Hoard’s Dairyman is celebrating the magazine’s 125th anniversary this year, and to honor this occasion, a new version of the famous “Foster Mothers of the Human Race” painting will be painted by dairy artist Bonnie Mohr. Hoard’s will be chronicling the painting in a special blog “Bonnie’s Brush with Hoard’s“. Check out the first entry below!
While 2010 marks the beginning of a new decade, it also marks a momentous occasion for Hoard’s Dairyman. On January 23, 1885, William Dempster Hoard launched the first edition of Hoard’s Dairyman. This year, our 125th anniversary, we’ve asked world-renowned dairy artist Bonnie Mohr of Glencoe, Minn., to help us create an updated Foster Mothers of the Human Race painting. With a century and a quarter under our belts, we know this fresh look on the famous Foster Mothers print will be a great launching point for future years of service to the dairy industry. The original Foster Mothers print was created in 1957 followed by updates in 1963, 1991, and 1993 — all of which were painted by former Hoard’s Dairyman Art Director James Baird.
You’ll find this all-new painting on the June 2010 cover of Hoard’s Dairyman. This celebratory issue will highlight landmarks of the dairy industry and Hoard’s Dairyman in the past 125 years. Luckily, you won’t have to wait until June to get a sneak peak of the painting. We’ll be catching up with Bonnie throughout the painting process. Recently, we sat down with Bonnie to visit with her about her excitement for this project.
Posted: March 9, 2010 at 8:59 pm
By Cindy Zimmerman
The Supreme Court will soon make a decision on whether or not farmers can grow biotech alfalfa – and it could ultimately impact other genetically modified crops.
That’s why the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) and several other agricultural organizations have filed an amicus curiae brief with the court in the case of “Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms” regarding Roundup Ready® alfalfa.
The groups urge that the lower courts’ decision to approve an injunction without adequately hearing the key evidence must be reversed “to protect the farmers who choose to grow genetically-engineered crops, as well as the public benefits that agricultural biotechnology brings to producers and consumers around the world.” They argue that USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has studied Roundup Ready® alfalfa and found no significant human environment impact and has recommended that farmers be allowed to grow it. APHIS just recently concluded a comment period on the draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the crop.
This case is important case because it marks the first time the high court has weighed in on the risks of genetically engineered crops. It is scheduled for oral argument on April 27 and a decision is expected from the Court by June.
Read more about the case here from Farm Bureau.
We all know that Mom is the heart and soul of every family, and no where is that more true than in a farm family. Why not show your appreciate of all your farm Mom does by nominating her for the America’s Farmers Mom of the Year award? Hurry, nominations are due by April 9, 2010.
Behind every American Farm Family is the Backbone of the Operation: The American Farm Mom
Tell us in 300 words or less how your farm mom embodies the caring, values and hard work that make up the family farm way of life. You can even nominate yourself. (Why not? You do everything else.)
There will be five regional winners of $5,000 each. All five will be posted online here where voting will determine one national winner of an additional $2,500.
Help Iowa dairy farmers give back to their community, up to $30,000, during the Iowa Farmers Feed US campaign. All you need to do is fan the Iowa Farmers Feed US Facebook fan page or become a Twitter follower of @IAFarmersFeedUS. Each new fan and follower will add $1 to the donation milk can. The promotion runs through March 31.
Iowa dairy farmers know a thing or two about giving back to the community. In addition to providing wholesome, nutritious milk for consumption across the state, last month dairy farmers donated $30,000 to Iowa’s food banks to provide dairy products to those seeking community assistance. With the help of the community, the donation could grow to $60,000.
Beginning March 8, dairy farmers will add $1 to their donation, up to $30,000, for every new fan to the Iowa Farmers Feed US Facebook fan page and Twitter follower of @IAFarmersFeedUS. The donation promotion also extends to the Midwest Dairy Association website. For each click received from the homepage to the Iowa Farmers Feed US link, another $1 will be added to the donation. The donation drive will run until Wednesday, March 31 or until a combination of 30,000 new fans, followers and website clicks are reached.
