News Update
May 10, 2018
Keeping Balance
Grass and grazing animals evolved together in symbiotic relationships — each needing the other — in various grasslands around the world. The healthiest situation is to have grazers on the land in proper balance with their feed source.
Richard Teague, Texas A&M AgriLife Research rangeland ecology and management scientist in Vernon, Texas, says his goal in research is to discover what kind of management of rangeland results in the best means of restoring ecological function and sustaining farm/ranch livelihoods.
“For sustainable use of ranch lands, the key things to avoid are first overstocking and then overgrazing. Some people confuse those two things. To avoid overstocking you must make sure you don’t have too many animals; that you leave enough grass to feed the animals and to perform the ecosystem functions like shading the soil, etc. You also must avoid overgrazing, which occurs when you graze too long and don’t provide enough recovery time. No matter what the conditions are, you must try to avoid those two situations,” says Teague.
Many people believe that by just having a few animals on the landscape you can achieve those goals.
Continue reading this Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.
$111,000 Raised for Local Agricultural
Education Programs on ‘Scoops of Thanks Day’
Every scoop of fresh frozen custard mattered during Culver’s “Scoops of Thanks Day” fundraiser on May 3. Guests showed their support for agricultural education by stopping at Culver’s more than 650 restaurants and donating $1 in exchange for a single scoop of fresh frozen custard. The fundraiser is part of Culver’s Thank You Farmers® Project and raised more than $111,000.
“These young agricultural leaders are our future, and we are so thankful that our guests understand how important it is to support them and their education,” said Jessie Kreke, senior marketing manager for Culver’s. “A $1 donation may seem small, but when all that generosity adds up, we are able to make a positive difference for so many people across the country.”
The Thank You Farmers Project supports agricultural education programs, like the National FFA Organization, that encourage smart farming practices in an effort to make sure we continue to have enough food to feed our country’s growing population.
Since 2013, the Thank You Farmers Project has raised more than $1.7 million in support of the National FFA Organization, local FFA chapters and a variety of local agricultural organizations. To learn more about the program and how to get involved, visit www.culvers.com/thankyoufarmersproject.
United States Issues First-Ever WTO Counter
Notification Against India’s Market Price Support
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue May 9 announced that the United States submitted a counter notification in the World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on Agriculture (COA) on India’s market price support (MPS) for wheat and rice. Filed May 4, 2018, this is the first ever COA notification under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture regarding another country’s measures.
“The United States expects our trading partners to comply with the reporting requirements they agreed to when joining the WTO,” said Ambassador Lighthizer. “Accurate reporting and improved transparency of these programs is an important step in ensuring that our trading partners are living up to their WTO commitments and helps achieve more market-based outcomes through the multilateral trading system.”
“American farmers are the most productive and competitive in the world, and with free and fair trade, they always do well in the international marketplace,” Perdue said. “India represents a massive market, and we want greater access for U.S. products, but India must be transparent about their practices. For trade to be free and fair, all parties must abide by their WTO commitments.”
For more information, read this USDA news release online.
NFU Statement on White House Agreement on RFS
The White House convened its final scheduled meeting May 8 on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and future of the biofuel industry, bringing together lawmakers and stakeholders from the oil and biofuel industries. The meeting concluded with an agreement to allow year-round use of E15 gasoline, a limit on RFS “hardship waivers” being handed out to refiners, and the possibility that renewable identification numbers (RIN) credits could be applied to exports of renewable fuel. No cap on RIN prices, nor any offset for the hardship waivers that were handed out to large refiners were included in the agreement.
National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson said in response to the announcement:
“While there are certainly positives coming out of this meeting, there are several major potential pitfalls that will need to be mitigated as the administration sets out to implement these policies.
“Farmers Union supports the administration’s promises to make E15 available for year-round use, yet it is absolutely essential we move our transportation fuel market into higher blends of ethanol like E30. We also appreciate that a cap will not be put on RIN prices, as this would disincentivize the blending of homegrown, renewable fuels in our transportation fuel sector.
Learn more in this NFU news release online.
Free Beef Quality Assurance Training Offered in Athens
The Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) would like to invite beef producers to attend a free training to help them raise consumer confidence by offering proper management techniques and a commitment to quality within every segment of the beef industry. The Texas Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program will be hosted on Wednesday, May 23, 2018, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Hart-Morris Conservation Center in Athens, Texas.
The event will begin at 2 p.m. and includes a complimentary beef dinner.
The Texas BQA program will cover BQA principles, recordkeeping, environmental stewardship and proper management practices associated with genetic selection, cattle handling, culling, vaccination, medicinal treatment and other important topics.
If planning to attend, please register by calling 800-242-7820, ext. 192, or visiting www.texasbeefquality.com.
The event will be located at 5601 County Road 4812, Athens, TX 75752.
The Texas BQA program is a collaborative effort of the TSCRA, Texas Beef Council and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.
The Texas BQA program is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim.
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