News Update
May 13, 2011

2011 Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course Set for Aug. 1-3

The 57th annual Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course, sponsored by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, is scheduled Aug. 1-3 at Texas A&M University (TAMU) in College Station.

Historic drought conditions throughout Texas have many cattle producers concerned about the state’s future climate outlook, said Jason Cleere, AgriLife Extension beef specialist and conference coordinator.

“Our topics this year will fit right into what Texas beef producers are going through right now with regards to dry conditions, herd management, nutrition and what to expect in the coming months,” Cleere said. Evelyn Browning-Gariss, a historical climatologist, will be the featured speaker during the general session Aug. 1. She serves as an adviser to cattle producers and financial industries on climate outlook.

“The long-term cattle market outlook is one of many other topics that will be discussed in the 21 different cattleman’s college sessions at the short course,’ Cleere said. The cattleman’s college portion of the three-day short course provides participants with an opportunity to choose workshops based on their level of production experience and the needs of their ranch.

“These concurrent workshops will feature information on introductory cattle production, management practices in the areas of forage, nutrition and reproduction, recordkeeping, brush-busting, cattle handling, landowner issues and much more,” he said.

In addition to classroom instruction on Aug. 1-2, participants can attend one of the popular demonstrations on the morning of Aug. 3.

“There will be demonstrations on chute-side calf working, cattle behavior, penning, selection and brush-busting,” Cleere said.

Participants can receive a pesticide applicator’s license during the short course, and can earn at least seven pesticide continuing education units if they are already licensed, Cleere added.

An industry trade show will take place during the event, featuring more than 110 agricultural businesses and service exhibits.

Registration is $140 per person and includes educational materials, a copy of the 600-page Beef Cattle Short Course proceedings, trade show admittance, admission to the prime rib dinner, meals and daily refreshments.

Registration information and a tentative schedule will be mailed to previous participants in June, but can also be found on the short course website at http://beef.tamu.edu. Producers can register online at http://beef.tamu.edu or contact Cleere’s office at 979-845-6931.

— Release by Blair Fannin for Texas AgriLife Extension.

Wheat Disease Management Reaches Critical Stage; Spray Timing Key

Cool, wet weather in the past few weeks and warmer weather expected in the next few days may spell trouble for wheat growers in some parts of Ohio, as conditions become favorable for head scab and vomitoxin as well as a host of foliar diseases such as powdery mildew, Ohio State agronomic crops experts reported today.

Pierce Paul, wheat disease specialist with Ohio State University (OSU) Extension and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC), said that despite a relatively slow start due to cool, wet conditions, the wheat crop in Ohio has developed well and is now between the jointing (in the north) and boot (in the south) growth stages.

“At this rate of development, and with warmer weather in the forecast, flowering should begin within the next 10 to 20 days,” Paul reported in this week’s issue of OhioState’s C.O.R.N. Newsletter (http://corn.osu.edu). “More rain is also forecasted for later this week and early next week (May 13-18). Rain plus warmer weather plus wheat flowering equals an increased risk for head scab and vomitoxin. Early flowering fields in southern Ohio may be at risk within the next week or so, and growers in those areas should be prepared to apply a fungicide at flowering to suppress head scab.”

However, Paul warned that with flowering still several days away, things could change quickly, either increasing or decreasing the risk of head scab. Growers should keep their eyes on the weather and the forecasting system (http://www.wheatscab.psu.edu) as their fields approach flowering.

Details on vomitoxin suppression strategies via fungicides can be found at http://go.osu.edu/DB3.

The abnormally wet conditions experienced this spring in Ohio and beyond, combined with temperatures in the 60s and 70s expected in the next several days, are also creating a conducive environment for foliar diseases such as powdery mildew, Septoria and Stagonospora blotch. Powdery mildew and Septoria are already very prevalent in some locations, Paul said. He advised growers to continue scouting their fields and to be prepared to apply a fungicide to prevent these diseases from spreading and reaching the flag leaf stage, especially if the varieties planted are susceptible to those diseases and wet and humid conditions persist.

“Damage to the flag leaf caused by foliar diseases could result in reduced grain yield and quality,” Paul explained. “A foliar fungicide application between flag leaf emergence and heading usually provides the best control of these diseases. However, this relatively early application will not provide adequate protection against scab and vomitoxin if favorable conditions occur during flowering and early grain fill. Fungicide application for scab and vomitoxin suppression must be made at flowering.”

An updated fungicide efficacy chart with a list of products labeled for wheat, efficacy against foliar and head diseases, application rates, and preharvest intervals can be found on OSU’s field crops diseases website: www.oardc.ohiostate.edu/ohiofieldcropdisease/wheat/OFCDwheatfungicides.pdf.

Paul and Dennis Mills, a plant pathology program specialist with OSU Extension and OARDC, warned against growers adding insecticide to the fungicides they will be spraying on wheat over the next month — a strategy some growers may be planning to employ since adding insecticide to the spray application is relatively cheap to do.

“We want to make it clear that this is not a very good integrated pest management (IPM) approach to managing insect pest populations,” Paul and Mills indicated. “Indeed, in most wheat fields, there are no pests that will even get close to economic levels, assuming that they are in the field in the first place. Aphid populations are rarely high enough to cause concern, and any virus transmission would have already occurred. Although we had an initial concern with armyworm, word from Kentucky suggests that they perhaps will not be that high, and an insecticide spray might kill off all the predators and parasitoids that help keep armyworm under control. Cereal leaf beetle problems are still infrequent in Ohio, and we would point out that all of these pests can be scouted for and managed if necessary.”

