News Update
January 5, 2016
Donnelly Named Beef Business Manager for Minnesota Select Sires Co-Op Inc.
Minnesota Select Sires Co-Op Inc. announces the addition of Daniel Donnelly as beef business manager. Donnelly will oversee beef sales, service programs and products, as well as grow and develop beef programs in Minnesota and North Dakota. He will recruit and direct independent beef representatives and conduct artificial insemination (AI) training programs.
Donnelly, a native of Farmington, Minn., is a December 2014 graduate of North Dakota State University where he received a bachelor’s degree in ag economics with a minor in animal science. Most recently he served as the Australian ambassador for the American Shorthorn Association, establishing relationships with Shorthorn breeders and marketing genetics. Donnelly has held other internships with River Country Cooperative and Minnesota Select Sires Co-Op Inc. and worked for Jungels Shorthorn Farm and Minnesota State Fair where he gained AI training, sales and livestock handling experience.
“We couldn’t be more delighted that Dan has chosen to return to our cooperative after his internship two years ago,” says Chris Sigurdson, general manager, Minnesota Select Sires Co-Op Inc. “His passion for beef and our customers’ breeding success will help us with the unprecedented expansion of commercial beef producers using Select Sires genetics in North Dakota and Minnesota.”
Kentucky State Fair Awards
Include KDA Youth, Veterans Programs
The Kentucky State Fair brought home numerous awards from the International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE) Convention in Las Vegas, including two that involved Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) programs.
“The Kentucky State Fair is one of the premier fairs in the nation, and these awards prove it,” Agriculture Commissioner James Comer said. “It’s especially gratifying that the IAFE recognized two Kentucky Department of Agriculture programs that we created last year.”
The fair placed second in the agricultural awards program for the Kentucky Farm to School Junior Chef competition, in which high school cooking teams from each of Kentucky’s 16 regions meet to determine the state champion. The Junior Chef competition, which is part of the KDA’s Farm to School Program, encourages high school students to learn how to cook by using local ingredients to prepare healthy meals, while at the same time teaching students about agriculture, marketing, organization, teamwork and community involvement.
In the competitive exhibits awards division, the fair earned second place for the department’s Homegrown By Heroes display in the West Hall of the Kentucky Exposition Center. The display honored Kentucky’s military veterans. Homegrown By Heroes is a brand under the Kentucky Proud umbrella that designates farm products produced by Kentucky veterans.
Comer launched Homegrown By Heroes and the Farm to School Junior Chef competition in 2013. It became a national brand in November 2013.
The Kentucky State Fair also took first place in the competitive exhibits awards division for the 4-H Cloverville Country Ham exhibit and won third for the fairy garden category in the plants and flowers department. The fair won a second and two third-place awards in the communication division.
The KDA plays a significant role at the state fair. KDA employees inspect amusement rides, check livestock health papers, conduct livestock shows and judging competitions, build and staff exhibits, and perform many other tasks to help keep the fair running smoothly.
For more information about the Farm to School Junior Chef program, go to www.kyagr.com/consumer/farm-to-school.html. To find out more about Homegrown By Heroes, go to www.kyproud.com/veterans/.
Alabama Extension Offers Additional Farm Bill Training
Farmers looking to make sense of the 2014 Farm Bill may attend one of nine educational meetings across the state in January.
Extension economist Robert Page said the organization’s next round of training sessions will include a computer lab so farmers can work with Extension and Farm Service Agency professionals.
“These will be smaller workshops than our December meetings,” Page said. “We will show producers how to use an online decision tool. That tool will help them make more-informed choices about the farm bill program options available.”
Farm Bill Education Meetings:
- Tuesday, Jan. 13 — Baldwin County Extension Office, Bay Minette, 251-937-7176
- Wednesday, Jan. 14 — Wiregrass Research & Extension Center, Headland, 334-693-2363
- Wednesday, Jan. 21 — Monroe County Extension Office, Monroeville, 251-575-3477
- Thursday, Jan. 22 — E.V. Smith Research & Extension Center, Shorter, 334-727-7403
- Friday, Jan. 23 — Lee County Extension Office, Opelika, 334-749-3353
- Monday, Jan. 26 — Sand Mountain Research & Extension Center, Crossville, 256-528-7133
- Tuesday, Jan. 27 — Black Belt Experiment Station, Marion Junction, 334-872-7878
- Wednesday, Jan. 28 — Morgan County Extension Office, Hartselle, 256-773-2549
- Friday, Jan. 30 — Lawrence County Extension Office, Moulton, 256-974-2464
Each meeting will begin at 10 a.m. with an overview of the farm bill and a comprehensive presentation on using online decision tools. At 1 p.m., producers will work in the computer lab. To use the online tools, producers must set up a user identity with a password.
Page asks interested farmers to contact the facility hosting the session they plan to attend and register by phone. Producers can register for the morning session, the afternoon session or both. During the afternoon hands-on exercises, seating will be limited to ensure all participants have computer-access.
For more information, please view the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.
High Plains Irrigation Conference set for Jan. 15 in Amarillo
The annual High Plains Irrigation Conference will be Jan. 15 in the North Exhibit Hall of the Amarillo Civic Center, 401 S. Buchanan St., Amarillo.
The program, hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas Agricultural Irrigation Association, will address a wide variety of topics of interest to the general public, as well as to agricultural producers, landowners, crop consultants and irrigation professionals, said Dana Porter, program coordinator and AgriLife Extension agricultural engineering specialist-irrigation and water management, Lubbock.
A concurrent trade show also will provide opportunities for attendees to see new products and technologies and to visit with experts from industry, non-profit organizations and agencies.
Registration will be onsite only, beginning at 8 a.m., with the program starting at 8:30 a.m. The fee is $30.
Topics include:
- Agricultural water issues and how local/regional applied research programs are answering critical questions
- Implementing the state water plan: Agricultural water conservation strategies in the Panhandle Regional Water Plan
- Updates on SWIFT, groundwater rules, legislative actions and other hot topics
- Update from the Texas Alliance for Water Conservation
- Practical implications of applied irrigation research
- Water management considerations in integrated pest management
- Irrigation “ex-spurts”: Tips on maintenance, management and troubleshooting to get the most from your irrigation system
For more information, please view the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.
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