New Prague, Minn. (April 9, 2026) – The Dairy Calf & Heifer Association (DCHA) Annual Conference and Trade Show revolved around the theme “Connect. Collaborate. Cultivate.” “These three engaging verbs provided a strong foundation for exceptional professional development opportunities for those who attended this year’s conference,” stated Ellen Cushing and Kerry Yanez, DCHA conference planning co-chairs. “These connections helped build relationships that create enhanced knowledge, networking opportunities and long-term value.”
Held in Tucson, Ariz., the 2026 DCHA Annual Conference and Trade Show, held April 7-9, drew nearly 350 members from 20 states and eight countries. Short courses, tours, pre-conference and general sessions, simultaneous interpretation into Spanish, producer and industry panels, and an engaging trade show provided a phenomenal atmosphere to foster industry-leading networking and education. Attendees, who represented dairy calf, heifer and beef-on-dairy raisers, dairy producers, veterinarians, academia and allied industry professionals, learned about workforce development, certification and auditing, artificial intelligence for dairy calf management, alternative forages for heifers, calf milk replacer formulation trends, metrics for heifer growth, health and reproduction, and cattle transportation.
“DCHA is committed to providing exceptional professional development opportunities for calf ranch and dairy employees and managers, and industry consultants,” said DCHA President Kendall Wassenaar, Orange City, Iowa. “Regardless of a farm’s location, size, business model or enterprises, every farm relies on people. That’s why DCHA is dedicated to providing industry-leading educational and networking programs.”
During the DCHA Annual Meeting, members approved the 2026-2027 slate of candidates. DCHA board members are President Kendall Wassenaar, Orange City, Iowa; Past President Clint Al-Ag, Friona, Texas; West Regional Director Jason Anderson, Bellevue, Idaho; Producers-at-Large Rodolfo Nava, Portales, N.M.; and Jim Van Patter, Beaver Dam, Wis.; Academia Director Joe Dalton, University of Idaho; Corporate-at-Large Directors Ellen Cushing, Hustisford, Wis.; Jorge Delgado, Andover, Minn.; Mike Overton, Blairsville, Ga.; and Brian Wesemann, Burlington, Ill. Kerry Yanez, Chowchilla, Calif., and John Balbian, Amsterdam, N.Y., retired from the DCHA board of directors.
DCHA thanks its annual meeting sponsors who contributed to the program’s success. The Diamond sponsor was Elanco Animal Health. Platinum sponsors included Huvepharma, Jones-Hamilton Co., Merck Animal Health, Progressive Dairy and Zoetis. The Gold sponsors were Actus Nutrition, Cargill, DBC Ag Products, DRMS, Estrotect and First Defense/Immucell. Silver sponsors included Boehringer Ingelheim, Esmilco, Inc., Hoard’s Dairyman Farm Creamery, Parnell Living Science and Uplevel Dairy. Bronze sponsors were 4D Ag World Ag Fashion, Agri-Plastics, Arm & Hammer Animal Nutrition, Bio-Vet an Anpario Company, Calf Milk Calculator, CowManager, Feedworks, FERA Diagnostics and Biologicals, KeyAg Distributors, MB Nutritional Sciences, Papillon Agricultural Company, Phileo by Lesaffre, Progressive Dairy Solutions, TechMix and United Animal Health.
The Dairy Calf & Heifer Association (www.calfandheifer.org) was founded in 1996 based on the mission to help dairy producers, calf managers and those professionally focused on the growth and management of dairy calves and heifers. With a national membership of producers, allied industries and research leaders, DCHA seeks to provide the industry’s standards for profitability, performance and leadership, serving as a catalyst to help members improve the vitality and viability of their individual efforts and that of their business.