While it may be easy and cheap to apply insecticides, Paul and Mills urge growers to think about the overall benefit of not applying an insecticide.

— Release by Mauricio Espinoza for the OSU Extension Service.

NCBA’s Legislative Watch

Pending Trade Agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama
The Obama Administration has signaled it is ready to begin technical discussions with congressional leaders to draft implementing language and Statements of Administrative Action on all three agreements. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has been a staunch supporter of all three agreements and urges all members of Congress to vote Yes on the pending trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama.

H.R. 1633 — Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act of 2011
To establish a temporary prohibition against revising any national ambient air quality standard applicable to coarse particulate matter (dust). NCBA urges a Yes vote on H.R. 1633. Key sponsors: Reps. Kristi Noem (R-S.D.), Robert Hurt (R-Va.), Leonard Boswell (D-Iowa), Larry Kissell (D-N.C.)

S. 871 — Ethanol Subsidy and Tariff Repeal Act
Repeals the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit and the import tariffs on ethanol. NCBA urges a Yes vote on S. 871. Key sponsors: Sens. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

H.R. 1505 — National Security and Federal Lands Protection Act
To prohibit the secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture from taking action on public lands which impeded border security on such lands, and for other purposes. NCBA urges a Yes vote on H.R. 1505. Key sponsors: Rep. Bob Bishop (R-Utah)

— Release by NCBA.

Senator’s Statement Says Action Needed on Trade Agreements

NCBA released this statement from U.S. Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.):

“As a former cattle rancher, I understand the important role the agricultural industry has in our nation’s economy. This is especially true in my home state of Arkansas, where it is the top industry in our state’s economy. It’s an industry with many variables that we can’t control, such as input costs, so we need to take advantage of opportunities we can control. Improving market access is one such controllable variable that is important to beef. With three pending trade agreements on the table waiting for approval, we’re wasting precious time and resources at our disposal to open foreign markets to U.S. beef and other agriculture products.

“I believe it is important to provide American businesses with an equal opportunity to compete and succeed while opening up new markets for American products. I strongly believe that when presented with a level playing field, American farmers and workers can outperform any in the world in terms of quality and value.

“The lack of action on the Colombia, Panama and South Korea agreements is concerning. I believe we need to move forward as quickly as possible to ratify these policies. American companies and their workers are losing market share and are being denied valuable business opportunities. That’s why one of the first pieces of legislation I cosponsored as a member of the Senate was S. Res 20, legislation that urges the chamber to consider and approve the pending trade agreements with these countries.

“The Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement stands to make a big impact on the beef industry. 90% of Columbian exports enter the U.S. duty-free, while U.S. agricultural, manufacturing, and services exports to Columbia face heavy tariffs and barriers to trade. Under the U.S.- Columbia Free Trade Agreement, more than 50% of tariffs on U.S. agricultural exports to Columbia would be eliminated. Under this agreement prime and choice graded U.S. beef will receive immediate duty-free, quota-free access upon implementation of the agreement.

“We need a similar comprehensive agreement with Panama that will eliminate trade barriers. U.S. agricultural exports will benefit tremendously from the U.S. Panama Free trade agreement. Details from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative reveal that Panama will immediately eliminate duties on high-quality beef. The Agreement also provides duty-free access for specified volumes of standard grade beef cuts through tariff rate quotas.

“South Korea could grow to be the top export market for U.S. beef with the approval of the South Korean Free Trade Agreement. Early estimates show that U.S. beef could amount to more than $1 billion in value under full implementation of the agreement.

“On multiple occasions President Obama expressed support for the implementation of all of these trade agreements in order to reduce our nation’s trade deficit and create American jobs for American workers. In his most recent State of the Union address, the President called for quick passage of the South Korean Free Trade Agreement. This was encouraging, but now several months later, there is still a failure to act.

“The millions of dollars these agreements would save American agriculture producers, businesses and manufacturers every year would be reinvested into our economy and communities, creating high-paying jobs for many Americans. Trade agreements with other countries are a vital part of our nation’s role in the global economic system, and I will continue working to implement these pending trade agreements to increase American exports, slash into the trade deficit, and create jobs here in the United States.”

— Release by NCBA.

New Federal Data: E.coli O157:H7 Found in Less Than One Quarter of 1% of Samples; Prevalence down 72% since 2000

New federal data show that E. coli O157:H7 is found in less than one quarter of 1% of ground beef samples, a 72% decline since 2000 in ground beef samples testing positive for the pathogen.

The data are from Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) 2010 year-end results of microbiological samples for raw ground beef products analyzed for E. coli O157:H7. In 2010, there were 29 positive samples out of 11,616 taken in federal plants, no positives of 905 samples taken in retail stores and one positive out of 29 imported samples. The overall prevalence rate was 0.24%.

“The new data tell us that our food safety strategies have been working to improve the safety of the U.S. beef supply,” said James Hodges, American Meat Institute (AMI) Foundation president. “We are gratified with the progress the industry has made over the past decade, but we must remain vigilant and sustain our focus on food safety research to make our food supply even safer.”

The year-end data is available at www.fsis.usda.gov/Science/Ecoli_O157_Summary_Tables/index.asp.

— Release by AMI.

— Compiled by Shauna Rose Hermel, editor, Angus Productions Inc.