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    BERLIN, Wis. – Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation’s new president runs his dairy farm with a progressive mindset, setting goals for the future and establishing direction for the business, which is how he plans to lead the WFBF.
    Kevin Krentz and his wife, Holly, own and operate Krentz Dairy near Berlin with their business partner, Cory Biely, milking 600 cows and farming 1,300 acres.
    Krentz was elected president of the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and Rural Mutual Insurance Company Dec. 7, 2020. Krentz has been a part of the WFBF for more than 20 years, joining the organization in 1999 at the encouragement of his father.
    “The professionalism of the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and the respect they receive in Madison and Washington, D.C. impressed me from day one,” Krentz said. “That led me to become more involved.”
    Krentz joined the WFBF’s Young Farmer and Agriculturist program and was also asked to be a part of the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Leadership Institute and was a graduate of their first class. He served as president of the Waushara County Farm Bureau for four years and was elected to the WFBF board of directors in 2012 to represent District 5, which includes Adams, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Juneau, Marquette, Waushara and Winnebago counties.
    “As president, I plan to focus on the people – on our members – and really listen to them,” said Krentz, whose passion for dairy and agriculture runs deep.
    With his heart set on being a dairy farmer, Krentz attended the University of Wisconsin- Madison’s Farm and Industry Short Course after high school and purchased his father’s 60-cow herd in 1994.
    “What impressed me most about my dad was his progressiveness up until the day he died,” Krentz said. “My parents encouraged me to grow the farm and adapt it to my needs. I wanted a farm large enough to allow everyone scheduled time off but small enough I could still manage all the intricacies involved. Like any small business owner, the farm is always on my mind, but at least I can physically get away, which is partly why I wanted to grow in the first place. Time away from the farm is important for everyone.”
    In 1999, Krentz built a new facility across the road from where he grew up, putting up the farm’s first freestall barn and double-12 parallel parlor where cows are milked three times a day. In 2007, another freestall barn was built, and later, an addition was made to the original freestall facility. In 2014, Krentz Dairy built a heifer barn and brought its youngstock back home rather than continuing to rent facilities for raising heifers. In 2017, they built a shop and office where Krentz spends much of his time tending to the business.  
    “What makes this farm successful is the people,” Krentz said. “We have a really good crew here. This also includes our team of consultants to help manage the farm. We sit around the table with our banker, nutritionist, vet, breeder and agronomist to discuss issues and ways to solve them as finances are available.”  
    Krentz manages the overall business, taking care of bookwork and finances at Krentz Dairy, along with filling in wherever needed on a daily basis. Holly handles the human resources side while Biely manages the herd and day-to-day operations.
    Krentz and Holly have four children. Marcus graduated from UW-Madison Short Course and is moving into managing the agronomy side of the dairy as well as the farm’s shop. Allison works for the environmental health department of Waushara and Green Lake counties. Trevor attends Concordia University majoring in computer science, and the youngest son, Isaac, is in seventh grade.
    Supporting the community he lives and farms in is important to Krentz – a philosophy passed down by his parents.  
    “A number of years ago, I went through every payment the farm made that year,” Krentz said. “I found that 62% of the expenses were made within a 15-mile radius of my farm. That demonstrates huge support for my community and shows that a farm needs a community, and a community needs the farms.”
    Representing fellow farmers of all kinds, Krentz hopes to be a voice for all members as leader of the WFBF. He said 2021 will be a year of moving past COVID-19 and planning for the future.
    “There’s a lot of conversation around food security/insecurity, and we want to keep those conversations going with customers and farmers,” Krentz said. “In addition, consumers want to know where their food comes from, and we want to keep that connection between consumer, farmer and processor alive.”
    Krentz said unreliable internet access also continues to be an issue and one he personally deals with where he lives.
    “Policy wise, there are many issues to tackle, including water, broadband, dairy pricing and meat processing,” Krentz said. “We need to continue to address water moving forward, and for dairy, we need to figure out price mechanisms that work. Period.”
    Committed to the industry, Krentz looks forward to helping create a vision that will take WFBF members successfully into the future.
    “It’s all about the people and members we represent as well as the diversity of our members,” Krentz said. “The bureau serves a lot of different commodities in the state. I sit in this seat, but I represent all of them. Listening to and understanding farm bureau member challenges – that’s our job.”

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