Sharing her sustainability story

BEAVER DAM, Wis. — Andrea Brossard has a passion for educating consumers about the dairy industry. It started two decades ago when she got involved in Farm Bureau. Brossard helped promote agriculture through committees in which she was involved and became hooked on being a voice for the dairy industry.

“I enjoy sharing the story of agriculture and the dairy industry,” Brossard said. “Relating with consumers and telling them what we do is so important.”

Brossard and her brother, Anthony, milk around 500 cows and farm about 800 acres near Beaver Dam. The siblings are third-generation farmers on their family’s farm, following in the footsteps of their parents, Dennis and Carol Brossard. Originally purchased by their maternal grandfather, Brossard Dairy Farm has been in the family for nearly a century.

On May 7-8, Brossard was in Washington, D.C., representing the dairy industry with the American Farm Bureau Federation at Ag on the Mall — a biannual event coordinated by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. The theme was sustainability, and joining Brossard were three farmers from other parts of the U.S. representing sheep, beef and specialty crop farming.

“A lot of school groups and legislators stopped to talk to us, and we told them what’s going on in agriculture and explained the importance of agriculture,” Brossard said. “I met people from all over the world and did a lot of consumer engagement.”

Ag-related companies and organizations such as the National Pork Producers Council, American Soybean Association, National Corn Growers Association, Case IH, John Deere and many others set up equipment and booths on the National Mall as part of the event. 

“To be out in the mall and see the ag equipment in the middle of D.C. was pretty cool,” Brossard said. “It was such a great opportunity.”

Focused on outreach and education, Ag on the Mall provides an opportunity for people to meet a farmer and gave Brossard and other farmers the chance to share the story of agriculture and sustainability.

“It was so neat to be able to talk to consumers, youth and legislators from everywhere,” Brossard said. “I enjoyed hearing about peoples’ different experiences in agriculture.”

More than 15,000 people attended the event, which included visitors to Washington from many states and countries. Attendees came from areas close to Brossard’s hometown in Wisconsin and as far away as Sweden.

When discussing sustainability, Brossard speaks from experience. She and her brother operate their dairy farm with a sustainable mindset, and messages Brossard shared focused on how they ensure care of their land and animals for future generations.

“We want to make sure we’re taking care of and preserving what we have for the next generation,” she said. “My brother has young children, and we’re hoping we’ll have a fourth generation here.”

Protecting natural resources and the environment is at the forefront Brossard said as reusing resources is a priority for her family. The Brossards plant cover crops and practice crop rotation while being conscious of nutrient management planning and water usage.

“We work within the land and scope that we have while being mindful of not growing our dairy to outgrow that land,” Brossard said. “We make sure we’re caring for the land and all it has to offer. We want to leave it better than we got it.”

The Brossards also consider ways they can reuse water for cooling milk, watering cows or cleaning the barns and parlor. Cows are milked twice a day in a double-12 parallel parlor. The Brossards use a monitoring system to track rumination, health and milk yields in their herd.

“The use of technology offers ways that we can be more sustainable, and in turn, do better for our cows in the long run,” Brossard said.

The Brossards breed 80%-90% of their animals to beef semen and finish out about 100 steers per year. Virgin heifers and top-production cows are bred to sexed semen for replacements.

“It’s just me and my brother, so we don’t want to get bigger, and that’s why we breed a lot of beef,” Brossard said. “We’re also at capacity with the land we run.”

The Brossards receive help from approximately 10 full-time and part-time employees.

“We have great employees,” Brossard said. “Some have been with us for many years, and they help things go round.”

Implementing sustainable farming values is important to Brossard and her family as they build a farm with staying power. In the future, Brossard and her brother would like to look for ways in which they can reuse sand bedding.

“Being able to reuse what we have and be more efficient is helpful to us,” Brossard said.

Before she returned to the farm full time, Brossard worked in the nutrition field and also did public relations and marketing for the dairy checkoff program.

“I helped farmers learn how to talk to the consumer,” Brossard said. “I also worked on social media platforms promoting farm tours and dairy breakfasts, and my involvement took off from there.”

As an advocate for agriculture, Brossard is active in Farm Bureau on the county, state and national levels. She served as chair of the Young Farmer & Agriculturist Program committee and  the education and promotion committee for Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation. Brossard also served on Farm Bureau’s national promotion and education committee for four years, with two years spent as vice chair.

“Serving on the national committee was the highlight of my Farm Bureau career,” Brossard said. “I did a lot of consumer outreach in that role.”

Future goals for Brossard include running for the state Farm Bureau board. Brossard also currently serves as the vice president of the Insight FS board for Wisconsin.

Cow care and calf care were central to conversations she had in Washington as consumers asked many questions about how Brossard cares for her animals.

“They wanted to know our practices and how we care for calves,” Brossard said. “I’ve received those questions many times — how we raise them, why we take them away from their mother. As consumers learn, they start to respect what you do and realize how much you care for your animals and land. They start to see things differently.”

Whether in her own community or in the nation’s capital, Brossard is committed to spreading the message about dairy and helping consumers better understand the industry.

“We sometimes forget that we’re all in this together,” Brossard said. “We need consumers, and they need us. Consumers don’t always realize that farmers are consumers, too. We want what’s best for our families, and we want to take care of our animals so they take care of us. This is more than a business, and by seeing the families and faces behind ag, consumers can relate to us better.”