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I spent last week talking to a number of folks battling the
blizzards in Wyoming and the Dakotas. There are times when this business
can be brutally tough. And while it may seem heroic in the novels,
working with Mother Nature can sometimes be more of a war than
collaboration.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by Troy Marshall
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The big news this week was the release of a National Cancer
Institute study concluding that test subjects who ate the most meat were
30% more likely to die than those who ate the least. The increased
mortality rate was attributed mostly to cardiovascular disease and
cancer.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by Troy Marshall
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This week, a measure was introduced in Congress to eliminate the
therapeutic use of antibiotics in livestock production. Meanwhile, other
legislators recently introduced a measure to protect livestock producers
from the prospect of a tax on their animals’ flatulence. And I
hesitate to even mention the momentum building behind the animal-rights
issue.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by Troy Marshall
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 Natural light, open space essential
for cow-calf housing
If there’s one thing that beef producers need to ensure the safety and
comfort of their cows and calves, it's indoor shelter. Housing your cows
and calves inside steel-framed, fabric buildings available from
Cover-All is an economical investment.
Become a part of the Legendary Spring Sale and save 15% on select
building models this spring. Visit www.coverall.net or click here
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Colorado State University’s Equine Reproduction Lab will offer a
seminar on “Saving Foals: A Horse Owner’s Guide to Foaling and Foal
Care.” The April 7 seminar is from 7-9 p.m.
The interactive seminar will provide up-to-date info on foaling
prediction, the foaling process and foal care. It will also detail how
to recognize problems during foaling, when to call for professional
assistance, and how to prepare for foaling emergencies and perform
emergency resuscitation on a neonatal foal.
The seminar is free, but space is limited, so reservations are required.
E-mail Kathie.Sexton@colostate.edu
or call 970-297-1269 by April 3.
-- CSU release
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Canada Ag Minister Gerry Ritz told South Korean trade and ag
ministers this week that South Korea has to the end of March to reopen
its borders to Canadian beef or face a challenge before the World Trade
Organization. Prior to the discovery of BSE in Canada six years ago,
South Korea was Canada’s fourth-largest export destination for beef.
"We left the Koreans with no illusion that the free-trade agreement is
on hold until we get this beef issue worked through and resolved to
Canadian producers' benefit," Ritz reportedly said in a conference call,
says Reuters. "It makes it very difficult to move forward when they want
to just hive off a very significant part of our exports and hold it in
abeyance while we move forward with all smiles and chuckles.”
-- Reuters
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The National Center for Beef Excellence (NCBE), a non-profit
organization focused on implementing initiatives to create increased
value for commercial producers, has received a $199,345 grant to fund a
feasibility study and develop a business plan. The grant was provided by
the Missouri Value-Added Grant Program, which provides grants for
projects that add value to Missouri ag products and aid the rural
economy.
NCBE’s cornerstone will be the Beef Genetics Center (BGC), which aims
to revolutionize the speed and depth of progress that can be achieved in
genetic research for the betterment of beef products and beef-cattle
production. Just as the grain industry has been transformed through the
plant genetics advances of the past decade, BGC wants to transform,
sustain and expand the beef industry through step-change genetic
advancements.
First off, BGC aims to provide seedstock producers and their commercial
customers with single-breed genetic evaluation (EPDs). The timing for
this venture is critical, as the university genetic evaluation centers
currently providing these services intend to discontinue genetic
evaluation by 2010 in favor of genomic research.
Future BGC initiatives include development of a coordinated multi-breed
genetic evaluation, and genetic material repository and data warehouse.
This will allow integration of a multi-breed genetic evaluation system
that utilizes genomic data, coupled with a DNA sample repository, to
provide a synergistic environment for industry service, research,
discovery and added value to complement EPDs and add value for beef
producers and beef consumers for years to come.
NCBE representatives will seek counsel from representatives of all
beef-industry sectors in order to complete the feasibility study and
business plan. For more info, contact Rex Ricketts at rickettsr@missouri.edu.
