Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the seventh Young Dairy Leaders Institute in Albuquerque, New Mex. This two-year leadership program is sponsored by the Holstein Foundation and a nationally recognized...
Meeting in Arlington, Va., near the nation's capital, the 50th Annual Meeting of the National Mastitis Council was both festive and productive. There was plenty of fun and reminiscing sprinkled amid the...
Three reports came available recently. So, instead of focusing on one topic, today we will touch on three. Last week, the Dairy Industry Advisory Committee (DIAC) met in Washington and reviewed a final...
If you read our most recent issue, you would've noticed an article by Frank Mitloehner from the University of California- Davis who is taking the time to set the record straight on the dairy industry's...
We're familiar with the benefits of by-products in rations such as whole cottonseed, brewers grains, and beet pulp. When products like these can be successfully utilized by using all available parts, it...
The demand for corn continues to grow due, in part, to the federal government's ethanol mandate and the world's growing population. As this occurs, corn growers are planting the crop on land that is not...
When you're contemplating selections at the grocery store, do you ever stop and consider grabbing an off-brand? After all, its probably exactly the same, right? Now picture this scenario in the dairy case....
Most people would agree that dehorning cattle not only protects animals from each other, but it also protects employees who work with them. While dehorning, the process of removing horn buds from a calf,...
Rollover protection systems (ROPS) save lives. When ROPS are used with seat belts, 99 percent of tractor drivers survive rollover accidents. And, even if the seat belt isn't worn, 70 percent of drivers...
The holidays are usually spent with family and friends,sharing stories and reminiscing about recent activities. If you have a small holiday gathering with just those you work with, you will likely learn...
USDA just announced they are set to publish their 2,300-plus page Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in the Federal Register, nearly four years after U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer halted the sale...
Years ago, bunkers were only known as a military hide-out. Those bunkers were safe. The bunkers on our dairy farms can be anything but. Deaths can and do occur because of poor face management, accidental...
The December sire evaluations are ready for your review. We have created lists for all seven breeds. In the Holsteins, the Top 100 bulls for Net Merit are listed. All bulls must be in the top 40 percentile...
Chinese milk production will reach 67 billion pounds in 2011, up 5 percent from 2010. This is among the forecasts of a USDA Foreign Ag Service GAIN report (Global Agricultural Information Network). China's...
The North American 4-H Dairy Quiz Bowl contest was held on Saturday, November 6th in Louisville, Ky. Twenty teams competed in the national double-elimination contest which celebrated its 31st year. High...
Memo to Chile: Don't seal up that mine just yet. "Hide and Ignore" appears to be a political strategy across the Atlantic, where the 27-member European Commission has proposed a five-year ban on animal...
Scattered amongst the countless commercial booths at World Dairy Expo, you'll find products of all shapes and sizes. But one theme that is popping up all over the show is the newest direction in dairy...
After sorting through the plethora of product handouts, notepads, and writing utensils from the trade show, the cream of the crop freebies make themselves known. At the Cottonseed booth (EH 4107) you can...
Last week, I received a newsletter from my local bank giving parents financial tips for their college students. Some of the items were common sense, but, if their children have never had to handle a budget,...
The deep financial cuts suffered by Western dairy producers last year still have a long way to go before they heal, but attitudes out there really do seem to be getting better. In recent weeks, we've visited...
