HD Notebook

The Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) is now accepting applications for the 2010 National Reproduction Awards. The one-page nomination form must be submitted by May 3 to be eligible for the awards program. The National Reproduction Awards were started last year to honor dairy producers who have implemented management procedures and protocols to achieve high reproductive efficiency. Read more

It ought to be an old saying by now: Consumers have the right to make choices, but expect some of them to be dangerous or stupid. In the case of raw milk, they're getting both. Read more

Farmers plan to plant a record 78.1 million acres of soybeans this year, according to the Prospective Plantings report released by USDA yesterday. That would be a 1 percent jump in bean acres. Read more

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The Food and Drug Administration released a special warning late last week reminding consumers to forgo any consumption of raw milk. Read more

We recently sat down with Steve Maddox of Riverdale, Calif., to visit with him about some of the current initiatives of your checkoff dollars. Maddox currently serves on the national DMI (Dairy Management, Incorporated — the umbrella organization of the checkoff) board. Read more

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All of us who make our living with livestock are strongly biased on the subject of animal welfare. Unfortunately, it’s a bias that can be our own worst enemy when we debate the topic with someone we disagree with. Read more

Co-op business sort of took a backseat to current concerns when about 1,200 people gathered for Dairy Farmers of America annual meeting this week in Kansas City. In short, the co-op had net savings (earnings) of $65.6 million in 2009, and all business units of the co-op were profitable. (See our April 25, 2010, issue for more on DFA activity and the annual meeting. Read more

Consumer demand for dairy products slid last year — commercial disappearance was down 1.2 percent. While this may be disappointing to hear, there is one product category that is making plans for serious growth in the U.S. market: yogurt. Read more