News Update
June 5, 2012
Save the Date: K-State's 2012 Beef Conference is Aug. 9
The Kansas State University (K-State) 2012 Beef Conference — Thriving in the New Beef Economy — will be Aug. 9 in Frick Auditorium of K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine in Manhattan.
"We've had an interesting year in the beef industry and we have an equally exciting lineup of topics and speakers for this year's conference," said Larry Hollis, veterinarian with K-State Research and Extension.
For the convenience of those who are not able to travel to Manhattan in person, the conference will be broadcast remotely to several sites around Kansas.
More information about K-State's 2012 Beef Conference will be available in coming weeks at www.asi.ksu.edu/beefconference and on the K-State Research and Extension website at www.ksre.ksu.edu.
Nominations Due for Cattlemen's Beef Board
The Iowa Cattlemen's Association and other Iowa ag groups are accepting names for nomination to the Cattlemen's Beef Board (CBB). Nominations must be forwarded to USDA by July 2.
For more information and the full release, visit http://www.iowaagconnection.com/story-state.php?Id=564&yr=2012.
Iowa Mourns Passing of Legendary Farm Advocate Pearson
Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF) members have lost a valued member of the family, as they mark the passing of longtime WHO Radio farm news announcer Mark Pearson. Pearson, long appreciated by Iowa farmers as a tireless advocate of agriculture, was appreciated for his intelligence, his humor and his passion for farming and Iowa.
For more information and the full release, click here.
AFBF Outlines Priorities, Concerns with Farm Bill Legislation
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) today, June 5, sent a letter to the Senate outlining the organization's priorities in, along with its concerns about, the Senate Agriculture Committee's proposed 2012 Farm Bill, S. 3240. In a letter, AFBF President Bob Stallman said that with Farm Bureau's suggested improvements, he believes S. 3240 moves toward the organization's core principles for rational, acceptable farm policy and his organization would support passage of the bill.
According to Stallman, Farm Bureau places a priority on several of the committee's decisions, including using the $23 billion in savings suggested to the Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction last fall; protecting and strengthening the federal crop insurance program; developing a commodity title that attempts to encourage producers to follow market signals rather than make planting decisions in anticipation of government payments; and refraining from basing any program on cost of production.
"While the legislation addresses many Farm Bureau policy priorities, it is our sincere hope there will be additional opportunities to make adjustments and refinements to improve this legislation," Stallman said.
Some of the areas Farm Bureau believes would benefit from additional policy work include addressing the net effect of the Agriculture Risk Coverage Eligible Acres provisions to ensure a true "planted acres" approach and avoid recreating "base acres" issues that have raised equity and planting distortion concerns; and re-instituting current payment limitations and the Adjusted Gross Income provisions in current law.
For more information and the full release, click here.
33rd Annual Ag Expo, July 17-19 at Michigan State University
Ag Expo, Michigan's largest outdoor farm show, returns to the Michigan State University (MSU) campus July 17-19 for the 33rd time, bringing a variety of educational and commercial activities and exhibits to the state's agricultural community, as well as to homeowners, families and anyone who wants to know more about the state's second-largest industry.
This year, Ag Expo will bring participants the latest technology in agricultural production, current research findings from the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) faculty, and a full schedule of demonstrations and educational sessions to help manage farms and businesses at their best.
For more information and the full release, click here.
Ag Secretary Intends to Appoint Disadvantaged Farmers as Voting Members of County Committees
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today, June 5, that he intends to appoint voting members from socially disadvantaged (SDA) communities to serve on county committees in county jurisdictions that lack fair SDA representation. USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA), which works collaboratively with county committees, published an interim rule today in the Federal Register that is open for public comment for 60 days.
County committees have served as a direct link between the farm community and USDA for more than 75 years, helping to deliver FSA farm programs at the local level. Eligible farmers serving on committees provide feedback to USDA on the types of FSA agricultural programs that best serve the needs of local producers.
For more information and the full release, click here.
Streamlined Trade of Organic Products Between US and EU Begins
The USDA announced today, June 5, that organic products certified in the United States or European Union (EU) may now be sold as organic in either market, as trade opened up on Friday, June 1, under a new U.S.-EU equivalency partnership. Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan signed formal letters creating the partnership in February, along with Dacian Cioloş, European commissioner for agriculture and rural development, and Ambassador Isi Siddiqui, U.S. rrade representative chief agricultural negotiator.
"This partnership will open new markets for American farmers and ranchers, create more opportunities for small businesses, and result in good jobs for Americans who grow, package, ship and market organic products," said Merrigan. "In the months ahead, USDA will continue to work hard to expand opportunities for all U.S. products, including organics. Equivalency arrangements such as this are critical to growing the U.S. organics industry — they require careful negotiation to ensure that we maintain existing U.S. trade policies while ensuring that U.S. agricultural products will compete on a level playing field in world markets."
For more information and the full release, click here.
Editor’s Note: The articles used within this site represent a mixture of copyrights. If you would like to reprint or repost an article, you must first request permission of Angus Productions Inc. (API) by contacting the editor at 816-383-5200; 3201 Frederick Ave., Saint Joseph, MO 64506. API claims copyright to this web site as presented. We welcome educational venues and cattlemen to link to this site as a service to their audience.