Paiser Family Dairy announces expansion

The Paiser Family Dairy, a Shawano County farm, is planning to expand its herd in the near future, it was announced on May 7.

The dairy submitted an application with Shawano County for a livestock expansion license that would allow it to have up to 1,264 animal units. Such applications are required for any agricultural operation when there are more than 500 animal units on the land, according to county conservationist Scott Frank.

According to Frank, the last application that the Paisers submitted was on April 3, 2013, when it applied to have up to 999 animal units. The 1,900-acre farm is located at W9388 Butternut Road in the Town of Richmond.

A final decision from the county is expected no later than July 28, but Frank said it was likely the decision would come much sooner. The county has up to 90 days to make its decision to grant or deny the license.

Erik Lietz with Oakridge Engineering, based in Chippewa Falls, spoke on behalf of the dairy and has been working with owner Trevor Paiser. He said that the term “animal units” does not specifically mean the number of animals. A milking cow is considered to be 1.4 animal units, and Lietz said the dairy plans to have 650 milking cows plus replacement stock.

“There’s dairy cattle, and then there’s other animals — beef, swine, poultry,” Lietz said.

The expansion includes a new barn, which will be to the west of existing facilities, and there will be a new round, concrete storage tank that will be used to house animal waste, according to Lietz. The tank will be able to hold up to 189 days worth of waste; the minimum requirement from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is 180 days.

“If you’re driving along the road, you’re not even going to be able to see the new waste storage facility,” Lietz said.

Naomi Schroeder and her husband, Gene, owns property east of the Paiser Family Dairy, and she had nothing but good things to say about the dairy at a county meeting to gather public input.

“We go there quite often, especially in the summertime, because we have a cabin there,” Schroeder said. “We have never had any issues with odor or manure or runoff or complaints. We both feel they’ve been doing everything they’re supposed to be doing in the past, and we don’t see any reason they wouldn’t do it in the future.”

The county is accepting public comments through May 17.

lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com