News Update
September 27, 2011
Stockgrowers Wrap up Successful Convention
The South Dakota Stockgrowers’ 120th Annual Convention and Trade Show wrapped up Saturday after four days of speakers and meetings to update members on policies, election of new officers for the Association and adoption of several new policies.
The keynote address from USDA Undersecretary of Marketing and Regulatory Reform Edward Avalos was a highlight of the convention. Avalos spoke immediately and directly to the proposed GIPSA rule, which the Stockgrowers Association strongly supports. He stated that a final rule would likely be completed this fall and thanked producers for submitting more than 61,000 comments for consideration in the process.
On the new Animal Disease Traceability proposal, Avalos admitted that the proposal was receiving opposition. He urged producers to offer constructive criticism, and said, “We need comments. I promise you that those comments are going to guide how we publish the final rule.”
George Chambers, president of R-CALF USA, urged producers to get involved in organizations like Stockgrowers and to represent their industry with pride, integrity and enthusiasm for the work and the policies that keep ranches operating in rural America.
The Brand Committee meeting featured a panel of speakers that included Brand Board members Scott Vance of Faith and Wanda Blair of Vale, Brand Board Director Larry Stearns and DCI Agent Scott Rechtenbaugh. The discussion centered mostly on the possibility of new legislation pertaining to inspection fees and shippers permits. Rechtenbaugh was also able to update members on the recent transfer of the brand investigators to the Department of Criminal Investigation.
Bill Kluck, Senator Larry Rhoden and Meade County Director of Equalization Kirk Chaffee discussed the state’s production-based property tax system. Kluck expressed several concerns about the implementation of the law, especially in regard to the livestock/grazing land. Chaffee explained how his office tries to work with landowners.
Senator Rhoden spoke about the legislative process. Rhoden said, “We knew this property tax system was going to take some tweaks, and we’re dedicated to looking at those suggestions, but I still think that the production-based system is what needed to be done.”
The Wildlife Committee hosted Tony Leif of the South Dakota Game Fish and Parks Department, who talked in detail about the prairie dog management plan and the new law allowing hunting of coyotes from snowmobiles. Leif stressed the importance of informing the public about the requirements for the new snowmobile laws.
Officers elected. Members elected Shane Kolb as president and Bob Fortune as vice president for one-year terms. Kolb is a rancher and brand inspector from Meadow and has been an active member of Stockgrowers for many years. Fortune ranches with his family on their operation south of Belvidere and serves as a member of the South Dakota Beef Industry Council.
Kolb said, “It’s an honor to be elected toserve as president of this association and I’m looking forward to working with all the members to keep the organization moving forward.”
Marvin Jobgen of Scenic was elected as Region 3 Vice-president. Brad Reis of Winner was elected to represent district 14, replacing Jim Murphy whose term ended this year. All other board members continue to serve in their respective positions.
New policies adopted. The organization’s policies are adopted by members during the annual meeting. Four committees presented policy to the membership for adoption.
Marketing Committee Chairman and Cattlemen’s Beef Board member Vaughn Meyer, Beef Industry Council member Bob Fortune and Beef Industry Council Director Ron Frederick answered questions almost exclusively on the recent controversy surrounding the National Beef Check-off Program. The committee adopted several policies regarding transparency in the check-off program.
The Ag and Natural Resources Committee adopted policy to reaffirm a producer’s private property right to convert grazing land to cropland but called for producers who convert virgin prairie to cropland to be ineligible to receive federal crop subsidies and federal crop insurance payments for those tracts of land.
The proposed rule for the Animal Disease Traceability (ADT) program was a hot topic throughout the convention as Stockgrowers members and the Animal Health and ID Committee continue to voice concerns about the implementation of a national program that does not currently recognize the hot-iron brand as a primary method of identification. The membership adopted policies regarding this program that strongly state Stockgrowers opposition to the ADT as proposed.
Stockgrowers honor members for service. Kenny Fox of Belvidere completed his two-year term as president of the Association. He was honored with a picture slideshow presentation of his family ranching operation, as well as photos from the various meetings, issues and projects he oversaw during his term. Fox was presented with custom spurs in appreciation for his work and received an enthusiastic standing ovation from the membership.
Mark DeVries of Belvidere, Vaughn Meyer of Reva, and Ken Halligan of Pierre were each presented with a Workhorse Award. The award recognizes dedication and outstanding work to represent Stockgrowers policy, recruit members and support the work of the Stockgrowers Association.
Willie Cowan accepted an award on behalf of Ft. Pierre Livestock and the Smith family honoring the late Johnny Smith for his “dedication to the Stockgrowers Association, the independent livestock industry, and the producers whose livelihoods depend on it.”
Margaret Nachtigall was given a standing ovation in recognition for her dedicated work for the Stockgrowers Association as she leaves her position with the association.
