Legendary Snickerdoodle is Six Time Champion

Cindy ZimmermanAlpharma, Breeds, Charleston-Orwig, Competition, Hoard's Dairyman, Industry News, Novus International, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

WDXThe legendary Snickerdoodle became a six time Grand Champion today in the Central National Brown Swiss Show at World Dairy Expo.

This 11-year old owned by Allen Bassler, Jr. of Upperville, Virginia added one more title to her barn full of ribbons and plates. Old Mill E Snickerdoodle OCS has been named Grand Champion of the Central National Brown Swiss Show in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2008. Last year, Snickerdoodle was also named Reserve Supreme Champion of the World Dairy Expo. This amazing animal is also a seven-time All-American Brown Swiss and was Supreme Champion of the All-American Dairy Show for the second year in a row.

What a cow! Read more about Snickerdoodle’s historic achievement here from World Dairy Expo.

Photo courtesy of World Dairy Expo. See more photos from World Dairy Expo here.

Got Gas? Study to Determine Cows' Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Amanda NolzIndustry News, Research, University

It’s amazing what science and technology can accomplish these days. The questions that can be answered through accurate research always surprise me. Currently, a study is being conducted by the University of California Davis, Cornell University, the University of Minnesota and Washington State University to measure the entire carbon footprint of fluid milk – from farm to the glass. The study is being funded by the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. Here is a little information about the study…

Any calculation of the carbon footprint of a gallon of milk needs to include fuel used by tractors and trucks, as well as electricity consumed by milking machines and refrigerators. But how much gas is coming from the cows themselves? That’s the question Purdue University researchers are investigating as they start a new study aimed at measuring greenhouse gases from dairy cows. Albert Heber, principal investigator and a professor of agricultural and biological engineering, said the study is part of an industry-wide effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions related to fluid milk.

“The dairy industry understands that in order to adopt best practices that will help lower greenhouse gas emissions in the dairy supply chain, it must first know where the mitigation opportunities exist,” Heber said.

“Measuring the greenhouse gas emissions of dairy cows will help determine the extent to which the dairy industry contributes to U.S. greenhouse gas emissions,” said Rick Naczi, the group’s executive vice president of strategic industry analysis and evaluation. “Preliminary scan level research was conducted last year that showed the dairy industry accounts for less than 2 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Now, we are expanding our efforts by partnering with respected academic institutions like Purdue and engaging in extensive research to assure that our efforts are based on sound science as we address the environmental, economic and social importance of reducing our carbon footprint.”

USDA Seeks Nominations for National Fluid Milk Board

News EditorDairy Checkoff, Industry News

usdaThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is asking fluid milk processors and other interested parties to nominate candidates for the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board. The Secretary of Agriculture will appoint seven individuals from those nominated to succeed members whose terms expire June 30, 2010. Appointed members will serve 3-year terms from July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2013. To nominate an individual, please submit a copy of the nomination form and a signed background form for each nominee by October 31, 2009.

The National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board was established by the Fluid Milk Promotion Act of 1990, as amended, to develop and administer a coordinated program of advertising and education to promote fluid milk products. Of the board’s 20 members, 15 represent geographic regions and five are at-large members. The at-large members must include at least three fluid milk processors and at least one member from the general public. Currently, there are four at-large processor members and one member from the general public serving on the board.

The national fluid milk program is financed by a mandatory 20-cent per hundredweight assessment on fluid milk processors who process and market commercially in consumer-type packages more than 3 million pounds of fluid milk products per month in the contiguous 48 states and the District of Columbia, excluding those fluid milk products delivered directly to consumer residences.

USDA will accept nominations for board representation in five geographic regions and two at-large positions. Nominees for the five regional positions and at least one of the at-large positions must be active owners or employees of a fluid milk processor. One at-large position may be either a fluid milk processor or a member from the general public. The geographic regions are: Region 1 (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont); Region 4 (Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina); Region 7 (Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin); Region 10 (Texas); and Region 13 (Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming). No fluid milk processor shall be represented on the board by more than three members.

Fluid milk processors and interested parties may submit nominations for regions in which they are located or market fluid milk and for at-large members.

