Entries Due

News EditorSilage, World Dairy Expo

Be sure to get your entries in!

Only a few weeks remain to enter the World Forage Analysis Superbowl contest for a chance at over $20,000 in cash prizes. Silage entries for standard and brown mid-rib corn silage categories must be received by AgSource Laboratories by August 13. All other forage samples, including dairy hay, haylage, commercial baleage and commercial hay, must be submitted by September 2. Last year, 320 samples were submitted from 25 states. For the contest entry form and rules, visit the website.

Finalists will be notified in September and invited to attend the Mycogen Seeds Awards Luncheon at World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis. on Wednesday, September 29. All winning entries will be on display in the Arena Building at Expo for attendees to see.

Cash awards are made possible by the contest’s platinum sponsor, Mycogen Seeds. Additional contest cash awards are provided by Case IH, Kuhn North America, Syngenta, Kent Feeds, Bridon Cordage, W& L Research, AgBag, Croplan Genetics and the National Hay Association.

The 27th Annual World Forage Analysis Superbowl is organized in partnership with AgSource Laboratories, DairyBusiness Communications, Hay & Forage Grower, U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center, University of Wisconsin and World Dairy Expo.

Source: World Forage Analysis Superbowl

DBA Seeks Nominations

News EditorCompany Announcement

The Wisconsin Dairy Business Association is seeking nominations for the Environmental Excellence Award. Are you, or do you know, an innovative dairy farmer who has taken extraordinary steps to protect the environment? Then, nominate them today!

Dairy farmers across the nation have been making positive changes to their operations in order to protect our air, water and quality of our environment. Farmers implement such changes not to receive recognition, but because it is the right thing to do for their farm, their family, their community and their environment.

Source: The Dairy Business Association (DBA)

CWT Weekly Update

News Editorcwt

CWT has made the following announcement:

Following an economic evaluation of the competitiveness of U.S. butter and anhydrous milkfat (AMF) given the increases in the butter price at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) in recent weeks, Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) decided to add these two products to those currently eligible for assistance under the CWT Export Assistance program.

In the past month, the butter price at the CME has moved up to more than 13 cents a pound. As a result, the prices of butter and AMF in the U.S. have moved above the world price for these two commodities. The decision was made to make export assistance available on these two products in order to allow CWT members to maintain market share in light of the increase in the U.S. price.

As a result, CWT accepted four bids from Dairy Farmers of America and three bids from Land O’Lakes for 1,714 metric tons (3,778,724 pounds) of butter and AMF to Europe, the Caribbean, South America, and the Middle East. Delivery will take place from July through November.

CWT also accepted two bids from Dairy Farmers of America for 97 metric tons (213,848 pounds) of Cheddar cheese to Europe and Asia. This product will be delivered from August through November 2010.

Since CWT reactivated the Export Assistance program on March 18, 2010, it has assisted members in making export sales of Cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Gouda cheese totaling 17,330 metric tons (38.2 million pounds) to 23 countries on four continents. The totals have been adjusted due to the cancellation of a bid for 38 metric tons of cheese to Africa.

Assisting CWT members through the Export Assistance Program positively impacts producer milk prices in the long-term by helping member cooperatives to gain world market share and expand the demand for U.S. dairy products.

Source: Cooperatives Working Together (CWT)

Young Jersey Breeders Can Apply for New Zealand Conference

News EditorJersey Association

Young Jersey breeders have the opportunity to attend the 19th International Conference of World Jersey Cattle Bureau (WJCB). The WJCB’s Jersey Educational Travel Award (JETA) provides scholarships for five individuals to participate in the upcoming conference, Hooked on Jerseys, scheduled for February 9 through 14, 2011 in Hamilton, New Zealand.

Individuals ages 18 to 40 in the conference year who can demonstrate an involvement in dairy farming, enthusiasm for breeding and developing Jersey cattle, and who have a genuine interest in an international education experience are invited to apply.

Awards will cover the cost of travel documents, roundtrip air fares and ground transportation, registration and all other conference fees for the week of the conference. The recipients will also be awarded lifetime membership of the World Jersey Cattle Bureau.

Award recipients agree to attend all conference sessions and make a short presentation (approximately 20 minutes) while at the conference during a Young Breeders focus session. Following the conference, they are expected to report on their experience and what they learned, both in a written report submitted to the WJCB President, and through speeches to Jersey, dairy and other agriculture-related groups in their home country. A final report on activities is to be submitted to the WJCB President no later than six months after the conference.

