These Cows are Getting Their Five-A-Day

Chuck ZimmermanIndustry News

According to a story in the Santa Cruz Sentinel, the cows at Moon Glow Dairy may be some of the only ones out there meeting the government’s five-a-day requirement! Dairy farmer Lou Calcagno is using recycled food scraps to feed his 900 dairy cows as part of their daily TMR.

Hope they are getting their 90 minutes of exercise a day too!

Along the shores of Elkhorn Slough, Lou Calcagno of Moon Glow Dairy adds a green twist of recycling to the age-old tradition of dairy farming. Calcagno’s 900 dairy cows feast on a gourmet diet of vegetable and fruit scraps from local food processing plants including apple pulp from S.
Martinelli and Co., cull artichokes from Ocean Mist Farms, and broccoli from Mann Packing Co. Inc.

Practice Your Dairy Product Grading

Chuck ZimmermanDairy Group, World Dairy Expo

Wisconsin Dairy Products AssocationSpeaking of World Dairy Expo. . .

The 2006 Dairy Product Grading and Evaluation Clinic will be held Tuesday, October 3, 2006 at World Dairy Expo, Madison, WI. This clinic is a comprehensive training program on dairy product grading (cheese, butter, sour cream, and whey) led by graders from the United States Dept. of Ag (USDA), Wisconsin Dept. of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection (DATCP) and University of Wisconsin.

The registration deadline is Tuesday, September 26, 2006. For more information visit www.wdpa.net or call the Wisconsin Dairy Products Assn at 608.836.3336.

World Dairy Expo Recognition Awards

Chuck ZimmermanWorld Dairy Expo

World Dairy Expo 2006World Dairy Expo is getting closer and closer. I’m not sure if I will be there or for how long yet but I have lined up assistance in providing coverage here again this year.

There’s a lot of advance news to bring you so I thought I’d get started. For example, there’s this year’s World Dairy Expo Recognition Awards which are going to:

The global dairy industry is taking notice of four individuals who have been nominated and selected by their peers for the highest recognition – the 2006 World Dairy Expo Recognition Awards: Dr. João F. Casagrande of Barretos, São Paulo, Brazil, International Person of the Year; Gary E. Hanman, Kansas City, Missouri, Industry Person of the Year; Janet Shank Stiles, Boonsboro, Maryland, Dairy Woman of the Year and Louis E. “Red” Larson of Okeechobee, Florida, Dairyman of the Year.

Read more about the awards and these individuals here.

Princess Kay of the Milky Way

Chuck ZimmermanDairy Group

Minnesota State FairIt’s state fair time and in Minnesota that means the crowning of the 53rd Princess Kay of the Milky Way. She will be named the evening before the Minnesota State Fair opens, Wednesday August 23, at the Minnesota State Fair band shell.

Princess Kay of the Milky Way serves as the official goodwill ambassador for Minnesota’s nearly 5,400 dairy farmers who provide wholesome products to dairy consumers. Princess Kay is either a dairy farmer’s daughter, an employee of a dairy farm, or the daughter of a dairy farm employee. Midwest Dairy Association’s Minnesota Division sponsors the program to help communicate with people about the dairy industry and its products.

Rebekah Dammann of Lester Prairie in McLeod County is the reigning Princess Kay. She will pass on the crown to one of 12 county dairy princesses vying for the 2006-2007 title. One of Princess Kay’s first official duties is to sit in a rotating cooler for nearly eight hours on the opening day of the State Fair while her likeliness is sculpted out of a 90-pound block of butter. The 11 other contestants will have their likenesses sculpted in butter throughout the remaining days of the fair. Associated Milk Producers, Inc. of New Ulm makes and provides the butter.

You can see photos of the candidates and their bios here.

WMMB Awards Recognition Program

Chuck ZimmermanDairy Group, Promotion

Wisconsin Milk Marketing BoardThe Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board has announced the dairy promotion groups that have been selected to receive their awards for their outstanding work in local dairy promotion.

