Time to Dump Dairyland Motto?

Is it time to put the foam cheeseheads away and replace them with thinking caps to decide the state’s future image?

Kurt Bauer, executive director of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC), floated the idea of scrapping the license plate motto “America’s Dairyland” for something that better reflects Wisconsin in the 21st century. At a WMC luncheon in Madison on Oct. 16 he suggested the state motto “Forward” would better reflect modern Wisconsin.

It’s not the first time the subject has come up. The state’s image and what it projects to the larger world has been on the WMC’s mind since it began the Future Wisconsin Project in 2015 with seven business partners in the state.

Through a survey done that year, the WMC learned from more than 2,000 respondents in and out of the state that “cheese” is the No. 1 word used to describe the state. While it is true that Wisconsin is the No. 1 cheese producer in the country, those same survey respondents believed that agriculture is the biggest job sector in the state, when it is a statistically declining source of jobs for Wisconsin residents. California has been the No. 1 dairy producer since 1993.

That got the WMC and others thinking that maybe it is time to consider an updated image for the state to project to the world. After all, “America’s Dairyland” has been on state license plates since 1940.

But, of course, the idea doesn’t sit well with the dairy industry.

“Considering the dairy community’s continuing contribution to the culture and economy of our state, it would be disheartening to make such a change after nearly 80 years,” said Mike North, president of the Dairy Business Association. “We are talking about a $43.4 billion impact on the Wisconsin economy and tens of thousands of jobs. There are few single products in this state that provide more of an economic boost. Our farms, processing plants and universities are looked to from around the globe for technological advances. Innovation and modernization abound in dairy food production and safety, animal care and nutrition, environmental stewardship and numerous other facets of dairying. The dairy community – with its hard-working farm families, cheesemakers and host of other supporting businesses – has been the backbone of this state for well over a century. That heritage, and how far we have come, should be great sources of pride. Those are things to be celebrated, not hidden.”