Severance Farm, Dickey, N.D., received the Commissioner’s Award of Dairy Excellence.

Kyle and Heather Severance own and operate the dairy. They milk about 60 cows and have seed dealer and agronomy consulting businesses.

Severance Farm is the latest new dairy to be built in North Dakota. Kyle grew up in Vermont and met Heather while attending the University of Minnesota Crookston. After they graduated from college, the couple returned to Vermont with the hopes of starting a dairy there. When that didn’t pan out, they moved to North Dakota where Heather grew up.

The couple purchased 40 acres from Heather’s grandmother and leased several quarter sections of pasture and farm ground from her. Both Kyle and Heather worked off the farm; Kyle as a livestock nutritionist with Dakota Plains and Heather as a technician for K2S Engineering, Jamestown, N.D. The company specializes in agricultural engineering and design of livestock facilities.

The 40 acres that the Severances purchased was bare ground. It didn’t have a house or any livestock facilities. The Severances moved a house onto the land and built the shop-warehouse for the seed and agronomy consulting businesses that Heather now runs. They built a bedded pack barn, milking parlor and other livestock housing. They started milking cows in 2016.

“The Severances have a remarkable inspection record,” says Doug Goehring, North Dakota agriculture commissioner. “They have consistently exceeded requirements for somatic cell counts, bacteria counts and farm inspection scores.”

The family is a member of Dairy Farmers of America and their milk is processed in Pollock and Hoven, S.D. They have been a Grade A dairy farm since they started operation.

Some information provided by the North Dakota Department of Agriculture.