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,...
Except for a handful of states primarily in the West, hourly workers across the U.S. aren't in line to get raises this year. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 24 states set their minimum wage...
Just yesterday, President Barack Obama signed into law the first major overhaul of U.S. food safety infrastructure since 1983. The bill, known as the American Food Safety Modernization Act or S. 510, comes...
As a new year begins, we wrap up the 125th anniversary celebration of Hoard's Dairyman. In our June 2010 issue, we chronicled how Hoard was instrumental in launching many endeavors far beyond his magazine....
What goes into a "next year's outlook" prediction? Paying attention all year long this year, talking regularly to producers, studying the economic horizon outside the industry, tracking trends, and decades...
In recent weeks, we've sadly heard of several barn collapses in the upper Midwest. Each of the barns that failed was bearing an extreme snow load due to an overly white Christmas we had in this part of...
As 2010 comes to a close, we reflect on the past year and plan for a positive 2011. When I look ahead, I think about the future through a young person's eyes – full of hope and the belief that positive...
Between a forecast for lower milk prices and the likelihood of higher feed costs, it's hard to not have a gloomy financial outlook for U.S. milk producers in 2011. Sorry. Amid the dreariness, however,...
Rising corn prices mean higher feed bills for dairy producers, which is why a recent forecast about global oil demand points to the possibility of higher milk production costs in 2011. Connecting the dots...
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...
Forecast milk production for 2010 and 2011 is little changed from last month, in last week's USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate. In November, the agency forecast 2011 milk production at...
Yesterday, the U.S. Senate approved (81 to 19) the big tax package that extends Bush-era tax rates and includes a number of other measures. One of those measures would extend the Volumetric Ethanol Excise...
World Ag Expo's first permanent exhibit building, the Dairy Center, turns 20 this year and has been upgraded for 2011 in two very exciting ways: The dirt floor is now concrete, and the one remaining wall...
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...
It is December 7 and sire summary information has been released. It used to be a really exciting time when there were only two sire summaries per year, as the momentum would build in January and July....
As a group, the Hoard Guernsey herd had outstanding feet and leg scores, averaging 81.86 points on 342 cows at the most recent classification. There are a number of reasons for their solid feet and legs:...
As a group, the Hoard Guernsey herd had outstanding feet and leg scores, averaging 81.86 points on 342 cows at the most recent classification. There are a number of reasons for their solid feet and legs:...
An $860,000 donation from a husband and wife has created a new Dairy Center and dairy professorship in the Food Science and Technology Department at Oregon State University. The Paul G. and Sandra A. Arbuthnot...
Where are land prices headed? They are up everywhere except where dairy cows are found. That's the short answer to a more complicated question. Farmland prices jumped 10 percent during the third quarter...
Milk production nationally was up 2.9 percent during October, marking eight straight months during which milk production was higher than the same month last year. Cow numbers were up just 0.2 percent during...
