Join us at World Dairy Expo for any or all three of our events this year!

Registration is open for our World Dairy Expo events!

Annual Connect Networking Event:

• Wednesday, September 30th from 5:30 – 9:00 pm
• Capitol Square Ballroom in the Madison Marriott South (formerly the Sheraton Madison Hotel)
  • 706 John Nolen Drive, Madison, WI – right across from the Expo grounds!

Join us for our Connect networking event – a fun and meaningful evening where dairywomen can build new relationships and feel part of something bigger. The Connect event will facilitate authentic networking opportunities through guided activities, connections and conversations among attendees.

This annual networking session offers a welcoming environment with great conversations and connections for dairywomen in town for Expo. This event is a short walk from the grounds, but there is also ample parking available. The cost of the event is $30.00 and includes a headshot, heavy appetizers, and swag from DGN and our partners.

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Tanbark Talk:

“Dairy on the World Stage: Growing Markets and Opportunity”

• Friday, October 3rd at 9:30 – 11:30 am
• Tanbark (Arena Building)

Join the Dairy Girl Network and the National Young Cooperators Program for this year’s Tanbark Talk, where industry leaders will examine how growing international demand is shaping U.S. dairy. The discussion will explore strategies for expanding global markets, developing products that meet the needs of international consumers and navigating the opportunities and challenges of competing on a global stage. Experts will also share perspectives on how export growth influences domestic milk prices and supports the long-term profitability of U.S. dairy farms. In recognition of the International Year of the Woman Farmer, this year’s event will also spotlight the vital contributions of women throughout the dairy supply chain in the United States and around the world.

This event is free to all wanting to attend. After the panel discussion, there will be networking time. 

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Family Lounge:

• Tuesday, September 29th through Friday, October 2nd
• Madison Room on the second floor of Exhibition Hall

Dairy Girl Network is proud to once again provide a space that families with small children may rest and recharge in a quiet atmosphere during the hustle and bustle of World Dairy Expo. An area for nursing mothers is also available. This space offers comfortable seating, a changing station, toys and snacks to recharge. The Family Lounge will be open all day, every day during World Dairy Expo.

The Dairy Girl Network is proud to open nominations for the DGN Forward Under 40 award, presented biennially at the DGN Forward TogetHER National Conference. Four passionate dairywomen whom are working to better our industry today will be honored at the next DGN Forward TogetHER on October 27-29, 2024 in Lexington, KY.

The honored dairywomen will exemplify passionate involvement and leadership to move the dairy industry forward. The ideal candidate possesses strong leadership skills, innovative thinking and ideas that are impacting and moving the dairy industry forward. Her type of dairy work may be diverse. (For example, a dairy farmer, or working with an agribusiness or an agricultural educator, etc.) All applicants must be nominated by fellow dairywomen and men from across the country and will be judged by an outside panel made of anonymous industry professionals and producers.

Nominations will close on August 31, 2026 midnight CST.

The Dairy Girl Network is proud to open nominations for the DGN Leading Impact award. One passionate woman in dairy will be honored with the Leading Impact award at the next DGN Forward TogetHER on October 27-29, 2024 in Lexington, KY.

The Leading Impact honoree will exemplify passionate involvement and leadership achievements which have impacted the dairy industry. The ideal candidate has impacted dairy farming and are leaders within the agricultural industry, their communities and paved the way for youth and/or young adults. Her type of dairy work may be diverse. (For example, a dairy farmer, or working with an agribusiness or an agricultural educator, etc.) The ideal candidate will have contributed success towards dairy farming, is a leader within the agricultural industry and their community and be paving the way for future generations. The honoree’s contributions will have long-lasting impactful results.

Nominations will close August 31, 2026 midnight CST.

Sign up for a year’s worth of Dairy Girl Network Enhance Webinars right to your inbox!

Individual webinar rates are standard at $10 per webinar. Sign up now for our yearly subscription and receive access to every webinar in 2026 at a reduced rate. You do not need to worry about signing up for individual webinars either- logins for the live webinars and links for the recordings will be automatically sent to your inbox. Sign up once and don’t worry about doing anything else for the entire year!

Don’t miss interactive and informative webinars from DGN on topics from mental health, calf care, employee management, dairy agvocating, team building, crops and so much more in 2026! We always provide speakers with exceptional expertise in their field to give you the information you need.

