fifth-generation dairyman Jered Cooper that also raises replacements and farms about 2,500 acres. Cooper shares how his family’s dairy roots span Michigan, Arizona, Texas, and New Mexico, and why he now lives about 80–100 miles away in the Lubbock, Texas area while still managing the dairy through internet-connected tools and support from his son on site.He explains adopting Nedap smart tags and sort gates, which proved pivotal during a bird flu outbreak by enabling early health alerts, treatment monitoring, and improved herd outcomes, and now streamline daily workflows for health and reproduction via reports, mobile entry, and cloud syncing. Cooper also discusses passing the business to the sixth generation and writing a book inspired by his father about family, football, faith, and farming.This episode is part of the High-Performance Mindset Series powered by Nedap.Nedap is future-proofing dairy farming with smart technologies in activity monitoring, cow locating, milk metering, sort gates, and AI-powered camera systems. Nedap is improving life on the farm by putting the right cow in the right place at the right time, every time.01:24 Meet Jered and the Dairy02:06 Five Generation Roots02:42 How Clovis Happened05:29 Living 100 Miles Away08:03 Tech That Makes It Work08:40 Smart Tags and Bird Flu12:32 New Workflow and Sort Gates15:27 Health Score and Cow Insights16:54 Next Gen and AI Future18:25 Redefining the Modern Dairyman20:24 Why It's Called Legacy21:20 Milkman Love Note22:35 Michigan Dairy Traditions23:19 Depression Era Detour23:59 One Cow to 200024:30 Family Farms and Pride26:20 Next Gen Takes Over30:42 Raising Kids on Dairy32:19 Writing the Dairy Book39:43 Legacy and Advice

Jeff King & Tom Mercuro on genetics, longevity, and why ‘milk what you make’ is the future
On this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, we are joined by Jeff King of Kings Ransom Farm in New York and Tom Mercuro from Mercuro Farms in Maryland—two dairymen who are redefining what real genetic progress looks like. We find out what they are doing to create the kind of cows they want in their barns and why they believe other dairy producers want them too.
This isn’t about chasing the top of a list… it’s about milking what they make - breeding cows that last, perform, and put milk in the tank.
Plus, Jeff and Tom provide their hot takes on the April Holstein Sire Summary and recent changes to the TPI formula.
United Sires is a partnership of well-known Holstein breeders from the United States bringing genetic solutions to dairy producers worldwide. Our mission, “Breed the Best, Better,” reflects the work we have been doing on our farms for generations. As multi-generational dairy farmers, we adhere to a simple yet powerful principle: We Milk What We Make. We understand the importance of breeding cattle that are profitable throughout their lifetimes, functional across all dairy enterprises, and aesthetically pleasing.
Learn more at Unitedsires.com and follow on Facebook at United Sires and Instagram @unitedsiresofficial.

This Uplevel Dairy Podcast episode shares the full Farm Forward Conference panel with attorney Will McKinley, dairyman Tommy Oesch, consultant Kristy Pagel, advisor Steve Bodart, and family farm coach Elaine Froese on building multi-generational farm transitions as an ongoing legal, financial, and relational process. They discuss testing next-generation commitment through projects, off-farm work, mentors, peer networks, and family bylaws; clarifying roles for siblings/cousins using tools like StrengthsFinder and DISC; and keeping farms aligned through regular meetings, celebrations, and quarterly financial check-ins.

The panel contrasts successful transitions (everything on the table, commitment, compromise) with failures (stubbornness, toxicity, staying stuck), addresses estate tools like TOD deeds, revocable and irrevocable trusts, LLCs/corporations, and managing conflicts, cash flow targets, and the option to exit via sale. Final action steps emphasize alignment between spouses, writing letters, gratitude, grace, listening, and accepting continuous change.

02:35 Testing Next Gen Commitment

07:13 Best vs Worst Transitions

10:21 Preventing Estate Disputes

14:06 Future of Midwest Farms

17:22 Siblings and Cousins Leadership

22:25 Making Transition Ongoing

26:23 Meeting Rhythms That Work

28:29 The $2.50 Cash Flow Rule

29:39 Cash Flow Under Pressure

31:27 Trusts Explained Simply

33:08 Irrevocable Trust Tradeoffs

34:58 Estate Planning Resources

36:13 Getting Honest Family Input

40:25 Helping Seniors Let Go

44:45 When No Successor Exists

46:59 Why Ag Transitions Differ

52:00 Family Stories About Land

Transition Talks from the Farm Forward Conference
This Farm Forward Recap episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast features attorney Will McKinley, President of Menn Law, discussing the legal side of family farm transition planning. McKinley emphasizes that communication is critical and that lawyers can’t prescribe one-size-fits-all solutions; families need to clarify and align their goals before legal documents are drafted. He explains what he hopes clients bring to the table—financial records plus a shared “wish list” vision—and shares a success story involving bringing a non-family herdsman into ownership while keeping spouses, bankers, and accountants aligned.
He outlines tools often used (wills, revocable and irrevocable trusts, entity structures) and notes tax challenges with lifetime sales, sometimes using an income-stream approach until a later trigger. He warns that the biggest obstacle is delaying the process and failing to commit time for a multi-meeting plan.
Contact Will McKinley at Menn Law:
William-McKinley@mennlaw.com
(920) 731-6631
https://mennlaw.com/

00:55 Meet Will McKinley
01:37 Communication Comes First
04:57 What to Bring Your Lawyer
07:49 Succession Success Story
10:39 Legal Tools and Tax Strategy
13:38 Where Plans Get Stuck

Transition Talks from the Farm Forward Conference

At the Farm Forward Conference, Uplevel Dairy Podcast host Peggy Coffeen interviews Steve Bodart of AgriGrowth Solutions about the financial side of family farm transition. Bodart explains his accrual-based financial consulting approach that connects production decisions to financial outcomes, benchmarks performance, and evaluates what both outgoing and incoming generations need and can afford. He emphasizes financial transparency so everyone hears the same message at the same time, and says succession is a journey requiring room for growth, disciplined debt payments, and honest discussions about cost of production, capital spending, and competitiveness.

