300 head of cattle, bison condemned over brucellosis threat

300 head of cattle, bison condemned over brucellosis threat

Great Falls Tribune Capitol Bureau

About 300 head of cattle, as well as another 300 bison, are to be slaughtered as the result of the detection of brucellosis in a herd near Bridger.

The state Board of Livestock, at an emergency meeting today, gave support for the recommendation by Jeanne Rankin, the assistant state veterinarian. It’s standard procedure to slaughter a cattle herd when brucellosis — a disease that causes pregnant cows to abort — is detected.

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U.S. on mad cow: Don’t test all cattle

U.S. on mad cow: Don’t test all cattle

By MATT APUZZO – Associated Press Writer

Centre Daily Times (PA)

The Bush administration said Tuesday it will fight to keep meatpackers from testing all their animals for mad cow disease .

The Agriculture Department tests less than 1 percent of slaughtered cows for the disease, which can be fatal to humans who eat tainted beef. But Kansas-based Creekstone Farms Premium Beef wants to test all of its cows.

Larger meat companies feared that move because, if Creekstone tested its meat and advertised it as safe, they might have to perform the expensive test, too.

The Agriculture Department regulates the test and argued that widespread testing could lead to a false positive that would harm the meat industry.

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Livestock board comes together despite differences on controversial issues

Livestock board comes together despite differences on controversial issues

By SHANNON RUCKMAN, Newt’s View

The Prairie Star 

It’s easy to understand why the selection of board of livestock members in Montana is so important to the livestock industry and can be controversial and political when you witness a meeting.

It’s also easy to understand why a board member position is such an honor and undertaking – because they have to work their tails off to get the jobs done in Helena, Mont., and still run their own individual operations at home.

These people must have very supportive families to accept this honor, where normally the governor and the industry organizations see them as knowledgeable members of the industry who have the experience and integrity to help guide the state’s livestock industry. Some of the livestock organizations disagreed on the appointment of some new board members this year, but so far I haven’t seen any problems with these new members – they are just green, as am I.

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Tips For Better Manure Application In Alfalfa

Tips For Better Manure Application In Alfalfa

Cattlenetwork.com

If you have manure to spread this summer, sometimes the only place available is an alfalfa field. Be aware, however, that manure can cause problems on alfalfa.

Liquid manure can burn leaves due to salt injury, and dry manure can smother plants if it is applied too heavily or in large chunks. Manure can spread weed seeds, and the nitrogen in manure can stimulate grasses already in the alfalfa to become more competitive. Also, manure application equipment can damage alfalfa crowns and compact soil.

When possible, spread manure on other land, but, if you have no other choice, follow these suggestions:

Apply less than three thousand gallons of liquid manure or ten tons of solid manure per acre to minimize salt burn or smothering. If manure is dry, adjust the spreader to break up large chunks that can smother growth.

Spread manure immediately after removing a cutting to minimize direct contact with foliage.

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Study: Cattle on linseed have enriched meat

Study: Cattle on linseed have enriched meat

FarmNews

Cows fed a diet rich in omega-3 produce enriched meat that has significant benefits for consumers, suggests new research from Kansas State University.

The new research, published in the journal Nutrition Research, suggests that raising cattle on flaxseed diet (10%), rich in alpha-linolenic acid, leads to increases in the omega-3 content of the meat, which could then be passed on to the consumer.

Boosting levels in animal-derived produce is seen by some as having potential in bridging the gap between recommended and actual intake in the modern population.

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Farm Family raises Romagnola

Farm Family raises Romagnola

By Elizabeth Brown

The Atkins Chronicle

“Y’all come on in,” said Roy Chisum from his front door last Friday morning. He was welcoming members of the press to his farm in Hector. After much consideration from a panel of judges, the Chisum family has been selected as the 2007 Pope County Farm Family of the Year.

Roy has two occupations; he is the pastor of Oakland Heights Assembly of God in Russellville and a farmer. Roy is devoted to his farm, but he admits that his church always comes first. “Regardless of how large or complex our operation has become, my first job is always my church,” said Roy. “That is why my wife is constantly involved so she can be the ‘eyes and ears’ if I am called away by the church.'” Roy and wife, Charlotte, work an 898-acre farm at Hector. They own 708 acres and rent 190 acres in pasture land.

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Cattle Preconditioning Forum: Effect Of Body Condition On Rebreeding

Cattle Preconditioning Forum: Effect Of Body Condition On Rebreeding

Cattlenetwork.com

The income and profit of a beef cattle operation is closely related to the rebreeding and reproduction rate of the herd. A 1986 survey of cattle producers in nine counties in central Florida indicated the number of calves sold was only 69% of the breeding age beef cows. Forty-eight percent of the 284 producers that responded indicated that nutrition was their biggest problem with reproduction and another 24% indicated that parasites were their biggest problem.

