Nintendo gamers get a taste of life on the farm in dairy milking challenge

Mar 29, 2017

Video games were brought to life at Billings Farm & Museum

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

A recent competition between Nintendo gamers and dairy farmers proved dairy farmers are better at milking real cows and gamers have the upper hand in milking virtual cows.

After hearing about Nintendo’s new game 1-2 Switch, which includes a cow-milking minigame, Billings Farm & Museum in Woodstock, Vermont, challenged Nintendo representatives to spend time on the farm.

To milk a cow in the game, players stroke their controller downwards while pressing buttons. Nintendo’s representatives were quick to find out milking a real cow isn’t so simple.

“It’s way harder to milk a cow in real life,” Tim Kwong, a marketing manager with Nintendo, told Farms.com on Wednesday. “I definitely learned some things about farm life and am very appreciative. (Experiencing) the sights and smells of the farm taught me to appreciate where my food comes from.”

Tim Kwong, left and Alayna Perkins prepare to play a game of Milk on Nintendo's Switch.
Photo: Nintendo of America

The friendly event also reminded the public about farmers’ everyday work and contributions.

“We are the most important industry in America but how many people have a connection to where their food comes from?” said Tom Remp, marketing director at Billings Farm. “How many people respect and understand what we do? I welcome any opportunity to reach out and inject fun into the conversation.

“Agriculture is important, vibrant and interesting.”

Kwong noticed the work ethic on the farm and looks to emulate it back at the office.

“Alayna Perkins (farm manager at Billings) starts her day at 4 a.m. and some days ends it at 11 p.m. She comes to work every day with a smile on her face.

“She loves what she does and, if I can take a portion of that every day, I know I can be a great employee. She inspires me to work harder.”

“But we will be checking their bags for calves before they leave,” Remp joked.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.