Purdue Extension's Dairy Digest, a weekly podcast that covers the dairy industry, is now available in Spanish. Created by Purdue Extension Dairy Specialists Tamilee Nennich and Mike Schutz, the two-minute digital recordings focus on general dairy practices, updates and animal welfare issues. Nennich said her team wants to use podcasts as a way to get information to producers more quickly. "This gives producers a chance to get up-to-date on hot topics without having to sit down in their offices," she said. "They can listen while they are working."

As a way to improve and expand the Dairy Digest, a Spanish translation has been added to most of the podcasts. Schutz noted that many Spanish-speaking employees do not have access to as much information as their English-speaking counterparts and farm managers.

"If farm managers find a podcast is particularly useful, they can track it down for their Spanish-speaking employees," he said.

Because the Dairy Digest has a mixed audience, the production team considers the time of year, upcoming conferences and current topics and events when they decide what to record. Some topics are broad while others are focused on production.

"We like to make the podcasts general enough that the public understands them, but also address enough industry-specific needs that dairy producers are able to address important issues," Nennich said.

Nennich and Schutz began producing Dairy Digest during the summer of 2010. All previous podcasts are available here. They also are available for free download on iTunes.

Schutz hopes producers will give the podcasts a try. He said the information the recordings offer can help producers stay on top of major issues and increase their interest in industry matters.

"I have yet to meet a producer who thinks they know the answers to all of the information," he said. "This is a reliable information source that is convenient for them to listen to on their own time." PD

—From Purdue Extension news release