With record-low hay stocks, many farms will need to stretch their forage supplies. by Abby Huibregtse, Hoard's Dairyman Associate Editor The USDA recently released estimates for hay in storage, and it's...
Producers have options for identifying ketotic cows, but some methods are better than others. Cows that do not adapt to the negative energy balance experienced after calving are candidates for developing...
Americans spend over 40 percent of their food dollars on meals prepared outside the home. Is that because they eat out nearly half the time? Not necessarily. The cost of eating out is expensive
Expensive corn and ever-increasing demand from China and other foreign buyers are expected to keep alfalfa hay from becoming cheap in the West in 2013, according to longtime market expert Seth Hoyt (pictured)
Drought-stressed alfalfa fields need extra attention "Lack of water at optimal times cannot be made up later with additional rains or irrigation," said Dan Undersander, when discussing the state of alfalfa...
Utah veterinarian and dairy consultant Bob Corbett (pictured) doesn't look like a rabble-rouser, but he's a real militant when it comes to blowing up long-held ideas about feeding calves and heifers
J and Allan Schanbacher have never planted oats any time but early spring. But this year they planted 63 acres in mid-August as they scramble to make up for drought-ravaged hay and corn crops
In a state often fraught with regulatory burdens, New York's political entity has finally seen the need to work with and not against agriculture in upstate. The current boom in the state's yogurt industry...
Immigration reform is an ongoing national debate. Those of us involved in the paperwork and potential legal harassment associated with finding capable, willing and possibly foreign workers have considered...
Uh-oh, they're back. After a quiet enough spring, corn prices roared back to life this month and shot past $7 per bushel as scorching temperatures and dry skies withered fields in America's Heartland
The cost of raising children increased again last year. That is no surprise with the cost of food and gasoline rising for everyone. According to Expenditures on Children by Families, a child born in 2011...
It seems people choose to focus on the negative. When sharing milk's story, highlight the positive. The phases you speak or type become memorable and often quotable. MyDairy shares some reminders as we...
Within farm nutrient variation, estimates are needed to determine feed sampling and ration re-formulation schedules. by Hoard's Dairyman staff "Good ration formulation is a form of risk management. Diets...
Confirmation reached the Hoard's Dairyman offices that a BSE case had been found in a California dairy cow shortly after 2 p.m. Central time yesterday. Thoughts of "the Christmas surprise" of 2003 (the...
by Hoard's Dairyman staff One of the U.S.'s most prominent dairymen looked into his renewable crystal ball. Mike McCloskey, D.V.M., may be a name you are familiar with. Or another name, Fair Oaks Farms,...
Ignorance on food processing bruises producers, processors, and people.by Hoard's Dairyman staff Recent media hype, by a select few, has drawn an outcry of attention to food safety concerns – concerns...
Most are easily preventable . . . and can be very expensive if they aren't. The specific list of most common dairy violations varies from state to state, but not by much, says Blane Adams, a loss control...
Genetic and genomic giant, Picston Shottle, has added one more credential to his long list of accomplishments. With a stronghold on the Holstein Association USA's TPI List, Shottle stood on top for seven...
You can explain risk management and its potential benefits to milk producers all day long, but if they go away thinking it's too expensive or too complicated, then they probably won't try it. The dairy...
Costs may dip a little, but they'll still be painful for buyers. Alfalfa hay probably won't be as expensive in 2012 as it was a year ago, but don't look for anything close to a repeat of the low prices...