To read the executive summary, click here:
-- Bill Zimmerman
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What would happen if recent proposals to increase the ethanol blend
limit to 12.5% or 15% should come to pass?
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by the Livestock Marketing Information Center
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 More Deere. Less Dough
Learn more about the versatile new line of Utility Tractors from John
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USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has granted a license
to a Canadian firm interested in marketing a non-wire, virtual fencing
technology linked to the global positioning system.
The Directional Virtual Fencing (DVF) system would send electronic cues
to a bovine’s ears to move it in a preferred direction for balanced
grazing, says Dean M. Anderson, ARS animal scientist at the Jornada
Experimental Range in Las Cruces, NM. Such a system would be
particularly applicable to ranches with vast open spaces that make
controlling a herd’s movements challenging.
ARS is granting the license exclusively to Krimar of Lower Sackville,
Nova Scotia.
An ARS release says the system would track GPS-fitted cows and send
auditory signals, such as a human voice, to steer a moving animal
without inflicting physical harm. The signal volume can be raised or
lowered, Anderson says, and the commands can vary from familiar
“gathering songs” sung by cowboys during manual round-ups to sirens
designed to get cows to move or avoid entering forbidden areas.
The system is automated so ranchers can give cues at any time and track
movements from a computer.
ARS has patented the technology based on experimental designs. Anderson
is currently working on a commercially viable prototype that features a
stereo headset around each ear.
View this report online at www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr.
-- ARS news release
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The national average price for regular gasoline at retail rose 5.2¢
to $1.962/gal. for the week ending March 23. Meanwhile, the national
average price of diesel increased for the first time in 10 weeks,
jumping 7.3¢ to $2.09/gal.
Gasoline was up in most regions, but the national average price was
still $1.297 lower than this week last year. Regions seeing increases
for the week were the East Coast, 3.2¢ to $1.939, Midwest 9.7¢ to
$1.949, Gulf Coast 6.8¢ to $1.876, and the Rocky Mountains 4.5¢ to
$1.864. The West Coast was down by 0.3¢ to $2.131, and California was
down 0.8¢ to $2.154/gal.
Though all regions saw increases in diesel price for the week, the
national average price was still $1.899/gal. below the year-ago price.
For the week, the East Coast was up 7.3¢ to $2.166, the Midwest 7.3¢
to $2.038, the Gulf Coast 8.7¢ to $2.06, the Rocky Mountains 4.8¢ to
$2.036, and the West Coast 5.9¢ to $2.15. California was up 8¢ for the
week to $2.129.
-- U.S. Energy Information Administration
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 More Pounds without Bigger
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Cattle producers need every edge in today’s tough economy. Get more
pounds of calf to sell by using Gelbvieh or Balancer bulls on those
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benefits of a crossbred cow without a larger mature cow size, according
to MARC data. Get more at www.smartcross.org
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The Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS), the most radical animal
rights and anti-hunting organization in the U.S., is plotting to make
country artist and vegetarian Carrie Underwood the Academy of Country
Music Awards’ Entertainer of the Year.
Amanda Nolz, BEEF Daily editor, reports that in an e-mail to
supporters, Kathy Bauch, HSUS senior director for corporate relations
and promotions, campaigned for votes for Underwood but added, “Feel
free to distribute this to friends and family, but please don’t post
to lists, twitter, etc. – anything that would identify that HSUS is
urging people to vote for her, or it could just breathe life into the
opposition.”
Underwood is an active supporter of HSUS and has listed HSUS as a
beneficiary of the proceeds of one of her songs. But a large percentage
of country music fans are also gun owners and hunters who don’t like
Underwood’s active support for HSUS. And HSUS knows it, Nolz
says.
Instead, Nolz is asking folks to go to www.cbs.com/specials/acma/vote/
and vote instead for country music legend George Strait.