Iowa’s six food banks – Food Bank of Iowa, Food Bank of Southern Iowa, HACAP, Food Bank for the Heartland, Northeast Iowa Food Bank and Riverbend Food Bank, which serve the state’s 99 counties, will purchase dairy foods from Iowa dairy processors as needed over the next 12 months with the money donated by dairy farmers throughout the state. Midwest Dairy Association will also provide ongoing nutrition education materials to food banks for their clients, highlighting the benefits of consuming three servings of milk, cheese and yogurt every day.
Spring is in the air, and it’s time for dairy farmers to think and plan for the 2010 crop. Read below for information on StollerUSA’s Alfalfa Program.
Stoller’s Director of Bioscience, Dr. Ron Salzman, explained the Stoller technology while reviewing university research results and showing images from field trials. StollerUSA field representative, Don Stork also shared what Stoller’s Alfalfa Program involves and the benefits it delivers.
Stork shared results from a dairy farm that followed Stoller’s alfalfa program. The Vos family of Burlington, Wisc. began adding Stoller products to the foliar insecticide spray application used on their alfalfa. Bio-Forge® is the key to Stoller’s Alfalfa Program, applied approximately seven days after each hay cutting to boost root growth and plant vigor. Bio-Forge is a yield enhancer and stress reducer for all crops. It offsets the negative effects of plant stress caused by drought, excessive moisture, frost, herbicide damage and other crop stressors. Bio-Forge keeps the root systems functioning normally under stressed conditions promoting more normal growth activity. This allows more impressive second cuttings and improved digestibility.
Second generation dairy farmers Ray and Ron Vos, like all dairy farmers, are working to manage their operation by looking for efficiencies and improved ROI. The result of their use of the Stoller Alfalfa Program was exceptionally healthy hay with increased tonnage and feed value. With just four cuttings they calculated 6.7 tons of dry matter/acre.
The increased tonnage allowed them to manage their feed needs efficiently – eliminating the previous year’s $11,000 expense of buying alfalfa from an outside source. In addition, the quality of the feed improved significantly. The second cutting feed analysis of the Bio-Forge-treated alfalfa showed an Relative Feed Value (RFV) rating of 189 with a 21.26% crude protein level. This represents a significant increase from recent regional data showing the average RFV as 145-160. In addition, the Vos operation noted higher milk production – with over 28% of the herd averaging milk production of over 100 lbs/day.
In addition to the short-term feed benefits of applying Stoller products to their alfalfa, the Vos operation anticipates their alfalfa fields will be more productive for many more years to come. New seeding performance offered a glimpse into the hearty nature of Bio-Forge-treated alfalfa fields – with a tall stand and blooms appearing eight days after a hard October frost.
Dairy Farmers of America, Inc.’s (DFA) Board of Directors and management are taking a series of proactive steps to emphasize its commitment to proper treatment of animals.
“Animal welfare is a critical issue for our members and is vitally important to producing high-quality milk,” said David Darr, vice president of sustainability and public affairs. “We have a responsibility to clearly articulate our expectations regarding animal well-being and, equally important, to help educate consumers about those standards.”
A key initiative is the second round of DFA’s Gold Standard Dairy quality assurance program. DFA introduced the program in 2007 to proactively address the concerns of consumers, retailers and processors who are interested in how food is produced. The on-farm review includes animal well-being, environmental stewardship, employee training, and milk safety and quality. More than 90 percent of DFA member farms have participated in the Gold Standard process.
When the second round of the Gold Standard Dairy process begins in 2010, the program will incorporate measurement criteria from the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) program, a nationwide, verifiable animal well-being program that demonstrates U.S. milk producers are committed to producing high-quality milk in a high-quality environment.
Further demonstrating its commitment to animal welfare, at its March meeting, the Board approved a resolution affirming that the public image of dairy, including animal housing and care, is of utmost importance to DFA and its dairy farmer members. The resolution states that DFA will continue to emphasize an expectation of proper and caring treatment of animals through individual dairy farm quality programs, the Gold Standard Dairy program, and participation with other dairy industry organizations to establish animal well-being standards for the U.S. dairy industry.
In addition, the Board welcomed special guest Charlie Arnot to its March meeting to discuss the growing consumer interest in animal welfare issues, and how consumer perceptions influence demand and consumption. Arnot is chief executive officer of the Center for Food Integrity and president of CMA, a consulting company that works with companies across the food chain on issues management, communications and public relations.
