Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills, and thank you for listening.
When Patricia Henderson first attended the J. Franklin Witter Center in Old Town as a student in the fall of 2012, she thought she was going to become a veterinarian. Instead, after working for a few years as a dairy consultant and falling in love with the dairy industry, she found her way back to Witter to become its superintendent. Patricia is just one example of the many students who have learned about animal sciences and sustainable agriculture at the Witter Farm. There, the next generation of Maine Dairy farmers are taught how to responsibly care for countless herds and to sustainably manage hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland so they can grow what their animals need to eat and stay healthy.
That's no easy task, requiring dairy farmers to use cutting-edge technology to monitor everything from milk quality to animal wellness to soil health. But the new robotic milking barn at Witter farm--the third of its kind in Maine--exemplifies that innovation. As cows choose when to be milked, a process that will improve their milk production, the machine also measures critical aspects of their health. Annie Lahey, a zoology student at the University of Maine, said that the automated machine helps her spend more time focusing on the well-being of the cows instead of simply taking care of the barn. With labor shortages and rising costs--including the president's new tariffs--and market pressures all hitting the dairy industry, that technology could make the difference between a dairy farm staying open or closing. We want them all to stay open.
Dairy farms are at the heart of Maine's agricultural industry and our rural communities and our economy as a whole. You know, award winning cheese and yogurt and ice cream and butter, all made with Maine milk, are sold at restaurants and schools and grocery stores, cafes and shops worldwide. Farm and feed supply stores, trucking and transportation companies, veterinarians and other small businesses also rely on the success of our dairy farms.
My administration deeply appreciates Maine's dairy farms and dairy products, and we're committed to working with the legislature to examine the recommendations of the Maine Dairy Task Force and support the long term success of the dairy industry in Maine.
Maine people can show their appreciation by making sure the milk you buy at the grocery store is produced in Maine. You can check that the milk you're buying is from Maine by looking at the code on the top of the carton or jug. The code for Maine produced milk will always start with the number 23. For example, Oakhurst Dairy in Portland has the code 23-01.
Let's all support the long term success of Maine's dairy industry by buying milk and milk products that come from Maine.
This is Governor Janet Mills, and thank you for listening.