-- Joe Roybal
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 Gardiner Angus Ranch Annual Production
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Join Gardiner Angus Ranch, Saturday, April 4, for their 30th Annual
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Contact Mark Gardiner, 620/635-5095 or view the catalog online at www.gardinerangus.com
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Do you ever stop and think what your primary objective is for making
hay? Providing winter feed is the most common response. While that’s
certainly a high priority, what happens when we let that be our main
objective?
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story
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Effective March 18, Louisiana initiated emergency rules to prevent
the spread of bovine trichomoniasis (trich) in the state’s cattle
herds.
According to State Veterinarian Henry Moreau, the emergency rules
require all non-virgin, out-of-state bulls to be tested and disease-free
before entry into Louisiana is allowed. The rules also stipulate that
all Louisiana veterinarians must report a trich diagnosis to the state
vet. Bulls diagnosed with the infection are to be removed from the
breeding herd and sold for slaughter.
Trich has been diagnosed in four Louisiana herds, Moreau says, the first
time he’s encountered the disease in the state. The emergency rules
will remain in effect for four months and renewed until they can be made
permanent.
For more info, go to www.ldaf.state.la.us.
-- Louisiana Department of Agriculture and
Forestry release
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USDA last Friday granted “split state” status to New Mexico as
the state attempts to clean up bovine tuberculosis (TB). Under the
designation, only two counties – Curry and Roosevelt in the eastern
part of the state – will be under strict requirements for testing and
moving cattle.
Last September, USDA removed New Mexico from the list of TB-free states,
which required that all producers in the state adhere to ramped-up
testing and movement restrictions. The move to split-state status
relieves most of the state’s beef and dairy producers from those
requirements, New Mexico animal health officials said, potentially
saving producers more than $4 million a year.
-- Burt Rutherford
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Congress this week approved the largest expansion of the wilderness
system in 15 years, bestowing federal wilderness protection to 2 million
acres in nine states. The bill, which also sets aside President
Clinton's childhood home in Hope, AR as a national historic site,
cleared the Senate last week and passed the House by a 285-140 margin on
Wednesday.
The measure protects as wilderness:
- California – nearly 450,000 acres of wilderness and 73 miles
of riverway near Santa Clarita and along the California-Nevada state
line, including the White Mountains; 190,000 acres in Riverside County,
including parts of Joshua Tree National Park; 70,000 acres that include
the new John Krebs Wilderness in the Mineral King Valley.
- Colorado – nearly 250,000 acres in Colorado's Rocky Mountain
National Park, and 66,000 acres of red rock sandstone canyons, cliffs,
streams and waterfalls in western Colorado.
- Idaho –517,000 acres in the Owyhee Canyonlands.
- Michigan – 11,739 acres at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.
- New Mexico –more than 15,000 acres in San Miguel County.
-- News reports
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Plans are underway for a 2010 BEEF Study Tour to South
America. The tour will feature multiple ranch visits in Argentina and
Brazil, production seminars, livestock market centers, ag research
centers, a packing plant, an Argentine feedlot, and tourist stops and
selected recreational opportunities. The tour is limited to 25
participants – so act early to reserve your space.
- Date: Feb. 2-15, 2010 (tentative)
- Places: West-central Brazil & Argentina’s Pampas region.
Stay-over stops include Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Buenos Aires,
Argentina.
- Cost: $5,000-$5,500/person based on a 25-person tour package price.
This includes international airfare, in-country airfare, organized
ground transportation, 2-3 meals daily, business-class lodging, and
guide and translation services. Participants will pay for travel from
their homes to the U.S. departure city, Brazilian visa, beverages, tips
and incidentals.
- Sign-up: You can reserve tour space anytime with a $1,000/person
deposit. Full payment is due Sept. 30, 2009. Early planning is
encouraged to allow time for acquisition of passports and visa
applications.
- Interested? Keep watching BEEF magazine
(www.beef-mag.com) or go to www.brazilianliaison.com
for updated tour info with itinerary.
