News Update
November 30, 2011
New Leadership Represents
Texas Cattle Producers
The Texas Beef Council (TBC) newly elected board of directors recently gathered for their first meeting of the fiscal year to lead the state’s producer-run beef marketing organization. The TBC board of directors consists entirely of beef producers providing representation of the state through organization affiliation. In addition, the board may elect two directors at large, without nomination by a qualified organization, to round out the board with equitable geographic and sector representation.
Roger Clift of Spearman will represent the Texas Cattle Feeders Association on the TBC board and is the newly elected chairman. Clift is the general manager and partner of Hansford County Feeders in Spearman. He is also a partner of Preferred Beef Group packing plant located in Booker.
Ken Leiber, a cow-calf producer from Fort Worth is the newly appointed vice chairman of the TBC board. Leiber is an at-large member of the board and is the president of Texas Livestock Marketing Association and National Finance Credit Corporation of Texas.
“Texas cattlemen and women are well represented on the TBC board,” said Clift. “The TBC board establishes the budget and ultimately decides which demand-building programs receive checkoff funding.”
Joining Clift and Leiber on the executive committee are Bill Hughes, Coleman Locke and immediate past chair, Don Smith. The executive committee acts for the entire board on matters that require action between regularly scheduled meetings for the full 20-member board. “Directors can serve up to six consecutive one-year terms on the TBC board,” said Richard Wortham, TBC executive vice president. “Because we are a producer-run organization, the position requires a great deal of volunteer time and dedication from our directors.”
Headquartered in Austin, TBC conducts the $1-per-head checkoff program for Texas beef producers. Its mission is to increase beef demand in the state through programs of beef promotion, research and education. TBC also helps fund national and international beef checkoff programs to increase marketing opportunities for the entire U.S. beef industry. For more information on this and other checkoff-funded programs, please visit www.texasbeef.org or call 1-800-846-4113.
Colorado State University Hurricane Forecast Team Correctly Predicts Above-Average 2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season
The Colorado State University hurricane forecast team accurately predicted above-average hurricane activity for the Atlantic basin for 2011 even though the storms weren’t as severe as expected, according to its seasonal verification report issued today.
“This season was notable for having many weak tropical cyclones but only slightly above-average intense tropical cyclone activity,” said Phil Klotzbach, lead author of the forecast. “We slightly underpredicted named storms and named storm days while we overpredicted more intense hurricane activity for the entire Atlantic basin and particularly for the Caribbean.”
Following several weak, short-lived tropical cyclones that began the hurricane season, Hurricane Irene became the first official hurricane of the season Aug. 22. Irene caused billions of dollars worth of damage in the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas and the U.S. East Coast, especially in North Carolina, Vermont, New Jersey and upstate New York. The report summarizes tropical cyclone activity in the Atlantic basin during the 2011 hurricane season and compares the team’s seasonal and two-week forecasts to what actually occurred. A combination of warm tropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures and the onset of La Niña likely contributed to the somewhat above-average named storm activity that occurred this year. Stronger vertical shear, drier mid levels and cooler subtropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures than expected likely combined to make this season less active for intense hurricane activity than predicted.
The Colorado State team of Phil Klotzbach and William Gray made its long-range seasonal forecast, which called for an above-average hurricane season, in early December 2010 and issued seasonal updates on April 6, June 1 and Aug. 3, all of which called for an active season. Just as hurricane season began in June, the team called for 16 named storms, 9 hurricanes and five major (Category 3-4-5) hurricanes. Observed were 19 named storms, 7 hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
The team bases its annual forecasts on 60 years of previous data that includes factors such as Atlantic sea surface temperatures and sea level pressures, levels of vertical wind shear (the change in wind direction with height), El Niño (an anomalous warming of waters in the central and eastern tropical Pacific) and other factors.
“The global atmosphere and oceans in combination have stored memory buried within them that can provide clues as to how active the upcoming Atlantic basin hurricane season is likely to be,” said Gray, who has been forecasting for 28 years.
Hurricane statistics for 2011 contained in the report include:
- Nineteen named storms occurred during 2011. Only 2005 (28 storms) and 1933 (21 storms) have had more named storms than 2011.
- 90.5 named storm days occurred in 2011. This is the 6th most named storm days to occur in a single season since 1944.
- No Category 5 hurricanes developed in 2011. This is the fourth consecutive year with no Category 5 hurricanes. The last time that four or more years occurred in a row with no Category 5 hurricanes was 1999-2002.
- No major hurricanes made U.S. landfall in 2011. The last major hurricane to make U.S. landfall was Wilma (2005), so the nation has now gone six years without a major hurricane landfall. Since 1878, the United States has never had a six-year period without a major hurricane landfall.
- No named storms formed between Sept. 24 and Oct. 24. The last time that no named storms formed between these dates was 2002, when the last storm of the season (Lili) formed on Sept. 21.
- Irene became the first hurricane of the season, following eight tropical storms. This is the longest string of tropical storms to start a season without a hurricane on record, breaking the old record of six in 2002.
- Hurricane Irene became the first hurricane to make U.S. landfall since Hurricane Ike (2008). Irene was the first system to make landfall at hurricane strength in New Jersey since 1903.
- Hurricane Philippe took the longest time of any system in recorded history (since 1851) to reach hurricane strength. Philippe was a named storm for 11.75 days before reaching hurricane strength for the first time.
