More investment by governments in agriculture and the right farm policies will help keep rural populations on the land, reduce migration, alleviate poverty and ease the pressure on urban centres by cutting pollution, crime and other social ills, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

These and other conclusions come from a major FAO research programme aimed at analyzing the various roles played by agriculture in the societies and economies of developing countries and were made known as Europe and North America come under increased pressure from illegal migrant flows, the Rome-based agency said.

Source: United Nations/ News Release, June 5, 2006
Source URL: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=18745&Cr=food&Cr1

Soybean growers have an added decision-making tool in scouting for the soybean aphid.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Pest Information Platform for Extension and Education -- http://sbrusa.net -- created last year to track the development of soybean rust throughout the United States, has added information to track and manage the soybean aphid. The site relies on reports from across the country on insect and disease development in sentinel plots.

Source: Ag Answers/ Ohio State University and Purdue University/ News Release, June 6, 2006
Source URL: http://www.agriculture.purdue.edu/agcomm/aganswers/story.asp?storyID=4230

Following are some headlines from a few of the news stories highlighted this week:

• Reality of Immigration Far from Ideal
• APHIS Proposes Veterinary Accreditation Changes
• Meat and Bone Meal Examined as Energy Source
• Montana Producers Renounce rBST
• UK: Syndrome Found Affecting One Quarter

Click to read more of these and other news articles.

Current issues in the corn and soybean markets include some concern about adverse weather and generally weak basis levels. The two issues are not related, but are impacting cash prices in opposite directions.

In general, the U.S. corn crop has made good early progress. As of May 28, the USDA reported that 97 percent of the crop had been planted and 85 percent had emerged. The 5-year average for emergence as of that date is 77 percent. Emergence was slightly behind the average pace in Indiana and Kansas. Seventy percent of the crop was rated in good or excellent condition, compared to 62 percent on the same date last year and 68 percent in 2004. Condition ratings were lowest for Indiana, Kansas, and Texas. For soybeans, 79 percent of the crop had been planted as of May 28, above the 5-year average of 68 percent, and 42 percent had emerged, compared to an average of 39 percent. Emergence, however, trailed the average pace in 5 of the 18 reporting states, including Illinois and Indiana.

Source: Farmdoc/ University of Illinois/ Darrel Good, June 5, 2006
Source URL: http://www.farmdoc.uiuc.edu/marketing/weekly/html/060506.html

It is dry in some spots, wet in others. The seed is planted and up in some spots, still in the bag in others. Crops are good to excellent in some spots, fair to poor in others. In other words, it is a typical Midwestern spring, and depending upon your location, you may be more typical than your colleagues across the state line. Based on the USDA’s weekly crop update, let’s take a virtual tour of the Midwest for a baseline report on the 2006 crop.

Source: Farmgate/ Stu Ellis/ University of Illinois, June 6, 2006
Source URL: http://www.farmgate.uiuc.edu/archive/2006/06/post_33.html

Following are some headlines from the market and analysis articles highlighted this week:

• EU Wholesale Prices Continue Declining
• Dynamics of Ethanol are a Force in Midwest Ag
• Hot, Dry Weather may Push Corn, Soybean Prices Up
• Plus the weekly Bailey and Roberts reports

Click to read more of these and other market stories.

The objective of the experiment was to evaluate effects of increased milk replacer feeding on growth, intake, feed efficiency, and health parameters in stressed calves.

Under conditions of this study, calves fed variable amount of milk replacer and exposed to immunological challenge before weaning had greater BW gain, but also increased incidence of diarrhea that required added veterinary treatments.

Source: Effects of additional milk replacer feeding on calf health, growth, and selected blood metabolites in calves. Journal of Dairy Science 89 (1): 207-216, 2006. Quigley, J.D.; Wolfe, T.A.; Elsasser, T.H.

Objective: To determine factors associated with implementation and use of an on-farm system for bacteriologic culture of milk from cows with low-grade mastitis, including information on how producers used the on-farm bacteriologic culture system to guide antimicrobial selection practices and the resulting impact on patterns of antimicrobial use.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Readily available results permit antimicrobial selections to be made on the basis of the causative agent of mastitis. Adoption of an on-farm system for bacteriologic culture of milk may result in significant reductions in the percentage of cows treated with antimicrobials. Decreasing antimicrobial use may have several benefits including preventing unnecessary discarding of milk, decreasing the potential for drug residues in milk, and improving treatment outcomes as a result of targeted treatments.

Source: Evaluation of the use of an on-farm system for bacteriologic culture of milk from cows with low-grade mastitis. Javma - Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 228 (2): 254-260, 2006. Neeser, N.L.; Hueston, W.D.; Godden, S.M.; Bey, R.F.

There have been many changes in dairy cattle breeding over the years. Our ancestors needed multipurpose cattle when they immigrated. The cows were valued for draft, meat, milk, manure and hides, all of which were needed on the frontier. Starting about 100 years ago, Minnesota gradually developed a specialized dairy industry that featured butter. Milk production became important so the cows needed to become higher producers. The prevailing breeding system was grading up—buying purebred Holstein bulls from respected breeders. After several generations, the best grade Holstein herd was not very different from the purebred herd.

Source: University of Minnesota/ Dennis Johnson, June 3, 2006
Source URL: http://www.extension.umn.edu/dairy/dairystar/06-03-06-Johnson.htm

With the school year coming to a close in the next few weeks, many students will be looking for employment on farms to do a variety of tasks ranging from baling hay to milking cows to operating machinery. Are all students allowed to operate machinery, handle livestock, apply chemicals, or work unlimited hours? For the most part, the answer is no to all of these. As an employer, it is your responsibility to understand the laws and regulations pertaining to the employment of minors. The Ohio Revised Code, Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Secretary of Labor all have rules and regulations in place for the protection of minors. The next few paragraphs will provide you with an overview of the regulations and references for additional information.

Source: Ohio State University/ Ohio Ag Manager/ Chris Zoller, June 2006
Source URL: http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~ohioagmanager/news/index.php#minors