News Update
August 16, 2016
Angus Juniors Rise Up in Phoenix
National Junior Angus Association (NJAA) members recently traveled to Phoenix, Ariz., for the Leaders Engaged in Angus Development (LEAD) conference. Angus juniors from 29 states, as well as two from Canada, attended this year’s event Aug. 4-7 to participate in the annual leadership experience sponsored by the Angus Foundation.
“LEAD is an opportunity for our junior members to step away from the showring and socialize with their peers from around the U.S.,” says National Junior Angus Board (NJAB) Chair Macy Perry, Prather, Calif. “It gives juniors a chance to build relationships that will last a lifetime.”
The LEAD conference is hosted for youth ages 14-21 years old, and this year’s theme was “Rise Up in Phoenix.” While traveling in the Southwest, participants spent two days focused on agriculture, visiting Agritopia, an urban agriculture center; Queen Creek Olive Mill; Arid Zone Trees; Pinal Feeding Co.; and Danzeisen Dairy.
Read more in the Angus news release online.
Increasing Cow Efficiency
Reproductive efficiency is central to every cow-calf operation, and cattle producers should understand maternal trends within the herd to make improvements. The American Angus Association’s MaternalPlus® program is an effective recordkeeping system that captures data on breeding, calving and pregnancy, and is used to develop selection tools for cow productivity and longevity.
California Angus breeder Bryce Borror explains the producer benefits for MaternalPlus.
“MaternalPlus is something that every producer needs to enroll in to see how their cows are actually doing,” he says. “We’ve actually kept weaning record, but this is actually linking together longevity and making sure that cow breeds back every year.”
Borror says through the MaternalPlus program, producers can more accurately calculate a cow’s longevity and cull their herd based on that.
To learn more about MaternalPlus, tune into this week’s The Angus Report online. You can catch the program at 1:30 p.m. CST Saturday or 7 a.m. CST each Monday morning on RFD-TV.
Future Angus Stockmen: Scholarship Application Available
Aimed at fostering the next generation of commercial cattle producers, the Future Angus Stockmen program, established by the American Angus Association, offers opportunities for young cattlemen and women to gain the knowledge and tools they need to be successful.
Now in its second year, Future Angus Stockmen is proud to partner with Allfex USA to award a $1,000 scholarship to a college student involved in the commercial Angus business. Applicants must be enrolled in the Future Angus Stockmen program, and applications are available online and must be returned by Friday, Sept. 16.
The winner will be notified in October 2016, and the scholarship presented during the Angus Convention, hosted Nov. 5-7 in Indianapolis, Ind. Applications will be judged on the participant’s future agriculture career path, passion for beef cattle and leadership experiences within the industry.
For more information, view the Angus Media news article online.
Custom-made Pinkeye Control
Herd health management for disease prevention is crucial today, and vaccination is an important aspect of most herd health programs.
However, if a producer is using a vaccine that does not provide adequate protection or does not include an antigen for the specific pathogen causing disease, another option is to develop an autogenous vaccine. A sample containing the pathogen(s) can be sent to a laboratory for isolation and identification of pathogens and vaccine production for that herd.
Paul Cotterill, Cherryvale Veterinary Clinic, Cherryvale, Kan., has used various autogenous vaccines for about 15 years.
“The pinkeye vaccines seem to work,” he says. “We have now given over 100,000 doses of autogenous pinkeye vaccine. This gives a pretty good idea about efficacy.”
Continue reading in the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.
Cornell University Professor Explains Religious Slaughter
Religious slaughter has the goal of producing good food for all — scientifically, culturally, religiously and emotionally, said Joe Regenstein, professor emeritus of food science at Cornell University and head of the Cornell Kosher and Halal Food Initiative. He spoke to more than 100 attendees from five countries at the fifth International Symposium on Beef Cattle Welfare (ISBCW) in Manhattan, Kan., June 8-10.
He shared some initial clarifications, saying both kosher and halal are not classified as such because of blessings. A product is or is not kosher or halal according to whether it follows the rules, not because the rabbi or imam is there, he explained. The rabbi and imam provide a third-party audit to assure that the rules are followed. However, both groups do say a blessing with respect to slaughter: Muslims bless each animal, and Jews bless each batch of animals.
So, what are the rules? Generally, kosher and halal cover the allowed animals and the prohibition of blood, he explained. Kosher allows ruminants with split hooves and that chew their cud, such as a cow, sheep, goat, deer and giraffe.
Read more in the Angus Media article online.
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