2022 Master Agriculturists Jon, Doug and Les Danielson grew up on a dairy farm north of Cadott in Chippewa County, Wis. As the brothers graduated from college, one by one they returned home to farm.

They are the fourth generation of the Danielson family to farm in Cadott. Their great-grandfather Dan Danielson moved to Cadott from Dodge County in 1884, bought the home farm across the road from where Jon still farms and started farming.

“Our grandfather William was born in 1890, and he farmed on the home farm, and he purchased the farm where I farm,” Jon explains. “And our dad, Wayne, farmed on this farm too.”

“Our dad’s brothers purchased their own farms. They each had their own barn, cows and land, but they all shared equipment and labor,” Les says. “They farmed with their sons, and all of their sons are still farming in the neighborhood. Most of our neighbors are Danielsons.”

Jon says when they were growing up, there were always a lot of boys around to help make hay. “My dad bought a New Holland kicker baler in 1960, and we made lots of baled hay each summer,” he says.

Back on the farm

Jon, the oldest brother, graduated from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls in 1977 with a bachelor’s degree in dairy science. He returned to the home farm to farm with their parents, Wayne and Flora, who still live on the farm.

Jon is married to Jane, who is retired from working in the Cadott School District. Today, they own 400 acres and rent 70 acres. Jon farms with his son Rick, 35. They milk 90 registered Holstein cows and raise 170 heifers during the warm months.

“We freshen all of our heifers and sell most of them by November,” Jon explains. “Our barn holds 83 cows. We feed most everything we grow, but last year we had a great corn crop and we sold some corn.” Last fall, their corn averaged 200 bushels per acre; usually it averages 160 bushels.

Jon breeds his cows for type and milk production. He currently has 24 cows classified as Excellent and 35 Very Good.

“I think most of our younger cows will score Excellent or Very Good when they get older,” he says.

The couple has two other sons, Shannon and Jason. Jason works as an AI technician for Central Star in Curtiss.

In 1982, Doug graduated from UW-River Falls with a bachelor’s degree in dairy science, and he returned home to farm. In 1988, he bought a nearby farm and started milking 50 Holstein cows. In 2005, Doug’s barn burned. He built a new parlor and freestall barn for 180 registered Holstein cows. In 2016, he built a second freestall barn and expanded his herd to 400 registered Holstein cows.

Doug farms 1,200 owned and rented acres. All of his crops are grown for feed. He grows corn for silage, hay and soybeans, which are roasted.

Doug is married to Annie, who teaches in the Holcombe School District. The couple has three grown children: Collette, Tyrel and Kelsey.

Les graduated from UW-Madison with a bachelor’s degree in ag education in 1992 and returned home to farm with Jon.

“We milked 90 cows together, and then we split up,” Les says. “We either had to add on to the dairy or add more grain.”

Les chose to expand his grain operation. He bought a farm in 2008 near his brothers’ farms. He and his wife, Debora, own 600 acres and rent an additional 50 acres. They grow 225 acres of corn, 225 acres of soybeans and 60 acres of hay. In 2008, they built a grain setup on their farm and have 300,000 bushels of storage. They started milking cows in 2010. Today, they milk 30 registered and grade Holstein cows.

Les and Debora have two children: Larissa, 20, is a junior at UW-Madison majoring in agricultural economics and Portuguese; Henry is 16.

Giving back

The Danielsons are involved in a variety of organizations, boards and activities. They are all active members of Big Drywood Lutheran Church as well as Wisconsin and Chippewa County Farmers Union. They all served on the Chippewa County Dairy Herd Improvement Association board of directors, Chippewa County Dairy Promoters, Chippewa County Holstein Breeders, and Chippewa County 4-H program, assisting with 4-H and FFA dairy judging contests.

Jon served on the Genex board of directors for 24 years. Doug currently is a member of the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin board of directors and is a past member of the board of directors for the National Dairy Board. He also served for a number of years on the Foremost Farms board of directors.

Les is the current chair of the Equity Livestock Board and is a member of the River Country Co-op board of directors. He is Chippewa County WFU chapter president and chairman of the WFU Grain Committee. He is also chairman of the Eagle Point Mutual board of directors. He serves as a supervisor for the Township of Goetz Town Board and Fire Department. He previously served on the Chippewa County Department of Land Conservation and Forest Management Land and Water Plan Committee.

Over the years, the Danielsons have hosted a number of politicians at their farms. In 1988, Mike Dukakis visited when he was running for president. In 2008, Gov. Jim Doyle paid a visit, and in 2018, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., came to their farms after they signed the farm bill.

The brothers all agree they are grateful for being able to farm and be successful at it.

“We can’t imagine doing anything else,” Jon says. “And we’re thankful for all of the help and support we get from our wives and children.

2022 Master Agriculturists

Jon, Doug and Les Danielson

Ages: 66, 61 and 52

Location: Cadott, Chippewa County

Farming enterprises: Holstein cows and heifers, crops

Size of farms: Jon – 470 owned and rented acres, 90 cows, 90 heifers; Doug – 1,200 owned and rented acres, 400 cows; Les – 650 owned and rented acres, 30 cows

Family: Jon – wife Jane, sons Shannon, Rick and Jason, two daughters-in-law, five grandchildren; Doug – wife Annie, daughters Collette and Kelsey, son Tyrel; Les – wife Debora, daughter Larissa, son Henry