Albion farm family advances to final 4 in national Ag Innovation Challenge

Provided photo: Jody Neal and his sons Zachary, left, and Jayden, embrace technology on the farm.

ALBION – Jody Neal of Albion and his sons, Jayden and Zachary, advanced to the final four of an agricultural innovation challenge. The Neals moved from the top 10 semi-finalists nationally to final group of four in Salt Lake City, Utah today.

The American Farm Bureau Federation is holding its annual meeting in Salt Lake City and the competition is among the featured events at the convention.

Jody is a partner a Poverty Hill Farms in Albion, a dairy farm on East County House Road. He also was a mentor in the Orleans County 4-H Robotics program, where his sons put their programming and tech skills to the test.

Jody and his adult sons have formed Udder Ways LLC for their innovations, including an udder cleaning system that they have worked on for the past eight years. The device is used just before a cow is milked.

Their invention uses a unique, brushless technology to gently stimulate cows and ensure clean and dry teats, the family states on their website.

“With our patented vortex-style application, you can achieve consistent stimulation and promote milk letdown effortlessly,” they said.

The Neals have a shot at the $50,000 grand prize. There will be $20,000 awarded to the runner-up, and $15,000 each to the two other finalists.

An additional $5,000 goes to the People’s Choice Team. The Neals welcome votes from the public for that award. Voting ends at midnight tonight. Click here for more information.