SPEAKERS
Learn from the Best:
Master Dairy Excellence with Insights from These Experts
Wednesday, March 25
Martin Buschsieweke
Senior Director International Wholesale Markets, Semex
Let’s Go Further, Faster
Martin Buschsieweke is the Senior Director of International Wholesale Markets. Based in Bielefeld, Germany, Martin brings over two decades of experience in international sales and business development within the agricultural and wholesale sectors, having held various leadership roles at Semex Deutschland, including Managing Director, Area Sales Manager, and Sales Representative.
In his role, Martin leads the strategic growth of wholesale distributor markets across key international regions and is responsible for driving expansion and alignment of priorities for future market development. He oversees a high-performing sales management team and works closely with key client and distributor segments to unlock new opportunities. Martin's extensive experience and deep industry knowledge position him to lead with both strategic vision and operational excellence.
Dr. Trevor DeVries, Canada
Professor in the Department of Animal Biosciences at the University of Guelph
Optimizing Automated Milking Systems in Large Dairy Herds
Dr. Trevor DeVries is a Professor in the Department of Animal Biosciences at the University of Guelph. He began that position in 2007, and in that position Trevor leads a highly productive, award winning research program and has published over 235 peer-reviewed papers focused on dairy cattle management, nutrition, and behavior. He is also committed to extending that work to the field, as evidenced by over 375 invited research presentations. Trevor also contributes to teaching at the university, including instructing undergraduate and graduate courses in the areas of dairy cattle management, behavior, and welfare, as well as mentoring of graduate and undergraduate students. Trevor also works diligently in public service, serving on several university committees, as well as various local, national and international professional committees.
Christophe Lafougère, France
CEO, Gira, an International Consultancy and Market Research Firm
Outlook for European Milk Markets
Christophe Lafougère is the CEO of the consulting and research company GIRA, a company specialising in the world of agri-food.
Since joining GIRA more than 34 years ago, he has led numerous strategic consulting, due diligence and research assignments throughout the food chain.
He created the Gira Dairy Club 15 years ago, whose members includes 26 of the world's largest dairies and also the EU commission. This club is a unique qualitative and quantitative forecasting base for all the main dairy/ingredients production, consumption and trading countries of the world, and it covers all the issues influencing milk production & dairy commodities in the short & medium term. 2025 results have just been published beginning of October.
Christophe is well-known throughout the dairy industry and is a regular speaker at major international dairy events.
Thursday, March 26
Dr. Shari van de Pol
CEO, CATTLEytics
The Future of Milk: How AI Is Reshaping Dairy Farming
Dr. Shari van de Pol is a recognized expert in the application of Artificial Intelligence and advanced data systems in the dairy industry, bridging computer engineering, veterinary medicine, and on-farm realities to drive measurable improvements in animal health, sustainability, and profitability.
She is the Founder and CEO of CATTLEytics Inc., a Canadian ag-tech company internationally recognized for deploying AI-driven decision support tools directly into commercial dairy operations. Under her leadership, CATTLEytics has received multiple prestigious awards, including the 2024 Tech for Good Award, 2024 COFS Innovation Award, 2024 COFS Farmer’s Choice Award, and 2023 WCT Entrepreneur of the Year.
Shari holds a Computer Engineering degree from McMaster University and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the Ontario Veterinary College, a rare combination that enables her to design AI systems grounded in biological reality rather than theoretical models. Her work focuses on practical, explainable AI — including machine learning, predictive analytics, and digital twin technology — that helps farmers anticipate health events, optimize reproduction and nutrition decisions, reduce environmental impact, and improve labour efficiency.
Through CATTLEytics’ digital twin platform, Shari has led the integration of AI across herd health, reproduction, staff communication, scheduling, and both biological and economic modeling, helping dairy farms translate complex data into clear, actionable decisions. Recognized as one of Canada’s leading agri-tech companies, CATTLEytics is at the forefront of dairy digitization, demonstrating how AI can be responsibly and effectively applied on real farms.
Dr. van de Pol’s unique skill set makes her an expert-speaker on the future of AI in dairy farming; she is known for translating complex technology into practical insights that resonate with farmers, industry leaders, and policymakers alike.
King Hickman, USA
Founder and Consultant, GPS Dairy Consulting
Fueling 50 Liters: Mastering Nutrition and Management for High Milk Production.
King Hickman, DVM is a founding partner of GPS Dairy Consulting, LLC (2009). He has been working in the Dairy industry since 1989 providing extensive independent nutritional and management consulting including feeding and bunk management, planning and implementation of forage plans, procurement of bids, and sourcing and implementation of growing heifer programs.
