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Angus Journal

News Update

November 12, 2012

Angus Show Coverage, Annual Meeting News Available Online

American Angus Association members gather in Louisville, Ky., this week for annual Angus events in conjunction with the 2012 North American International Livestock Exposition (NAILE). The festivities began Saturday, Nov. 10, and continue through Tuesday, Nov. 13. Using the resources described below, those at the meeting — or at home — can stay up-to-date with the latest show results and news.

1. 1) Access the show results website, using a computer or cell phone.
2. 2) Download the Angus Mobile app on a smartphone.
3. 3) Watch live coverage from the showring.
4. 4) Join Angus on Facebook and Twitter for instant updates.
5. 5) Visit www.angus.org.

— Adapted from a release by the American Angus Association.

NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen Live Show Will Address
‘State of the Industry’

Drought, fires, floods, regulatory overreach, skyrocketing input costs and record herd shortage are all issues cattlemen and women have unfortunately become very familiar with over the past couple of years. NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen will take a closer look at the current state of the beef industry during a live call-in show on Tues., Nov. 13, at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on RFD-TV.

“Our industry has weathered through tough times. By being resilient, cattlemen and women stick it out and come out stronger on the other side,” said National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) CEO Forrest Roberts. “This special episode of NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen will allow us to answer questions, listen to producer concerns and discuss strategies that are crucial in helping ranchers have successful cattle operations, while continuing to produce the safest, highest-quality beef in the world.”

Joining Roberts on the panel are NCBA President J.D. Alexander, vice president of government affairs Colin Woodall, CattleFax CEO Randy Blach and Executive Director of Producer Education John Paterson. Viewers can ask the panel questions by calling 1-888-824-6688 or by emailing their questions to C2C@beef.org. They are also encouraged to join NCBA by calling 1-888-824-6688 or visiting NCBA’s website.

The program will be broadcast again on RFD-TV Wed., Nov. 14, at 10:30 a.m. EST and Sat., Nov. 17, at 9 a.m. EST. In addition, all episodes of NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen are available on the program’s website. The program is also on Facebook and can be followed on Twitter.

NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen is an award-winning program providing information on the U.S. beef cattle industry since February 2007.

— Adapted from a release by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.

Scientists Tracking Down Genes That Help Bees Defend
Against Mites

Purdue University researchers are zeroing in on genes that help honeybees defend against varroa mites, one of the largest factors in bee population declines.

Varroa mites are parasites that attack honeybees and infect them with viruses that cause death. The mites can infest and kill entire bee colonies.

Certain honeybees have developed defensive behaviors that allow them to kill the varroa mites or disrupt mite reproduction. Greg Hunt, a professor of behavioral genetics, and Jennifer Tsuruda, a Purdue postdoctoral researcher, are searching for the genes that provide those defenses and believe they’ve narrowed the options considerably.

“Bees are fighting back. They’re getting rid of the mites themselves,” said Hunt, whose findings were published in two papers in Public Library of Science (PLOS) journal, PLOS One. “We can select for these traits now, but it’s tedious. If we can identify the genes that influence these traits, we could develop better methods to screen for these genes and speed the process.”

The United States is losing about one-third of its honeybee hives each year. Hunt said no one factor is to blame, though scientists believe that mites and insecticides also are working against the bees, which are important for pollinating food crops and wild plants.

For more information and the full release, click here.

— Adapted from a release by Purdue University Extension.

USDA Increases Corn and Soybean Production Forecast

The Agriculture Department’s monthly crop report moderately increased 2012 production forecasts for corn and soybeans compared to the prior month.

“As anticipated, there were no major changes to the projected production totals for both corn and soybeans this month,” said AFBF senior economist Todd Davis. “The early harvest numbers provided a fairly clear picture on the size of the 2012 corn and soybean crops in the October report,” he added.

USDA forecast corn production at 10.7 billion bushels (bu.), down 1.6 billion bu. compared to 2011. The average yield for corn was forecast at 122.3 bu. per acre this year, up slightly from the October projection.

Corn ending stocks for the marketing year are projected to be tight at 647 million bu., representing 21 days of supply.

Soybean production is forecast at 2.97 billion bu., down 123 million bu. compared to 2011. The average yield for soybeans was forecast at 39.3 bu. per acre, 2.6 bu. per acre less than the 2011 average yield.

Ending stocks for soybeans are projected to be 140 million bu. (about a 17-day supply), which Davis described as “uncomfortably tight.”

How the weather will affect corn and soybean production in South America continues to be closely watched, with USDA forecasting that Argentina and Brazil will increase soybean production by 1.87 billion bushels compared to 2011.

For more information, click here.

— Adapted from a release by the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Review Your Field Notes When Purchasing Soybean
and Corn Seed

The deadline for ordering and paying for seed purchases for the maximum discount usually occurs by mid-November. While most producers are still busy finishing up harvest, the time to make varietal decisions is pretty much at hand. Michigan State University (MSU) Extension publishes the Corn and Soybean Variety Trials as soon as possible each fall so that growers can look at performance data at several locations around Michigan.

Most university agronomists from around the Midwest suggest that growers look at variety performance at multiple locations (and perhaps years) to look at the impact of variable weather conditions on individual varieties. The ability to look at multiple locations in Michigan during 2012 should provide a good look at weather conditions ranging from severe drought to adequate rainfall. With seed expected to be in shorter supply this year due to drought conditions in some production areas in the United States, reviewing performance of “Plan B” varieties may be extremely important. By selecting varieties that performed well across several “site years,” growers should be able to select well-adapted varieties for their farms.

While performance trials can help select well-adapted varieties, it is important to consider the soybean cyst nematode activity and history in your fields. Twenty percent of growers surveyed attending MSU Extension field crops Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and corn and soybean research meetings in 2012 indicated that they were experiencing some degree of yield loss due to soybean cyst nematode activity on soybean fields that were planted to a soybean cyst nematode-resistant nematode variety. If you are experiencing soybean cyst nematode activity damage on your farm, ask your seed dealer about the source of resistance for particular varieties. Try to select a well-adapted variety that has a source of resistance other than PI88788. A better option may be to collect samples through the root masses from impacted areas and submit them for soybean cyst nematode activity type identification.

For more information and the full release, click here.

— Adapted from a release by the Michigan State University Extension.

Farm Fatalities Dropped in 2011; No Child Deaths

There were fewer reports of Indiana farm-related deaths in 2011 than the previous year, including none involving children for the first time in 13 years, according to a new Purdue University report.

The Indiana Farm Fatality Summary reports that 16 people died in farm-related incidents in 2011, down from 23 in 2010. The number of farm-related fatalities represents about 13% of the 122 fatal work injuries documented in Indiana last year.

While less than 1% of Indiana's workforce is employed in production agriculture, the industry has traditionally been responsible for the highest number of work-related fatalities in the state.

The report also says that for the first time since 1998, there were no reports of anyone under the age of 18 being killed in Indiana during farming activities.

Bill Field, Purdue Extension safety specialist, said while it's good that there's a declining number of farm fatalities, farmers should still practice preventative safety.

“We’re moving in the right direction, but every one of these incidents is preventable,” Field said. “We shouldn’t just accept this as something no one can do anything about.”

For more information and the full release, click here.

— Adapted from a release by Purdue University Extension.

— Compiled by Kelli Fulkerson, intern, Angus Productions Inc.

 
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