Applications consist of a résumé, clearly summarizing work experience in dairy farming, experience with Jersey cattle, and formal education, and an essay of 750 words describing personal ambitions in the dairy industry with Jersey cattle, and stating reasons for attending the conference. Two letters of recommendation must also be submitted. Deadline is Monday, September 20, 2010.

Applications will be evaluated on the established record and leadership qualities of the candidate, and also potential for future success in the dairy industry. The AJCA will submit no more than two (2) candidates to the WJCB office by September 30, including a letter of recommendation for each candidate submitted for consideration. An anonymous selection committee appointed by the WJCB President shall review the applications and select up to five recipients. These individuals will be notified directly by the WJCB Secretary and potential recipients must accept or decline the award within two weeks of such notification.

Source: US Jersey

Niessen Named 2010 Indiana Dairy Princess

News EditorDairy Checkoff

Congratulations to Elles Niessen of Lewisville, Ind. for being selected the 2010 Dairy Princess for the American Dairy Association of Indiana.

Elles, age 20, is the daughter of Nico and Milly Niessen. She represented the Dairy Farmers of America in the 2010 Indiana Dairy Princess Scholarship Program. Elles is a sophomore at Indiana University School of Nursing.

Retiring Princess Audrie Koester of Wadesville ended her reign by turning over the title to Elles and wished her well as she represents the Indiana Dairy Industry throughout the coming year. Elles will serve as the official goodwill ambassador for Indiana’s dairy farmers during the year by making a number of public appearances and participating in promotional events. As the Indiana Dairy Princess, Niessen receives a $1000 scholarship from the American Dairy Association along with other gifts of appreciation from sponsors.

Contestants were judged on poise, personality, speaking ability, education and dairy background. Judges for the contest included Leah Beyer – Director of Livestock for the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council, David Blower – Associate Publisher and Editor for Farm World and Martha Rardin – Director of Nutrition and Dietetics for Hendricks Community Hospital. Miss Niessen’s presentation was on the importance of ‘Going Green’ and ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.’

Indiana has more than 1600 dairy farms that produce the wholesome, nutritious product – milk. Indiana dairy farmers produce over 3 billion pounds of milk annually and the state is the second-largest producer of ice cream. As Dairy Princess, Elles will be educating the public and her peers on the importance dairy in Indiana’s economy and Hoosier’s health.

Source: Winners Drink Milk blog

Butter for Biodiesel?

Cindy ZimmermanButter

Butter could make better biodiesel, according to some researchers.

In a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, scientists with USDA’s Ag Research Service found that butter could serve as another eco-friendly feedstock for biodiesel.

Michael Haas and colleagues cite rising global demand for biodiesel, and the desire to expand the feedstock base, as motivating factors for their research. The United States alone has committed to producing 36 billion gallons of biofuel by 2022, a major increase from the current annual production level of about 11 billion gallons. Most of that was ethanol. Biodiesel production, now approaching 1 billion gallons annually in the U.S., is also slated to increase. As researchers seek additional and affordable feedstocks for biodiesel production, these scientists turned to butter, one billion pounds of which are produced annually. Could surplus, spoiled, or nonfood-grade butter be used to make biodiesel at competitive prices?

In an effort to find out, the scientists recovered the fat from a quarter-ton of butter and converted it into the fatty acid esters that constitute biodiesel. They found that the resulting material met all but one of the official test standards for biodiesel. The study concluded that with further purification or by blending with biodiesel from other feedstocks butter biodiesel could add to the supply of biobased fuel for diesel engines.

Read more here.

Butter Tribute to Fuel Up to Play 60

News EditorButter

The butter sculpture has been unveiled today at the Ohio State Fair, and this year’s buttery masterpiece pays tribute the importance of good nutrition and physical activity in combating childhood obesity. Created by the American Dairy Association, the sculpture highlights the Fuel Up to Play 60 school wellness program, a partnership between the National Dairy Council and the National Football League.

Crafted from approximately 2,000 pounds of butter, donated in part by Dairy Farmers of America, the display was completed in 392 hours, in which approximately 200 of those hours were spent actually sculpting the butter.

This year’s butter display features the likenesses of two NFL players- offensive lineman Joe Thomas of the Cleveland Browns and safety Chinedum Ndukwe of the Cincinnati Bengals, who are active in promoting health and wellness throughout schools in Ohio through Fuel up to Play 60. The players share the cooler with a life-size butter cow and calf, modeled after an ideal Holstein dairy cow.