“This convention really highlighted some of the best of Stockgrowers members and our work as an association,” said Shane Kolb, newly elected president. “We thank everyone that made this convention possible from our many members to the many businesses who sponsored the event.”
A Labor-saving Way to Monitor Vast Rangelands
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists have found that unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), a tool used by the military, may be suitable for keeping an eye on changing land-use patterns across vast tracts of western rangeland.
Ranchers, government agencies and private land managers often need to survey vast, remote rangelands to see how they are being altered by floods, forest fires or other events. Ground-based surveys can be costly and time-consuming. Satellite imagery is improving, but satellites can’t provide the resolution needed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for its assessments of millions of acres of federally owned lands, or by private land owners who want to monitor erosion control, the creep of invasive species, or other land-use changes. UAVs allow operators to survey large areas whenever they want, such as immediately after a major rain storm or forest fire.
At the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Jornada Experimental Range in Las Cruces, N.M., Al Rango, Jeff Herrick and Craig Winters, along with Andrea Laliberte, a New Mexico State University researcher, are studying the potential effectiveness of a 20-pound UAV with a 6-foot wingspan that cruises 700 feet above the earth, collecting digital images.
UAVs are primarily being studied for their potential to collect enough information about landscape patterns to determine which areas merit closer ground level surveys, according to Laliberte.
In a study partially funded by BLM, the researchers took more than 400 aerial images of 700 acres in the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed in southwestern Idaho. They assembled the images into mosaics, determined the percentage of vegetation cover using image-processing techniques and compared the data to information collected with conventional ground-based techniques. In a second study, they analyzed the classification accuracy of different types of vegetation, such as mesquite and yucca plants, identified by a computer program designed to analyze mosaics assembled from hundreds of images taken during flights over tracts in Idaho and New Mexico.
Findings from the first study were published in Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, and those from the second study were published in Geocarto International. In both studies, the researchers found the aerial data sufficiently accurate to be comparable to information gathered in ground-based surveys for shrubs, grasses and other plants that can be distinguished by their top canopy layer.
Current federal safety requirements and associated costs limit use of UAVs, but the restrictions may change in the future. This research is designed to ensure strengths and weaknesses of the technology are sufficiently understood regardless of the regulations.
Read more about this research in the September 2011 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.
Pfizer, AABP Award 23 Veterinary Students with Scholarships
Pfizer Animal Health and the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) Foundation announce that 23 veterinary medicine students received financial support through the 2011 AABP Foundation – Pfizer Animal Health Veterinary Student Scholarship Fund.
“Our ongoing partnership with Pfizer Animal Health on this scholarship program has provided much needed financial support for our veterinary students,” says M. Gatz Riddell Jr., DVM, executive vice president, AABP. “The cost of college can be a significant hurdle for the success of veterinary students, and we want to offer students the opportunity to focus on their studies and future careers, not the cost of tuition.”
This year, the AABP Foundation and Pfizer Animal Health presented 23 students from across the nation with a $5,000 scholarship at the AABP Annual Conference held Sept. 21 to 24 in St. Louis, Mo. Travel and lodging costs also were provided to the scholarship recipients to attend the AABP Annual Conference. In the last three years, the AABP Foundation – Pfizer Animal Health Veterinary Student Scholarship Fund has awarded $315,000 in scholarships to 63 veterinary students.
The 2011 scholarship recipients are:
• Elisha Adkins, Oregon State University
• Nicholas Barbu, Michigan State University
• Curtis Beidel, University of Pennsylvania
• Joshua Boyden, Cornell University
• Matt Brewer, Iowa State University
• Maranda Gonzalez, The Ohio State University
• Nika Grigsby, University of Florida
• Scott Hamilton, University of California, Davis
• Amber Hazel, University of Minnesota
• Elizabeth Homerosky, The Ohio State University
• Brandy Lengacher, The Ohio State University
• Claire McPhee, North Carolina State University
• Ward Mills, University of Georgia
• Timothy Perano, University of California, Davis
• Cassandra Peterson, University of Illinois
• Andy Pike, Auburn University
• Haley Resler, Purdue University
• Molly Riddell, Auburn University
• Chase Stahl, Iowa State University
• Brandon Treichler, University of Minnesota
• Ben Werkhoven, Washington State University
• Mary Stuart Womack, Texas A&M University
• Jeremi Wurtz, Iowa State University
Making a difference for large-animal veterinarians
Sally Adams received an AABP Foundation – Pfizer Animal Health Veterinary Student Scholarship in 2010. As a 2011 graduate of The Ohio State University, she currently works at a mixed-animal practice focusing on dairy veterinary medicine in Maria Stein, Ohio. According to Adams, both the scholarship and the support of Pfizer Animal Health and AABP have helped advance her career.
“Receiving the scholarship helped financially support my dream of becoming a large-animal veterinarian,” Adams says. “Pfizer Animal Health is investing in me, in my future and in animal agriculture to make our country’s food supply the best it can be.”
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