Indiana Professional Dairy Producers
Indiana Professional Dairy Producers E-Newsletter
October 14, 2011     www.IndianaDairy.org              Issue 23

"An organized voice for Hoosier Dairy Farmers"

 

Mission Statement
To promote a profitable, positive, professional image of
dairy producers while providing educational opportunities
for interchange of ideas and to speak as a proactive voice
for Indiana dairy producers.   

Missy WDE Supreme

In This Issue
Lugar-Stutzman Sponsor Ag Legislation
Dairy Advancement Act of 2011
FTA's pass Congress
Transparency in Cold Weather Too!
400,000 SCC Coming?
Purdue Dairy Club
BI Dairy Life Calendar
Hoosiers Aid Texas
Winning the Fresh Cow Game
Zeeland Feed Update
WDE Virtual Farm Tours
Contact your Legislators
 

Platinum

Sponsors 

Click on any logo to reach company website

Hubbard Feeds Logo
Indiana Corn Marketing Council Logo

Byron Seeds

Indiana Farm Bureau

PSRB Logo

MPSI Logo
winnersdrinkmilk.com

Indiana Soybean Alliance

Gold Sponsors

 

ZFS Official 

 

DeLaval Logo 

BI Logo


Kaeb Sales Logo

Kalmbach Logo
2011 IPDP Board
of Directors

IPDP 
Indiana Professional Dairy Producers

IPDP Executive Board

 

Executive Director

Doug Leman 

317-695-8228

 

President

LuAnn Troxel

Hanna 

219-508-3433


Vice President
Ron Fuhrmann
Hoagland
260-438-4940

Secretary
Kelly Heckaman
Kosciusko
574-527-3445    

 

Correspondence 

Tamilee Nennich Ph.D. 

Purdue University
765-494-4823  

 

Treasurer
Mike Schutz Ph.D
765- 494-9478  

 

Dave Forgey 

Logansport

574-652-2461 


Click on a name above to email an Executive Board Member

Board Members

 Joe Hibshman
Syracuse

Sarah Wagler
Morgantown

Ben Rothert
Seymour

Henk Sevenhuysen
Goodland 


Steve Obert

Fort Branch

 

Brian Huber

St. Paul

 

 

Industry 

 

Liz Kelsay

ICMC/ISA 

 

Dr. Ken McGuffey
McGuffey Dairy Consulting

 

Todd Janzen, JD

PSRB, LLP

 

 


Silver Sponsors

Click on the logo to visit sponsor's website

 

Koetter & Smith  

Rubbersidewalks  

Michigan Milk Producers Logo  

Castongia's

 

Fair Oaks Farms Logo 

 

Prairie Farms

Alltech

Pfizer

Cargill

FCS New Logo

ForemostFarms

Dairy Farmers of America

Visit Our Bronze Level Sponsors Recently Updated!

Bronze Level
Click on above button!

 

IPDP Corporate Sponsors
IPDPThere is a growing list of companies that recognize IPDP's value to Indiana's dairy industry. Please visit our list of companies that have become Corporate Sponsors for only $100. If you know of a company that may have an interest in supporting IPDP at some level, please download a brochure here.

 

RESOURCE CENTER


Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy
Innovation Center
"WORKING TOGETHER FROM FARM TO FRIDGE"

 Click on each
logo to learn more.

NMPF Resource Manual
Residue Prevention

Visit the Residue Prevention Page at NMPF by clicking the photo above.


 Purdue

 

Check out the resources available to you on the Purdue University Dairy Extension site. Topics on nutrition, business management, animal health and many more topics related to our dairy industry and animal care.

 

 

 




Click

on the Archive button to access previous issues of our 

E-Updates

and important information for your dairy operation, industry issues and trends.


 

Support IPDP  

IPDP

We appreciate our industry supporters. They make it possible for IPDP to support the dairy industry in many ways. If your organization would like to be a corporate sponsor of IPDP, download an information sheet

Individual membership in IPDP is $20. Encourage your dairy farming friends to join IPDP! Also, anyone who is not a dairy producer but would still like to support IPDP can join as an associate member. Download a membership/associate brochure here.   

 

Greetings!

We spent a couple of beautiful weather days in Madison, WI last week at the World Dairy Expo. I was able to meet with several of our sponsors and made many new contacts. I had the opportunity to meet with Shelly Mayer, the Executive Director of Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin and some of her staff and board. They have a very well-run organization and we are looking at different ways that we can become involved together with our common goals. Hopefully in the not too distant future we are going to get our boards together for a joint meeting to exchange ideas.  