Steve notes failures often stem from resisting change and poor communication without a facilitator. He advocates involving owners and capable mid-managers and giving younger generations responsibility for financial projects, such as analyzing how a transition barn can improve profitability.

AgriGrowth Solutions is a team of financial consultants with strong dairy backgrounds which represent and work for the best interests of dairy producers. The AGS team guides clients through their business’ financial position and assists in planning for their continued and future success.

Contact Steve Bodart, AgriGrowth Solutions: SteveBodart@agrigrowthsolutions.com

Visit: https://agrigrowthsolutions.com/

01:10 Meet Steve Bodart

01:50 What Steve Does

03:21 Financial Transparency

05:56 Planning for Growth

07:00 Building a Win Win Plan

09:42 Who Belongs in Meetings

11:20 Why Transitions Fail

14:44 Bringing Next Gen In

17:23 Real World Project Example

Transition Talks from the Farm Forward Conference
In this Farm Forward Recap, Peggy Coffeen hosts a transition talk featuring Kristy Pagel of Leading Edge Consulting, who focuses on facilitating difficult family farm transition conversations, aligning expectations across generations, and helping farms get “unstuck,” often during conflict or crisis. Pagel emphasizes the need to clarify the senior generation’s purpose beyond day-to-day farm duties and to support curiosity about what comes next.
She also explains an adapted Employee Analyzer tool from Gino Wickman’s “Traction” to objectively assess whether owners, family members, and employees have the head, heart, and capacity for their roles, adding a “reinvest” column with plans, communication, timelines, and accountability. Pagel describes using the tool as a two-way self-assessment to open honest dialogue about burnout, fit, and workload.
Connect with Kristy:
Owner, coach, consultant with Leading Edge Consulting LLC
kristy@leadingedgeccd.com
LinkedIn: Kristy Pagel
Listen to Kristy's Other Episode on Uplevel Dairy here: https://youtu.be/wJU12xNYyl4?si=h7ypvZKEgUgY3GdL

00:55 Meet Kristy Pagel

02:21 Why Facilitation Matters

03:29 Getting Unstuck Together

05:49 Purpose After the Farm

08:44 Employee Analyzer Tool

11:57 Objective Feedback Not Emotion

14:14 Story Using the Tool

At the Farm Forward Conference, Uplevel Dairy Podcast host Peggy Coffeen interviews Tommy Oesch of Swisslane Farms in Michigan about his multi-generational family farm transition from junior partner to senior leader and preparing for the next generation. Tommy describes the farm’s origins with his Swiss immigrant great-grandfather, early succession planning begun in 2004–2005, requirements for the next generation to work off-farm, and his and his brother’s years in outside careers before returning in 2011 to build a 500-cow robotic dairy.

He explains growth through leasing opportunities instead of building, reaching about 5,600 cows across multiple sites, buying out the senior generation, and shifting their income from salary to equity payments to support leadership transition. He highlights hard conversations, including selling real estate to cover debt during Michigan’s 2015–2019 processing challenges, the need for intra-generation alignment through weekly meetings, and wishing they had brought in professional help earlier.

Make sure to tune in all week as we drop recap episodes from the conference right here on the podcast!

02:02 Meet Tommy Oesch

02:49 Swisslane Origin Story

05:06 Off Farm Lessons

06:36 Back to Dairy Growth

07:40 Leadership Buyout Shift

12:13 Hard Times Real Estate

15:05 Generational Negotiations

18:21 Aligning Weekly Meetings

18:54 What We'd Change

On the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen interviews Dr. Stephanie Hansen of Iowa State University at Adisseo’s VIP seminar about why beef-on-dairy calves often fail to thrive in the feedlot. Hansen, a feedlot “mineral nerd,” explains how high liver copper—seen in necropsy results at 800–900 ppm—can originate from late-gestation cow diets and be compounded in dairy systems by copper-fortified milk replacer and starter feed while calves are still functionally monogastric, leading to greater absorption. Research funded by the Iowa Beef Checkoff found high liver copper did not affect vaccine response but did worsen outcomes in a respiratory disease challenge, increasing fever, clinical signs, and lung consolidation, alongside systemic inflammation and potentially compromised liver health. Action steps include moderating copper in late-gestation and calf starter diets, avoiding feedlot copper over-fortification, reassessing frequent vaccination protocols, and considering zinc’s anti-inflammatory benefits. Hansen also notes she writes national-park crime thrillers under the pen name SL Hansen, with a new book due April 2026.
This Episode is brought to you by Adisseo
This episode is sponsored by Uplevel Dairy Podcast Founding Partner Adisseo, a global leader in nutritional solutions and premier provider of rumen-protected methionine for dairy producers who want to optimize milk production, capture more value from components, and maintain the health of their high-performing herds. Learn more at https://www.adisseo.com/en/

00:00 Why Calves Struggle

00:45 Sponsor Message

01:30 Meet Mineral Nerd

03:21 Feedlot Mystery Copper

04:46 Beef Copper Fortification

07:25 Dairy System One Two Punch

09:26 Toxicity Signs Inflammation

12:34 Respiratory Challenge Study

15:25 Other Thrive Factors

17:29 Producer Action Steps

21:15 Zinc Balancing Idea

22:04 Author Side Quest

23:56 Wrap Up Takeaways