News Update

June 25, 2013

American Angus Auxiliary Heifer Purchased for $5,500

Promoting youth and the Angus breed is a main priority for the American Angus Auxiliary. Thanks to Tom McGinnis of Heritage Farm, Shelbyville, Ky., who purchased the 2013 American Angus Auxiliary Heifer, the tradition continues. The heifer brought $5,500 during the All-American Angus Breeders’ Futurity on June 16 in Louisville, Ky.

Through her earnings, the elite female EXAR Rita 5681, donated from Express Ranches of Yukon, Okla., will provide for many Angus youth in the continuation of their education. The October 2011 daughter of Connealy Consensus 7229 offers a long line of top-quality genetics including GAR EXT 614, a female whose progeny have broken several individual sale records in Angus breed history.

“We sincerely thank the donors, Express Ranches, and buyers, Heritage Farm, for helping us in our commitment to the Angus breed and its junior members,” says Cortney Hill-Dukehart Cates, Auxiliary president. “We’re thrilled about the opportunity that this will bring to others and continuing our mission.”

McGinnis says the heifer comes from some of the best genetics in the business right now, and he’s excited to incorporate her into his herd.

“Because of their commitment to Angus youth through scholarships and award endowments, I feel fortunate to be able to help the American Angus Auxiliary in its mission,” McGinnis says. “Purchasing the Auxiliary heifer is a worthwhile investment, and I am glad to see those dollars being passed on to the next generation of Angus leaders.”

For more information, please view the full release here.

— Adapted from a release written by Laurin Spraberry for the
American Angus Association.

Download Angus Mobile Before the 2013 NJAS

Prior to arriving at the National Junior Angus Show (NJAS) in Kansas City, Mo., be sure and download the latest version of the Angus Mobile smartphone application. Angus Mobile allows users to keep up with events and have all of the latest Angus information at their fingertips.

“Members attending the 2013 NJAS and at home will have access to recent Angus news,” says Robin Ruff, Association director of junior activities. “Full coverage of the show before and after will be accessible for all Angus enthusiasts.”

NJAS updates are available using Angus Mobile 2.0, and the app is free to anyone with a smartphone or tablet. Once the app is installed, the “events section” can be found under the “more tab” button at the bottom of the screen. Select the “National Junior Angus Show 2013” button and scroll through alerts, schedules, show results, maps, restaurants and more.

After the event is over, members can use the Angus Mobile app to help keep their Angus operations and news organized. The app offers tools such as a calving book, gestation calculator and serves as a direct link to the Association database in Saint Joseph, Mo. Also, the event section will be updated throughout the year to share coverage of other Angus events.

The Angus Mobile app is compatible with the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S iPod touch (third generation and forth generation) and iPad. It requires iOS 5.0 or later, which can also be downloaded through iTunes and installed by connecting the iPhone to a computer.

— Adapted from a release written by Laurin Spraberry for the
American Angus Association.

NCBA Educates Capitol Hill on Antibiotic Use in Livestock

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) gave an overview June 24 to more than 70 congressional staff members on antibiotics used in food producing animals as part of NCBA’s “Beef 101” educational series.

“Beef 101” is an educational program for members of Congress and their staff, developed to continually educate those on Capitol Hill on issues important to the beef industry. Today’s session featured a presentation by veterinarian Mike Apley, a clinical pharmacologist with Kansas State University, who discussed with attendees the judicious use of antibiotics in the beef industry as one of the critical tools to prevent the spread of disease and maintain a healthy herd.

“The goal of producers is to manage cattle to avoid infectious diseases. Antibiotics are a valuable resource for treating both human and animal diseases,” Apley said. “Farmers and ranchers work with veterinarians to implement comprehensive herd-health management plans, and it’s important for veterinarians and producers to have the ability to best manage herd health and raise healthy cattle, which ultimately means a safe food supply.”

“Producers use antibiotics under the guidance of a veterinarian, and extensive regulations govern the use of animal health drugs. Many factors go into ensuring that veterinarians, farmers and ranchers have access to effective antibiotics to maintain animal health,” said Apley. “Unfortunately, there are a lot of misconceptions and outright misrepresentations about why and how antibiotics are used in the cattle industry. The truth is, cattle producers and veterinarians utilize many tools including vaccines, herd-health management, genetics and animal nutrition to continue producing the world’s safest beef.”

For more information, please view the full release here.

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

U.S. House Farm Bill Defeat Could Lead to
More Extensions from 2008 Farm Bill

The defeat of the U.S. House farm bill on June 20 over disagreements in cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and costs associated with crop insurance and other farm subsidies could lead to another extension of some provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill, similar to what happened last year after Congress could not agree on a new 2012 farm bill, an Ohio State University farm policy expert said.

A new farm bill likely won’t pass until legislators are able to cobble together a majority coalition in a politically divided Congress, which in turn reflects a divided country and a divided farm bill constituency, said Carl Zulauf, an agricultural economics professor in Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.

The Republican-led House defeated the five-year, $500 billion measure by a vote of 234-195, with many Democrats concerned about $20.5 billion in cuts to SNAP and other food nutrition programs. On the other hand, 62 Republicans voted no because of concerns about the cost of the bill.

Now, Zulauf said, the real question is, “What do we do from here?”

“It’s not clear why individual members voted against this bill — the SNAP program was an issue, as was cost,” he said. “But in my experience, few legislators vote against a bill for a single reason.

“It’s really important to understand the broadly divergent individual reasons lawmakers voted against the bill. Only by attaining this understanding can you arrive at a compromise that will pass. The objective is to get a bill passed. The farm bill is an omnibus bill and thus has to satisfy a broad range of constituency concerns in order to move the bill forward.”

For more information, please view the full release here.

— Adapted from a release by Ohio State University.

Animal Disease Traceability Forum to be Hosted in Denver

March 11 of this year marked a major day for the U.S. livestock industry as the date the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Services final rule on animal traceability took effect. March 11 was just the start, as now all involved industry parties must be on the same page.

To that end, the National Institute for Animal Agriculture (NIAA) and U.S. Animal Health Association (USAHA) have partnered again to provide a platform where parties involved in animal disease traceability can discuss avenues to ensure success of the rule’s implementation plus address possible bumps in the road and how to work through these challenges.

The “Joint Strategy Forum on Animal Disease Traceability: Bringing Industry and Regulatory Leaders Together to Create Sensible Solutions” is set for Aug. 6 and 7, at the Renaissance Denver Hotel, Denver, Colo. The Forum features more than 25 speakers and moderators from across animal agriculture, plus several breakout sessions where participants can provide input and bring forth their concerns and questions.

“While we are extremely pleased that USDA APHIS listened to the voices of livestock producers when drafting the ADT (animal disease traceability) rule, there’s always a learning curve,” states Victor Velez, co-chair of the joint ADT Forum.

“The forum developed by NIAA and USAHA will allow for much-needed interaction between those impacted by the animal traceability ruling. It’s the ideal gathering place for state and tribal animal health officials, animal producers, livestock marketers, and handlers and meat processors, as well as state and national livestock show officials and rodeo officials. We also encourage veterinarians and industry organization representatives to attend as they are vital to ADT outreach and education.”

Velez underscores that the end goal is consensus on consistency and harmony of ADT final rule compliance.

“We want all pieces in place and all parties involved in animal traceability in the United States fully informed to ensure a rapid response should an animal disease event take place,” Velez states. —Adapted from a release by the National Institute for Animal Agriculture.

— Adapted from a release by the National Institute for Animal Agriculture.

— Compiled by Lynsey Meharg, intern, Angus Journal.