Duncan Smith is similar in many ways to the members of the Houston Lions Club he spoke with on April 17 – they work hard and take pride in providing a quality product to their customers. But unlike the typical local business, Smith’s most important asset is cows. Smith and his family are dairy farmers. The most important measure of success at the end of the day is knowing that their actions help create a more sustainable environment while providing people in the community with wholesome dairy foods.
Smith is the owner and operator of his family farm, Spring Hill Dairy, near Mountain Grove. Along with his wife and three older children, he milks 145 cows twice a day, every day. Smith’s 580-acre farm has been in his family since 1970.
“We love what we do,” said Smith. “Dairy farmers across Missouri differ in the number of cows they milk and some of the particular ways they farm, but we all share a passion for what we do. It is our responsibility to take care of the natural resources and animals on our farm and we take that responsibility with a great deal of pride and commitment.”
The family lives and works on the farm and that is a strong incentive to protecting the land, water and air. In addition, cow comfort and health is carefully monitored every single day. Smith works with an expert dairy animal nutritionist to formulate the best diets for the cows and veterinarians come to the farm regularly to check on the animal’s health. Advancements in technology, animal husbandry and milk quality methods are put to use. “What we do on our farm is the starting point for safe and nutritious dairy foods in the supermarket,” says Smith. Because of this commitment at the dairy farm, people can count on wholesome dairy foods produced while sustaining the environment, Smith said.
To learn more about the people behind the product – dairy farmers and the milk they produce, visit www.midwestdairy.com or www.dairyfarmingtoday.org.