Overall, hay supplies should not be an issue this winter—but according to University of Nebraska forage specialist Bruce Anderson, supplies of high-quality hay could be fairly tight. As for hay prices, Anderson thinks they will hold fairly steady. Longer-term, though, Anderson is concerned about the impact that higher grain prices will have on alfalfa production. He says the last run-up in grain prices led to a significant decrease in alfalfa acres.
Racine Case IH plant will be back on-line Monday
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
CNH says it will resume production at the Case IH plant in Racine, Wisconsin on Monday. The plant was damaged by a tornado last Tuesday tearing part of the roof, garage and access doors off. There was significant water damage from the driving rain and the sprinkler system. A couple of the plant’s 641 workers suffered minor injuries, all will return to work on Monday.
The plant produces the latest Magnum tractor models, CNH says the shutdown may cause limited interruption in downstream manufacturing plants at Grand Island, Nebraska and Fargo, North Dakota next week but it should be brief.
Jahn stepping down as U.W. Madison CALS dean
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Molly Jahn is stepping down as Dean of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Effective January 1st, Jahn plans to assume her faculty position in the departments of agronomy and genetics on Jan. 2. She will serve half time as a special adviser to the provost and chancellor for sustainability sciences, a post she will hold through July 31. At that time, she will return to the faculty full-time.
A plant geneticist, Jahn is noted for her research on breeding new vegetable varieties for use around the world and on gene discovery in crop plants such as peppers and cucumbers with a focus on economically important plant traits. She came to Wisconsin from Cornell in 2006 to succeed the retiring Elton Aberle; she was the first woman to lead CALS.
Jahn says “I am enthusiastic about the opportunity now to focus on contributing to the university’s broader efforts in sustainability sciences. This work will build on our accomplishments in CALS, my scholarly interests and my recent experience in federal government, and I look forward to helping our university leadership in this critical area.”
Jahn recently took a seven-month leave from the university to provide interim leadership as deputy and acting undersecretary of research, education and economics for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
With more than 2300 students, the college is home to 19 academic departments in agriculture, life sciences, social sciences and natural resources.An interim dean will be named within the next few weeks, and a nationwide search for Jahn’s successor will commence immediately.
“Alice” suggests speciatly meats for tailgating
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
It’s football season and Wisconsin’s Alice in Dairyland, Christine Lindner says Wisconsin specialty meats are perfect for tailgating. There are more than 280 meat processing plants around the Badger State incorporating old-world traditions with the latest technology to create an incredible variety of delicious products. Many of these plants are third and fourth generation businesses which feature a retail store right on the premises.
Fast food partnerships boost dairy sales
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
U.S. dairy industry gatherings this fall highlight the Check-off partnerships with Dominos Pizza and McDonald’s that are driving up dairy sales. At the dairy industry’s joint annual meeting this week in Reno, Missouri dairy producer Bill Siebenborn Chair of the United Dairy Industry Association (UDIA), said McDonald’s is selling a lot of smoothies and specialty coffee drinks.
“We think of them as coffee drinks, but in reality a lot of them are really more milk drink with a little bit of coffee in them,” Siebenborn said. “And we’re just very please that we have been able to work with McDonald’s to the extent that we have.”
At the World Dairy Expo, DMI board member and Colorado dairyman Les Hardesty, said pizza cheese sales had been slipping.
“With the economic slowdown the easiest thing for a big pizza chain to do is take a little bit of cheese off because cause that is their number one most expensive ingredient,” Hardesty said.
Hardesty tells Brownfield the Dairy Check-off worked with Dominos Pizza to put more cheese back on their pizzas which has had a positive ripple effect.
“Working with one or two of the key major players in the pizza chain we have driven competition in that whole industry and managed to drive that entire category up,” Hardesty said.
The Dominos partnership has extended to more than a thousand schools with their “Smart Slice” pizza that meets dietary health guidelines. Twenty-five percent of all U.S. cheese is used in pizza, a critical dairy industry sector.
