2026 NMC Annual Meeting Agenda

The NMC Annual Meeting is designed for all individuals interested in mastitis control, quality milk production and udder health. Attendees come from around the world and include veterinarians, dairy producers, researchers, extension specialists, industry suppliers, dairy processor field representatives, regulatory officials, teachers and students. The meeting features world-renowned presenters who will address a variety of milk quality production principles and offer hands-on strategies to improve udder health.

Short Courses (limited enrollment; pre-registration required)

View the Short Course Descriptions

2:00-5:00 p.m.

Course 1: We’ll Take Milk Quality for $1,000 (for first-time attendees)

Course 2: Basics of Cleaning (CIP) a Milking System

6:00-9:00 p.m.

Course 3: Real World Milk Quality: A Case Study-based Approach and Look at Regional Differences

Course 4: The Parlor: Milk it for All it’s Worth Without Squeezing Your Employees

7:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.        

Board of Directors Meeting

Short Courses (limited enrollment; pre-registration required)

View the Short Course Descriptions

8:00-11:00 a.m.

Course 5: Milking System Analysis. Hands-on Training Using The Teaching Parlor

Course 6: Using Antimicrobial Benchmarking to Assess and Improve Mastitis Treatments

Course 7: What Does Precision Look Like in a Robot Barn Where Cows Make the Choice When to be Milked?

Course 8: Parlor Performance: A Look at the Numbers

12:30-3:30 p.m.              

Course 9: Milking Machine Function, Milking Time Diagnostics and Liner-teat Interactions

Course 10: Practical Bedding Management With a View to Enhancing Udder Health

Course 11: Science and Application of Pre- and Post-milking Teat Disinfectants

Course 12: Udder to Insight: Harnessing the Power of Laboratory Testing

Course 13: Independently Perform a Complete Milking System Analysis – Graded (Using The Teaching Parlor)

Committee Meetings

4:00-5:00 p.m.  
Research Committee

4:00-5:00 p.m.  
Milk Quality Monitoring Committee

5:00-6:00 p.m.  
Membership and Advancement Committee

5:00-6:00 p.m.  
Machine Milking Committee

6:00-7:30 p.m.  
Silent Auction

Welcome Reception

Sponsored by:

6:30 – 7:30 a.m.

Breakfast

Committee Meetings

8:00-9:00 a.m.
Teat Health Committee

8:00-9:00 a.m.
International Advisory Group

8:00-9:00 a.m.
Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee

9:15-9:45 a.m.  
Sponsored Session
Efficacy of a new iodine-based post-milking teat disinfectant (DeLaval Paradigm™ Conc) in preventing new intramammary infections

Sponsored by

Opening Session

10:00 a.m.         
President’s Address
Justine Britten, Udder Health Systems

General Session 1: Doing What’s Best for Her: Balancing Her Comfort and Welfare

10:05 a.m.
Better Beds for Cleaner Cows, Don’t Let Them Throw You for a Loop!
Gordie Jones, dairy consultant

10:45 a.m.
Teat Preparation Requirements for Fast and Gentle Machine Milking
Rupert Bruckmaier, University of Bern

11:25 a.m.
Stocking Density, Group Size, and Cow Comfort Considerations
Rick Grant, William H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute

12:05 p.m.
Panel Discussion
Gordie Jones, dairy consultant
Rupert Bruckmaier, University of Bern
Rick Grant, Miner Institute

12:30-1:45 p.m. Lunch

National Dairy Quality Award Winner Recognition

General Session 2: Doing What’s Best for Her: Milk Harvest and Welfare (held concurrently with the Research and Development Summaries Session)

2:00 p.m
Are Cows Fully Participating in the Milk Harvesting Process?
Paola Bacigalupo Sanguesa, Michigan State University

2:40 p.m.
Who is Milking your cows? Your Milkers, Your Banker or Your Ego? Why it Matters
Jennifer Walker, Kinder Ground

3:30 – 4:30 p.m.            

