Members of the Wisconsin Jersey Breeders Association (WJBA) have one interest in common -- Registered Jersey cattle.
And though our passion is the same, our operations are diverse. We raise cattle on small farms that milk a handful of cows to large dairies with thousands of them, and everything between. Facilities are also diverse, from operations that house cattle in freestall barns and milk them in parlors to those that milk and house their cattle in tie-stall barns and graze during the summer months.
In 2022, Wisconsin Jersey breeders registered 8,836 animals with the American Jersey Cattle Association (AJCA), a number that ranks third in the nation for registrations behind California and Oregon.
Wisconsin Jersey breeders hosted the annual meetings of the AJCA and National All-Jersey Inc. (NAJ) in 1977, 1987, 2001, 2011, and 2023.
Jerry and Phyllis Luttrop, Berlin, and their family were honored with the National Dairy Shrine Distinguished Cattle Breeder Award in 2023. Learn more...
Walter Owens of Frederic received the 2023 AJCA Distinguished Service Award. Learn more...
Michele Moore, center, receives the Young Jersey Breeder award from AJCA Director Donna Phillips in 2023. Also pictured are her husband, Derrick, with their daughter Calli, and son Lane.
Bill and Marion Barlass, Janesville, received the 2022 AJCA Distinguished Service Award. Learn more...
Colin Wussow of Cecil won the 2020 National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest.
Alana Peterson, left, receives the AJCA Young Jersey Breeder award from AJCA Director Donna Phillips in 2021.
Kevin Krejci and Lisa Demmer of Ellsworth were named AJCA Young Jersey Breeders in 2020.
Wilfred, Walter and Roger Owens of Owens Farms Inc. received the AJCA Master Breeder award in 2019. Learn more...
The brother-sister team of Natalie Kessenich, left center, and Wade Kessenich, center, received an AJCA Young Jersey Breeder award in 2019. They celebrated the honor with family.
AJCA Director Walter Owens, right, also presented an AJCA Young Jersey Breeder award to Brent Young and his wife, Tara, at the annual meetings in 2019.
Chris Sorenson, Pine River, received the AJCA Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Learn more....
Dave Endres, Lodi, also received the AJCA Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Learn more...
Kaila Wussow-Tauchen of Cecil was named winner of the 2017 National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest.
Jason and Leah James of Mineral Point were one of two couples from Wisconsin to receive the AJCA Young Jersey Breeder Award in 2018. They are pictured here with daughter Brenlee.
Robert and Gail Klinkner of Viroqua also received the AJCA Young Jersey Breeder Award in 2018.
David Allen, Reedsburg, received the AJCA Master Breeder Award in 2017. Learn more...
Dr. Kent Weigel of the University of Wisconsin-Madison was presented with the AJCA-NAJ Award for Meritorious Service in 2017. Learn more...
George and Shirley Barlass, Janesville, received the AJCA Distinguished Service Award in 2015. Learn more....
Roger Reibe of Cumberland, left, was named the 14th recipient of the Max Gordon Recognition Award. He also received the Klussendorf Award at World Dairy Expo in 2016.
George M. Barlass of Janesville, second right, received the Max Gordon Recognition Award during National Jersey Jug festivities in 2011.
Prominent Breeders
WJBA members are movers and shakers in the dairy industry.
Many serve key leadership roles in organizations off the farm. Many have been recognized for this service and for their achievements with Registered Jerseys.
Recent past presidents of both the AJCA and NAJ hail from Wisconsin. Chris Sorenson of Pine Grove served as AJCA President from 2012-2018; David Endres of Lodi was NAJ President from 2009-2018. Both men were honored with the AJCA Distinguished Service Award in 2018.
Another Wisconsin breeder, Walter Owens of Frederic, was honored with the service award in 2023. Other Wisconsin breeders to receive this award were Charles S. Kelly of Hudson (1965), Harold Owens of Frederic (1997), Dr. D. L. Strandberg of Alma Center (2003), George and Shirley Barlass of Janesville (2015), and Bill and Marion Barlass of Janesville (2022).
Three Wisconsin breeders have also been honored with the AJCA Master Breeder award: Wilfred, Walter and Roger Owens, Frederic (2020), David Allen, Reedsburg (2017) and Charles S. Kelly (1969).
Wisconsinites have received the national Jersey organizations' newest award, the Award for Meritorious Service, more frequently than residents of any other state. Most recently, the award was presented to Dr. Kent Weigel of the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2017. Other recipients include Dr. Clarence S. Olson of Madison (2006), David Brandau of Wilton (2011), Dr. Robert Cropp and Dr. Edward Jesse of Madison (2013), and Richard Smith of Waunakee (2014).
Thirty Wisconsin Jersey breeders have received the AJCA Young Jersey Breeder Award since it was first given in 1976. The most recent recipient is Michele Moore, who earned laurels in 2023.
Junior breeders from Wisconsin have also fared well in youth competitions. Six have won the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest. Recent National Jersey Queens include Sydney Endres, Lodi, who won the contest in 2013 and Cassandra Krull, Lake Mills, who was crowned in 2011 and also topped the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest in 2012.
Wisconsin Jersey breeders have also been recognized outside the Jersey world. The National Dairy Shrine honored Jerry and Phyllis Luttrop and their family of Berlin with the Distinguished Cattle Breeder Award in 2023 and Marion Barlass of Janesville with the Woman of the Year award in 2008. The organization named Andy and Lynnette Buttles, Lancaster, as Progressive Dairy Managers in the large herd division in 2010.
At World Dairy Expo, Roger Riebe of Cumberland, received the highest showmanship award -- the Klussendorf Memorial Trophy -- in 2016. Mark Rueth, Oxford, earned the award in 2010.