At first glance, the 400 acres of soybeans growing on the Preston family’s dairy farm in southern Michigan looks like a typical field. But these aren’t ordinary soybeans. They represent a breakthrough partnership with Michigan State University that’s saving the family tens of thousands of dollars a month in livestock feed costs—and it could change the dairy industry forever.
The soybean variety, according to research from the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at MSU, is supposed to improve milk quality when fed to dairy cows. And in the spring of 2024, the team at the fourth-generation Preston Farms made the decision to dedicate nearly a third of its 1,500 acres to growing the crop.
Brian Preston, an MSU alum who manages the farm and its nearly 1,000 cattle, knew they were taking a chance. “Those 400 acres could have been our corn and our grain for the year,” he says…