Researchers have come up with a novel delivery system for anti-AIDS drugs: milk-curdling bacteria used to make yogurt and cheese.

“We’ve found that you can engineer these bugs to secrete drugs – in this case, a viricide that disables HIV,” said Bharat Ramratnam, assistant professor of medicine at Brown Medical School and attending physician at Rhode Island Hospital and The Miriam Hospital. “The hope is to use the bacteria as the basis for a microbicide which can prevent sexual transmission of HIV.”

Source: Brown University/ News Release, Jan. 23, 2006
Source URL: http://www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/2005-06/05-066.html

With Canada reporting another case of mad cow disease, Consumers Union said today that both current and proposed Food and Drug Administration animal feed rules are inadequate to protect the public health, and urged the FDA to act now to keep high-risk cattle parts that are most likely to spread the disease out of animal feed.

Consumers Union, in comments submitted to FDA in December, noted that new research conducted in the United Kingdom shows that miniscule amounts of infected cattle material can, if fed to other cattle, transmit mad cow disease.

Source: U.S. Newswire/ Consumers Union/ News Release, Jan. 23, 2006
Source URL: http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=59627

In joint comments filed today, IDFA and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) asked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to move forward with the agency's proposed rule to allow the use of liquid ultrafiltered (UF) milk in cheesemaking without a controversial provision that would require special labeling for products made from UF milk that is brought into a cheese plant. IDFA and NMPF were joined in their comments by the American Dairy Products Institute, the Food Products Association, the Grocery Manufacturers of America and the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association.

Source: International Dairy Foods Association/ News Release, Jan. 17, 2006
Source URL: http://www.idfa.org/news/stories/2006/01/uf-milk.cfm

Oregon’s largest independent dairy company will continue growing by building a distribution center in the southern portion of the state.

Umpqua Dairy Products will build a 9,000-square-foot distribution center by the end of the year in Central Point.

Source: The Mail Tribune/ Buffy Pollock, Jan. 24, 2006
Source URL: http://www.mailtribune.com/archive/2006/0124/biz/stories/01biz.htm

A low level of exports during the first quarter of the year, along with the current modest level of unshipped sales, prompted the USDA to lower the marketing year export projection by 50 million bushels, to a total of only 1.85 billion. Stocks of corn on hand at the end of the current marketing year are projected at 2.426 billion bushels, not much different than projected in December. The projection of year ending stocks represents 22.44 percent of the USDA’s projection of use during the marketing year. That ratio would be the largest in 13 years. The projected stocks-to-use ratio points to a 2005-06 marketing year average farm price of $1.85. The average price received by producers during the first 5 months of the year was likely near $1.85. Without weather and crop concerns, prices would be expected to be near that level for the remainder of the marketing year. However, current futures prices are about $.20 above that level.

Source: Farmdoc/ University of Illinois/ Darrel Good, January 2006
Source URL: http://www.farmdoc.uiuc.edu/marketing/grainoutlook/html/012306/012306.html

CORN on Monday at the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) for the MAR’06 contract opened up 1.4¢/bu to $2.064/bu. Despite USDA’s record cattle on feed report, market strength found support in timely corn sales of more than 228,000 tonnes, uncertainty over weather forecasts in South American crop regions, and private estimates of smaller U.S. corn planting intentions. U.S. corn acreage seedings is estimated down 2.34 million acres from 2005 plantings at 79.4 million acres. Upward momentum was subdued amid record corn stocks, news confirming a new case of mad cow disease in a Canadian cow, and Japan’s reinstating a U.S. beef ban. Trade reports on Friday showed funds reducing net long positions in CBOT corn. Futures and options combined were net bullish at 22,821 contracts. Midwest cash basis bids for corn were mostly stable Monday morning amid light farmer selling. Chart resistance last Friday for the MAR’06 contract was between $2.080/bu - $2.090/bu with resistance on the DEC’06 futures between $2.44/bu - $2.46/bu. The MAR’06 contract didn’t break resistance closing up 3.2¢/bu at $2.082/bu. The DEC’06 finished up 3.4¢/bu breaking resistance at $2.460/bu. Unless corn stocks decline significantly, LDPs on the ’06 crop would not be surprising next harvest. Cash sellers should consider forward pricing up to 35% of next year’s crop. Hedgers should stay on short positions up to 50% of the ’06 crop.

Source: Virginia Cooperative Extension/ Mike Roberts, Jan. 24, 2006
Source URL: http://www.ext.vt.edu/news/periodicals/purcell/2006wp/03.html

The main objective of this experiment was to examine the effects of the percentage and source of crude protein (CP) and the amount of starch in the diet of dairy cows on the lactational performance and use of N for milk production.

Data suggest that the intake of N by high-producing dairy cows that consume sufficient energy and other nutrients to meet their requirements can be decreased to about 600 to 650 g daily if the source of RDP and RUP are properly matched with the source and amount of carbohydrate in the diet.

Source: Varying protein and starch in the diet of dairy cows. II. Effects on performance and nitrogen utilization for milk production. Journal of Dairy Science 88 (7): 2556-2570, 2005. Ipharraguerre, I.R.; Clark, J.H.

Four nonlactating, ruminally cannulated Holstein cows were used in a 4 x 4 Latin square design, balanced for residual effects, to evaluate the effects of supplementing dairy cow diets with yeast culture ( Trichosporon sericeum; YC), galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS), or the mixture of YC and GOS on ruminal fermentation, microbial N supply, in situ degradation, and energy and nitrogen metabolism.

Microbial N supply was higher in cows fed control diets. There were no major positive effects of supplements observed in this study. However, supplementation of a mixture of YC and GOS had a tendency for synergistic effects on N metabolism and in situ degradation of a soluble fraction of oat straw DM and CP of concentrates compared with supplementation of YC or GOS alone.

Source: Effects of yeast culture and galacto-oligosaccharides on ruminal fermentation in Holstein cows. Journal of Dairy Science 88 (4): 1404-1412, 2005. Mwenya, B.; Santoso, B.; Sar, C.; Pen, B.; et al.

The livestock feeding industry in the High Plains is on the lookout for high aflatoxin concentrations in imported grain, according to a local plant pathologist.

Greta Schuster, Texas Cooperative Extension plant pathologist, explained the situation at the High Plains Grain Elevator workshop here.

"With 7 million beef cattle, 3.5 million grower hogs, 200,000 sows and a growing dairy industry, we have to be on the lookout," she said.

Source: Texas A&M University/ News Release/ Kay Ledbetter, Jan. 24, 2006
Source URL: http://agnews.tamu.edu/dailynews/stories/PATH/Jan2406a.htm

International dairy group Arla Foods is blaming a delay in raising prices for a lower profit outlook on the first six months of the year.

Higher oil prices have boosted the cost of packaging, utilities and its own energy costs, the company said. By delaying a price increase, profits will be lower for the first half of the year ending March 31.

Source: The Telegraph/ Caroline Muspratt, Jan. 24, 2006
Source URL: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?
xml=/money/2006/01/24/uarla.xml&sSheet=/money/2006/01/24/ixcitytop.html