 

While there, we saw almost every type of dairy equipment or machinery available to the industry. As usual, it was again the showcase of tremendous dairy animals during the shows.

 

Take time to read and understand the different laws being proposed on dairy policy. These can certainly affect your livelihood in the dairy business. Policy information is included in this e-update; read it, discuss it and if you have an opinion, email or call your legislators. You can make a difference!

 

We would like to welcome Dean Foods as a bronze level sponsor of IPDP! Click on any logo to visit our great sponsors' websites. We sincerely appreciate our terrific IPDP sponsors! 

 

My contact information is [email protected]  or 317-695-8228 for any dairy issue. Take care and God bless!


Doug Leman
IPDP Executive Director

Indiana Legislators Senator Lugar and Rep. Stutzman Sponsor Dairy Policy Legislation
Lugar and Stutzman
Richard Lugar, a former chair of the Senate Ag Committee, and Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN), a freshman member of the House Agriculture Committee, have jointly introduced a bill they call the Rural Economic Farm and Ranch Sustainability and Hunger Act (REFRESH). This bill would reduce farm program spending by $16 billion, and save a total of $40 billion compared to current policy. It also includes a dairy policy section that mirrors Rep. Collin Peterson's Dairy Security Act, which is endorsed by National Milk Producers Federation. The Lugar-Stutzman bill would establish an aggregate risk and revenue management program that would protect between 90 and 75 percent of expected crop revenue.  The bill would also allow farmers to purchase supplemental revenue insurance underwritten by USDA's Risk Management Agency. A complete bill summary and legislative draft of REFRESH may be found here.
Read Dairy Business commentary on this bill  here.
Read Brownfield article and listen to Stutzman audio here.
PA Senator Casey Introduces S1682
Dairy Advancement Act of 2011
Sen. Casey

On Oct. 12, Sen. Bob Casey, (D) PA introduced the Dairy Advancement Act, dairy legislation that differs from Sen. Lugar and Rep. Peterson's bills. This bill repeals the Dairy Product Price Support Program. This move will save taxpayer dollars and encourage production of products based on market demands. The bill also makes available low interest loans to manufacturers so they can retrofit their plants to help adjust to changes to the price support system and shift their focus to products that have broader demand.

The bill also directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a two-class system for classifying milk under the federal milk marketing orders.  Simplifying classification with two classes -- fluid milk and manufactured products -- will allow market forces to work and put competition back in the federal order system for milk used for manufactured products.  The competition will result in improved producer revenue and encourage new product development.  

This bill also enhances market transparency by increasing the frequency of dairy price reporting. Click here to read the summary of the Dairy Advancement Act. 

Read endorsement by IDFA.
Read AgWeb comments here.

 

Dairy Industry Applauds Passage of Free Trade Agreements
Free trade agreements with South Korea, Panama and Columbia passed both houses of Congress on October 12, which may have a positive impact on the dairy industry. Tom Suber of the US Dairy Export Council pointed out that the agreements will not only help expand export sales for such products as cheese, whey, skim milk powder, and other dairy products, they also will prevent foreign competitors from taking market shares that the U.S. industry has developed in each of the countries in collaboration with USDEC. "In international trade, unless we continue to move forward, we risk falling behind our competitors," he said. "These agreements will ensure that, for America's dairy farmers and processors, export sales will continue to expand, not contract."
Read USDEC press release here.


As cold weather looms on our Indiana horizon, do we only tell our stories when there's green grass or rainbows?

Dairy Cows On Pasture 

Transparency:
 Important during all seasons
by Mark Klaus for Feedstuffs 

"Explaining to the general public the technologies we use in animal agriculture today is often frustrating, time consuming and, at times, not as successful as we wish. However, everyone understands the challenges we and our animals face during harsh weather...Agriculture is not always about rainbows and green landscapes, and people are fully capable of seeing through scripted messages and images anyway."

Read the full article here.


400,000 SCC Coming?
USDA Might Require Lower SCC Rates by Mid-Decade

Jim Dickrell, Dairy Today October 3, 2011

USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is circulating a draft document to dairy trade groups about requiring farms to meet a 400,000 somatic cell count (SCC) limit in order to export dairy products to Europe. Comments are due back to AMS by Nov. 1. USDA plans to publish a proposed regulation next spring. It, too, will likely have a public comment period. Implementation of a final regulation would then come in 2013. Read full article here.

 

Troxel Visits Purdue Dairy Club  
Purdue Dairy ClubIPDP President LuAnn Troxel visited the Purdue Dairy Club on October 12. Free IPDP Collegiate membership is available to college students who are interested in dairy. This was a great opportunity to discuss IPDP, as well as current dairy issues, with an engaged group of young people.

