By Blake Jackson
Dan Natzke, a longtime Wisconsin dairy farmer and industry leader, received the prestigious Dean Strauss Leadership Award on March 4 during the 2026 Professional Dairy Producers (PDP) Business Conference in Madison, Wisconsin.
Natzke owns and operates Wayside Dairy LLC near Greenleaf, Wisconsin, alongside his son Jeremy Natzke, daughter Jenna Nonemacher, and Jesse Dvorachek. He and his wife, Barb Natzke, have been married for 52 years.
“The Dean Strauss Leadership Award recognizes a dairy producer who exemplifies visionary thinking and servant leadership in the dairy community and beyond,” said Shelly Mayer, Executive Director of PDP. “Those of us who know Dan personally will agree he is and exemplary model of servant leadership in our industry and his community.”
Natzke’s family roots in the Greenleaf area date back to 1863 when his ancestors immigrated from Germany and established the family farm. Natzke began farming independently at the age of 17 when he and his brother, Bob, formed a partnership.
Over the years, the dairy expanded significantly from 80 cows housed in two stanchion barns to a modern operation with about 2,000 cows in freestall barns and a parallel milking parlor.
The farm faced a major challenge in 2001 when a fire destroyed the milking parlor, feed center, shop, and several barns. Cows were temporarily housed offsite for six weeks while the family worked through a yearlong rebuilding process that eventually resulted in the dairy’s current facilities.
Beyond his farm, Natzke has contributed extensively to industry leadership. He served two three-year terms on the PDP board of directors from 1994 to 2000 and currently serves on the board of directors for the Farm Wisconsin Discovery Center.
In 2018, Natzke was honored as a Wisconsin Master Agriculturist, and Wayside Dairy has repeatedly earned CentralStar Cooperative’s ReproStar award for outstanding reproductive performance.
Natzke is also active in his community through Zion Lutheran Church of Wayside, where he has served in multiple leadership roles and participated in numerous international volunteer missions.
The Dean Strauss Leadership Award was established by the PDP Board of Directors in 2021 to honor the legacy of Wisconsin dairy leader Dean Strauss, who passed away unexpectedly in 2019.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-artiemedvedev
Categories: Wisconsin, Business