News Update
Feb. 2, 2007

NCBA Coverage Online

Angus Productions Inc. (API) is providing its annual online coverage of the 2007 Cattle Industry Annual Convention and Trade Show, going on now in Nashville, Tenn.

Visit www.4cattlemen.com for synopses of the popular Cattlemen’s College,® sponsored by Pfizer; summaries of committee and subcommittee meetings; and coverage of award winners and trade show highlights as they become available.

The convention features joint and individual meetings by five industry organizations, including the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board (CBB), the American National CattleWomen Inc. (ANCW), Cattle-Fax and the National Cattlemen’s Foundation (NCF).

Visit the online schedule for a full rundown of general sessions, industry forums, regional caucuses, council meetings, subcommittee and committee meetings, and more. The business portion of the convention will conclude tomorrow with the NCBA Annual Membership Meeting, where decisions are made for the future direction of the industry.

Go to www.4cattlemen.com/ncba2007/newsroom.html for more.

NAIS Documents Available

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the availability of three National Animal Identification System (NAIS) documents for review and public comment.

These documents include a Draft User Guide, a Program Standards and Technical Reference document and a technical specifications document for the animal tracking databases. They are available on USDA’s NAIS web site at www.usda.gov/nais and in USDA’s reading room.

“NAIS is a true partnership among states, industry, and USDA, and by working together, we have met our goal of having 25% of the nation’s premises registered by the end of January. However, we continue to seek our partners’ input on the design and implementation of NAIS,” said Bruce Knight, undersecretary of USDA’s marketing and regulatory programs mission area. “The documents we are releasing today will further advance the dialogue on NAIS and guide our collaborative efforts as the program moves forward. We are committed to working together to build a system that works for everyone.”

USDA encourages all interested parties to submit comments on any of the three documents or other aspects of NAIS. Comments are now being accepted through the NAIS e-mail address, animalidcomments@aphis.usda.gov, or by mail to NAIS Program Staff, Veterinary Services, APHIS, 4700 River Rd., Unit 200, Riverdale, MD 20737.

USDA Expands NAIS Agreements to Non-Profit Organizations

In related news, USDA today announced a request for proposals (RFP) from non-profit livestock and poultry industry organizations that wish to enter into cooperative agreements with USDA to advance the development of the NAIS. According to USDA, these cooperative agreements will support the efforts of such organizations to promote NAIS and, specifically, increase participation in premises registration — the foundation of the program.

USDA will make up to $6 million available for the cooperative agreements, subject to the availability of funding. With the coordinated efforts of state, industry and federal partners, more than 350,000 premises nationwide have been registered to date. 

The RFP can be found at www.grants.gov. The RFP gives more detail about the cooperative agreements, including the process for developing and submitting proposals and the amount of funding available. Additional information about the NAIS program, along with a link to the RFP, is available at www.usda.gov/nais.

Fuel Prices Expected to Remain High

According to DTN, fuel prices may remain historically high in the next few months, despite lower costs for crude oil, gasoline and diesel. Compared to last year’s fuel crunch, however, costs seem to be easing at the beginning of 2007, the article reports.

Chad Hart, an agriculture economist at Iowa State University’s Center for Agricultural and Rural Development, said that at this time last year the New York Mercantile Exchange futures price for crude oil was about $68 a barrel, whereas the front-month crude oil futures price on the NYMEX Tuesday closed at about $57. In comparison, 2005 crude prices were even lower at about $48, Hart said.

ERS Releases Rural Population, Farm Income Reports

USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) today released its latest research regarding rural population trends. The Rural Population and Migration Briefing Room encapsulates ERS research on population trends in rural America, including a recent slowdown in growth, increasing ethnic diversity, the challenges in serving an aging population, and the benefits accruing to those areas featuring natural amenities.

Visit www.ers.usda.gov/Briefing/Population/ for complete findings.

ERS also released a report regarding off-farm income, technology adoption and farm economic performance.

According to ERS, the economic well-being of most U.S. farm households depends on income from both on-farm and off-farm activities. Consequently, for many farm households, economic decisions (including technology adoption and other production decisions) are likely to be shaped by the allocation of managerial time among such activities. The report finds that a farm operator’s off-farm employment and off-farm income vary inversely with the size of the farm.

According to the report, operators of smaller farm operations improve their economic performance by compensating for the scale disadvantages of their farm business with more off-farm involvement. Off-farm work reduces farm-level technical efficiency, but increases household-level technical efficiency. And adoption of agricultural innovations that save managerial time is associated with higher off-farm income.

Visit www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/ERR36/ for further report details.

— compiled by Crystal Albers, associate editor, Angus Productions Inc.