Seven more illnesses linked to Minnesota raw milk producer
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Seven more illnesses have been linked to raw milk from Hartman’s dairy farm in Sibley County, Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Health says three of the people were infected with the Campylobacter bacterium and four people infected with the parasite Cryptosporidium in July and August. All seven, four children and three young adults, live in the Twin Cities metro area and all have recovered.
The illnesses were reported to the Minnesota Department of Health by health care providers as required under Minnesota law. As part of the routine investigation, MDH contacted the individuals to inquire about potential causes of their illnesses the ill people reported that they had consumed raw milk. Those who named a source named the Hartmann farm. Laboratory tests found that the Campylobacter bacteria and Cryptosporidium parasites in most of the ill people were genetically identical to organisms found in animal and environmental samples taken on the Hartmann farm this past summer. MDH says; “It is not clear how the seven new ill people acquired the product.”
Earlier this year, Hartman dairy was ordered to halt sales of raw milk after it was identified as the source of an E.coli O157-H7 outbreak in May and June. Hartman challenged that order in court, the judge has yet to rule on that challenge.
Wheat higher on weather concerns
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Soybeans closed mostly lower on a lack of follow through buying. Contracts were up for most of the session, but started weakening on reports of improved planting and development conditions in Brazil, one of the main U.S. competitors for export business. At least right now, export demand remains very strong with weekly sales over 2 million tons and shipments above what’s needed weekly to meet projections for the marketing year. Also, unknown destinations bought 305,000 tons of new crop U.S. beans ahead of the open. First notice day deliveries for September soybeans are expected to be very light due to the tight nearby supply. Soybean meal was mixed, following beans, and oil was firm on the modestly higher crude oil. The Census Bureau crush numbers for September were mixed: the crush was just under expectations at 130.445 million bushels, oil stocks were larger than anticipated at 3.356 billion pounds and meal stocks were slightly above pre-report estimates at 302,959 short tons.
Corn was higher modestly higher on light fund buying along with spillover from wheat and the dollar. Additionally, traders continue to watch harvest results and get ready for the November 9 USDA demand, production and supply estimates. Past that – there was no real fresh fundamental news and the weekly export sales and shipments were bearish. China’s COFCO is expected to start importing corn next year, but traders would like to see some fresh demand after a couple of disappointing weeks in a row. Ethanol futures were higher. The International Grains Council sees 2010/11 world corn production at a record 814 million tons, while projecting ending stocks at a four year low of 125 million tons.
The wheat complex was higher on fund buying and the lower dollar. Large portions of the Southern Plains and Midwest remain drier than normal, hampering early development of the U.S. winter wheat crop. Also, Western Australia continues to be dry and the Black Sea region remains colder than normal. Overall, while the near term fundamentals look bearish, longer term outlooks are somewhat less so due to production concerns for some of the major global growers. European wheat was higher following the U.S. lead; November Paris was up 2.2% and November London was 3.8% higher. The International Grains Council lowered its world grain production estimate to 1.73 billion tons.
Mo FFA entrepreneurs awarded
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Two Missouri FFA members were selected to receive the National Agri-Entrepreneurship Award at the 83rd National FFA Convention last week. Dustin Stanton from Centralia and Lydia Buck of Glasgow were chosen to be part of only ten students from across the country to receive the award and $1,000. The Agri-Entrepreneurship Award recognizes students who start or are planning to start their own business. Stanton says hard work and dedication are what have made him successful.
“I’ve been doing this for 11 years,” Stanton said. “I do it every day repetitively. If one day I just get tired and quit, everything you work for will just go to pieces. You have to be able to keep on building and make a life out of it.”
Stanton produces more than 450 dozen eggs every week and grew his project from a dozen chickens to an operation of more than 5,000 laying hens. Buck also owns her business of raising quail which she started because of the low population of quail in Missouri. She highly recommends other FFA members aspire to owning their own business.