Block cheese fell 4 1/4-cents the first week of March, closing Friday at $1.2975 per pound, but that’s still 9 3/4-cents above that week a year ago. Barrel closed at $1.25, down 4 cents on the week, but 3 cents above a year ago. Eight cars of block traded hands on the week and 34 of barrel. The NASS-surveyed U.S. average block price fell 1.4 cents, to $1.4921. Barrel averaged $1.4661, down 3.4 cents.
Thankfully, the butter market remains strong, closing Friday at $1.45, up 4 1/2-cents on the week and 28 1/4-cents above a year ago. Only one car was sold all week. NASS butter averaged $1.3592, up 1.9 cents.
Cash Grade A nonfat dry milk lost a penny on the week, closing Friday at $1.11. Extra Grade plunged 12 cents, dipping to $1.12. NASS powder averaged $1.0448, down 2.5 cents, and dry whey averaged 38.94 cents, down 0.5 cent.
Provided courtesy of Dairyline.
Have you tried an American Legends pizza yet from Domino’s? The pizza, which uses 40% more cheese, is one reason why Domino’s was able to report a profit for 2009, and is good news for dairy farmers.
The improving sales prospects for Domino’s Pizza, Inc., could help deliver a boost for slumping cheese prices. Domino’s, which owns or franchises more than 4,900 U.S. locations, projects domestic same-store sales to increase 1 percent to 3 percent this year from last year, the company said in its fourth-quarter earnings statement today. International same-store sales are expected to rise 3 percent to 5 percent, Domino’s said.
The company’s efforts to retool and promote its pizzas are paying off, resulting in traffic growth in all four quarters of 2009, Domino’s Chief Executive Office David Brandon said. Domestic same-store sales rose 0.9 percent for all of 2009, Domino’s said.
Growth was “most significant” during the fourth quarter, Brandon said in today’s statement. “This positive momentum has continued thus far in 2010, as sales and traffic have increased significantly since the launch of our new core pizza.”
Increased pizza consumption may help trim excess cheese supplies and provide a lift for beleaguered dairy producers still reeling from a milk price crash. Pizza generates about $32.5 billion in annual restaurant and grocery store revenue, and about a quarter of all cheese sold is used to make pizza, according to Dairy Management Inc.
The same-store sales outlook is “some much needed good news for the market,” said Scott Brown, a livestock and dairy economist at the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute in Columbia, Mo. “We must have some demand growth if we want milk prices to move higher and stay higher in 2010.”
At the end of January, U.S. cheese inventories totaled 980.8 million pounds, up 11 percent from a year earlier, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Cheese prices will likely stay below $1.40 a pound for a few months without some additional cheese sales, Brown said. “We have a ways to go yet but this hopefully is the start of good news on the demand front,” he said.
In November, Brandon, the Domino’s CEO, told Dairy Herd Management that using more cheese was yielding benefits. The company’s “cheese-enhanced” American Legends pizzas accounted for a double-digit share of overall pizza sales, and the share is growing, Brandon said.
“When you talk about a product that achieves double-digit mix in its first year of introduction, that is big,” Brandon told Dairy Herd Management.
Sargento Foods Inc. has announced the introduction of a new series of Reduced Sodium cheeses! he six new varieties include Colby-Jack slices, Provolone slices, Colby-Jack snack sticks, String snacks, Mild Cheddar shredded cheese and Mozzarella shredded cheese.
The series offer great flavor for health-conscious consumers looking to indulge their passion for cheese, without having to sacrifice taste. With 25 percent less sodium, the new cheeses are worthy substitutes for regular natural cheese in both cooking and snacking. With National Nutrition Month in March, the launch of the Reduced Sodium line comes at a time when consumers are seeking healthier food options.
“With almost 50 percent of consumers reading food labels for sodium content, we’re responding to their interest in lowering their daily intake by offering Reduced Sodium Sargento cheeses,” said Chris Groom, marketing director. “However, we only wanted to launch the line if we could still provide the great tasting natural cheese that consumers love, which this line does successfully.”
