Obama Budget Cuts Farm Programs (Delta Farm Press, 2/2) -- Agriculture advocacy groups have reacted with a flurry of unhappy responses to President Obama’s Feb. 1 release of his proposed 2011 budget.

"The proposed budget “reflects the serious challenges facing the country,” said Obama the day of its release. “We’re at war. Our economy has lost 7 million jobs over the last two years. And our government is deeply in debt after what can only be described as a decade of profligacy.”

Obama’s attempt to control government spending (pegged at over $1.5 trillion for this year) would mean payment cuts not only to large farmers (more than $2 billion over a decade) and agriculture-related insurance (some $8 billion over a decade) — but also, to the consternation of some environmental groups, would reduce the growth of conservation programs. Crop insurance has been on the Obama administration’s radar for months. The latest budget comes after the December release of a proposal for a new Federal Crop Insurance Program. According to the budget proposal crop-insurance companies currently benefit from huge windfall profits. For the full budget proposal, see USDA 2011 Budget.

USDA Reports Lowest Cattle Inventory in More Than 50 Years  (Brownfield, 1/29)  -- One livestock analyst calls USDA’s semi-annual cattle inventory numbers not all that surprising, at least until you make some historical comparisons. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist Darrell Mark says the report shows the smallest inventory since 1959 and the smallest calf crop since 1950. USDA reported the total cattle and calf inventory as of January 1, 2010 at 93.701 million head, down 1% from a year ago, with all cows and heifers that have calved at 40.456 million, a 1% decrease, including a 1% decline in beef cows and a 3% drop in milk cows.

Feds Want Dairy Deal Undone (Wisconsin Radio Network, 1/22) -- A federal antitrust lawsuit will seek to undo Texas-based Dean Foods‘ acquisition of Wisconsin-based Foremost Farms USA’s consumer products division. U.S. Department of Justice antitrust regulators say the deal eliminates substantial competition in milk sales in three states. Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen joined his counterparts in Michigan and Illinois in the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Milwaukee. The lawsuit seeks to undo the 2009 deal, and also seeks to require that Dean notify the Justice Department at least 30 days in advance of any future acquisition of a milk-processing operation. Antitrust regulators said in court documents that Dean had substantially weakened competition in certain dairy markets when it acquired two Wisconsin dairy processing plants from Foremost.
http://www.wrn.com/2010/01/feds-want-dairy-deal-undone/

Indiana House Rejects Confined Livestock Bill (Chicago Tribune, 1/28) -- The Indiana House has rejected a bill that would prohibit new confined livestock feeding operations from being built within two miles of a state park or reservoir. The House voted 57-40 against the bill on Thursday. Proponents said the bill was needed to protect state parks and reservoirs from being polluted by manure spills from confined livestock operations. Opponents said the bill was unnecessary because the state already regulates confined livestock operations.

Potter Sausage Co. is Assessed A Civil Penalty in the Amount of $10,000 (GIPSA, 1/28) -- On January 13, 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) entered into a decision without hearing by reason of consent with Potter Sausage Co., Durant, Oklahoma.

The Rationale for an OTM Compensation Program (Canadian Cattlemen’s Assn., 2/1) -- Recently the CCA, the Dairy Farmers of Canada, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and the Quebec Beef Producers Federation came together to request that a payment of $31.70 be made to abattoirs for every head of over thirty month (OTM) cattle slaughtered in Canada. The request was made because government regulation in Canada now makes it so expensive to kill older cattle that OTM cattle are increasingly leaving Canada for slaughter and more and more beef is being imported into the Canadian market.

The figure $31.70 is the average cost differential to process an OTM animal in Canada versus the U.S., due to the different approaches the two countries take in disposing of Specified Risk Materials (SRM). The payment to the Canadian abattoirs will compensate for the government regulations in order to keep these cattle in Canada, so that Canadians can eat beef produced under Canadian regulations.

Korean Retail Giant Targets U.S. Beef to Bolster Sales (Cattlemen’s Beef Board, 2/3) -- South Korean retailing giant E-Mart is looking to U.S. beef as one of the key tools to help it rebound from stagnant sales in 2009, and the early returns look extremely positive. Sales in the big-box retail sector lagged behind general economic growth in South Korea last year, and management at E-Mart has seized on the concept of Everyday Low Prices (EDLP) to help it attract new customers, differentiate it from other big-box competitors and drive sales.  U.S. beef is one of the key products E-Mart has identified to adhere to the EDLP program throughout the year.

Mexico's Economic Recovery Bodes Well for Pork  (Pork, 1/26) -- Mexico's economy is showing solid signs of recovery, and that's good news for U.S. exports for both pork and beef in the year ahead. Last year, Mexico's economy dropped by 7 percent, based on global economic woes, but also due to a major hit involving the Novel H1N1 discovery and outbreak last April. For 2009, Mexico will end up ranking as the No. 1 volume destination for U.S. pork. Mexico ranks No. 1 in both volume and value for U.S. beef exports, notes Chad Russell, the U.S. Meat Export Federation's regional director for Mexico.

