News Update

November 24, 2014

Delay of 2014 RFS Volume Standards

Nov. 14, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a notice announcing that it will not be finalizing 2014 volume standards under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program before the end of 2014.

The proposed rule, issued in November 2013, generated a significant number of comments, particularly on the proposal’s ability to ensure continued progress toward achieving the law’s renewable fuel targets.

Due to the delay in finalizing the standards for 2014, and given ongoing consideration of the issues presented by the commenters, the agency intends to take action on the 2014 standards rule in 2015. One of EPA’s objectives is to get back on the annual statutory timeline by addressing 2014, 2015 and 2016 standards in the next calendar year.

View a prepublication version of the notice here: http://epa.gov/otaq/fuels/renewablefuels/regulations.htm.

National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson called the EPA announcement a “serious disappointment.” Johnson also noted that NFU remains hopeful the delay will allow the agency to return the RFS target levels back to the statutory targets.

“Ethanol and all biofuels have been the best thing to happen to farm country in generations, and the volume standards that are supposed to be set by EPA are a significant help in establishing the market for biofuels,” said Johnson. “Rural America and the biofuels industries rely heavily on these targets for planning and investment purposes. Any hint that the administration might not be fully behind renewable fuels is a major step back for working farmers and the biofuels industries.”

For the full NFU release, please click here.

— Adapted from releases by the EPA and the NFU.

Improved Diagnostic Testing for Animal Diseases Starts with Standardization of Lab Methods and USDA-Approved Diagnostics Kits

In conjunction with the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD) and U.S. Animal Health Association (USAHA) meetings hosted recently in Kansas City, Mo., experts talked about the need to implement consistent standards for all types of food-animal disease-diagnostic testing. They agreed that having standards at each stage of the diagnostic process — from on-farm sample collection to laboratory testing and the interpretation of results — is the best foundation for providing diagnostic results veterinarians and livestock producers can trust time after time.

Relatively new guidelines developed by the AAVLD have given member laboratories a process to follow and specific criteria for validating and documenting development of new assays.

As veterinary diagnostics move toward greater standardization, experts recommend that veterinarians and farmers become more engaged in determining the diagnostic services best suited for their businesses.

For more information, please view the full release here.

— Adapted from a release by Thermo Fisher Scientific.

Cattle on Feed: United States Cattle on Feed Up Slightly

Cattle and calves on feed for slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 10.6 million head on Nov. 1, 2014. The inventory was slightly above Nov. 1, 2013.

Placements in feedlots during October totaled 2.36 million, 1% below 2013. Net placements were 2.26 million head. During October, placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds (lb.) were 690,000; 600-699 lb. were 570,000; 700-799 lb. were 462,000; and 800 lb. and greater were 635,000. For the month of October, placements are the second lowest since the series began in 1996.

Marketings of fed cattle during October totaled 1.69 million, 8% below 2013. October marketings are the lowest since the series began in 1996.

Other disappearance totaled 97,000 during October, 28% above 2013.

Number of Cattle on Feed, Placements, Marketings, and Other Disappearance On 1,000+ Capacity Feedlots —- United States: Nov. 1, 2013 and 2014
Item	Number		Percent Previous Year
Item	2013	2014	Percent Previous Year
	(1,000 head)	(1,000 head)	(percent)
On feed October 1	10,110	10,058	99
Placed on feed during October	2,378	2,357	99
Fed cattle marketed during October	1,827	1,685	92
Other disappearance during October	76	97	128
On feed November 1	10,585	10,633	100

For more information, please view the full release here.

— Adapted from a release by the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Hosts 2nd Annual Poetry Competition on YouTube

The Western Folklife Center and its 31st National Cowboy Poetry Gathering announced the launch of the 2nd annual spoken-word poetry competition on YouTube for poets ages 18-35. Expressing the Rural West: Poetry of the Next Generation is an effort to discover new artists who are carrying on the tradition of rural and cowboy poetry in the West.

Poets are invited to submit videos that include an artist introduction and do not exceed four minutes in length. Submissions may not contain curse words or explicit imagery and must be original compositions. Content should have a rural focus and poems should be performed and not read. Poets must be currently living in one of the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington or Wyoming.

Poems will be judged by the public, as well as by a committee of two professional poets and two staff members of the Western Folklife Center. There will be a winner of the public vote and a winner of the juried competition. The winner of the public vote will receive two free three-day deluxe passes to the 31st National Cowboy Poetry Gathering and a free Gathering poster. The winner of the juried competition will be given a performance slot at the event and must be able to travel between Jan. 28 to Feb. 1, 2015. Travel and lodging will be paid by the Western Folklife Center.

Guidelines for the competition can be found on the Expressing the Rural West: Poetry of the Next Generation YouTube channel. Participants should tag their entries: “2015 Youth Poetry Competition.” Public judging will end on Dec. 21 and our judges will select a winner by Dec. 23. Winners will be notified via email or on their YouTube video page. The event will be Jan. 26-31, 2014.

For more information, please view the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.

— Adapted from a release by the Western Folklife Center.

Coastal Bend Classic Slated Dec. 5-6 in Sinton, Texas

Speakers and judges from throughout the country are scheduled to travel to the Texas Gulf Coast next month to partake in the Coastal Bend Classic Clinic and Show, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service organizers.

The fifth annual event for area 4-H and FFA members is scheduled to take place Dec. 5-6 at the San Patricio County Fairgrounds, 219 W. 5th Street, Sinton.

Topics and speakers/judges will include:

– Swine clinic — Kelton Mason, sponsored by Linder Feeds, Montgomery, Texas.
– Beef — Jay Carr, sponsored by Purina Honor Show Chow, Sudan, Texas.
– Lamb — Jeff Ripley, AgriLife Extension, College Station.
– Goat — Mark Morris, sponsored by Purina Honor Show Chow, Beeville.

Registration is $30 and can be made online at http://d114-h.tamu.edu/events-and-contests/coastal-bend-classic/.

For more information, please view the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.

— Adapted from a release by Rod Santa Ana, Texas A&M AgriLife Communications.

— Compiled by Paige Nelson, field editor, Angus Journal.

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