This year’s display hopes to remind fairgoers the importance of regular physical activity and choosing more nutrient-rich foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables and low fat and fat free dairy foods, and encourages you to find ways to make positive and lasting changes in youth and schools.

Source: American Dairy Association

Follow World Dairy Diary on Our New iPhone App

News EditorGeneral

World Dairy Diary is excited to announce our new iPhone app! Created by our parent company, ZimmComm New Media, this is the first agricultural news media app for the iPhone.

The app offers one-touch access to all the latest news and information in the agribusiness and agricultural marketing world posted on Agwired.com, including audio, photos and video, and connections to other ZimmComm news sites. The AgWired App features a news tab drop down menu to select ZimmComm News Network feeds as well as individual news on AgWired.com by category.

The app is now available for iPhone users to download, free of charge, in the Apple iTunes store.

“Apps just make on-line access from an iPhone quicker and easier,” said ZimmComm president Chuck Zimmerman. “We wanted to be the first to develop an iPhone application to show that it can be done and that there is a demand for this new technology tool in the agricultural world.”

ZimmComm owns and operates four web-based news sites that are now accessible from the new iPhone app: Agwired, focused on news from the world of agribusiness; Domestic Fuel, which is all about renewable energy – from ethanol and biodiesel to wind and solar; World Dairy Diary for the dairy industry; and Precision Pays, which focuses on information about precision agriculture technology.

Source: ZimmComm

Wis. Education Opportunities

News EditorEducation

Three Wisconsin organizations—Wisconsin Counties Association, Wisconsin Towns Association and the Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin—are partnering to sponsor two on-farm Agriculture Community Engagement Twilight Meetings in August. The meetings, conducted in different parts of the state, are set for Wednesday, Aug. 11, and Thursday, Aug. 12.

“This is an open invitation to the state’s community leaders, elected officials, conservation officials, dairy and livestock producers and all citizens interested in learning from each other so Wisconsin communities can be vibrant and green,” states Eric Hillan, dairy producer from Ladysmith and president of PDPW. “Those attending an ACE twilight meeting will be treated to a 60-minute tour of the hosting dairy followed by a discussion moderated by Dennis Frame of UW Discovery Farm. The discussion will provide a platform for open communication about issues important to our communities.”

The Wednesday, Aug. 11, meeting will take place at Saxon Homestead Farm LLC, Cleveland. The dairy—owned by Robert and Kathleen Block-Klessig, Karl and Elizabeth Klessig, Gerald and Elise Klessig Heimerl and families—transitioned in 1991 from conventional dairying to management intensive rotational grazing and is home to 450 crossbred cattle housed on 900 acres.

The Thursday, Aug. 12, meeting will be near Independence at the Bragger Family Farm, a three-way partnership involving Hildegard Bragger and two of her sons, Joe and Dan. This dairy milks 285 head on two farms and is involved in a 32,000 pullet operation and beef operation. Both Saxon Homestead Farm LLC and Bragger Family Farm are graduates of UW Discovery Farms.

The meetings, which are free to all attendees, are slated to start at 6:00 p.m. and will wrap up by 8:30 p.m. To attend one of the upcoming ACE Twilight Meetings, please reserve your space by contacting the Wisconsin Towns Association. Call Wisconsin Towns Association (715) 526-3157 or email wtowns@frontiernet.net by August 4.

Source: Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin

Dairyline Markets In Review

Chuck ZimmermanDairyline, Markets

Cheese prices continued to move higher this week with the blocks closing Friday at $1.6025 per pound, up 2 3/4-cents on the week, and 40 1/4-cents above a year ago.
Barrel closed at $1.56, up 3 1/2-cents on the week, and 39 cents above a year ago.

Cheese prices have strengthened for six consecutive weeks. Six cars of block traded hands on the week and eight of barrel. The NASS-surveyed U.S. average block price hit $1.4369, up 2.6 cents from the previous week, and barrel averaged $1.4766, up 5.6 cents.

Cash butter closed Friday at $1.80, up 2 1/2-cents on the week, and 54 cents above a year ago. Butter has also increased for six weeks in a row. Only one car was sold all week. NASS butter averaged $1.7438, up 2.4 cents.

Cash Grade A nonfat dry milk closed Friday at $1.21, down three quarters on the week, while Extra Grade held all week at $1.2250. NASS powder averaged $1.2335, up 0.1 cent, and dry whey averaged 36.15 cents, down 0.1 cent.

Provided courtesy of Dairyline.