Thanking a retiring Texas dairy friend

By Darren Turley, TAD executive director

The Texas dairy industry has been very fortunate to have had Texas A&M AgriLife Extension dairy specialist Dr. Ellen Jordan working for many years to help every dairy farmer be more productive. Dr. Jordan retired April 30, but I can’t let her leave without acknowledging her many, many contributions to the Texas dairy industry.

The list is long – a few examples: she has helped farmers use and rate the efficiency of mixer wagons when they were starting to be used; studied synchronization programs and their benefits in breeding cows in hot Texas summers; and conducted various studies in all parts of the state on heat stress and its impact on cow reproduction. Dr. Jordan was as proficient in herd software as anyone I met in Dairy Comp 305, long before the rest of us got comfortable with the software

All of this knowledge was given to dairy farmers to help make them more productive and profitable.

Dr. Jordan also kept dairy farmers up-to-date on the latest information and practices through education. She worked to establish the High Plains Dairy Conference to spotlight large dairy management issues for dairy farmers in the Texas Panhandle and surrounding states. She was the driving force for dairy field days held at farms around the state to show farmers the most modern farm practices. Families who have hosted a field day will be quick to tell you how much Dr. Jordan does to put on these events.

If you are milking cows in Texas, tip your hat to Dr. Jordan for all that she has done to propel Texas to be the fifth largest dairy producing state in the country.

Two new AgriLife Extension dairy specialists have been hired and will start soon. Dr. Juan Pineiro will be located in Amarillo starting July 1, and Dr. Jennifer Spencer will start in Stephenville on Aug. 1. In addition, a dairy Instructor will be hired at Texas A&M University this summer. We look forward to getting to know them and work with them.

Texas may have less than 400 dairy farms, but there are many times that number of people who contribute to the success of our industry. We have lost one of the best with Dr. Jordan’s retirement, but we will continue to take this industry into the future.