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Mike Jarchow and Bluestem Catering hosted 260 dairy farmers from 21 different countries at Grand Prairie Events Wednesday at noon when several chartered buses wheeled into Luverne on their way from Worthington to Baltic.
Alta Genetics hosted the group as part of a twice-yearly tour of progressive dairy farms around the globe to showcase new technology and innovation in reproductive dairy programs.
“This is a better way to tell the story,” said Patrick McAllister, vice president of sales of Alta North America.
He said it’s the 20th such tour Alta has hosted for clients and prospective clients, some of whom have been on previous tours in others parts of the world.
“This is our first time in the central plains,” McAllister said.
Wednesday’s lunch stop was midway between Ocheda Dairy near Worthington and Boadwine Farms near Baltic.
Other dairy operations planned for the remainder of the tour included VanEss Heifer Farm near Sanborn, Iowa, City View Heifer Ranch, Southerland, Iowa, and Drumgoon Dairy near Lake Norden, South Dakota.