Nutrition and parasites were factors identified by over 70% of producers surveyed and both will affect the body condition of the beef cow. The body condition of the beef cow is related to reproductive performance and can be used by cattle producers to make management decisions. Grouping of cattle and the type and level of supplemental feed for maximum profit are decisions that must take body condition into consideration.

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Consider several factors when planning a feedlot expansion

Consider several factors when planning a feedlot expansion

Farm and Ranch Guide

By Alfredo DiCostanzo and Grant Crawford, U of M Beef Team

In spite of increasing corn prices, incentives for feedlot expansion exist in the Upper Midwest due to the increased supply of ethanol co-product feeds, relatively inexpensive corn and forage, availability of crop land for manure application, and clearly defined feedlot regulations in states like Minnesota.

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Beef Quality: Reasons For The Seasons

Beef Quality: Reasons For The Seasons

Cattlenetwork.com

The supply of high-quality cattle has trended lower for years, but not on a steady track. Each year follows a seasonal pattern with a late-winter peak in quality before a sharp drop in the spring. As measured by percent USDA Choice in the fed cattle harvest mix, quality improves a bit in midsummer but hits a second valley in September.

Any repeated annual pattern must happen for a reason. Let’s look at one of several.

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Indiana Pasture Walk Is June 12

Indiana Pasture Walk Is June 12

Hay and Forage Magazine

A Purdue University Pasture Walk will cover management plans from creation to implementation to help improve production efficiency at Waukaru Farm, Rensselaer, IN. Barry and Toby Jordan, growers of registered shorthorn cattle, will host the pasture walk June 12 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The hands-on program is free and open to the public. The Jordans recently made improvements to their pasture management plan by implementing a perennial pasture system. They also utilize corn residues to help fulfill grazing needs.

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Gov’t Finds Ribs in US Beef Imports

Gov’t Finds Ribs in US Beef Imports

KBS World

The government has found ribs in U.S. beef imports during quarantine inspection, and will suspend imports from the meat processing company responsible.

The National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service said that two boxes of ribs were found in a 15-ton shipment of American beef.

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Cattle Update: Spring Grazing Decisions Affect Farm Bank Accounts

Cattle Update: Spring Grazing Decisions Affect Farm Bank Accounts

Cattlenetwork.com

Grazing in early spring, prior to pasture readiness, deprives grass plants of needed leaf area and reduces grass growth, herbage production and economic returns. In spring, pasture plants are near the bottom of their food reserves (top of their operating loan). As plants start to grow they use their reserves and just before they reach the 3-leaf stage they max out their “operating loan”. If grazed before the 3 to 3.5 leaf stage they are taken into an “overdraft position”. The interest rate on plant overdraft is a credit card rate. Working on overdraft is a costly financial spot for an operation and a pasture.

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Communities buck ethanol trend

Communities buck ethanol trend

Plant opponents say environmental concerns outweigh benefits

By Scott Bauer

Associated Press

Akron Beacon Journal

Editor’s note: Ethanol, whose fortunes as a gasoline additive have risen and fallen with the price of oil, is in the middle of a boom. Biofuel plants are sprouting up across the Midwest and corn farmers are rushing to cash in. But this agriculture gold rush carries many questions, not the least of which centers on demand. In Part 5, the last of a series of reports, the Associated Press examines the promise and pitfalls of ethanol in detail.

Barney Lavin ought to be the poster child for ethanol.

A fifth-generation corn farmer, working the land his family homesteaded in 1842, Lavin should see dollar signs over a proposed ethanol plant in this small southeastern Wisconsin town.

Instead, Lavin put down his pitchfork and picked up his cell phone, joining the ranks of other unlikely opponents organizing against ethanol plants, fearing air pollution, increased traffic and groundwater depletion.

“I’m unwilling to give up the obvious quality of life we have here for some added income,” said Lavin, who grows corn on a 300-acre farm on rolling hills that include recently restored wetlands. “We feel very strongly about this area and we don’t want it ruined.”

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Rising grocery prices: Don’t blame ethanol

Rising grocery prices: Don’t blame ethanol

By CYNTHIA AUKERMAN

Winchester News-Gazette (IN)

Corn has gone from $2 a bushel in January 2006 to $4 a bushel in February 2007. That’s good for grain farmers, maybe not so good for livestock farmers, and the price increases are probably having some effect on rising grocery store prices.

But Troy Prescott, president of Cardinal Ethanol, says rising grocery prices can’t be blamed all on the higher corn prices brought about by the ethanol plants being built all over the Midwest.

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Lawmakers push for cattle tax credit

Lawmakers push for cattle tax credit

Chris Blank

The Associated Press

Springfield News-Leader

Supporters hope a tax break for cattle farmers and ranchers will encourage them to keep their animals longer, and spur a cattle feeding industry in Missouri.