Break/Technology Transfer Session

3:45 – 4:15 p.m.            

Sponsored Session

Sponsored by:

General Session 3: Doing What’s Best for Her: Global Dairy/Small Ruminant Production Systems

4:30 p.m.
Milking Systems and Dairy Industry: Observations from a Global Perspective
Michael Heinrich, Independent Dairy Consultant

5:10 p.m.
Small Ruminants – Big Opportunity: The State of Sheep and Goat Dairy Production
Michelle Buckley, Quality Milk Production Services – Western Laboratory and Cornell University

Research and Development Summaries Session (held concurrently with General Sessions 2 and 3)

2:00 p.m.
The Practices of Michigan and Wisconsin Dairy Veterinarians Regarding Antimicrobial Usage for the Treatment and Prevention of Mastitis
Jaimie M. Strickland, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA

2:15 p.m.
Characterizing Milk Flow Patterns in Dairy Cows Using Machine Learning: Implications for Milk Yield
Maria Belen Ugarte Marin, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA

2:30 p.m.
Genetic Diversity and Antimicrobial Resistance in Mastitis-associated Escherichia coli
Anna M. Acosta, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA

2:45 p.m.
Dry-off Milk Yield and Postpartum Udder Health on United States Dairies
Emily E. Leonard, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA

3:00 p.m.
Bismuth Residues in Bulk Tank Milk from Dairy Farms Using Automated Milking Systems in Ontario
Fernando J. Guardado Servellon, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada

3:15 p.m.
Effects of Repeated Intramammary Lipopolysaccharide Infusion on Neutrophil Dynamics
Elizabeth N. Plunkett, The Ohio State University, Wooster, Ohio, USA

3:30 – 4:30 p.m.            

Break/Technology Transfer Session

4:30 p.m.
Protective Effects of Staphylococcus chromogenes against Staphylococcus aureus Intramammary Infections in Dairy
Skylar Walton, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA

4:45 p.m.
Antimicrobial Resistance Genes and Genetic Diversity of Enterococcus spp. Isolates from a Low-antibiotic-use Dairy Farm
Delower Hossain, University of Milan, Lodi, Italy

5:00 p.m.
Persistent and Transient Subclinical Mastitis Caused by Gram-positive Bacteria Occurring on a Large Organic Dairy Farm
Lara C.B. Juliano, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA

5:15 p.m.
Impact of Water Quality on Stability, pH, and Active Ingredient Levels in Teat Disinfectants Prepared from Concentrates
Kyle Keller, DeLaval Manufacturing, Kansas City, Missouri, USA

 

6:15-7:15 a.m.  
Breakfast

7:15-7:45 a.m.  
Sponsored Session

Sponsored by

General Session 4: Doing What’s Best for Her: What’s Best for Her in the Future

8:00 a.m. 
Automating Milk Harvest: Now and in the Future
Paul Peetz, Lely, Inc.

8:40 a.m. 
AI, Meritocracy and the Happiness of Cows
Artem Timanov, Cattle Care, Inc.

9:20 a.m. 
Dairy Production and Innovations: Now and in the Future
Brett Boyum, Riverview, LLP

10:15 a.m.         
Break/Technology Transfer Session

General Session 5: Doing What’s Best for Her

10:45 a.m.
Producer/Consultant Panel Discussion: Keeping the Cow’s Well-being at the Heart of Milk Quality
Panelists:
Clare Alderink, Brian Ryzebol Dairy, Brett Boyum,  Riverview, LLP, Blaine Nicks, Jager Dairy Group
Gordie Jones, Dairy Consultant, Rupert Bruckmaier, University of Bern, Rick Grant, Miner Institute, Jennifer Walker, Kinder Ground,
Wiebren Jonkman, Diamond J Dairy, Siebren Jacobi, Rocking S Dairy

12:30-2:00 p.m.
Awards Luncheon and NMC Annual Business Meeting