News Update
October 7, 2016
Cowboy Stories
Getting bucked off the first time; pulling the oil plug before the engine cools; delivering a calf in a tough situation without Dad, Mom or the vet’s help; or making that first cattle purchase — these are the kinds of experiences that tend to stick with us. More often than not, these are life moments that have their own storyline, and over time the lessons learned from both success and failure become the heart of the matter.
It has been said that the difference between a fairy tale and a cowboy story is that a fable begins with the phrase, “Once upon a time in a land far away,” while the cowboy precedes each recounting with the statement, “No kidding, this really did happen.”
For more information, please view the full Angus Journal column online.
Broad Beef Producer Input Sought for
2016 National Beef Quality Audit
Beef producers all across the country, from every segment of the industry, are being encouraged to participate in a survey that will help establish a benchmark and course for the beef industry for 2017 and beyond. The Producer Survey of the checkoff-funded 2016 National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA) will collect producer information and opinions, which will be added to the audit’s traditional production research to form an in-depth look at where the industry stands and what its successes and shortcomings are.
“It’s very important that every interested producer weigh in with their information and opinions,” according to Jesse Fulton, NBQA audit manager. “By having substantial participation in the survey across all industry segments, we create the best opportunity for determining where the industry is and where we need to take it.”
The survey will be completely anonymous and include both information about the industry’s cattle operations and the opinions of the people who run them about the strengths and weaknesses of the industry. Input from every segment of the industry — cow-calf, stocker, feeder, dairy and others — is valued and will become part of the detailed picture of the U.S. cattle industry. The survey can be accessed at the Beef Quality Assurance website at www.bqa.org/nbqa-producer-survey.
For more information, please view the full Checkoff news release online.
BoviBrom®-treated Meat Approved for Export to Japan
Passport® Food Safety Solutions Inc. is excited to announce regulatory approval for BoviBrom®-treated meat to be exported to the Japanese market.
BoviBrom is a broad-spectrum, postharvest antimicrobial that has been proven highly effective in reducing levels of Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 on red meat proteins in multiple applications and interventions in the United States and Canada.
“BoviBrom’s regulatory approval has been highly anticipated in the industry, and we’re eager to bring this product back to market,” said Tom Nicholson, CEO of Passport Food Safety Solutions Inc. “BoviBrom fills an industry need for a highly efficacious and safe intervention and is a centerpiece of our product portfolio.”
Approved for use on beef, pork and lamb carcasses, BoviBrom is easy to configure with many existing spray-chill systems. It can be used in a wide range of concentrations, pressures, temperatures and volumes, and is equally effective in cold and warm water. At recommended concentrations, BoviBrom’s non-corrosive nature is compatible with concrete, steel and other common construction materials.
For more information, please view the full news release online.
NIFA Announces $2.5 Million Grant
for Infectious Disease Research
Every human, animal and plant is home to a range of microbes, mostly helpful, some harmful. How does this community of microorganisms contribute to the prevention or spread of disease? On Oct. 4, the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced a fiscal year (FY) 2016 grant of $2.5 million to the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill to help answer some of these questions by studying the microbiome of tall fescue.
This is one of several grants awarded through the Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases (EEID) program, an interagency collaboration among the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) of the USDA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation. The EEID program supports research to better understand how disease is spread to humans, plants and animals. This research can ultimately help American farmers combat infectious diseases that affect the health of crops and livestock animals.
The University of North Carolina project focuses on tall fescue, an agriculturally important grass, often used for forage and erosion control.
For more information, please view the full USDA release online.
Gerrish and Bradley Featured Speakers
at 2016 Missouri Livestock Symposium
Forage production and animal management are key components to profitability in many livestock operations. According to Garry Mathes, chair of the 2016 Missouri Livestock Symposium, producers have benefited from an outstanding year in forage production. With decreasing livestock prices, having a solid forage base is an excellent way of controlling cow costs moving forward.
“As a result, our planning committee wanted to address topics aimed at helping producers make smart investments and explore opportunities for the future,” he said.
To accomplish this objective, a lineup of nationally acclaimed speakers will be on hand to address these topics and answer questions.
The Missouri Livestock Symposium welcomes back forages expert Jim Gerrish from Patterson, Idaho. Jim will address five topics in the forages section, including, “Spring Pasture Management,” “Why Fall Calving Makes Sense in Tall Fescue Country,” “Integrating Livestock into Farming Systems for Soil Health,” “Matching Cover Crop Choices with Livestock Enterprises,” and “Managing Clover/Grass Balance.”
The second featured forages speaker is Kevin Bradley, University of Missouri Extension state weed specialist. Bradley has conducted many research projects focusing on best management practices of weed control and his talk is titled, “Pasture Weed Control.”
For more information, visit the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events.
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