Join host Matti McBride as she chats with Anton Borst, owner of Halarda Farms in Elm Creek, Manitoba. Learn about the dairy, current succession plans, why Halarda Farms invests in technology and opts to be a trial farm for emerging technologies, as well as future plans for the dairy.

Here is the episode breakdown:

• 0:50 – Introduction to Halarda Farms
• 1:40 – Using a parlor and robots
• 3:00 – History of Halarda Farms
• 4:30 – Succession planning
• 6:30 – Slow, steady growth
• 8:00 – Investing in technology
• 10:00 – Managing employees and technology
• 12:00 – Employee buy-in
• 14:30 – Experiences with being a trial dairy
• 17:00 – Current technologies being trialed
• 18:30 – Goals at Halarda
• 20:50 – The life of a cow at Halarda
• 24:30 – Future plans
• 27:00 – Rapid-fire questions

Reproductive success is now central to both milk and beef calf revenue in progressive dairy herds. The episode explores how methionine, lysine, and histidine drive fertility and calf health, making amino acid balancing a critical strategy for profitability. Listeners discover how small gains in conception rates can yield significant financial impact when paired with strategic breeding and nutrition.

Key takeaway: Strategic amino acid nutrition is a proven driver of reproductive efficiency and dual revenue streams in dairy production.

This episode is sponsored by Actus Nutrition, innovators of precision dairy nutrition solutions. Actus proudly manufactures RPMet, a leading rumen-protected methionine designed to maximize component yields and reproductive efficiency. To learn more about RPMet and other nutrition products by Actus, such as Energy Booster and custom milk replacer products, visit https://actus.com/livestock/specialty-ingredients/

Michigan dairy producer Paul Windemuller joins host Kimmi Devaney to chat about how his family economically started their dairy farm in 2013, the evolution their dairy facilities and the addition of solar panels, the role of artificial intelligence, and how he uses the data provided by his automated milking system and other monitoring technology to make informed management decisions.

Links:

• Listen to Windemuller’s podcast – the AgCulture Podcast – and learn more about his work in agriculture on his website.
• Read about his farm in this Progressive Dairy article from April 2024.

Episode overview:

• [~1:20] Windemuller’s inspiration for getting into the dairy business
• [~2:20] His economical method of starting a dairy farm
• [~6:50] How his experiences in New Zealand influenced the way he manages his dairy farm today
• [~8:45] The evolution of his dairy facilities from a turkey coop with freestalls and a New Zealand-style milking parlor to his current modern freestall barns and automated milking system
• [~10:50] How he utilizes the data provided by his automated milking system and other monitoring technology
• [~13:05] The most important metrics he watches
• [~14:00] The process of adding solar panels to his operation
• [~23:15] Windemuller’s industry involvement
• [~25:50] Nuffield International Farming Scholars program
• [~27:45] The white paper he wrote about artificial intelligence that he presented at the World Dairy Summit in Chile in October 2025 as a Nuffield International Scholar
• [~32:50] Team culture and technology implementation
• [~40:20] His motivation for starting the AgCulture Podcast
• [~44:50] Windemuller’s advice to other dairy producers that are interested in advocating for agriculture
• [~48:05] Rapid-fire questions