Consumers, regulators and health groups are increasingly watching sodium intake as public service organizations are referring to high sodium diets as the single greatest problem in the American diet. The average daily sodium intake is now 4,000 milligrams, which is about twice the government’s recommended amount for the average person. Health experts claim that as little as a one gram sodium reduction in the American diet per day can help, which is equivalent to 25 percent less, matching the decrease in Sargento Reduced Sodium cheeses.
Available in slices, shreds and snacks, the new Reduced Sodium cheeses will be on grocery store shelves nationwide in March. Product information, recipes and snack ideas featuring the Reduced Sodium cheeses are available online.
Posted: March 4, 2010 at 2:08 pm
By Cindy Zimmerman
Pioneer director of alfalfa research, David Miller, discusses Pioneer brand alfalfa varieties, traits and testing to help producers put the right product on the right acre.
Listen to the podcast here:
David Miller on alfalfa varieties (4:00 min MP3)
To see all archived Pioneer Forage Forum podcasts, click here.
As dairy farmers, we know where milk comes from (our cows), but many consumers want to know more precise information, such as the plant that their milk was bottled. Brigham Young University senior, Trevor Fitzgerald, has created a Web site with the answers!
Fitzgerald did not grow up on a dairy farm, but says he was interested finding out where his food comes from.
The information on the site originated from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but Fitzgerald says it was being made available in a several-hundred page PDF document that was difficult to navigate. Hoping to make the information more accessible and easier to navigate for consumers, Fitzgerald built the Web site.
Consumers can now enter the code found on their dairy products, and the Web site lists where the product originated from.
Dairy products from milk and cheese to yogurt, sour cream and cottage cheese are included.
Fitzgerald says traffic to the Web site has been growing rapidly.
Lawrence H. Wentzell Sr’s glass milk bottle collection is one that many would envy. The Massachusetts man collected almost 2,500 milk bottles, starting with bottles from his family’s dairy, S. H. Wentzell & Sons Pioneer Dairy. Mr. Wentzell’s family is searching for a collector or a museum interested in taking the collection. Click here for the entire story.
For years the stories were enough family history to satisfy Mr. Wentzell. But then, around the time he retired from one of his two jobs in the early 1990s, he thought it might be nice to find an actual tangible piece of that history and he began a search for milk bottles from the family’s dairy. He found some and learned that collecting milk bottles could become a passion-filled hobby.
He expanded his collection to include other bottles from the city and, before long, the area. And as is wont to happen with collectors of things, eventually he expanded again and started searching out bottles from around Massachusetts.
With the man who most loved the bottles gone, the Wentzell family has pondered what to do with the 2,500 or so specimens he’d lovingly collected. They checked with local historical societies and museums, and a collector did buy a few that he badly wanted. Still, it’s too large a collection for any one place to take.
“If we could keep some part of the collection together,” Mrs. Wentzell said, “I think he would want that. We don’t have to sell them. I just want to do the right thing.”
Mrs. Wentzell said she knows her husband had talked with a fellow collector about what would happen to their bottles should something happen to him, but she’s not sure they ever decided anything specific. Friends are helping her look for appropriate places to donate some of the collection, places where the bottles will be seen and appreciated, but it has not been easy.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a final decision to amend the producer-handler definition in all federal milk marketing orders.
These amendments were considered in a recommended decision published Oct. 21, 2009.
This decision amends the producer-handler definition of all federal milk marketing orders to limit exemption from pooling and pricing provisions of the orders to those producer-handlers with total route disposition and sales of packaged fluid milk products to other plants of 3 million pounds or less per month.
These amendments are subject to producer approval before they can be implemented on a permanent basis. The final decision amends all federal milk marketing orders. Each amended federal order must be approved either by two-thirds of producers supplying milk to the federal order or by producers who supply two-thirds of the milk to that order. If approved, USDA will issue a final rule.
“We do a lot of wrapping with a ‘W.’ It’s an intentional play on words,” Hershey spokeswoman Jody Cook said of the new rap music video the company collaborated on this year.
It’s any chocolatier’s sweet dream. Titled “Chocolate Shoppe,” the music video, posted last week on YouTube, features Hershey employees rolling around the factory on office chairs, cocooning themselves in foil and spitting rhymes about dancing the “chocolate drop.”