CWT Announces Third Herd Retirement of 2009

News Editorcwt, Industry News

cwtlogoCooperatives Working Together is implementing its third herd retirement in 2009, effective October 1, 2009. All bids submitted must be postmarked no later than October 15, 2009. This is the fourth herd retirement that CWT has conducted in the past 12 months.

“The herd retirement of late 2008, plus the two herd retirements so far in 2009, have removed 226,000 cows from the nation’s dairy herds,” said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, which manages Cooperatives Working Together. “Those efforts have helped adjust the supply of milk more in line with demand. This third herd retirement of 2009, along with a stabilizing global economy, should further accelerate the recovery in dairy farmers’ prices.”

As with past herd retirements, producers wishing to submit bids into the program must have been members of CWT, either through their membership in a CWT member cooperative or as an individual, effective January 2009. Producers whose bids were selected in previous herd retirements will not be eligible to bid again. This round will once again include a bred heifer option.

The maximum bid CWT will consider is $5.25 per hundredweight of milk, which was the same bid ceiling as the previous round. CWT will select bids beginning with the lowest bid with consistent milk production. However, given budgetary considerations, there is no guarantee that every producer submitting a bid up to the maximum $5.25 bid level will be accepted, cautions Jim Tillison, CWT’s Chief Operating Officer.

As with the two previous herd retirements of 2009, producers whose bids are accepted in this herd retirement will be paid in two installments: 90% of the amount bid times the producer’s 12 months of milk production (from September 1, 2008, through August 31, 2009) when it is verified that all cows have gone to processing plants. The remaining 10% plus interest will be paid at the end of 12 months if neither the producer nor the dairy facility – whether owned or leased – go back into in the commercial production and marketing of milk during that period.

Once the bid selection process is completed, farm audits should begin the first week of November and be completed by early December.

Milking Parlor Podcast from World Dairy Expo

Cindy ZimmermanAlpharma, Audio, Charleston-Orwig, Government, Hoard's Dairyman, Holstein Association, Industry News, Milking Parlor, Novus International, Podcast, Price, The Milking Parlor, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

WDXThis edition of the Milking Parlor podcast focuses on the Dairy Price Stabilization Program proposed by Holstein Association USA as a way to address the current dairy industry economic situation and minimize milk price volatility for the long term.

I spoke with John Meyer, executive secretary and CEO of Holstein Association USA, about the plan during an interview at World Dairy Expo. “One of the beauties of this program is that nothing has to be affected,” Meyer says. “The Dairy Price Stabilization Program does not require the Farm Bill to be opened, nor does it affect any of the current dairy programs. It’s a very simple thing to be implemented and it can be done very quickly.”

Meyer says they are getting good industry support for the plan and hope to get a bill written and considered by Congress, possibly as early as the end of this year.

Listen to this podcast here:
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3?http://zimmcomm.biz/wdexpo/milking-parlor-wdx09.mp3]

Subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast here.

Listen to or download this podcast here:

World Dairy Expo Honors Leaders

carlyAlpharma, Charleston-Orwig, General, Hoard's Dairyman, Industry News, Novus International, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

WDXLegenday dairy industry leaders were recognized for their contribution at a Wednesday evening “dinner with the stars” at World Dairy Expo. This year’s recipients are: the 2009 Dairy Woman of the Year- Daphne Holterman, Watertown, Wisconsin; the 2009 Industry Person of the Year – Maurice Core, Columbus, Ohio; the 2009 World Dairy Expo Dairyman of the Year – David Hileman, Tyrone, Pennsylvania; and the 2009 International Person of the Year – Dr. Jan Philipsson, Uppsala, Sweeden.

“These four legendary leaders have been hitting home runs for the world-wide dairy cattle industry,” says World Dairy Expo General Manager Mark Clarke. “They have created dairy records that will be hard for future producers to beat. We are proud to honor them for being the vision and support that keep this industry strong.”

Thanks to Lisa Behnke for the photo!

