The seventh annual Kentucky Dairy Partners meeting is set for Feb. 25-26 at the Sloan Convention Center in Bowling Green. The University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment is a sponsor of the event for dairy producers, industry representatives and anyone interested in the dairy industry.

The Kentucky Dairy Development Council Young Dairy Producers Conference will take place prior to the Dairy Partners meeting from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CST Feb. 25. The exhibit hall opens at 6 p.m. with an evening reception and exhibit viewing. Registration for the Kentucky Dairy Partners meeting begins Feb. 26 at 8 a.m. with sessions beginning at 9 a.m.

Opening sessions include a presentation titled “Promoting. Educating. Partnering. Creating Lifelong Dairy Consumers” from Jeff Deener, president of the American Dairy Association of Kentucky, and Cheryl Hayn, general manager of the Southeast United Dairy Industry Association in Atlanta.

Other morning presenters include Sam Leadley, dairy calf management specialist with Attica Veterinary Associates in Attica, N.Y., who will present keys to a profitable calf enterprise; and Trever DeVries from the University of Guelph, who will discuss appropriate dairy rations.

After lunch and the Kentucky Dairy Development Council meeting, Nate Janssen, Dairy Management Inc. director of producer relations, will present ways to build consumer confidence and trust and discuss how producers can tell their sustainability story. DeVries will return with a presentation about using knowledge of feeding behavior to improve feed bunk management.

At 2:30 p.m., dairy farmers David Hutchison, Eddie Klingenfus and Jesse Ramer will join for a panel discussion about raising milk-making forages. The meeting wraps up at 3:30 p.m.

Additional sponsors of the meeting include the Kentucky Dairy Development Council, Kentucky American Dairy Association/SUDIA and the Kentucky Department of Agriculture.

Two producers per Kentucky dairy operation will receive free registration courtesy of the Kentucky Dairy Development Council. The fee for other participants is $30 per person. All registrations will be taken at the door. The full agenda and more information are available at http://afsdairy.ca.uky.edu/extension/KYDairyPartnersMeeting.