The Burbachs are part of the family-owned Burbach's Countryside Dairy near Hartington, Neb.
Luke and Katie Burbach of the family-owned Burbach’s Countryside Dairy near Hartington will be the featured speakers during “CatCHAT: We’re Talking Biz & Tech” at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, in the Gardner Hall auditorium at Wayne State College. The public is invited, and the presentation will last approximately 20-25 minutes.
The event will also be livestreamed.
Audience members will have the opportunity to meet Luke and Katie Burbach and hear the story behind Burbach’s Countryside Dairy that has expanded beyond traditional dairy production to process, bottle, brand, market, and distribute its own farm-fresh milk and dairy products. The business is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
Luke and Katie bring two very different professional backgrounds to the business. Luke, operations manager, earned a degree in Biological Systems Engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and worked in mechanical engineering before returning to the family farm. He now works with milk processing and bottling, equipment maintenance, production systems, and the day-to-day operations of the dairy.
Katie, head of marketing, also graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and built a professional background in marketing. Having grown up on a dairy farm herself, she combines her agricultural background with marketing expertise to lead Burbach’s branding, social media, website development, and consumer outreach.
Burbach’s Countryside Dairy is a real-world example of how many different disciplines have to work together to grow a business. Audience members will see how engineering and operations turn an idea into a product – and how marketing and storytelling turn that product into a brand.
The conversation will connect agriculture, entrepreneurship, engineering, marketing, social media, manufacturing, processing, technology, and distribution. That makes the event relevant to students in business, economics, communication, technology, and applied science, as well as anyone interested in entrepreneurship, family business, agriculture, innovation, or building a brand.
Nebraska Business Development Center professionals from APEX Accelerator, Innovation and Technology, the Small Business Development Center, and SourceLink Nebraska will also attend, giving audience members an opportunity to connect with business and economic development professionals from across the state.
CatCHAT is a series developed by Wayne State’s School of Business and Technology. It is designed to inspire and empower future leaders to stay in Northeast Nebraska, start businesses, and help the greater community prosper.
For more information, contact Benjamin Benton, director of the Nebraska Business Development Center at Wayne State, at [email protected] or 402-375-7575.