Most Thankful
Angus members are most thankful for…
November is a month in which we can express our gratitude. We asked our Facebook fans to send us a photo showing the source of their thankfulness. After the top five were chosen by the editorial team, Facebook fans were able to vote for their favorite to choose the cover shot of this month's EXTRA.
Many great photos were entered to win the prize of cover photo. All photos can be viewed at the Angus Journal Facebook page. Enjoy the following explanations for what our readers give thanks. Read more.
Vern Frey
Association Perspective
It is time to rebuild the cow herd — with quality.
As we enter the month of November 2013, we have seen record prices for cattle. The drought that we have had the last few years has reduced our cow numbers to all-time lows, and we have fought high feed prices with records for roughages and grain. In one short year, we have witnessed corn prices go from nearly $8 per bushel (bu.) to less than $4 per bu. With that in mind, we will definitely need to try to increase cow numbers again. Read more.
Farmland Values
St. Louis Fed Ag Survey shows farmland values down, incomes up for third quarter 2013.
Farmland values and cash rents were down in the third quarter of 2013 (relative to the previous quarter), according to the latest Agricultural Finance Monitor, published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Despite these declines, farm income rose modestly across the district served by the bank.
The survey for the report was conducted Sept. 11 through Sept. 30, 2013. The results are based on the responses from 47 agricultural banks within the boundaries of the Eighth Federal Reserve District. The district comprises all or parts of the following seven Midwestern and Mid-South states: Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.
Read more.
Court Clarification on Right to Farm
and Local Regulation
A recently published Michigan Court of Appeals case may provide some clarification over the confusing issue of local regulation and the Right to Farm Act.
Editor’s Note: Right to Farm Acts protect farmers from being targeted by their cities and townships for elimination. Each state’s law is a bit different, but the following is a case study with the Michigan Right to Farm Act (RTFA) to help understand how the Act may be used.
Certification Gets Conservation Easements
on the Ground Faster
The nation’s top easement program for protecting fertile agricultural land is making it easier for people to enroll land through advanced certification. The Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP) is certifying eligible entities, such as states, organizations or tribes, to place lands in this farm bill conservation easement program.
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) administers the program that has protected more than 2 million acres of the nation’s most valuable lands for the production of food, feed and fiber since 1996.
This program provides matching funds to organizations to purchase conservation easements on private working lands. Read more.
What’s Inside …
In this November edition of the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA, you'll find valuable articles devoted to the management, marketing, and health and nutrition of your beef enterprise. Select from the tabs at the top of the page to access this month's entire offering by category. A few select features include:
- Methods to Determine Pregnancy
- Lessons in Grazing
- Beef Talk: In search of late-season protein
- Anthrax Case Confirmed in Texas
- Abortion Diagnostics
- The COOL Controversy Continues
- The Source: The similarities between shopping for seed and semen
News Briefs …
The American Angus Association and its subsidiaries generate a wealth of information to keep members and affiliates informed of what's happening within the industry as well as with the programs and services they offer. Click here for easy access to the newsrooms of the American Angus Association and Certified Angus Beef LLC and the Angus Journal Daily archive recently made available in the API Virtual Library.
Aging in Perspective
Ohio State agricultural economist says an aging U.S. farmer population does not necessarily warrant concern.
U.S. farmers are aging, and the agricultural community often expresses concern about who will replace them. That apprehension may be overblown, an economist with Ohio State University’s (OSU’s) College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) said.
Although some farm communities worry over a lack of new, younger farmers to replace the current population, these concerns are unwarranted, according to a recently conducted analysis by Carl Zulauf, an economist in the Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics. Read more.
Gluten-Free Diets Not For Everyone
With the rising popularity of gluten-free diets and the wide variety of products catering to the lifestyle, it might make you wonder if you are missing out on something important.
For most of us, the short answer to that question is no, said Janice Hermann, Oklahoma State University (OSU) Cooperative Extension nutrition specialist. Read more.
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