Public Universities & Vet Med Colleges to Tackle Antibiotic Resistance- OSU Dean Coon a Part of the Task Force 

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) and the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) Wednesday announced the creation of the Task Force on Antibiotic Resistance in Production Agriculture.


The task force is comprised of representatives from U.S. agriculture colleges/land grant universities and veterinary colleges as well as key representatives from the production animal agriculture community and the pharmaceutical industry. The goal of the task force is to help advise the federal government on a research agenda and also help publicly disseminate information on the use of antibiotics in production agriculture.


Scientists and the public have grown increasingly concerned about the evolution of antibiotic resistant bacteria in veterinary and human medicine. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have expressed serious concerns as well. Some bacteria have developed defenses against different classes of antibiotic compounds.


"The goal of the task force is to advise the U.S. government on a research agenda and also help publicly disseminate information about the use of antibiotics in production agriculture," said task force member Thomas G. Coon, vice president, dean and director of Oklahoma State University's Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.

Click here to learn more about the task force and the other members of the task force.  OSU also released some additional comments from Dr. Coon  and OSU Vet School Dean Dr. Jean Sander about the Task Force- you can find those comments here.  

Merck Animal Health Releases Update on Zilmax Five-Step Plan 

Merck Animal Health is saying they have made significant progress in the implementation of its Zilmax Five-Step Plan. In a release on Wednesday- "With insights from the company's advisory board, an extensive assessment and analysis of existing, as well as new product data, was conducted. Additionally, Merck Animal Health obtained the input of industry experts, business partners and customers about the product and its use."


Merck voluntarily pulled Zilmax from the market over a year ago based on concerns about the well being of some cattle being fed the product in feedlots. Since that time, Merck has been working on how to bring the product back to the US market.  There still is no firm date for a return to the marketplace for the product, which can enhance the number of pounds of lean meat a feedlot animal can carry with it to harvest.   

The release from the company says that the "totality of the comprehensive review supported that Zilmax® (zilpaterol hydrochloride) is safe when used according to the product label and in conjunction with sound animal husbandry practices."

Merck acknowledged that one problem that may have occurred is that when feedlot cattle are fed to heavier weights because of market signals- the ingestion of Zilmax may have been exceeding the approved dose.  Merck contends that when the product was used in a compliant manner with dosage levels- there were no problems.

An updated Zilmax label, to include Component Feeding, which is an alternative method of administering Zilmax using a targeted lower dose, was submitted to and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Component Feeding provides cattle feeders with an alternative option to deliver the appropriate dose of Zilmax to cattle every day. The new convenient feed delivery method allows cattle feeders to mix Zilmax in feed to deliver a lower targeted dose of 60 mg/head/day of zilpaterol.   Click here to see the complete news release from Merck about the best practices for using Zilmax.

 

Ruby Lee Dominates 2014 Oklahoma Junior Wheat Show  

More than 17 thousand dollars in scholarships were awarded to participants in this year's Oklahoma Junior Wheat Show, with over 60 entries entered in the 4-H and FFA state wide contest. The awards banquet was held Tuesday night at the Oklahoma State University Conoco Phillips Alumni Center in Stillwater. Oklahoma State University Grain Marketing Specialist and event coordinator Kim Anderson said this provides a valuable learning experience for youth.


"They get to produce the wheat, so they get involved in the production, learn how to produce the product, they get involved in the economics of production, what is the cost of production, they get involved with the marketing of that product, they see the quality of product, they now know the milling characteristics that is important," Anderson said. "...It also get them looking at their future and their future that includes a college education."


This year's overall champion was 15 year old Craig Westfahl of the Okeene FFA Chapter. The 9th grade FFA student won with his Ruby Lee variety. His crop placed second in production and milling and 6th in baking. He is the son of Owen and Kerry. During the growing season he thought he might exhibit another variety until he noticed how the drought was impacting the kernels, so he opted to show his Ruby Lee crop. Westfahl credited his father for his involvement in the wheat show as Owen is a second generation wheat farmer. Westfahl said the scholarships will help him pursue a college degree.

For the second year in a row the 4-H wheat show champion was Damon Fisher of the Lomega 4-H Club in Kingfisher County. The 12 year old won with his Ruby Lee variety. He placed fourth in the production and milling contest, 9th in the baking contest and first overall. He also finished third overall in the 4-H division with his Iba variety.   He is the son of Kevin and Lesly Fisher. This was the third year and final year for Fisher to compete in the wheat show as he has maxed out his scholarship earnings. He said next year he will continue to help his brother and sister with their wheat projects.

 Our own Leslie Smith talked with the overall winner- you can hear their conversation by  clicking here and you can also see the top placings of the 2014 show.

 

TCFA Concern Over Drought, Lack of Cash Cattle Trade

Fifty years ago a lot of the cattle in the US were being fed corn and finished out in the midwest. With heavier annual precipitation farmer-feeders battled muddy pens, which made it hard on cattle. With drier conditions in the High Plains that led to the development of the feedlot industry. Feedlots sprang up as a result and packing plants followed the cattle. This created a dominant industry across southwest Kansas, Oklahoma panhandle, Texas panhandle, portions of New Mexico and south eastern Colorado. The Texas Cattle Feeders Association represents three of those states with membership in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico. TCFA Chief Executive Officer and President Ross Wilson believes there won't be switch back to the midwest anytime soon.


"I can't imagine the industry infrastructure that we have in place in the southern Great Plains in the Texas and Oklahoma panhandle, southwestern Kansas, southeastern Colorado is going anywhere," Wilson said.  


The midwest has not seen the deep impact from the drought like the southern plains, but there have been other challenges. Wilson said with the grain basis situation and the limited availability of railroad cars due to competition from oil, coal and containers there has been some shift of cattle numbers north.


"So far this year Nebraska has had more cattle on feed than Texas for the first time ever for three of the current ten months," Wilson said. "I don't think that's on an annual basis for 2014 as we look back on 2014. I don't think the midwest will market more cattle then we do in the southwest."  

One of the big concerns going forward is how thin the cash cattle market has gone.  Click here to listen to our Beef Buzz feature with Ross on how the cattle industry is addressing this issue.

Canola Crop Off to Good Start, But  Drought Lingers

No two years are the same for Oklahoma canola farmers. In anticipation of heavy rains from Hurricane Odile many canola farmers stopped planting in September, but the rain never arrived. Farmers ended up planting until the end of the planting window without any moisture. Great Plains Canola Association Canola Field Specialist Heath Sanders said a lot of the crop was dusted in or planted down to the moisture.


"We're seeing a mixed bag of fields out there," Sanders said. "You can definitely tell which ones were planted early and got up to a good start. We got a lot of foliage, canola is getting up to a good size. The canola that came up after the October tenth-eleventh rain is a little smaller, of course, but I think we're getting to the size where it should be ok."


 With this week's rain, Sanders said the crop is in pretty good shape considering the hand farmers have been dealt. Last year there was no transitional temperature to prepare the crop for winter in going from 80 degrees to 14. Sanders said as long as the there isn't a drastic plunge in temperatures this crop will be fine. 


I interviewed Sanders about the start of the growing season.  Click here to read or to listen to our conversation about the concerns with the crop and the number of acres planted to canola this year.  

DuPont Pioneer and Raven Industries Colloboration Enhances Nitrogen Management

DuPont Pioneer and Raven Industries announced a collaboration to allow for the seamless flow of information generated through Pioneer Encirca services to Raven Viper® 4 and other compatible field computers by leveraging Raven's Slingshot® wireless connectivity solution. Encirca services are whole-farm decision services offered by Pioneer to help growers improve their productivity and profitability on every acre. Raven is a global leader of precision agriculture field equipment, including Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) products, field computers and application controls.


In July, Pioneer launched its Encirca Yield Nitrogen Management Service to help growers more efficiently manage one of their most important crop inputs.


Steve Reno, DuPont Pioneer's Business Director for North America says  "As yield monitors run this fall, growers are already thinking about the 2015 growing season. They want to know how much nitrogen will be needed for top yields next year. Encirca Yield enabled with wireless data transfer makes that information instantly available and helps growers to be more efficient with input planning."

Click here to read more about how DuPont Pioneer and Raven Industries are working together to provide farmers with solutions to maximize yields.  

This N That- BIO Weighs in on Maui Biotech Vote, Superior Video Sale and OCA Fall Cattle Drive Sale Both Friday

One vote that went against modern production agriculture on Tuesday happened on the Hawaiian island of Maui.  It appears that voters in Maui have chosen by a narrow margin to impose a ban on farming practices that will ultimately cut jobs and jeopardize the local economy and the future of agriculture in Hawaii.

The measure affects agricultural practices on the islands of Maui, Molokai and Lanai.

Jim Greenwood, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) issued the following statement in response:

"Agricultural biotechnology has contributed to the innovative farming solutions that have enabled farmers to grow more food on less land with fewer pesticide applications, less water and reduced on-farm fuel use. This initiative will criminalize these hard-working farmers and will prohibit long-standing farming operations in Maui and on neighboring islands."

Monsanto and several other firms have farm operations on one or more of these islands.    

Read more here.  

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Superior Video Livestock has their regular "every other Friday" video sale planned for tomorrow with 16,750 head of cattle expected to sell.  

Details are available here- you can also call Superior at 1-800-422-2117 for details about buying and/or selling with Superior.  

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The 4th quarterly Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association Board of directors meeting will be held in coordination with the OCA Fall Cattle Drive tomorrow at OKC West Stockyards in El Reno, Okla.  The board of directors meeting starts at 10 a.m. followed by lunch.

 

Click here for the full list of consignors at this year's sale.