Claudia Hardie, 24 – Blair, Wisconsin

In 1941, Claudia’s grandparents purchased the Hardie Family Farm that Claudia grew up on in Blair, Wisconsin. The 200-acre organic dairy milks 30 registered cows of six different breeds: Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Holstein, Jersey, and Milking Shorthorn. Although involved on the farm, it wasn’t until 2000 that Claudia got really involved, when her first 4-H heifers started to calve. Claudia remembers her first show calf, a Guernsey named Fern. Fern had twins Fantom and Flower and Flower had Flit who later had Flutter!

When not farming, Claudia is a full-time graduate student studying Dairy Management and Nutrition in the Department of Dairy Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She enjoys meeting other farmers to bring new ideas to her own farm, but also engaging in conversations on how to create a sustainable future beyond the farm gate.