HD Notebook

The most current USDA forecast continues the trend of lower cow numbers that has been more than offset by higher output per cow in 2010. Output per cow is expected to rise by 2.5 percent compared with 2009, pushing current-year production to 192 billion pounds. Read more

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In the rush of the end of summer, most of us find ourselves at some sort of fair or another. For Minnesotans, it usually means the State Fair — twelve days of fun that always end on labor day. During the first four days of the fair, you can find 4-H dairy project members filling the cattle barn. Each 4-H member is allowed to exhibit one animal, and this year that numbered at 508. Read more

Now when temperatures heat up in California, so will the responsibility of dairy and other farm owners to provide heat safety protection for their employees. Read more

Nearly 2,000 people associated in some way with bovine veterinary medicine headed to Albuquerque, N.M., last week despite the promise of midday temps approaching 100 degrees or more. The occasion was the 43rd annual conference of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners. Read more

Fortifying milk with zinc and iron has been linked to improved childhood development. A study done by scientists from Johns Hopkins University and Annamalai University in India suggests that milk fortified with micronutrients can be an effective tool for alleviating nutritional deficiencies among many young children. Read more

There is a lot of concern about dry-down rates of the forage and grain in this year's corn silage crop, according to Joe Lauer, corn agronomist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Some people are concerned that the grain will get too hard and be drier than stover when harvested and placed into storage. Read more

Two new genomic tests just hit the market. Not only can Holstein breeders test females on the traditional 50K test, but they can also use the just released 3K SNP (single-nucleotide polymorphism) and the 800K (HD) test. Meanwhile, the American Jersey Cattle Association also released the 3K chip to breeders. Read more

The August sire evaluations are ready for your review. We have created lists for all seven breeds. In the Holsteins, the Top 100 bulls for Net Merit are listed. Read more

2009 was an awful year for producer milk prices, but another good one for milk quality.

According to the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, average bulk tank somatic cell count (BTSCC) for milk in the U.S. improved significantly in 2009 for the second year in a row. Read more