News Update

April 20, 2018

Importance of Passive
Immunity for Calves

Andy Acton, Deep South Animal Clinic, Ogema, Sask., Canada, says there are additional factors gained from colostrum, and not just the antibodies absorbed when calves suckle the first time. “There’s also some absorption of white blood cells of different kinds from their mother’s colostrum. These are not present in a colostrum replacer you’d buy.”

Calves get more protection from the dam’s colostrum than from a commercial product. Some of the immune modulators that are not actual antibodies are important to the calf, he says.

Newborns have a limited window of time to absorb antibodies from colostrum. The optimal time is during the first six hours of life, but it may be less in certain conditions — perhaps just the first two hours in cold weather, says Acton. There are factors that shorten this window, and also some things that lengthen it.

As soon as the calf suckles, the “open gut” starts to close to prevent absorption of pathogens. Suckling stimulates the gut to close, because it’s always a race between the antibodies from colostrum and pathogens the calf might ingest.

Continue reading this Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.

— Adapted from an article by Heather Smith Thomas for Angus Journal.

ABS Global Announces Divestiture of Powerline Genetics

ABS Global announces the divestiture of Powerline Genetics, bull marketing business. A purchaser for the business is being sought. Current Powerline multipliers and customers are in process of being notified and service will continue throughout the transition period.

“This decision was not made without a great deal of due diligence and review of our strategy for the future,” said Richard Jenkins, head of North America beef for ABS Global. “ABS is committed to focusing on our growing core business of delivering genetics through artificial insemination, and we will continue business as usual. Focusing resources toward our core business and opportunities around that are key.”

Such opportunities include ABS programs like InFocus (beef-on-dairy) and NuEra Genetics™, and will benefit from focused genetic development efforts.

“We deeply value the relationships we’ve made through our work with Powerline Genetics,” Jenkins continued. “We sincerely thank our customers and partners for their loyalty and efforts.”

— Adapted from a release by ABS Global.

Nevada Rancher: Federal Regulation of Groundwater Could Be Worse Than WOTUS

Testifying on behalf of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) and the Public Lands Council (PLC), Nevada rancher Joe Guild April 18 warned members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works that federal regulation of groundwater under the Clean Water Act would have a detrimental impact on America’s cattle producers.

“One of the most complex environmental issues facing our country in recent history has been the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) attempted definition of Waters of the United States, known simply as WOTUS,” Guild testified. “NCBA has worked hard and continues working to ensure that the definition of WOTUS is not expanded to include water that Congress never intended to regulate. However, if the EPA finds authority to regulate discharges to surface water via groundwater, any progress made on this front will be lost. The regulation of groundwater has the potential to impact even more cattle operations than the damaging 2015 WOTUS definition.”

Guild told Senators about how the Carson River and a tributary run through part of a ranch that he manages in western Nevada and how he works to move his cattle away from the water to keep it clean.

For more information, read the NCBA news release online.

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

USCA Member Alert

The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) granted a request for an extension of the deadline for the United States Cattlemen’s Association's (USCA) petition to define the terms ‘beef’ and ‘meat.’

The request originated from the North American Meat Institute (NAMI), who asked the deadline be moved to accommodate the next meeting of their Board of Directors, which is to be on April 19, 2018. In its request, NAMI said, “this petition and plethora of issues it raises will be a focal point of the Board’s discussion ... the Meat Institute requests the comment period be extended to allow its Board of Directors an opportunity to consider carefully the array of important issues presented to best enable NAMI to provide comprehensive comments to the agency.”

The new deadline to submit your letters of support is Thursday, May 17, 2018.

— Adapted from a release by the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association.

Farm Leaders Visit Opioid Memorial in Show of Unity

The presidents of the nation’s two largest general farm organizations April 17 visited the “Prescribed to Death” opioid memorial in Washington, D.C., in a show of unity to address the national opioid epidemic that is disproportionately affecting farming communities.

American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall and National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson joined Anne Hazlett, assistant to the secretary for rural development at the USDA. The three toured the exhibit, which memorializes the 22,000 people who died from a prescription opioid overdose in 2015.

“Rural Americans are often ashamed or embarrassed to talk about family members who struggle with addiction,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said. “We know this is a difficult conversation, but we all need to talk about this problem to get help for those we care about. And people who are struggling with addiction need to know it’s all right to ask for help. Our rural communities are strong enough to overcome this struggle.”

“The only way farming communities are going to overcome the opioid epidemic is if local communities and local governments make it a priority,” said NFU President Roger Johnson.

Learn more in the full Farm Bureau news release online.

— Adapted from a release by the American Farm Bureau Federation.

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