Part of a strategy to reach a younger demographic through viral marketing and social media, Hershey teamed with the Sniper Twins, a New York City rap duo that has produced parody hip-hop clips about salad and computers.
In December, the Fortune 500 business opened the doors of its West Hershey Plant to Barry Flanagan, 28, and Dax Martinez-Vargas, 27. Seventeen factory workers performed in the video, Flanagan said. While some of the video performers, such as the “chocolate cop,” work for Hershey, no company executives make an appearance, Cook said.
“We hope everyone realizes this is supposed to be fun and a parody,” Cook said.
“It’s the coolness,” Flanagan said. “It’s really cool. For Hershey’s to get onboard with a hip-hop or rap song says a lot about their cool level.”
Posted: February 26, 2010 at 5:12 pm
By News Editor
The History Channel will be highlighting Pennsylvania’s Marburger Farm Dairy and its famous buttermilk on the channel’s “Food Tech”. The episode will be broadcast on March 4 at 9:00 p.m. EST.
Food Tech host and self-proclaimed food connoisseur Bobby Bognar travels around the country breaking down exactly where and how food gets from the ground, farm or even factory all the way to the plate. Last year, for a segment on how buttermilk is made, he visited the Marburger Farm Dairy in Evans City.
“They were there for almost a whole day filming for a seven-minute segment on the hour-long show,” said sales representative Rita Marburger Reifenstein. “Instead of 15 minutes of fame, we have seven. We’re very excited.”
“A lot of people love their buttermilk. It’s a specialty item,” Ms. Reifenstein says on the show. “Older people remember it from their youth when grandma used to make it.”
Marburger Farm Dairy has been known for its buttermilk for well over 30 years, and in a recent competition was ranked in the top three in the U.S. The show doesn’t reveal any trade secrets, but Mr. Bognar tries his hand at milking a cow and adding the culture to the machinery that churns the milk.
Posted: February 26, 2010 at 2:59 pm
By Amanda Nolz
Check out our fun new turquoise t-shirts that we received for being a part of the youth seminar at the 2010 Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference! Celeste Laurent and myself focused on getting the kids excited about who they are and where they come from. Being young people ourselves, we can relate to the challenges kids sometimes face in being different from their peers because they live on a farm.
Growing up, I got teased a lot for living on a farm and liking things like 4-H and FFA. Obviously, today I don’t have these issues, and I really don’t care if people were to tease me, but at a young age where being popular and fitting in are huge, it can sometimes be difficult to stay excited about farming and ranching.
Overall, it was a great youth seminar with lots of participation from the kids. I truly enjoyed my time in Michigan working with the future of the dairy industry!
Cash cheese prices lost more ground in the final week of February. The blocks closed Friday at $1.34 per pound, down 7 1/4-cents on the week, but are still 16 1/2-cents above a year ago when the blocks plunged 13 1/2 cents, to $1.1750. Barrel cheese closed Friday at $1.29, down 8 3/4-cents on the week, but 11 cents above a year ago.
The losses were on top of the previous week’s declines of 9 1/4 and 6 3/4-cents respectively. Thirty one loads of block traded hands on the week and 15 of barrel. The lagging NASS-surveyed U.S. average price on block cheese gained 0.4 cent, hitting $1.5059. Barrel averaged $1.5005, down 0.9 cent.
Butter closed February at $1.4050 per pound, up 4 1/2-cents on the week, and 25 1/2-cents above a year ago. Thirteen cars sold on the week and the NASS butter price averaged $1.3407, down a penny . NASS nonfat dry milk averaged $1.0697, down 7.2 cents, and dry whey averaged 39.46 cents, down 0.1 cent.
Provided courtesy of Dairyline.
Posted: February 26, 2010 at 1:44 pm
By Amanda Nolz
“Little Miss Muffet, sat on her tuffet, eating her curds and whey.” This was how Teresa Crook opened up the youth session at the 2010 Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference in Frankenmuth, MI earlier this month. Crook explained what whey protein is and where whey protein can be found.