“Communicate with your advisor, tell them ‘hey, I’m interested in this program and I really, really want to do this’,” Buck said. “Then just go for it. If you have an SAE, if you have an idea for a project then just go for it.”
The Agri-Entrepreneurship Award is a special project of the National FFA Foundation and USDA Rural Development.
Graham on energy bill future
October 28, 2010 By 1 Comment
Criticized by some fellow Republicans for working with Democrats on key issues, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham said this week that the GOP should look for ways to work with President Obama on an energy bill that doesn’t include cap and trade.
Graham told WVOC in South Carolina that if the GOP regains power in the House and gets close in the Senate following next week’s elections, then spending restraints and government reform should be sought. But he said Republicans should not become the “party of no” on tough problems like Social Security and energy policy.
Graham withdrew his support of a bipartisan climate and energy bill earlier this year that he’d been working on with Senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman that reportedly had dropped cap and trade provisions.
Just scattered cattle sales reported
October 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Cattle trading was light Thursday in Texas and Kansas. Compared to Wednesday live sales sold mostly steady at 100.00. Trading was inactive in all other regions. Asking prices are around 101.00 to 102.00 in the South and 160.00 plus in the North. Significant trade volume looks to be delayed until Friday. USDA Mandatory reported the total negotiated sales volume so far this week at 68,429, last week’s total was 228,703 head.Thursday’s cattle kill was estimated at 129,000 head, 1,000 more than last week, and 2,000 greater than last year.
Boxed beef cutout values were firm on choice, weak on select, with light demand and light to moderate offerings. Choice boxed beef was .89 higher at 162.26, and select ended .59 lower at 153.96.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle contracts settled 40 points higher to 72 lower. Fund selling appeared to be the main feature of the trade that spent most of the morning session split between losses and gains. The main concern in the market appeared to be the amount of product needed to sell on the boxed beef market and the inability for these prices to rally higher the last week of October. The October contract is due to expire at noon tomorrow. October settled .20 higher at 100.70, and December was down .72 at 99.27.
Feeder cattle settled unchanged to .60 lower in a quiet trade. The slightly higher grain markets well as lackluster movement in the live cattle complex kept most buyers on the sidelines. This lack of aggressive interest may continue over the next several days, and will likely follow the inability of the live cattle futures market to break away from the stagnant range seen in the last couple of sessions. October settled .37 lower at 110.92, and November was down ,60 at 110.95.
Cattle receipts at the Huss Platte Valley Auction in Nebraska totaled 2780 head on Wednesday. Compared to last week’s limited test, steers and heifers weighing less than 700 lbs trended fully steady at the auction. Steers and heifers over 700 lbs were steady to 3.00 lower. Demand and trade activity was moderate to very good. Feeder steers medium and large 1; 281 head averaging 523 lbs traded at an average of 124.12. 246 heifers weighing 525 pounds brought 109.71 per hundredweight.
Barrows and gilts in the Iowa/Minnesota direct trade closed 1.96 lower at 59.49 on a carcass basis, the West was down 2.03 at 59.40, and the East closed 3.12 lower at 59.29. The Missouri direct base carcass meat price closed steady to 1.00 lower at 59.00.
Thursday’s hog slaughter was estimated at 424,000 head, 1,000 more than last week, but 7,000 less than last year. The dressed hog trade fell hard again on Thursday, generating significant country movement at the same time. Such a continuation is never a good sign of short term price stability. Additionally, Saturday kill plans may not be larger than 190,000 head, considerably below last week and the level needed to clean up country supplies.
Pork trading was slow to moderate, with light to moderate demand and offerings. Pork carcass cutout value was up .82 at 73.75
Lean hog contracts settled mostly lower with only a couple of the distant 2011 contracts higher. The tone of the market remains bearish with traders quickly liquidating nearby contracts. Traders continue to concentrate on the weak market fundamentals as well as the inability for outside buyer interest to return to the market. December hit a new seven month low, pressured by large supplies and floundering pork prices. December settled .80 lower at 67.05, and February was down .90 at 72.90.
Latest: 