To be put on a list for e-mail updates, please contact:
-- Clint Peck
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Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), chair of the Rural Outreach for the
Senate Democratic Caucus, announced Senate Democrats’ “rural
agenda” for the 111th Congress. Key areas are:
- Health care – provide rural Americans with access to
affordable, quality health care.
- Education – offer rural students an opportunity to excel in the
classroom through education policy that recognizes the unique challenges
for rural schools.
- Economic development – promote economic development programs and
initiatives to give rural communities the tools needed for success in a
changing global economy.
- Agriculture – supporting family farmers, ranchers and producers
as a vital part of the rural economy.
- Energy and natural resources – promote rural America as a leader
in the development of renewable energy technologies that will help
stimulate the rural economy, while preserving our environment for future
generations.
- Veterans and National Guard – ensure that our nation’s veterans
and service members are provided with benefits and services worthy of
their sacrifices.
- Rural law enforcement and homeland security – equip first
responders with the training and tools necessary to protect rural
communities.
- Infrastructure – invest in infrastructure in order to create jobs
and build a sustainable rural economy.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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Stolen livestock and ranch equipment worth more than $4.8 million
were recovered or accounted for in 2008 by the Texas and Southwestern
Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) special rangers.
In 2008, the association’s 29 special rangers investigated 902 cases
in Texas and Oklahoma, primarily involving stray or stolen livestock.
Working closely with federal, state and local law enforcement officers,
the special rangers recovered or accounted for 5,422 cattle, 49 horses,
19 trailers, 12 saddles and 63 items of miscellaneous ranch property.
Offenders were given 227 years of prison, probated, deferred or
suspended sentences and ordered to perform 10 years and 2,800 hours of
community service. In addition, courts ordered those convicted to pay
more than $1 million in restitution, $29,665 in fines and $16,651 in
court costs.
-- TSCRA release
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Control of Eastern redcedar in pastures can be achieved using
herbicides, cutting or fire, but research shows a combination of
measures is the best option, says Bruce Anderson, University of Nebraska
Extension forage specialist.
Eastern redcedar in pastures reduce forage production, make animal
handling difficult, and encourage pastures to shift from warm-season to
cool-season grasses, he says. Fire is the least expensive strategy, when
it can be used safely, but its effectiveness declines as trees get
large. Herbicides like Spike, Tordon and Velpar applied directly to the
soil beneath the tree work very well, but they’re time-consuming and
more expensive. And cutting, while less expensive, is even more time
consuming, especially if cut trees need to be removed.
But recent Nebraska research shows a combination of control measures
utilizes the strengths of each and overcomes most disadvantages. For
best results, a prescribed fire is needed to kill many smaller trees and
to weaken or improve accessibility to larger trees. It also can be used
periodically, maybe every 4-8 years, to eliminate new infestations.
After the prescribed burn, it’s usually best to wait a year before
using herbicides or cutting to complete the job because some trees that
appear to survive the fire will die. This minimizes the number of trees
to cut or treat with herbicides.
For more information, he suggests producers download Extension Circular
EC186 “Integrated Management of Eastern Redcedar,” which is
available online at: www.ianrpubs.unl.edu/sendIt/ec186.pdf.
-- Bruce Anderson, University of Nebraska forage
specialist
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The United Kingdom’s (UK) Conservative Party is pushing to make
country of origin labeling compulsory for meat and meat products in the
UK. It’s part of the Conservative Party’s “Honest Food” campaign
unveiled in the House of Commons last week.
“This bill has cross-party support and is designed to ensure
consumers can buy British food with confidence,” Regional MP Richard
Bacon says. “The time has come for more honest food labeling to be
made compulsory.”
The measure would require retailers to display the country of origin of
their meat and meat products, and require meat and meat products labeled
as British or carrying the Union flag to be born and bred in Britain.
