News Update
June 5, 2013
Participate in an Angus TV Survey,
Win Prizes
Do you watch The Angus Report or I Am Angus? If so, AngusTV wants your opinion. Please take a couple of minutes to complete a survey, and in doing so, you will be entered to win one of three prizes.
Ten survey participants will receive an Angus cap and “Beef Up Your Summer” gift packet, which includes a recipe booklet, thermometer, potholder and set of tongs. Additionally, all participants will be entered to win one Visa® $100 gift card.
Your suggestions allow the American Angus Association to develop more useful content for our audiences. Deadline to respond is Monday, June 17.
To participate, please visit the survey webpage here.
Angus Foundation Silent Auction
Each year during the National Junior Angus Show (NJAS), the Angus Foundation hosts a silent auction, which features a variety of items available for Angus families and friends to bid on and purchase. The items sold at the silent auction are donated by state junior and adult Angus associations, and individual farms and corporations. The state junior Angus association that donates the highest-selling item to the silent auction will receive $100 for its association.
Individual donations to the silent auction are accepted. Proceeds from the silent auction go to the Angus Foundation, which supports education, youth and research activities of the American Angus Association. To
donate an item please contact the Angus Foundation at 816-383-5100.
Items for the auction are accepted year-round. If you’re attending the NJAS, be sure to stop by the Angus Foundation Silent Auction and place your bid. The 2013 Angus Foundation Silent Auction will take place July 8-11 at the NJAS in Kansas City, Mo.
For more information and a listing of auction items so far, please view the full release here.
NFU Calls on Senate to Advance Farm Bill;
NFU Hopeful in Final Stretch
National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson sent a letter to all members of the U.S. Senate following Majority Leader Reid’s filing for a cloture vote on S. 954, the Agriculture, Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2013, late Tuesday.
“The farm bill is a vital piece of legislation for the farmers and ranchers that produce the food, feed, fiber and fuel for this country, the 16 million American jobs dependent upon the agriculture industry, the protection of our natural resources, and the food insecure,” said Johnson. “It is critical that the bill continues to move through the Senate, and I urge the U.S. House of Representatives to follow suit very soon in order to have a bill signed into law prior to the Sept. 30 expiration of the current bill.”
Votes on cloture and final votes of the 2013 Farm Bill will be included in NFU’s biennial vote scorecard.
Green Plains to Acquire Ethanol Plant in Atkinson, Neb.
Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc. announced June 3 that it has signed a purchase agreement to acquire the membership interests of Choice Ethanol Holdings LLC, the entity that owns the former NEDAK Ethanol LLC ethanol plant located in Atkinson, Neb., and an ethanol storage and loading facility located approximately 15 miles east of the plant. The dry-mill ethanol plant will add approximately 50 million gallons (gal.) of operating capacity to Green Plains’ current annual production capacity of 740 million gal.
“The acquisition of the plant in Atkinson expands our ethanol production platform and aligns with our ongoing strategy of growing our business and enhancing long-term shareholder value,” said Todd Becker, Green Plains’ president and CEO. “The plant meets our disciplined acquisition criteria and we have a deep understanding of this technology, size and geographic area. We believe we can rapidly improve the overall performance of this plant.”
Congress Reauthorizes the Animal Drug User Fee Act
The Animal Drug User Fee Act (ADUFA) passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 390-12. With the passage of ADUFA last month in the Senate, the legislation, which authorizes the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to collect fees for certain animal drug applications, now heads to the White House for the president’s signature.
Reauthorization of ADUFA is one of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s (NCBA) top policy priorities. NCBA President Scott George, a dairy and beef producer from Cody, Wyo., said the passage of ADUFA is important because new animal health technologies allow cattle producers and veterinarians to prevent, control and treat diseases to maintain a healthy herd.
“Raising healthy cattle is of utmost importance to cattlemen and women, and it is important for producers and the veterinarians they work with to have the ability to best manage herd health and produce safe, nutritious beef,” said George. “The reauthorization of ADUFA will provide resources for the FDA to conduct timely and thorough reviews of new animal drugs for safety and effectiveness.”
George added that with a “clean” bill free of amendments, the fees paid by animal health companies to fund FDA reviews and evaluations will be utilized to support and facilitate the new animal-drug-approval process. “Cattle producers know that keeping our animals healthy is critical to the viability of our operations and our industry,” said George. “We sincerely thank the Senate and House leadership for working together to pass this legislation and for realizing the importance of passing a clean bill without unnecessary language or amendments.”
USDA and EPA Launch U.S. Food Waste Challenge
On June 4 the USDA, in collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) launched the U.S. Food Waste Challenge, calling on others across the food chain — including producer groups, processors, manufacturers, retailers, communities and other government agencies — to join the effort to reduce, recover and recycle food waste.
Food waste in the United States is estimated at roughly between 30%-40% of the food supply. In 2010, an estimated 133 billion pounds of food from U.S. retail food stores, restaurants and homes never made it into people’s stomachs. The amount of uneaten food in homes and restaurants was valued at almost $390 per U.S. consumer in 2008, more than an average month’s worth of food expenditures.
“The United States enjoys the most productive and abundant food supply on Earth, but too much of this food goes to waste,” said Secretary Vilsack. “Not only could this food be going to folks who need it — we also have an opportunity to reduce the amount of food that ends up in America’s landfills. By joining together with EPA and businesses from around the country, we have an opportunity to better educate folks about the problem of food waste and begin to address this problem across the nation.”
For more information, view the full release here.
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