China’s Ambassador Says Pork Trade “In Process”  (Brownfield Network, 2/2)  -- China’s Ambassador to the U.S. told reporters in Missouri on Monday that China was in the process of resuming pork trade with the U.S. “I think during the last strategic and economic dialogue the Chinese decided to resume import of American pork.  So, I think, we are in the process of implementing that decision,” says Chinese Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong, who was invited to the capital city by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon. But the National Pork Producers Council Chinese says China has not yet taken any shipments since its government officials said in December the country would begin accepting U.S. pork soon. U.S. trade officials and NPPC’s Vice President and Counsel for International Affairs, Nick Giordano, were in China last week to work on details and to talk about other trade issues, including the use of ractopamine in pork production.

Meat Industry Bracing for CBS Antibiotic Piece (Meatingplace.com, 2/2) -- Barring another big news story, the CBS Evening News has now scheduled its two-part series on antibiotic use in livestock production to run Feb. 3-4, and based on some of the interviews conducted for the piece, the pork industry is expecting to take a hit.

U.S. Pork Industry to Get Smaller; Risk Management Required (Pork, 1/29) -- The nation’s pork industry is likely to become smaller, says Steve Meyer, agricultural economist and president of Paragon Economics. In addition, Meyer believes retail pork prices will rise through 2010 and into 2011. The comments were made in a presentation at Iowa Pork Congress. Although a reduction has already occurred in the U.S. swine breeding herd, more reduction is needed to support a return to profitability for pork producers, according to Meyer. “The U.S. needs to be at around 5.5 million to 5.6 million sows to support profitability for producers which is about 250,000 fewer sows than we currently have, he says.

Minnesota Will Take Action To Close Dairy  (Dairy Today, 1/22) -- The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) announced this week that it will take action to force the closure of a large, 1,500+ cow dairy near Thief River Falls. Excel Dairy has exceeded hydrogen sulfide emission limits nearly 700 times in the past two years, say MPCA officials. In 2008, the Minnesota Department of Public Health declared the dairy a public health hazard. The dairy’s current permit expires April 28, and it’s likely the MPCA will vote not to renew the permit at its board meeting March 23.

Beef Board Elects Leadership (Cattlemen’s Beef Board, 2/2) --  The Cattlemen’s Beef Board elected officers and representatives to its 2010 Executive Committee and the Beef Promotion Operating Committee during its annual meeting in San Antonio, Texas, on Jan. 30. Newly elected Beef Board Chairman Dan Dierschke was the 2009 vice chairman of the Board. He was originally appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture in 2006. Dierschke is a fifth-generation cow-calf producer and farmer. 

Nightline Shows 'Disturbing' Scenes at Dairy (Dairy Herd, 1/27) -- The producers of the ABC News program “Nightline” focused the fact that the cows were inside. “The cows are fed a special diet of grain and nutrients once a day, and kept perpetually pregnant through artificial insemination so milk production levels will remain high.”Here’s an exchange between Ross and the person who runs the farm, Lyn Odell: Ross: “They call you a factory farm. You don’t really care for the animals.”Odell: “I think they can’t be farther from the truth. Our animals are critically important to our well-being, so we work hard to treat them well.” Here is a video clip of Tuesday night's broadcast, entitled "Disturbing Reality of Dairy Land."

Celebrate "I Heart Beef" This February (Beef, 2/2) -- This week, we said goodbye to January and hello to February. This means we are one month closer to spring, and we will celebrate the favorite holiday for people in love, Valentine’s Day. In case you didn’t know, it’s also heart health month, and the beef checkoff program is using dollars to remind consumers of America’s passion for beef, while also promoting beef as a good addition to a heart healthy diet. The campaign is called, “I Heart Beef,” and I’m excited to take part in all it entails! According to a checkoff survey of consumers, “In this month of romance, beef is the preferred choice of Americans (62%) because nothing says love like a great steak dinner for Valentine’s Day. In addition, 53% of Americans identify filet mignon as the food most associated with candlelight romance and 50% of Americans think filet mignon is the best way to show their love.”

NCBA Members Elect Officers and Approve New Organizational Structure Concept, Policies for 2010 (National Cattlemen’s Beef Assn., 1/30) -- The annual Cattle Industry Convention concluded today with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) board of directors meeting and annual membership meeting. During the meetings, members voted on leadership and policies to ensure the organization’s success in 2010. More than 6,000 people attended this year’s convention in San Antonio, Texas.  Steve Foglesong, owner of Black Gold Ranch in Illinois, was officially elected to succeed Gary Voogt as NCBA’s new president.

In a landmark vote, the board approved a new organization structure, as presented today by the Governance Task Force. The board also demonstrated confidence in NCBA by voting unanimously to approve a dues increase to help ensure the organization is on sound financial footing. Dues now start at $100 for cow-calf members. Feeder assessments increased from 10 cents to 12.5 cents per head. Earlier in the week, the Allied Industry Council also expressed its support of NCBA by voting to increase its member dues from $17,500 to $25,000.

Four Activist Movements That are Doomed To Fail (Texas Farm Bureau, 2/1) -- Hope for agriculture, I’m here to tell you, is not lost. The bad news is these activist groups are strong, well funded, very vocal and successful in promoting their agenda. The good news is they're ultimately doomed to fail.