For $60 you will gain access to every live webinar and links to the recordings for every presentation in 2026. Sign up now to take advantage of this great deal today! But hurry – this offer ends April 30, 2026!

In the rolling farmland of east-central Wisconsin, where dairy barns anchor both landscape and livelihood, the legacy of one woman continues to shape a family, a farm and a wider agricultural community. Though she rarely claimed the title herself, Theo Knigge lived the life of a farmer in every sense of the word. Her daughter, Mary Knigge, reflects on a lifetime shaped by her mother’s steady presence — a woman grounded in care, strengthened by hardship and guided by quiet but unwavering leadership.

Theo’s dairy story began long before she married into farming…

Join DGN on Wednesday, March 18, 2026 in Sioux Falls, SD from 11:30 a.m to 1:00 p.m. for a Connect Networking Event!

Get ready to connect with other dairywomen at the Central Plains Dairy Expo! Dairy Girl Network (DGN) is hosting a lunch and networking event on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Ballroom A of the Sheraton Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, SD.

Whether you’re a calf feeder, dairy owner, marketing consultant, veterinarian, researcher, or anyone with a past or present connection to dairy farming. Basically, if you love the dairy industry, you’re invited!

Cost is $35.00 which includes lunch and additional goodies from DGN and our sponsors.

Advance registration is appreciated for this Dairy Girl Network event, but not required. Walk-in registrations welcome.

Advanced RSVPs for the DGN Connect event are encouraged. Walk-in registrations are welcome.

In dairy, the future begins with a calf – where early care, consistency and intention determine not just performance, but the legacy of the herd. Sarah Daugherty’s dairy story began the way many do – by being born into it. 

Sarah grew up on a small Wisconsin dairy farm, one of seven children and the youngest of the girls. Her father milked about 100 cows in a four-stall parlor, and like many farm kids, Sarah learned responsibility early. Through her youth dairy farming was a way of life. While her friends spent weekends working off-farm jobs or enjoying their free time, Sarah was heading home to milk cows. What she saw then was hard work and sacrifice, but not a future career.

Join DGN on Wednesday, February 11, 2026 in Tulare, CA from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. for a Connect Networking Event!

This DGN Connect event will be held during World Ag Expo at the International Agri-Center in booth 6113 (ImmuCell developers of First Defense) in the Farm Credit Dairy & Livestock Center.

This Dairy Girl Networking Connect Event will be a great opportunity to mingle with leading ladies representing all areas of the dairy industry! Join us for the morning and connect with other dairywomen, grow friendships and inspire new ideas in efforts to achieve your goals. Stop in for a couple minutes or stay for the whole time – come and go as you please!

The event is for all women involved with any part of dairy – whether as a calf feeder, dairy owner, marketing or sales consultant servicing dairy farms or cheese producers, veterinarians, researchers, etc. If there is a dairy cow involved in what you do, you’re invited!

This Dairy Girl Network Connect event is FREE and attendees will enjoy coffee and snacks!

Advanced RSVPs for the DGN Connect event are encouraged. Walk-in registrations are welcome.

Sandy Larson’s leadership story doesn’t begin in a boardroom or with a job title. It begins with family, responsibility and the everyday moments that slowly shape who you become. What emerged was a steady leadership grounded in values that had been modeled long before she ever named them. This is a story about legacy – how it’s inherited, honored and redefined.

Family stories place Sandy in a highchair in the barn as a baby, surrounded by the daily work. As she grew, so did her responsibilities: feeding calves, learning to drive the loader, and eventually milking cows. Each task brought with it a deeper sense of purpose and belonging. However, the moment she truly felt leadership came with her first 4H calf. Sandy still remembers going to the county sale and choosing a short, stocky January calf named Virginia – coincidentally sharing the same name as her grandmother. That calf wasn’t perfect, but she had the right temperament, and that mattered. Caring for Virginia taught Sandy responsibility and patience, and through 4H she began developing leadership skills that would quietly shape her future. Looking back, Sandy credits those early experiences with setting her on a path she didn’t yet know she was walking.

Last chance to butter up your closet 🧈

Comfy tee, zero regrets. Once they’re gone, they’re gone. Last chance to get the DGN Butter tee!