King is a graduate of Iowa State University's College of Veterinary Medicine and holds a certificate from the University of Wisconsin Dairy Health Management Program. He has served the dairy industry for over 30 years as a practicing veterinarian, a Team Business and Development Coach in allied industry and as a nutrition and management consultant.
He has served as a guest lecturer at multiple animal science and veterinary colleges and has broad national and international speaking experience on topics varying from dairy nutrition and cow comfort to change management and people development. Dr. Hickman lives in Sheldon, IA with his wife Kecia and has four children.
Dave Harvatine, USA
Dairy Herd Manager and Partner, Aurora Ridge Dairy
Advanced Genetic Strategies
Dave Harvatine is the Dairy Herd Manager and Partner of Aurora Ridge Dairy in New York, a 2,650-cow commercial dairy with 5,200 acres. Operating a very intensive nucleus program, they transferred over 1,200 embryos at Aurora Ridge along with more at the sister dairy Aurora-Oakwood in 2021. Twelve to fifteen donors are in an IVF routine ever two weeks and resulting embryos are frozen. IVF is used to create as many replacements out of top females and Dave’s goal to fill every stall with the highest genetic cow possible. The herd is all genomic tested and averages 13,000 kg milk, 4.9% Fat, 3.4% Protein, SCC 100,000 on 2,650 milking cows.
Jay Shannon, Canada
Vice President, Solutions, Semex
Your Genetic and Solutions Partner
Jay Shannon is the Vice President, Solutions at Semex. Jay is responsible for creating value through all of Semex’s dairy solutions and genetic tools offered worldwide. He has led several key corporate initiatives including the launch and development of the Immunity+® technology and the SemexWorks™ genetic management tools released globally in 2014.
Before joining Semex, Jay was Director of Genetic Improvement and Classification for the Holstein Association of Canada. He led all genetic improvement and research programs for the Holstein breed in Canada for 18 years. He was responsible for overhauling the classification service to double its’ market share during his tenure. Jay was instrumental in joining all Canadian dairy breeds into one classification system in 2005. Additionally, in 2007 he led the implementation of a classification system for multiple dairy breeds in Australia.
Jay has been a long-‐standing member of many national Canadian boards, including the Canadian Dairy Network’s Genetic Evaluation Board, DairyGen Research Council and Chairman of the National Industry Standards Committee.
Friday, March 27
Dr. Stefan Borchardt, Germany
Veterinary Research, Reproductive Management
Reproductive Management in Large Dairy Herds: How to Achieve a High 21day Pregnancy Rate
Dr. Stefan Borchardt grew up in Brandenburg, Germany, where his father was a practicing veterinarian for 40 years. He earned a DVM degree at the Freie Universitaet Berlin. Stefan received a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the Ruminants and Swine clinic, Freie Universitaet Berlin. Following this, he entered private clinical practice in Northern Germany for 2.5 years where he focused on food animal herd health. After that, he was working for 2 years on a large commercial dairy operation in Eastern Europe as the Executive Veterinarian for Dairy Production. Since 2014, he is a research assistant at the Clinic of Animal Reproduction, Freie Universitaet Berlin. In his role, he is teaching many aspects of basic and applied reproductive biology and provides regular clinical service. Dr. Borchardt’s research program focuses on understanding the biology underlying reproductive performance of lactating dairy cattle. The goal is to improve reproductive efficiency of dairy cattle by applying scientific research to develop practical management strategies and assess new reproductive technologies with special emphasis on automated activity monitoring systems.
Dr. Robert Hagevoort
Associate Professor and Extension Dairy Specialst, New Mexico State University
Dairy Labour and Workforce Development: The Achilles Heel of Dairy Industry Anywhere Across the Globe.
Dr. Robert Hagevoort, a native of The Netherlands, is Professor and Extension Dairy Specialist and the holder of the Topliff Dairy Chair at New Mexico State University. Prior to joining NMSU in November of 2005, Dr. Hagevoort served for over 10 years as an independent dairy management consultant in California. As an Extension Specialist, he works closely with the dairy industry on many emerging issues. To rebuild a dairy program at NMSU, Hagevoort is the co-founder of the U.S. Dairy Education & Training Consortium. His current focus is the development and implementation of a comprehensive dairy workforce training and education program, focused on training effectiveness. Training programs in dairy safety awareness, animal handling, mid-level leadership and others are being developed, evaluated and delivered. In 2022 Dr. Hagevoort took over the reins of the New Mexico AgrAbility Project which goal is to support success in agriculture for people with disabilities and improve quality of life through participation in agricultural production.