Dairyman Ron Bem points to where state inspectors found high bacteria counts in a creek adjacent to his familyÕs Canby, Ore., dairy. The state used DNA evidence to determine the bacteria was from geese and not dairy cows.
DNA evidence has been used to solve a mystery on an Oregon dairy in a case of mistaken manure identity.
It turns out the cows weren't the culprit. It was the geese all along.
Wym Matthews, head of the state program that regulates dairies, turned to DNA after state investigators were stumpe ...
Thursday, September 02, 2010 9:57 AM
Dairy industry observers say federal agencies are working on several regulations that will impact dairymen.
Chris Galen, director of communications for National Milk Producers Federation, said the organization is waiting for clarification of EPA's spill prevention rule for oil.
The rule is ...
Thursday, September 02, 2010 9:57 AM
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) -- Western Canadian beef producers have found a novel way of putting the "bar" in barbecue.
Angus cattle in British Columbia's Okanagan wine and cattle region are being fed red wine with their grain. Chefs in this Canadian Pacific Coast province said it makes ...
Thursday, September 02, 2010 10:02 AM
SWANTON, Vt. (AP) -- A Swanton cheese plant that closed earlier this year is set to reopen with a new owner thanks to almost $385,000 in assistance from the state of Vermont.
Swan Valley Cheese says it will create 55 jobs over the next several years.
Swan Valley will produce asiago ...
Thursday, September 02, 2010 9:37 AM
POCATELLO, Idaho (AP) -- Idaho's dairy industry increased milk production by 5.3 percent in July, a rate that enabled the state to surpass New York as the nation's third leading milk producer.
But that's not all the good news for Idaho's dairy farmers.
Industry officials say milk p ...
Thursday, September 02, 2010 1:48 PM
LYNDEN, Wash. -- What is now a hole in the ground will be a dairy digester churning out electrical power by late November, if not earlier, its builders say.
Kevin Maas said the dairy digester near Lynden is expected to be as much as 75 percent efficient in producing energy from manure. In add ...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:08 AM
LYNDEN, Wash. -- Microphone in hand, future teacher Brooke VanderVeen welcomed visitors to the Northwest Washington Fair and started educating right away.
First was a history lesson, to mark the regional fair's 100th year.
"We decided that today we'd introduce you to 10 people who represen ...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:08 AM
More dairies in the Midwest have taken buyouts in the Cooperatives Working Together herd retirements, but more cows and more milk are removed from dairies in the West.
The Upper Midwest had almost 3 million cows in USDA's 2008 inventory, and 974 farms participated in CWT herd retirements. The ...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:08 AM
Proposals to change federal dairy policy led more than a dozen organizations to fund economic modeling of the implications of those changes.
Dairy industry players from across the country met in Chicago a few weeks ago for a presentation of the modeling and to hear preliminary results.
The ...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:08 AM
Companion bills in the Senate and House to improve dairy product price reporting have passed out of their respective ag committees.
HR5852, introduced by Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., chairman of the House Ag Committee, and S3656, introduced by Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., chairman of the S ...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:08 AM
Cooperatives Working Together's three dairy herd buyouts in 2009 cost participating members nearly $217 million in payments to producers.
But industry insiders say it's hard to put a dollar amount on how much the seven-year old program with nine retirements thus far has helped.
An economic ...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:08 AM
Umpqua Dairy said this week they are back in business after an outbreak of salmonella cases caused them to shut down for a week to sterilize processing equipment.
"We have taken numerous steps to assure the health and safety of our customers, and are pleased to be returning to our regular pro ...
Thursday, August 26, 2010 10:10 AM
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Dairy production in Wisconsin and Minnesota continues to outpace last year's harvest, but the rate of increase is slowing.
Dairy farmers in both states have been outperforming 2009 harvests by 2-3 percent. Last month, however, the improvement was 1-2 percent.
...
