News Update
November 30, 2012
Updated Pricing for Genetic Tests Through Association
Updated pricing for the Pfizer® 50K through Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI) for Angus cattle is now available at $75 per test. Parentage is still included as a no-cost benefit with this product.
The Pfizer 50K at this new price point is available as a result of improved genomic technology, research collaboration and volume usage by Angus breeders. The $75 test offering is available immediately as a benefit to registered-Angus cattle. Also, due to the expansion of the collaborative partnership between AGI and Pfizer Animal Genetics, research scientists are finalizing implementation of the 50K recalibration for release in early 2013.
For details go to your AAA Login account at www.angus.org, or contact the AGI staff at 816-383-5100.
LiveAuction.tv and Angus Productions Inc.
to Provide Live Video Stream, Post-event Coverage
of Dec. 3-4 ARSBC Symposium
Cattlemen will gather Dec. 3-4 at the The Ramkota Hotel and Conference Center in Sioux Falls, S.D., to focus on how cattle producers can utilize advancing technologies to improve herd reproductive efficiencies, profitability and the end product — beef. The 2012 Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle (ARSBC) program is sponsored by the Beef Reproductive Task Force, South Dakota State University (SDSU) and iGrow in cooperation with the University of Missouri Conference Office.
“This is a tremendous opportunity to hear 27 speakers from across the U.S. and Canada discuss topics including how to profit from implementing these technologies, and the latest research in the fields of reproduction, nutrition and genetics,” said event coordinator, George Perry, associate professor and SDSU Extension beef reproduction specialist.
This program is geared to veterinarians and producers. All speakers have been charged with addressing how to implement what is discussed within your cattle operation.
Angus Productions Inc. (API) and LiveAuctions.tv will provide live streaming video from the conference for those who can’t attend in person. You can access the video stream at www.appliedreprostrategies.com/2012/SiouxFalls/ during the program. Presentations are scheduled Monday 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 2-7 p.m. CST and Tuesday 8:30 a.m.-noon and 1:15-5 p.m. CST. Visit www.appliedreprostrategies.com/2012/SiouxFalls/schedule.html for a detailed schedule.
@AJeditor and @ABBeditor will tweet some highlights from the conference using the hashtag #ARSBC12.
Visit the site’s newsroom during and after the conference to access proceedings papers, PowerPoint presentations and supporting materials provided by speakers, summaries by Angus Journal staff, audio and video from the conference.
For more information about the conference, contact Perry at 605-688-5456. For more information about API’s online coverage, contact Shauna Hermel, editor, at shermel@angusjournal.com or 816-752-0089.
CAB Internship and Scholarship Deadlines Are Looming
Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) offers internships for college juniors and seniors with strong writing background and pursuing degrees in agricultural journalism, communications or animal science. The summer internship covers a 10- to 12-week period from as early as mid-May to mid-August; it is often eligible for credit, and enrollment is encouraged. Regardless of whether it is taken for credit, the intern will be accountable for performance in working 40 hours per week, typically out of the Manhattan, Kan., office.
Specific dates of the school-year internships will be determined to coincide with the academic year. The part-time fall internship may be offered as renewable, continuing through spring semester; depending on the applicants, a separate spring internship may be offered.
Applications are due by Dec. 1, 2012, for the summer 2013 and/or school-year 2013-2014 positions. Apply online by submitting a brief cover letter, résumé and three writing samples. For more information contact Miranda Reiman, CAB assistant director of industry information, at 308-784-2294 or mreiman@certifiedangusbeef.com.
CAB’s Colvin Scholarship Fund will award six scholarships in 2013 totaling $20,000. The funds will be split among five undergraduate scholarships — in the amounts of $5,000, $4,000, $3,000, $2,000 and $1,000 — and one $5,000 graduate-level scholarship.
College juniors and seniors who have shown commitment to the beef industry, either through coursework or activities, are encouraged to apply by the Dec. 7, 2012, deadline. Applications are evaluated on involvement, scholastic achievement, communication skills and reference letters.
The graduate-level scholarship will be awarded to a full-time master’s or doctoral student conducting research related to high-quality beef production. Applications for that award are due Jan. 11, 2013.
For more details, interested students should go online or contact Trudi Hoyle, CAB, at 800-225-2333 or thoyle@certifiedangusbeef.com.
Weed Control in Hayfields and Pastures
is Topic of Dec. 6 Webinar
There is more than one way to manage weeds in hayfields and pastures, and Larry Redmon, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service state forage specialist, will discuss many of them during a Dec. 6 webinar.
