355 | Leadership Across Generations: Creating a Dairy Business Built to Last
For nearly 150 years, Four Cubs Farms in Grantsburg, Wisconsin, has been built on a simple principle: people matter.
In this episode of the Uplevel Dairy Podcast, Peggy Coffeen sits down with Gary and Cris Peterson, their son Ben Peterson, and Dairy Manager Nathan Brandt to explore the leadership, culture, communication, and innovation that transformed a small family dairy into a thriving 1,000-cow operation.
From succession planning and employee engagement to genomic testing, feed efficiency, and building trust across generations, this conversation offers valuable lessons for dairy producers looking to create resilient businesses that can thrive well into the future.
Whether you're navigating farm transition, building a team, or looking for ways to strengthen your operation's culture, this episode delivers practical insights from a farm that has successfully blended family values with modern dairy management.
This episode is sponsored by Compeer Financial.
Compeer Financial is a member-owned Farm Credit cooperative serving and supporting agriculture and rural America. Their dairy team brings world-class expertise and tailored solutions to support dairy producers’ financial goals and lending needs.
02:00 – Growing from 60 cows to 1,000 cows
03:00 – Roles and responsibilities within the farm team
05:30 – Cris Peterson's journey from city girl to dairy advocate
09:00 – Leadership transition and bringing in outside talent
10:00 – Nathan Brandt's path into dairy and Four Cubs Farms
13:00 – Building a team with complementary strengths
14:00 – Innovation through feed systems and grain storage
16:00 – Genetics, genomic testing, and future herd growth
20:00 – Nutrition strategies for today's high-performing dairy cows
24:00 – The role of culture in farm success
27:00 – Trust, communication, and employee retention
30:00 – Creating clarity, consistency, and rhythm across the operation
32:00 – Succession planning, growth, and preparing for the future
