
Dairy cows and sustainability have always been a part of Deidre Iciek’s life. As the oldest daughter of two veterinarians, she grew up around animals, large and small, from the time she was born. After high school, she majored in environmental studies at Michigan State University, and after college, she started work helping farms with manure and waste compliance and permits for their facilities.
Ten years ago, Iciek and her husband bought into his family’s dairy farm in Gladwin, Michigan. They renamed the farm to TaraAnthon Cattle and Management when they became majority owners, but the Dairy portion is still known as Iciek Dairy. The farm has over 1,000 dairy animals and makes over 10,000 gallons of milk per day. The farm also has 1,500 acres of farmland it uses to grow enough corn, wheat, and alfalfa to feed the cows.
“We had to do a service update for our facility because we needed more electric to continue to expand and grow,” shared Iciek. “We needed to be able to bring more electric on site, so we thought that maybe solar could be a substitute.”
After contacting a local company, the Icieks learned solar would not be a substitute for an electric service update at the dairy but could help the dairy save money on electricity costs. They applied for a USDA Rural Development Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) grant to get help with the costs of installing solar and were awarded a grant for $215,200.

“There’s months where you’re using a lot more electricity than others,” shared Iciek. “In Michigan, that ends up being in the summer months when we’re using a lot of energy on cooling and fans and all those things.”
Dairies and other livestock operations use large amounts of energy to keep their animals and milk cool during the hot Michigan summers. Luckily, summer days are long and when weather is good, provide sunshine to help power the farm.
“We determined that, economically, solar made a lot of sense, largely because of the opportunity with the grant,” said Iciek. “Without the grant, you have to run the numbers to make sure it fits kind of a scenario, but with the grant, it's kind of a no-brainer to proceed.”
TaraAnthon installed a large solar array on a barn roof, allowing them to continue using all their valuable farmland. The panels have saved the business up to 90 percent some months on electricity costs, compared with their pre-solar costs.
“Our electric bills are significantly less than before, and that’s the dollars and cents of it,” said Iciek. “I know that we are spending a lot less money on electricity than what we did the previous year.”
Clean energy is not the only sustainable practice the farm uses. Iciek also owns another business called Regenerative Connections and uses regenerative agriculture practices at the dairy.
“We’re focused on not just practices that are sustainable, but also practices that are regenerating the system,” said Iciek. “We are putting in even more than we’re taking out and creating healthy soils, increasing biodiversity and habitats, and, overall, creating a healthy long-term system.”
The Icieks plant cover crops, such as clover, between rows of wheat and plant other crops between corn and alfalfa. They use the manure from the cows to fertilize their crops, as well.
“My hopes and dreams are to build something that’s sustainable for the long term, so everything that we do here is trying to figure out what is the best decision for today and in the future,” said Iciek. “I’m excited about showcasing opportunities for green-type energies that also fit into existing models that you can integrate it into. Anytime we can partner with USDA or any government entity to create something that improves our systems, that is huge.”
To learn more about USDA Rural Development loans and grants, visit the programs page.