The webinars are conducted monthly as a part of the AgriLife Extension’s ecosystem science and management unit series. Each webinar is scheduled from noon to 1 p.m., according to Brittany Grube, webinar coordinator.
Participants seeking Texas Department of Agriculture continuing-education units must pay a $10 fee on the website. For all others, there is no fee, Grube said. Licensed agricultural-pesticide applicators participating in this webinar can earn one continuing-education unit in integrated pest management.
“I hope participants of the webinar will gain an appreciation of what weeds are and what they are not; and also of how weeds become a problem in hayfield and pasture environments,” Redmon said. “It is important they understand there is more than one way to manage weeds, and that they understand how to appropriately use herbicides to obtain cost-effective control of various weed and brush species.”
This webinar and others in the series can be accessed at http://naturalresourcewebinars.org. For more information on the webinars, contact Grube at Brittany.grube@agnet.tamu.edu.
Ohio Oats Expected to Produce Excellent Yields
and Good Supplement for Low Forage Supplies
Ohio growers this year have planted more oats after wheat and into early harvested corn silage fields. Thanks to late-season rains, the crop is expected to produce “excellent yields,” which is a boost to producers suffering through low forage supplies after drought, an Ohio State University Extension beef cattle expert said.
Although late rains haven’t been abundant, they’ve provided enough moisture to produce excellent oat yields and quality for many growers throughout the state, said Stan Smith, an OSU Extension program assistant in agriculture and natural resources.
That’s significant considering that the drought of 2012 has been one of the worst on record in Ohio, leaving many livestock producers hard-hit in their pastures and forages, he said. The lack of substantial rainfall earlier in the growing season, extreme heat and dryness have left many producers short on hay and silage supplies, leaving many at a loss for how to best manage their feed rations, Smith said.
“The oats are very good this year, especially when you consider that the hay harvest was not good for most growers this year because of drought,” he said. “Guys were very short on forages, but there were a lot of oats planted around the state, so it’ll be a good supplement for low forage supplies.”
Many oats were planted this year as an afterthought on unfenced fields in an effort to create any amount of late-growing forage possible, Smith said. He attributes late rains and higher-than-normal temperatures into fall for creating conditions ripe for strong oat yields.
For more information and the full release, click here.
Increasing Transparency Through Food Dialogues
During a recent conference, farmers, ranchers, industry professionals and media experts took the stage for in-depth conversations on food and food production. The dialogue was broken into three separate topics, each with five to seven different expert panelists. Topics for the three discussions included Media, Marketing and Healthy Choices; Antibiotics and Your Food; Biotechnology (GMO’s) and Your Food. All three were moderated by Ali Velshi, CNN Chief Business Correspondent and anchor of Your Money on CNN and World Business Today on CNN International and each segment is approximately one and a half hours in length.
The dialogues took place two weeks ago at the Times Center in midtown Manhattan and they were also available via live streams on the Internet. If you missed the live Internet streams, you can view the videos on the USFRA website.
Conversation in the Media, Marketing and Healthy Choices segment focused on what can be done to ensure that consumers have access to accurate information when making food choices. One idea shared by several of the panelists is to get consumers on farms for a first-hand look at modern agriculture. Michigan State University Extension is working to do this through its Breakfast on the Farm program, which began in 2009 and has since reached more than 40,000 consumers.
Panelists in the Antibiotics and Your Food segment discussed why antibiotics are used and what every consumer should know about antibiotic use in the food system. The panel consisted of a pork producer from Iowa; a doctor of veterinary medicine and assistant director in a division of the American Veterinary Medical Association; a pediatric nutritionist, the director of food policy initiatives for the Consumers Union and a dairy farmer and veterinarian from North Carolina. For more information and the full release, click here.
NFU Hails Amendment to NDAA
National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson hailed the passage of an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 that will enable the Department of Defense (DOD) to move away from foreign oil reliance and towards commercialization of advanced biofuels produced in the United States. Previous language in the bill blocked DOD’s effort to become more energy independent. The amendment was led by Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo.
“We are pleased with the passage of Sen. Udall’s amendment to the NDAA and effect it will have on ensuring the DOD can continue its work on advanced biofuels,” said NFU President Roger Johnson. “The earlier proposed prohibitions that were in place in the NDAA would have been harmful to farmers, ranchers, the advanced biofuels industry and our national security. The DOD spends more than $11 billion each year on fossil fuels. Each time the price of a barrel of oil increases by $10, it costs DOD another $1.4 billion.”
For more information and the full release, click here.
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