The Purdue Dairy Club has over 100 members and is led by President Danielle Haynes. Their projects include the Boilermaker Heifer Sale in April, IMAC (I milked a Cow) demonstrations, and participation in Milk Mondays, a cooperative effort to provide a carton of milk and a grilled cheese sandwich to Purdue students, faculty and others, promoting the nutrition in dairy products.

If you know of a college student with dairy interest that would be interested in being a free Collegiate IPDP member, please contact LuAnn at [email protected].
 
Dairy Life Photo Contest Winners & Free Calendar
BI Logo Boehringer-Ingelheim, a Gold Sponsor of IPDP, is introducing their dairy life calendar featuring contest winners from across the United States. This lovely calendar is free to dairy producers by clicking here. You will want to take advantage of this great offer!
 
Indiana Ag and IMTA Bring Texas Aid
Baling Out Drought in Texas Seven semi loads of hay are on their way to Texas, thanks to the vision of David Eaton and Shorty Whittington with Indiana Motor Truck Association and the generosity of Hoosier farmers. With IMTA's donation of transportation and Indiana Soybean's donation of bio-diesel, Hoosier farmers donated many tons of hay to drought-stricken Texas. On hand for the send-off was ISDA Director Joe Kelsay.

We would like to especially thank our IPDP dairy farmers who participated in the hay donation. 
Winning the Fresh Cow Game
by Tom Fuhrmann, DVM for Dairy Herd Network
Cow and calf Trimming fresh cow losses and reducing treatment costs are crucial steps to winning the tight margins game in which dairy farmers are now engaged.  Click here for some simple ideas to involve your team of workers. It may help you to minimize expenses and control involuntary fresh cow cull losses.

 

What's Hot in  

Commodity Feed

ZFS Official
Zeeland Farm Service
866-888-7082 

Feed Ingredient Update

Feed commodity markets have been choppy over the last two weeks.

 

Feed ingredient rations have been calculated and refigured now as forages are bunked.

 

As we cannot predict the future, consider some good buys such as cottonseed, soybean meal, wet gluten and hominy as viable options for the new ration.

We realize cottonseed priced itself out of many rations for much of the last year and half, but depending upon the fiber source, it's worth looking at now. There are forward contracts available for these commodities.

 

Again, take advantage of the dips in the market to average out your feed costs and bring up your bottom line.

 

 

WDE Virtual Farm Tours 
Nor-Bert
World Dairy Expo has featured virtual farm tours for the past few years. This year's farm tour videos are available for viewing online here. One of the farms featured in this year's line-up is Nor-Bert Farms, IPDP members who operate a robotic dairy in Plymouth, Indiana.
 
Contacting Your Legislators

With all the movement in dairy policy legislation, it's more important than ever for you to build relationships with your legislators. Indiana StatehouseNationally there are around 54,000 dairy farmers (out of 307 million total US population). In Indiana, there are 1288 Grade A dairy farms (6.4 million people in Indiana). Our legislators need to be educated about dairy issues, and they are looking to you to deliver. If you don't know them personally, why not take the time to introduce yourself? We live in very interesting times, and you have a message that our legislators need to hear. Click here to get contact information and more on your Indiana legislators. For US legislators and agencies, click  here.
Upcoming Events
2011-2012


OCTOBER 

October 19-22 National FFA Convention

in Indianapolis

 

NOVEMBER 

November 18, 2011

IPDP Allied Industry Council Meeting 10 AM 

IPDP's 2nd Partners in Success Luncheon at Corn/Soybean Offices in Indianapolis 11:30-2  

IPDP Board of Directors special meeting following Partners in Success Luncheon

 

DECEMBER

December 9-10 2011 Indiana Farm Bureau State Convention 

 

FEBRUARY

February 27, 2012 Livestock Forage & Grain Expo at Marriott, downtown Indianapolis.

February 27, 2012 IPDP Annual Meeting

February 29, 2012 Regional Dairy Meeting, Decatur

February 29, 2012 11th Annual Midwest Women in Agriculture Conference, Shipshewana, Indiana 

 

MARCH

March 1, 2012 Regional Dairy Meeting, Goshen

March 1, 2012 11th Annual Midwest Women in Agriculture Conference, Shipshewana 

March 6. 2012 Regional Dairy Meeting, Warrenton

March 7, 2012 Regional Dairy Meeting, Columbus

March 8, 2012 Regional Dairy Meeting, Rockville