-- Muriel Elizabeth Hayes, Buenos Aires,
Argentina
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USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack named Dave White as chief of USDA's
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). White is a career
conservationist with NRCS. He has provided technical and management
expertise in Missouri, South Carolina, Washington, D.C. and Montana,
where he served as State Conservationist from 2002 to 2008.
In addition, Michael Michener was named administrator of USDA's Foreign
Agricultural Service (FAS). Michener has served in three U.S. foreign
affairs agencies in the past 10 years. Most recently, he served as the
senior democracy and governance advisor and lead planning officer for
the U.S. State Department's Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction
and Stabilization.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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USDA Extension is teaming up with Ohio State University to host a
conference on minimizing antibiotic resistance (AR) transmission through
the food chains. The April 2-3 meeting in Washington, D.C. will provide
a multidisciplinary platform for addressing the AR issue as it relates
to the food chain.
Sessions will focus on both benign and pathogenic bacteria in the
evolution, maintenance and transmission of AR. Attendees will discuss
risk assessment and AR reduction strategies, future research directions
and the development of education and outreach approaches for the
industry, regulators, public health authorities and consumers to combat
the AR problem worldwide.
Learn more at http://fst.osu.edu/ar/.
-- Lean Trimmings newsletter
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USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack says USDA and the Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) have begun efforts to ensure that “high-income
individuals and entities” who request USDA payments meet income limits
as described in the 2008 farm bill. Beginning with the 2009 crop year,
producers will be required to sign a form that grants IRS the authority
to provide income information to USDA for verification purposes.
A 2008 U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that
between 2003 and 2006, USDA made more than $49 million in payments to
2,500 producers whose incomes exceeded payment limits. The 2008 farm
bill makes producers ineligible for direct payments if their adjusted
gross income from farming for the past three years averaged more than
$750,000 or their nonfarm income exceeded $500,000.
Meanwhile, Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK), ranking member of the House
Agriculture Committee, and eight other members of the committee wrote
Vilsack stating their concerns with the IRS announcement.
The members feel USDA is “overreaching and going against Congressional
intent.” In the letter the members said, “those of us responsible
for the 2008 farm bill, from which you say this authority flows, did not
anticipate farmers signing away their right to keep their tax
information confidential while we debated section 1604(d)(1). If we
wanted the IRS to share farmer tax information we would have explicitly
said so. We did not. We did offer a choice to producers. Congress
allowed for a verification of income statement, prepared by a certified
public accountant or another third party acceptable to you, to be
submitted every three years that confirms the producer’s adjusted
gross income which makes he or she eligible to receive payment. By
forcing every producer to give USDA the power to verify with the IRS
information submitted by the farmer or rancher takes away this choice,
unnecessarily invades privacy and contravenes the intent of
Congress.”
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND), Senate Budget Committee chairman, released
his proposed fiscal year 2010 budget, which will be considered by the
Senate next week. The proposal leaves the nutrition, conservation,
renewable energy and farm safety net improvements included in the 2008
farm bill unchanged.
While it doesn’t include the administration’s proposal to phase out
direct payments over three years to producers with sales revenue of over
$500,000, the proposal supports “targeted savings” in ag, including
the administration’s cuts in market access. The administration
proposed reducing the Market Access Program, which the 2008 farm bill
reauthorized at $200 million, by 20%. Conrad’s proposal also includes
some savings in the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the
federal crop insurance program.
A bipartisan group of 17 senators has written leaders of the Senate
Budget Committee stating their strong opposition to the ag program cuts
in the administration’s proposed budget. The senators reminded
committee members that 80 senators supported last year’s farm bill and
it shouldn’t be reopened.
The senators said, “If enacted, the proposed budget would break the
contract our federal government made with producers in the 2008 farm
bill that provides them with a strong safety net. Changing the rules of
the game before the bill is fully implemented isn’t fair to producers
or those institutions that provide them capital. This not only threatens
the domestic supply of food and fiber that Americans depend upon, it
further undermines our rural communities and a U.S. economy already in
crisis.”
Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Pat Roberts (R-KS) organized the letter.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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