“Wisconsin’s dairy promotion groups serve as the vital arms and legs to get important dairy messages out to consumers in local communities,” says Becky Kronberg, manager of Local Markets Communications at WMMB. “This program allows us to reward groups for their hard work and grassroot efforts.” In order to apply for the recognition awards, WMMB’s County Dairy Leader Groups were asked to highlight their best dairy promotion activity or event carried out during the 2005 calendar year. Read More

CWT Export Assistance Bids

Chuck ZimmermanDairy Group, Export

Cooperatives Working TogetherHere’s the latest announcements from Cooperatives Working Together:

  • Cooperatives Working Together announced Wednesday that it has accepted an export assistance bid for the sale of mozzarella cheese to Israel. The bid is from Dairy Farmers of America, Kansas City, MO, for the export of 10 metric tons (22,000 pounds) of cheese. CWT will pay an export bonus to the bidder, once completion of the cheese shipment is verified.
  • Cooperatives Working Together announced Monday that it has accepted an export assistance bid for the sale of anhydrous milkfat to Mexico. The bid is from Dairy Farmers of America, Kansas City, MO, for the export of 515 metric tons (1.13 million pounds) of anhydrous milkfat to Mexico. CWT will pay an export bonus to the bidder, once completion of the milkfat shipment is verified.

    • Dairyline Markets In Review

    Chuck ZimmermanDairyline, Markets

    DairylineDairy Markets Week in Review

    The cash dairy markets anticipated a more bullish milk production report and continued to strengthen the week of August 14. Block cheese closed that Friday at $1.24 per pound, up 4 cents on the week, but 23 cents below a year ago. Barrel closed at $1.2425, up 5 cents on the week, but 23 3/4-cents below a year ago. 18 cars of block traded hands and 11 of barrel. The NASS U.S. average block price hit $1.1622, up 1.9 cents. Barrel averaged $1.1492, up 0.6 cent.

    Butter closed Friday at $1.2850, down a half-cent on the week, and 41 1/4 cents below a year ago. 43 cars were sold. NASS butter averaged $1.2146, up 6.1 cents.

    There’s encouraging news in fluid milk, according to the CME’s Daily Dairy Report (DDR). After consecutive years of declines, fluid milk sales were up 1.4 percent in the first half of 2006, according to Federal order and California data. The DDR adds that, if this pace continues, this could be the third time in the last 20 years that fluid sales increased at least 1 percent from the previous year.

    Provided courtesy of Dairyline.

    New Sires at Select

    Andy VanceGenetics, Production

    Select Sires added six high-components breed sires to the active A.I. lineup this week. The new Jersey lineup includes three new graduates, alongside one new Brown Swiss, Guernsey, and Ayrshire sire.

    The Jersey sires feature 7JE714 Sunset Canyon MATINEE-ET, with a debut at #1 in the breed for fat poinds and #12 for percent. MATINEE is a maternal sibling of MAXIMUS-ET and MECCA, both already in the Select Sires lineup.

    Jersey sire 7JE641 Sunbow Freedom ROMO-ET and 7JE679 All Lynns Hallmark RAY-ET both join the team, with ROMO standing 10th in the breed for milk yield.

    Brown Swiss sire 7BS769 Oak Forest Ace CHRIS ET*TM in a Top-5 PTI bull, topping the breed for fat, calved from a Excellent 93 dam making over 42,000 pounds of milk.

    Guernsey grad 7GU391 Jens Gold G HAWK signs on tied for the #1 spot in the breed for Protein, as a Top-5 PTI sire, and with a three-generation Gold Star Dam maternal family.

    Ayrshire sire 7AY76 Kellcrest AVENGER-ET ranks fourth among Ayrshires for PTI, standing first in the breed for Fat percent.

    A Seasonal Grazing Dairy Interview

    Andy VanceAudio, Production

    While broadcasting from the National Farmers Union Farm Bill Listening Session in Columbus, Ohio, I was intrigued by the farm story of one of the panelists discussing the dairy components of the farm bill. Stacy Hall, along with her husband, operate a seasonal dairy in Southeastern Ohio that relies totally on grazing to feed their cows. We had a fascinating conversation about the concept of milking cows from March through Thanksgiving, taking off for the Caribbean for the holidays, and then coming back and starting all over again. I also learned how the EQIP program has helped the farm install important heavy-traffic lanes that the cows use to get back and forth from the parlor to the paddock. I think you’ll enjoy the conversation.

    Stacy Hall talks seasonal grazing Hall Seasonal Grazing Interview (7:45, mp3)

    Heat Effecting Milk Production

    Chuck ZimmermanAudio, Government, Milk, Production

    USDAThe heat is having an effect on milk production as evidenced by USDA’s July milk production numbers. USDA Chief Economist Keith Collins says it’s down thanks to the heat in major producing state California and it’s lowering annual production forecasts as well.

    You can hear a report on this from USDA: Listen To MP3 USDA News Report (1 min MP3)