News Update
April 2, 2013
Angus e-List Changes Name to Angus Journal Daily
Welcome to the Angus Journal Daily!
In coming months, you will notice a few changes to the products and services we offer at the Angus Journal. We are in the process of rebranding our services so they are more readily recognizable to better serve you, our readers. That means you’ll be seeing a new look and a few new names, but the same relevant and timely industry information.
It is always necessary to gauge progress, and in our case, we did so with multiple readership surveys. We found out that nearly 95% of our current subscribers agree or strongly agree the Angus Journal is an essential source of information about the Angus business, and nearly 90% agree or strongly agree the Angus Journal is an essential source of beef industry information.
However, fewer of the survey respondents indicated they were aware of or used many of the other vehicles we offer to help keep our subscribers informed and to serve their marketing needs — services like the e-List, the Angus Trading Post and the Virtual Library.
To help our customers take advantage of these opportunities, it is evident we need to energize and consolidate our Angus Productions Inc. (API) offerings under the Angus Journal brand name so it is clear to our readers to expect the same quality of service and content in every API effort.
Nothing can replace the Angus Journal, and it will continue to feature the articles on herd management, performance, genetics, marketing, Association services and cutting-edge technology that can only be found within its pages. For those who prefer the information online, technology allows us to offer subscribers an enhanced digital replica of the Angus Journal at no additional cost — and a week to 10 days before the print copy arrives in their mailbox.
The Angus Journal Daily, formerly the Angus e-List, offers more time-sensitive and regionally specific news on a daily basis, along with marketing opportunities to quickly reach a responsive Angus target audience with sale and product information.
We’ve increased our social media presence (www.facebook.com/AngusJournal; Twitter: @AJeditor) and we continue to enhance electronic resources like the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA, Virtual Library, and www.angusjournal.com, as well as our event coverage and topic websites. Be on the lookout for more updates and technological advances soon!
At the Angus Journal, we are committed to being an indispensable partner to the beef industry by providing leading-edge information and marketing strategies through a unique range of print and digital platforms. We are excited to advance these changes and opportunities to give our readers the tools needed to stay profitable in a challenging, but rewarding, industry.
Thanks for Being an Angus Fan
For every 11 people on the planet, at least one of them has checked out their Facebook news feed today. Think about that for a minute.
The numbers add up to more than 600 million daily users — all looking to interact with friends, family, the latest news, and their favorite brands and organizations. Because of this phenomenon, the way the world communicates is changing; and it is changing quickly. More and more businesses are tapping into social media resources to build relationships and share information. The need to develop online communities is only expected to rise.
The American Angus Association was an early adopter of Facebook fan pages and has seen tremendous results thanks to its online efforts. Recently the Association watched fan numbers top 50,000 — the largest Facebook audience in the beef industry. The increased fan base allows the Angus breed to reach more than 300,000 Facebook users each week.
The Facebook page is a source of educational material, industry news headlines and light-hearted entertainment. To keep content fresh, the Association is always looking for new ways to present information. News articles, photos, videos and interactive competitions help keep users engaged with Angus.
For more information and the full release, click here.
NFU Submits Supportive Comments on COOL
The National Farmer’s Union (NFU) submitted comments on Monday in strong support of the proposed rule to strengthen country-of-origin labeling (COOL) regulations and offered input on additional ways to bolster the integrity of COOL. Recent decisions by the World Trade Organization (WTO) have ruled against aspects of the implementation of COOL rules.
“Farmers, ranchers, and livestock producers take pride in making high-quality products available to consumers, who can then make an educated purchasing decision at the grocery store,” said NFU President Roger Johnson in the comments. “Consumers continue to demand more information about their food. This is why it is critical that strong regulatory changes to the COOL regulation be made to promote U.S. products to our nation’s consumers.”
NFU supports the proposed rule’s requirement that each specific production step be labeled with the country in which it takes place. This will provide more information than the current method of labeling multiple countries of origin without specifying which step occurs in which country. NFU also supports the elimination of commingling allowances for muscle cuts, which will reduce confusion for consumers.
“More specific and accurate labels, together with tightening up current commingling requirements will directly respond to the problem the WTO found with the current COOL rules,” said Johnson.
The comments suggested additional ways to strengthen COOL rules. By broadening the definition of “processing” and “processed foods,” COOL standards could be applied to more products, and more regulatory adjustments could be made to encourage a standard method of COOL for food service establishments.
“NFU is very pleased by this proposed rule, as it will ensure that COOL can continue to be an important policy for all American farmers, ranchers and consumers,” said Johnson. “We appreciate the work of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in identifying a means of not only fulfilling the obligations set forth by the WTO but also strengthening the information available to consumers through COOL.”
NFU encourages farmers, ranchers, and consumers to comment on the proposed rule by visiting www.regulations.gov and searching for “Country-of-Origin Labeling.” Individuals can also support the rule by signing a petition here. The comment period closes on April 11.
Alliance Awards Fourth College
Aggies Online Competition Scholarships
The Animal Agriculture Alliance is excited to announce the results of its fourth annual College Aggies Online (CAO) scholarship competition. The nationwide program was developed to help college students utilize social media to share agriculture’s story.
CAO is an online competition open to all college students with an interest in agriculture. Since its launch in 2009, more than 980 college students from more than 100 different colleges and universities have registered to participate in the program.
CAO participants earn points by writing weekly blogs, sharing photos and videos related to agriculture, and hosting events on their campuses. This season, CAO participants were challenged to engage the public utilizing Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and LinkedIn as well as traditional media. Several participants’ work was published in newspapers including: the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, the Great Falls Tribune, the Montana Standard, Beef magazine, Cattle Call, and numerous college and local papers.
Additionally, several club teams directed and produced video parodies promoting agriculture which are available to view on YouTube. The Alliance collaborated with video “agvocate” Greg Peterson, of the famed Peterson Farm Brothers parodies; to host a webinar to inspire the participants and provide them with tips and tricks on video production.
Members of the North Dakota State University PAS/CCFA in North Dakota formed the top-scoring club with 7,069 total points. The club will receive a $5,000 scholarship and one representative will be invited to receive a complimentary trip to Washington, D.C., to attend the Alliance’s 12th annual Stakeholders Summit in Arlington, Virginia., on May 1-2, 2013.
Purdue University’s Collegiate Beef Cattle Association came in second place with 2,935 points and will receive $2,500. They were closely followed by the Montana State University’s Collegiate Montana Stockgrowers Club and Louisiana State University’s Les Voyageurs club.
Grass Not Yet Ready for Grazing
While the calendar may say it is officially spring, the weather outside in many areas may not necessarily agree. As a result, producers may want to hold off grazing for a week or so longer than in a typical year, which could help pastures build up the roots to allow for a more productive grazing season, an Ohio State University (OSU) Extension expert said.
This time last year, Ohio was at least two weeks ahead of normal in terms of pasture growth, thanks to the warmer, milder winter and early spring experienced in many areas, said Chris Penrose, an OSU Extension educator. The colder, wetter weather this year has left growth weeks behind normal, leaving grass that is not ready for grazing, he said.
“This extra period of wet weather is causing a problem because of the extra mud and not allowing time for pastures to dry out,” Penrose said. “For example, grass is just starting to grow in southeast Ohio and is probably not ready to graze.
“If we can hold off grazing for a week or two longer than in most years, I think we will be better off in the long run because we simply have not had enough heat to get things going.”
For more information and the full release, click here.
Deer Management, Controlled
Burning Groups Gaining Popularity
Spring is in full swing, and many of you have had a chance to reflect on deer and fire management activities during the past fall and winter.
For some smaller operations, successful deer population management is often difficult. Also, fall and winter probably found many landowners who had prescribed burning goals short on labor, equipment, and perhaps knowledge.
Within our service area of 100 miles around Ardmore, Okla., it appears that associations or cooperatives have the potential to help landowners with deer population management goals on small acreages, and also help landowners interested in prescribed burning.
Associations are not a new concept — many existing associations deal with agricultural commodities. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary lists six uses for the word association, but in this case “an organization of persons having a common interest” applies. In many instances, it is easier for an organization of individuals with common interests, rather than one person operating alone, to achieve goals.
In many areas of the United States, deer management associations have existed for some time. For a small-acreage landowner interested in deer population management, involvement in an association can have several benefits — not all of which involve deer management. Getting to know your neighbors, sharing labor and tools, and community involvement in managing a resource are other big benefits. However, the primary goal for most deer managers is more and bigger bucks. One of the most basic elements needed to accomplish this goal is control of buck harvest across a sufficient land area. Obviously, this is easier to achieve on 30,000 acres than on 300.
For information and the full release, click here.
Editor’s Note: The articles used within this site represent a mixture of copyrights. If you would like to reprint or repost an article, you must first request permission of Angus Productions Inc. (API) by contacting the editor at 816-383-5200; 3201 Frederick Ave., Saint Joseph, MO 64506. API claims copyright to this web site as presented. We welcome educational venues and cattlemen to link to this site as a service to their audience.