The beef tax credit is a small part of a huge tax break bill lawmakers passed a few weeks ago that is still under review by Gov. Matt Blunt.

Tax credit backers say they’re trying to encourage an industry that generally has remained farther west. The bill gives a tax break to farmers who sell their cattle later, after the animals weigh 450 pounds, about when they have been weaned from milk.

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Length (of breeding season) Does Matter

Length (of breeding season) Does Matter 

 Glenn Selk, OSU Extension Animal Reproduction Specialist

A research analysis of 394 ranch observations from the Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico SPA  (standardized performance analysis) data set provided insight into the age old argument about  “leaving the bull out” or having a defined breeding season.  OSU Agricultural Economists  (Parker, et al) recently presented a paper at the 2004 Southern Association of Agricultural  Scientists.  They found a positive relationship between number of days of the breeding season  and the cost per hundredweight of calf weaned.  Also they reported a negative relationship  between number of days of the breeding season and pounds of calf weaned per cow per year.

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BeefTalk: Cave Images Just Can’t Compete with Cell Phone Text

BeefTalk: Cave Images Just Can’t Compete with Cell Phone Text

Information overload has many functions, but never should be set aside on the premise that enough is enough.

By Kris Ringwall, Beef Specialist, NDSU Extension Service

Insight into the cattle industry is keen, but, as a producer, the ability to make use of that insight and convert that understanding to real impact is critical. The American Angus Association (http://www.angus.org) sponsored an effort to help categorize the many varied forms of producer managerial thoughts to produce a document that would be an excellent starting point for further discussion and understanding of the business we often simply refer to as “beef.”

The initial outcome of that effort was the publication “Priorities First: Identifying Management Priorities in the Commercial Cow-Calf Business.” The document was summarized and authored by Tom Field, Ph.D., Fort Collins, Colo. Field notes from the beginning that “for many cow-calf producers, the information age has spawned a massive flow of data and technical communications that borders on the unmanageable.”

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Cattle Health: It Looks Like BVD — Is It PI?

Cattle Health: It Looks Like BVD — Is It PI?

Cattlenetwork.com

Adding to the challenge is that PI calves won’t necessarily exhibit the clinical symptoms commonly associated with BVD: profuse diarrhea, along with severe erosions and ulcers on mucosal surfaces (such as inside the mouth and between the toes). Mucosal disease is also common, which occurs when PI animals that harbor non-cytopathic BVD (a strain that doesn’t kill cells) are exposed to a cytopathic (does kill cells) variant of the disease.

Cattle with acute BVD (as opposed to PI) can also exhibit clinical symptoms, including fever, snotty noses, diarrhea and Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD). Salt in the wound comes with the fact that BVD is immunosuppressant, setting the stage for other infections to attack an already weakened immune system.

For the record, another challenge to treating BVD is the fact that there are two genotypes (Type I and Type II) of the virus, with both types containing cytopathic and non-cytopathic biotypes.

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Summer Grilling: Testing Big-Ticket Beef As Fatty Kobe-Style Wagyu Grows Popular (Despite Price), We Get Out the Butter Knife

Summer Grilling: Testing Big-Ticket Beef As Fatty Kobe-Style Wagyu Grows Popular (Despite Price), We Get Out the Butter Knife

By CHARLES PASSY

Wall Street Journal

Along with $12,000 grills and $4,000 outdoor pizza ovens, there’s another expensive item showing up in backyard barbecues lately: $100 steaks.

Those pricey cuts are Wagyu steaks, a variation of Japan’s famed Kobe beef. Authentic Kobe beef comes from the Wagyu breed of cattle raised around Kobe, Japan. Often called “white steak,” it’s known for its intense fattiness and rich, foie gras-like taste. That’s partly thanks to special treatment for the cows, including a carefully chosen diet and sometimes even massages.

What Americans call Wagyu is essentially the same animal, only bred outside of Kobe — in countries like the U.S. and Australia. There can be other differences: Wagyu raised in the U.S. typically has a lower percentage of fat. (Regional preferences play into the formula; American diners mostly eat the steak on its own, while Japanese chefs are just as likely to use the meat in soup-style dishes.) Still, the best Wagyu is generally fattier and more marbled than USDA-rated prime beef, and some retailers say their steaks are tender enough to eat with a butter knife.

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Ethanol byproduct has high energy, fiber

Ethanol byproduct has high energy, fiber

By Mike Surbrugg

Joplin Globe

Feeding dried distillers grain (DDG) in feed bunks to grazing cattle could mean more time on grass and less in feedlots.

The cost of animal gain is cheaper when cattle eat more grass and less $4-a-bushel corn in feedlots, said Karl Harborth, Kansas State University’s Southeast Area Extension livestock specialist in Chanute.

He spoke during a Beef Cattle and Forage Crops Field Day on May 3 at Mound Valley.

DDG is a byproduct of making ethanol.

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