Saturday, August 28, 2010 8:48 AM
BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) -- Three former managers and a former bookkeeper at a Bozeman-based dairy cooperative have pleaded not guilty to using company credit cards to make more than $100,000 in unauthorized purchases.
Michael E. Monforton, Jeffery N. McCown, Jeanette S. McCown, and Scott M. McCo ...
Friday, August 27, 2010 7:49 AM
The U.S. dairy industry is a step closer to making ingredient sales for food aid a commercial reality. Margaret Speich, of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, said that for several years the council has been reaching out to see that dairy proteins are recognized in food aid programs, not donations of ...
Sunday, August 22, 2010 11:08 AM
SUN VALLEY, Idaho -- Agriculture lenders say the fallout from the dairy crisis isn't done yet.
However, they are positive about the future of the U.S. dairy industry, saying milk prices are improving and many of their producer customers are on solid ground. But they warn things will be differ ...
Saturday, August 21, 2010 11:09 AM
An official from an animal health company told Idaho dairymen that they need to influence public opinion to ensure they have access to better technology to feed a growing world population.
"There are far too many kids who are hungry, people who are hungry, and it's only going to get greater," ...
Saturday, August 21, 2010 11:09 AM
TWIN FALLS, Idaho -- Leaders of the National Milk Producers Federation are touting the group's policy proposal for the next farm bill, but many questioned the viability of the plan at a recent stop in Idaho.
National Milk's leaders stopped Aug. 11 in Twin Falls to present the program to more ...
Saturday, August 21, 2010 11:09 AM
Supporters of the proposed Idaho National Center for Livestock and Environmental Studies are singing the praises of Elanco Animal Health after the company announced its commitment of $1 million over the next five years.
While support for the center is strong, funding momentum has slowed in th ...
Saturday, August 21, 2010 9:09 AM
BOARDMAN, Ore. -- On the road to Threemile Canyon Farms, Achut Shiwakoti stared out at the neat rows of corn and fields of fresh mint, his father anxiously nudging him to translate as their new workplace came into view.
There is little the International Rescue Committee, an Idaho-based refuge ...
Thursday, August 19, 2010 11:15 AM
WORTHINGTON, Minn. (AP) -- A Minnesota dairy farmer who sold unpasteurized milk liked to an E. coli outbreak is asking a judge to lift a state embargo that prevents him from selling cheese, meat and other products.
Michael Hartmann owns a farm near Gibbon in Sibley County. Hartmann w ...
Saturday, August 21, 2010 8:49 AM
BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- Cheese producer Sorrento Lactalis Inc. has agreed to pay a $315 ,000 penalty for violating its wastewater permit at its factory in Nampa.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced the agreement Wednesday.
EPA officials say the company repeatedly violated its per ...
Friday, August 20, 2010 1:29 PM
FLORENCE, S.C. (AP) -- A Dallas-based food company says it will close a South Carolina dairy plant in October, eliminating 151 jobs.
The Morning News of Florence reported that Dean Foods said in a news release last week that it would phase out production over the next two months.
The na ...
Monday, August 16, 2010 1:58 PM
BEIJING (AP) -- China will test a wider range of dairy products and even breast milk as authorities investigate claims that a brand of infant formula caused apparent breast growth in a small number of babies, an official newspaper reported Saturday.
It was the latest food safety scandal to s ...
Monday, August 16, 2010 1:18 PM
Dairy product prices are getting back to levels dairy producers like to see, according to Robert Cropp, professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin. Cropp said that butter stocks are tight and the market is strong for this time of year. June 30 stocks were down 25 percent, he said, due to ...
Sunday, August 15, 2010 10:39 AM
TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) -- An Indiana company has pledged $1 million to help jump-start private fundraising for a livestock research center in the heart of Idaho's dairy country.
The donation was announced this week by Elanco during the Idaho Dairymen's Association Producer and Allied ...
Sunday, August 15, 2010 8:59 AM