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

Dairy Expo Stronger Than Ever

carlyAlpharma, Charleston-Orwig, General, Hoard's Dairyman, Industry News, Novus International, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

WDXThe economic situation in the dairy industry has had no impact on exhibitors or attendance at the 2009 World Dairy Expo. According to expo officials, they have a record number of exhibitors this year with 755 companies, including more than 140 new exhibitors.

Commercial exhibitors are from 24 countries including: Argentina, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Norway, Pakistan, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the United States. Also represented are 6 Canadian provinces including Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan. Companies from within the US are coming from 44 states.

Attendance is good as well, although final figures will not be available until after the show is over. We do know that about 40 % of all attendees come from the upper mid-west.

Check out all the action on the World Dairy Expo Photo Album

Novus Trains Nutrition Consultants

Cindy ZimmermanAlpharma, Audio, Charleston-Orwig, Industry News, Novus International, Nutrition, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

WDXNovus International treated some of the top dairy nutrition consultants from the upper Midwest to lunch and a seminar today at the Sheraton next to the World Dairy Expo. One of the presenters was Dr. Tom Overton of Cornell University who talked about the biology behind a couple different ration software programs for dairy nutrition modeling.

“The dairy nutrition modeling effort has been going now at Cornell for more than 30 years and that has led to the development of these programs,” Tom says. “Cornell Penn Miner (CPM Dairy) is a partnership of Cornell with the University of Pennsylvania, Miner Institute, and then a sister program, the Cornell Net Carbohydrate and Protein System (CNCPS).”

Tom says both programs are the result of an on-going effort to “better define the biology of cows and how we might be able to put diets together in order to make them more productive and efficient and help our producers be more profitable.”

Find out more about CNCPS at cncps.cornell.edu and about CPM at cpmdairy.net.

Listen to or download an interview with Dr. Overton here from World Dairy Expo:

RedPepper is Double Ayrshire Winner

Cindy ZimmermanAlpharma, Breeds, Charleston-Orwig, Competition, Hoard's Dairyman, Industry News, Novus International, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

WDXA RedPepper from New York is one hot Aryshire this week at World Dairy Expo.

Blind Buck Vall Tri Redpepper was named Grand Champion of the Junior and Open International Ayrshire Shows, a repeat win for her, as she was also named Grand Champion of the Junior Show in 2008.

Owned by Roger Greeno of Fort Edward, New York, and leased and exhibited by Sara Pulver, the senior three-year-old completed a record at 2-04 3X 305d 19,242 801F 651P. She is sired by Androssan Ev-Kates Trident. Pulver was presented with the Udder Comfort $1000 Grand Champion Cash Award for the open show and the Udder Comfort $500 Grand Champion Cash Award for her Junior Show win.

Find out more International Ayrshire Show results here on the World Dairy Expo website.

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

Novus Helps Producers Strike Right Dairy Balance

Cindy ZimmermanAlpharma, Audio, Charleston-Orwig, Hoard's Dairyman, Industry News, Novus International, World Dairy Expo

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

WDXWorld Dairy Diary coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by:
Novus Charleston Orwig

Just like humans, high producing dairy cows are prone to oxidative stress, a condition where an imbalance occurs between the production of free radicals and the body’s antioxidant mechanisms.

WDXDr. Dennis Nuzback, Technical Services Manager for Novus International, says any time an animal has to use high amounts of energy, exidative stress increases because she’s putting more pressure on her system to try and stay in balance. “There are several factors that lead to oxidative stress. Some of it could be excessive body weight, some of it can be transition changes,” Nuzback said. “Calving, environmental temperatures, they can add more stress.”

Novus has several products that can help cure the situation in a nutritional package of minerals, amino acids and antioxidants to help achieve consistent oxidative balance. The company now has a new website for producers to find out more about striking that balance in dairy animals – DairyBalance.com. The site includes “signs, proof, solutions and expert opinion pertinent to balancing oxidative stress in dairy cows,” according to Novus. Producers can also sign up Novus Dairy Nutrition Notes, an electronic newsletter that is distributed bi-monthly that discusses the most up-to-date issues facing the dairy industry.

Listen to or download an interview with Dr. Nuzback here from World Dairy Expo: