Industry News:The World Beef Expo is Accepting Applications for Scholarships
Published on Tue, 09/20/2016 - 1:17pm
The “World Beef Expo Founders Scholarship” was created to honor the men and women whose hard work and dedication created the event. The $1,250 scholarships are sponsored through the generous contributions of the Gregg and Angela May family and the Dave and Marcia DeLong family.
“We are proud to offer this opportunity to young people through Founders Scholarships. We know the best way to secure the future of beef production was through our youth,” said Gregg May, co-sponsor of the award and beef producer from Mineral Point.
The scholarships will be open to anyone who is a high school senior to 21 years of age enrolled, or planning to enroll in a university, junior or technical college. Preference may be given to applicants pursuing a career in agriculture, especially beef production. Applicants who have exhibited at World Beef Expo may also be given preference.
More information and an application form can be found on www.worldbeefexpo.com.
ICA Seeking Young Cattle Producers 
In an on-going effort to build future leadership for both the Iowa cattle industry and the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, ICA is taking applications for the Young Cattlemen’s Leadership Program through October 1, 2016. The application can be downloaded from the ICA website, www.iacattlemen.org.
Those selected for the Young Cattlemen’s Leadership Program (YCLP) will meet five times in the coming year. They will tour beef production facilities, learn about trending cattle production issues, governance of ICA and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, communication skills, and legislative processes.
The first meeting of the group is scheduled for January 11-12, 2017. Other meetings are scheduled for February, June, August and December.
The application for YCLP asks potential participants to explain why they are interested in participating in the program, as well as explaining their goals and giving their vision for the future of the cattle industry. Preference will be given to current ICA members. If you have questions about the program, or would like an application mailed to you, contact Adair Lents at adair@iabeef.org, or call 515-296-2266.
YCLP is sponsored by ICA with funding provided by the Iowa Cattlemen’s Foundation and members of the ICA President’s Council.
New Calf Health Supplement
This new calf supplement can be added to whole milk or milk replacer to support early calf health during the first 14 days of life.
“Getting calves off to a solid start is crucial for long-term growth and it all starts in the first couple weeks of life,” says Julian (Skip) Olson, DVM, technical services manager for Milk Products. “Sav-A-Caf® Calf Health Supplement is an easy to use, non-medicated product designed with natural ingredients, such as naturally occurring microorganisms and natural flavor extracts, to support optimal calf health.”
Stay ahead of upcoming Veterinary Feed Directives (VFD) by supporting calf health and growth with the new Sav-A-Caf® Calf Health Supplement.
“Healthy calves in the first two weeks can become less exposed to growth setbacks and health challenges later in life, resulting in optimal growth and lower additional management expenses,” says Olson. “Supplementing a non-medicated diet with a premium health supplement can promote optimal lifetime performance.”
To learn more about Sav-A-Caf® Calf Health Supplement or to find a store with Sav-A-Caf® products near you visit www.SavACaf.com.
Niman Ranch Joins the Certified Humane® Program 
Niman Ranch in Denver, Colorado, and its more than 720 independent family farms and ranches throughout the Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and mid-Atlantic regions, is the newest company to join Humane Farm Animal Care’s (HFAC) Certified Humane® program.
Beginning September 1, 2016, all of Niman Ranch’s pork, beef, lamb and processed products, including bacon, sausages, hot dogs, and hams, will officially become Certified Humane® making them the largest multi-protein company in the U.S. to join the program.
“Niman Ranch shares our commitment to raising farm animals under strict humane standards,” says Adele Douglass, Executive Director for HFAC. “Whether they’re raising hogs, cattle, or lamb, all of their animals across all of their farms will be raised under Humane Farm Animal Care’s Animal Care Standards.
HFAC is the leading international nonprofit certification program improving the lives of millions of farm animals in food production from birth through slaughter. The goal of the program is to improve the lives of farm animals by driving consumer demand for kinder and more responsible farm animal practices. The Certified Humane Raised and Handled® label assures consumers that the food products come from facilities that meet HFAC’s precise Animal Care Standards. These standards guarantee farm animals can live crate-free lives and express natural behaviors, such as moving around freely outdoors. They must also be raised without antibiotics, hormones or animal by-products in their feed. Certified Humane’s independent third-party inspectors – veterinarians and Ph.D. experts in farm animal welfare – routinely inspect farms and slaughter plants to ensure precise standards are being met.
"Having Certified Humane verification across all Niman Ranch products allows restaurants and grocers to embrace values-driven products today’s millennial consumers are demanding,” stated Jeff Tripician, Niman Ranch general manager and CMO. “We know the extra layer of Certified Humane certification enhances our already strict animal welfare protocols and instills confidence with our customers.”
Niman Ranch has been committed to sustainable and humane agricultural practices that promote the welfare of farm animals since it was founded in the 1970s.
For more information on HFAC and the Certified Humane® label, visit www.certifiedhumane.org.
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Zoetis, AGI and Certified Angus Beef® Update Upgraded and expanded features further connect Angus bull buying, replacement heifer selection and feeder cattle marketing Zoetis, Angus Genetics, Inc. (AGI), and Certified Angus Beef (CAB) today announced updates to GeneMax® Advantage™. These include upgraded marker effects, up-to-date economic assumptions, an expanded reference population for comparing animals, and now individual trait reporting.
“What we’ve created here is a continuously updated genetic game plan for commercial users of Angus genetics,” said Kent Andersen, Director of Genetic Technical Services, U.S. Cattle-Equine, with Zoetis. “We’ve taken the very latest of what we’ve learned from the world’s largest and more comprehensive genomic calibration and further enhanced GeneMax Advantage. This tool is designed to help with replacement heifer keep/cull decisions, as well as breeding and marketing decisions for commercial cow-calf operations.” “During tough economic times, we try to give commercial users of Angus genetics every advantage,” said Dan Moser, President, AGI. “GeneMax Advantage is another tool that provides advantages in selection for production efficiency and end-product quality.” In response to customer requests, GeneMax Advantage now includes individual trait reporting – and all of these enhancements are applicable to both future as well as historically tested animals. Consistent with previous GeneMax offerings, the refreshed genomic test is for use in commercial Angus replacement females (75 percent or greater). “We are going to begin reporting genetic predictions for many of the individual traits that are included in the indexes—calving ease maternal, weaning weight, heifer pregnancy, milk and mature weight from the Cow Advantage Index,” said Andersen. “We’re also going to report predictions for post-weaning gain, carcass weight, marbling, ribeye and fat from the Feeder Advantage Index. Similar to the indexes, genetic predictions for individual traits are expressed on a 1 to 100 scale, where scores of 50 represent the average genetic merit of tested commercial Angus females in the reference population. Generally, with the exceptions of milk and cow weight, higher scores are more desirable”. GeneMax Advantage includes customized Smart Outlier Reporting for quick identification of animals that likely possess relatively extreme genetics for unfavorable cow costs from size and milk, docility and tenderness. The Smart Outliers had previously delivered the information now provided through individual trait reporting. Delivering information on individual traits is not intended to complicate use of results. While the indexes should still drive overall decision-making, reporting genetic merit for individual traits helps cow-calf customers better understand specific trait sources of combined genetic merit described by the indexes. GeneMax Advantage test results can be downloaded and printed as an Excel and PDF file for easy use by beef producers. The test results can also be used in feeder cattle marketing programs to help better inform price discovery when selling untested steer mates. For more information on GeneMax Advantage, please contact your Zoetis or CAB representative, or visit www.angus.org/AGI. |
DewEze® Kicks Off “20,000 Likes in 200 Days” Sweepstakes
Backed by decades of durability, DewEze, a division of Harper Industries, Inc. (HII), today unveiled its 20,000th bale bed off the line. The first bed was introduced to the market in 1984. To mark this significant milestone, HII wants to celebrate with customers, dealers and employees who have played a key role in making DewEze the industry-leading bale bed manufacturer.
Now through February, DewEze will be running the “20,000 Likes in 200 Days” Sweepstakes for a chance to win a bale bed, valued up to $15,800! To be eligible, participants must “like” the DewEze Facebook page, www.facebook.com/DewEzeMfg, then click on the contest to enter. The grand prize winner will be announced during the National Farm Machinery show in Louisville, Kentucky, February 16, 2017.
“The bale bed market is a very important part of our business – the number of beds produced during each decade continues to increase,” notes Tim Penner, Harper Industries President. “We see this celebration as an important step to express our deep appreciation to the many people who have made the DewEze Bale Bed number one in the industry.”
DewEze is showcasing the company’s promise to ranchers, dealers and employees with a series of special events and promotions across North America. The customized 20,000th bale bed, a 682 Pivot Squeeze, will be on display at more than two dozen shows, open houses and field days over the next six months. This is your opportunity to meet and greet the DewEze family, learn more about our how our products can work for you, and interact with our local dealers.
The DewEze 200 Series revolutionized big bale handling when the first hay bed for farm trucks debuted at the Kansas State Fair in 1984. The flatbed’s style, convenience and rugged features were well received by cattlemen everywhere. This simple and reliable Parallel Squeeze design paved the way for innovative technology, eventually expanding to the Pivot Squeeze model. The latest series of bale beds deliver power and performance that customers have come to expect from the leader in big bale handling equipment.
Ralph Myers, Myers DewEze of Anadarko, Okla., started as a DewEze dealer in 1979. Selling an average 60 DewEze beds each year, the family business has been an asset in the 20,000th bale bed milestone. He said DewEze beds are built to outlast one, two or three of your work trucks.
“Two of the first beds I sold in 1984 are still working like it’s their first day on the job,” Myers said. “But each series has greatly improved ranchers’ chores in the field.”
Follow the 20,000th Bale Bed journey or find the closest DewEze event near you by visiting www.DewEze.com/20000th-bale-bed.