Interestingly, whey protein can be found in oatmeal, hot chocolate, pudding, Doritos, protein bars, Cheez whiz and more! It’s amazing just how much dairy cattle impact our daily lives without us even knowing it! Crook’s youth seminar was a hit because she had taste samples of all of her products in the speech! Definitely a crowd pleaser!
Celeste Laurent and myself followed Crook’s presentation with our own segment in the youth program. Stop back for an update on our session!
Posted: February 26, 2010 at 10:36 am
By Amanda Nolz
Congratulations to Melissa Erdman, the new Michigan Senior Dairy Ambassador! Melissa is currently a student at Michigan State University, where she is on the path to become a veterinarian. Melissa impressed the judges with her extensive knowledge of the dairy industry, her passion for dairy products and her communication skills in explaining her depth of knowledge and passion with the judges. In the interview, she identified the two weaknesses facing the dairy industry as lack of consumer trust in dairy production and profitability (or lack thereof) for producers. Her proposed dairy project will focus on senior citizens and teaching them the importance of dairy as a part of a balanced diet.
Congratulations also goes to the new Michigan Junior Dairy Ambassador, Sarah Michalek. Sarah is a high school student who believes in putting 110% in everything she does. Her drive, passion and determination really convinced the judges that she would be an ideal candidate for the ambassador program. She hopes to study food science in the future, and she identified dairy public relations and fluctuating prices as two challenges facing the dairy industry. Her proposed dairy promotion project was titled, “Milk, Unlike Any Udder,” and it focused on working with students in grade six, and it included a milk label design contest.
Cheers to Melissa and Sarah, and best of luck in your year promoting dairy products to consumers! I’m confident you will do an awesome job! (Photo courtesy of Celeste Laurent)
Posted: February 26, 2010 at 8:47 am
By John Davis
The USDA has issued the final rule on organic access to pasture. This rule amends the National Organic Program (NOP) regulations to clarify the use of pasture in raising organic ruminants.
USDA officials say the final rule provides certainty to consumers that organic livestock production is a pasture based system in which animals are actively grazing pasture during the grazing season. The majority of organic dairy and ruminant livestock producers are already grazing animals and maintaining pastures that meet the requirements of this rule. These standards contain clear requirements that will provide greater assurance that all producers are being held to the same standards.
This episode of the Milking Parlor podcast features Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan, laying out out the terms regarding the final rules and telling how this underlines the ag department’s commitment to organic agriculture.
To subscribe to the Milking Parlor podcast, click here. Listen to or download this episode in the player below.
The Supreme Court will soon make a decision on whether or not farmers can grow biotech alfalfa – and it could ultimately impact other genetically modified crops.
Check out our fun new turquoise t-shirts that we received for being a part of the youth seminar at the 2010 Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference! Celeste Laurent and myself focused on getting the kids excited about who they are and where they come from. Being young people ourselves, we can relate to the challenges kids sometimes face in being different from their peers because they live on a farm. 
“Little Miss Muffet, sat on her tuffet, eating her curds and whey.” This was how Teresa Crook opened up the youth session at the 2010 Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference in Frankenmuth, MI earlier this month. Crook explained what whey protein is and where whey protein can be found.
Congratulations to Melissa Erdman, the new Michigan Senior Dairy Ambassador! Melissa is currently a student at Michigan State University, where she is on the path to become a veterinarian. Melissa impressed the judges with her extensive knowledge of the dairy industry, her passion for dairy products and her communication skills in explaining her depth of knowledge and passion with the judges. In the interview, she identified the two weaknesses facing the dairy industry as lack of consumer trust in dairy production and profitability (or lack thereof) for producers. Her proposed dairy project will focus on senior citizens and teaching them the importance of dairy as a part of a balanced diet. 
Congratulations also goes to the new Michigan Junior Dairy Ambassador, Sarah Michalek. Sarah is a high school student who believes in putting 110% in everything she does. Her drive, passion and determination really convinced the judges that she would be an ideal candidate for the ambassador program. She hopes to study food science in the future, and she identified dairy public relations and fluctuating prices as two challenges facing the dairy industry. Her proposed dairy promotion project was titled, “Milk, Unlike Any Udder,” and it focused on working with students in grade six, and it included a milk label design contest.