Agricultural News
June and July Provide Great Opportunities to Promote Benefits of Dairy, Allen Says
Thu, 21 Jun 2012 20:10:53 CDT
June is National Dairy Month and it is an opportunity to "celebrate your local dairy farmer and remind consumers that they need to get three servings of dairy every day. And some great ways to do that are with milk, cheese and yogurt," says Susan Allen of Dairy Max.
Allen visited with Ron Hays recently and says another important observation comes in July.
"Of course, next month is our favorite celebration, National Ice Cream Month. Ice cream is a good summer time treat that we all love."
These are just two of the events that Dairy Max promotes in its capacity of speaking for the dairy industry.
"Dairy Max is the checkoff program that helps dairy farmers. It's funded by dairy farmers and helps them promote their product. And Dairy Max covers a region which is all of Texas, all of New Mexico and central and western Oklahoma. We have dairy farmers on our board of directors to direct programming to promote their product."
One of the projects that Allen works closely with is their Health and Wellness Advisory Council. There are twelve members on the council nationwide, with three in Oklahoma. The members are selected because of their ability to influence others and pass along the message about dairy being a healthy part of a balanced diet.
"We're bringing them together to talk to them about the new research, old research they may not know about, everything there is to know about dairy. And then we are engaging them locally and regionally to tell the story about how important dairy is in diets," Allen says.
One of the members of the council is Deborah Taylor, child nutrition director at Shawnee Public Schools. Taylor is quoted in Michelle Obama's new book.
Allen says Dairy Max is involved in numerous projects in their three-state region, getting the message out, especially focusing on children. She says it is of great benefit to educate children early just how nutritionally beneficial dairy products can be.
Recently, Dairy Max has been working with Betty Thompson, crowned last year's Miss Oklahoma. Betty was raised on a dairy farm and used her platform as Miss Oklahoma to advance the dairy message.
"Betty was and is a great spokesperson for dairy because she really, truly shows that passion that all dairy farmers have for their product. And she understands what it's like to grow up milking cows before she goes to school every day. She's passionate about the nutrients that dairy provides to our bodies. And she has been a great role model for all kinds of folks," Allen says.
Thompson just finished her reign as Miss Oklahoma, but will continue to speak across the country on behalf of dairy.
Allen says the future plans of Dairy Max build upon the past, and the message is pretty simple:
"You have to stick with the dietary guidelines. You have to stick with the recommendations because that is not a fad. That is based on research and is the foundation of what we do."
Allen will appear with Ron Hays on this weekend's "In the Field" segment on News 9. You can see it Saturday morning about 6:40 a.m.
You can also hear more of Ron's conversation with Susan by clicking on the LISTEN BAR below.
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