Although the Atlantic has seen a very large increase in major hurricanes during the 16-year period of 1995-2010 (average 3.8 per year) in comparison with the prior 25-year period of 1970-1994 (average 1.5 per year), few major hurricanes have made U.S. landfall (except for the two very damaging years of 2004-2005). Klotzbach and Gray attribute this upturn in Atlantic major hurricanes to natural multi-decadal variability in the strength of the Atlantic thermohaline circulation and a concomitant increase in tropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures.
The team will issue its first forecast for the 2011 hurricane season on Dec. 7, 2011.
USDA Announces Ranking Dates
for Four Major Conservation Initiatives
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the ranking dates for the On-Farm Energy, Organic, Seasonal High Tunnel and Air Quality conservation initiatives. All four initiatives offer technical and financial assistance through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).
“Producers tell us they want to apply for these initiatives, but many want more time to make sure they choose the one that’s right for their operation,” Vilsack said. “Moving to multiple ranking dates for each initiative is going to make it easier for more producers to apply and help them get started with implementing the practices they need to benefit the natural resources on their operations.”
NRCS accepts applications for financial assistance on a continuous basis throughout the year. There will be three ranking periods for the Organic, On-Farm Energy and Seasonal High Tunnel initiatives, all ending on Feb. 3, March 30 and June 1, 2012. Ranking periods for the Air Quality Initiative end Feb. 3 and March 30, 2012. At the end of a ranking period, NRCS ranks all submitted proposals for funding consideration. NRCS will notify all applicants of the results of the rankings and begin developing contracts with selected applicants.
The On-Farm Energy, Organic and Seasonal High Tunnel initiatives are available in all 50 states, the Caribbean Area and the Pacific Basin. The Air Quality Initiative is available in Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Montana, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. Air Quality funding is limited to counties within these nine States that have serious air quality resource concerns related to non-attainment for Ozone and Particulate Matter.
Initiative Overviews
On-Farm Energy Initiative: NRCS and producers develop Agricultural Energy Management Plans (AgEMP) or farm energy audits that assess energy consumption on an operation. NRCS then uses audit data to develop energy conservation recommendations. Each AgEMP has a landscape component that assesses equipment and farming processes and a farm headquarters component that assesses power usage and efficiencies in livestock buildings, grain handling operations, and similar facilities to support the farm operation.
Organic Initiative: NRCS helps certified organic growers and producers working to achieve organic certification install conservation practices for organic production. New for fiscal year 2012, applicants will be evaluated continuously during the ranking periods. Applications meeting or exceeding a threshold score may be approved for an EQIP contract before the end of the ranking period. Applications rating below the threshold score will be deferred to the next period. A new threshold score will be established at the beginning of each ranking period. This new scoring process allows organic producers to implement conservation practices in a timelier manner.
Seasonal High Tunnel Pilot Initiative: NRCS helps producers plan and implement high tunnels, steel-framed, polyethylene-covered structures that extend growing seasons in an environmentally safe manner. High tunnel benefits include better plant and soil quality, fewer nutrients and pesticides in the environment, and better air quality due to fewer vehicles being needed to transport crops. More than 4,000 high tunnels have been planned and implemented nationwide through this initiative during the past two years.
Air Quality Initiative: NRCS helps producers address air quality concerns on their operations. Assistance includes establishing cover crops, planting windbreaks, implementing nutrient management practices and applying other conservation measures that mitigate and prevent air quality problems. Conservation practices installed through this initiative reduce airborne particulate matter and greenhouse gases and conserve energy.
Visit the NRCS National website for more information on how to apply for these initiatives and connect with an NRCS office near you.
Show-Me-Beef University Set for Jan. 11-13
Beef producers can learn more about how their product makes it from the pasture to the meat counter at Show-Me Beef University, Jan. 11-13, 2012, at the University of Missouri (MU) meat lab.
“Producers can learn what adds value to their product,” said Carol Lorenzen, MU Extension meat specialist. “They will see the process from live animal to carcass to retail package.”
MU Extension and the Missouri Beef Industry Council sponsor the three-day Show-Me Beef University. The yearly workshop helps producers think beyond the farm gate to learn what consumers want when buying beef.
“Too often, beef producers never think about what affects quality,” said David Patterson, MU Extension beef reproduction specialist. “Few think of what happens to their calves once they leave the farm.”
Professors of animal science, food science and veterinary medicine will lead classes that cover topics from animal nutrition and food safety to meat cutting and cooking. Participants will see the processing of a market steer and a cull cow to learn the difference in meat quality and value.
They will get hands-on experience cutting a whole rib, progressively, down to the final cuts.
Experts will demonstrate cooking techniques in a commercial kitchen and participants will taste-test beef to compare the differences among USDA quality grades and observe the impact of aging on beef.
Enrollees will arrive at 5 p.m. on the first day to study meat products and participate in taste tests. Research updates will follow dinner. The second day runs from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. with lectures and participation exercises. On the final day, the participants will see the actual cutouts from the carcasses graded the day before. The program ends with lunch.
Class size is limited to the first 30 participants. A $100 registration fee includes four meals, a parking pass and instructional materials to take home. Rooms can be reserved at Stoney Creek Inn for $80 per night when mentioning Show-Me Beef University.
Reservation deadline is Jan. 1. Contact Kathy Craighead to register at CraigheadK@missouri.edu or 573-882-2752.
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