“Senate Ag Committee Appointments Announced”
When the new Congress begins in January the Senate ag committee will have leadership in new locations. Senate Ag Committee Chairman Blanche Lincoln has asked former committee chairman Tom Harkin to take seats she formerly held on the Subcommittee on Rural Revitalization, Conservation, Forestry and Credit; the Subcommittee on Hunger, Nutrition, and Family Farms; and the Subcommittee on Production, Income Protection and Price Support.
Lincoln has also asked Senator Debbie Stabenow to assume chairmanship of the Subcommittee on Rural Revitalization, Conservation, Forestry and Credit; and Senator Michael Bennet to assume chairmanship of the Subcommittee on Energy, Science and Technology.
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“USDA Approves High Frequency Ear Tag”
The Department of Agriculture has approved the first ultra-high radio frequency identification tag and the first non-low frequency tag to be approved for use with the “840” Animal Identification Number. Called: eTatto, the ear tag operates at 915 MHz.
The tag allows users to collect data from individual animals housed in large pens or across groups of pens in a fraction of a second, even while animals are moving. The read range is optimized to allow producers to collect data from either the front or back of the animal at a distance of up to 25 feet using a fixed reader or up to 15 feet using a handheld device.
Eriginate™ Corporation says its eTattoo is a panel-style tag that incorporates both visual and electronic identification, enabling management information to be printed on the tag and alleviating the need for separate visual and RFID tags. The company says the tags and readers can be quickly incorporated into existing cattle handling systems without the need for costly infrastructure changes.
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“Oklahoma Plant Recalls Beef”
USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service reports that National Steak and Poultry of Owasso, Oklahoma has recalled about 248-thousand pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Each package bears a label with the establishment number “EST. 6010T” inside the USDA mark of inspection and packaging dates of “10/12/2009,” “10/13/2009,” “10/14/2009,” or “10/21/2009.” These products were shipped to restaurants nationwide.
FSIS became aware of the problem during the course of an investigation of a cluster of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses. Working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health and agriculture departments, FSIS determined that there is an association between non-intact steaks and illnesses in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, South Dakota and Washington.
On its website, National Steak says – we take the safety and wholesomeness of our products very seriously and that’s why we are working with USDA to conduct this recall. This is the first recall in the company’s nearly 30-year history.
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“R-CALF Requests Help From GIPSA”
R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard recently met with Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration Administrator J. Dudley Butler to communicate the R-CALF USA Marketing Committee’s request that immediate steps be taken to halt the meatpackers’ use of captive supply cattle to depress domestic cattle prices.
According to Bullard, – we are requesting that GIPSA take immediate action to halt the packers’ anticompetitive use of packer-owned cattle, formula cattle contracts and other captive supply schemes, and we specifically asked for a moratorium on the packer practice of removing cattle from the competitive marketplace without establishing a price.
R-CALF USA Marketing Committee Chair Dennis Thornsberry believes – if immediate steps are not taken to end captive supply use, including packer-owned cattle, we will soon lose the cattle industry as we know it. He says – there is a real urgency behind our request due to the horrendous losses already experienced by U.S. cattle feeders in 2007, 2008 and 2009.
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“DNA Adds to EPD Information”
One of the exciting advances for the beef industry is the addition of DNA data for use in the expected progeny differences calculation. EPDs play a key role in the way beef producers make selection and mating decisions. According to Dr. Matt Spangler, assistant professor and beef genetics extension specialist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, – the accuracies associated with EPDs increase as more information becomes available. Spangler says, – DNA technology has the potential to supply us with information early in the animal’s life that can help increase the accuracy of its EPDs.
The first EPD calculations for a young animal are an estimate based on its parents’ pedigree index values and possibly some of its own performance data. For this reason, the accuracies are low until an animal has recorded progeny data, which may never happen in a commercial setting.
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“Iowa to Restrict Manure Application Dates”
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is gathering comments on rules designed to eliminate most manure application on frozen and snow-covered ground. There is an exemption for livestock operations that are 500 units or smaller.
The rules, which were approved in November by the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission, limit the application of liquid manure on frozen ground from February1 to April 1 and on snow-covered ground from December 21 through April 1. There is an exemption for farmers facing unusual circumstances, such as weather or storage capacity limits. They would need DNR approval.
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“Researchers Work to Protect Watermelon Health”
Finding watermelon genes that confer resistance to the devastating zucchini yellow mosaic virus has just been made easier, thanks to molecular markers developed by Agricultural Research Service scientists and university and international cooperators. Scientist have now been able to sequence and clone a gene called eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E, which the scientists believe confers resistance to ZYMV in watermelon.
ZYMV, a member of the Potyvirus family, seriously affects the commercial production of cucurbit crops like watermelon worldwide. Potyviruses are the largest of the 34 plant virus families currently recognized, most of which are transmitted by aphids. Cucurbit plants infected with ZYMV lose their ability to photosynthesize, resulting in yellow mosaic on leaves, stunted plant growth, unmarketable and deformed fruit, or even early plant death.
In the United States, spraying watermelon fields with insecticides is the most common practice to reduce the presence of aphids that spread the virus. Still, the development of commercial varieties that are resistant to the virus is the most economic and effective method for controlling the disease.
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“Red Dyes Detect Need for Additional Cleaning”
A study conducted at the University of Arkansas and funded by the American Meat Institute Foundation has found that two approved red food dyes stain the protein and fat in bologna and turkey lunchmeat and may help deli managers quickly determine areas of listeria contamination. Researchers noted that use of a 1:1,000 dilution of the dyes, FD&C No. 3 and No. 40, could enable deli managers to determine whether additional cleaning is required before sanitizing the slicker or beginning operations.
Researchers also found that heating deli slicer components in moist oven conditions caused a reduction of listeria within three hours at 82 degrees C. However, this treatment would not be feasible to use on an assembled deli slicer because of potential damage to the electrical components. Continuing research involves using various sanitizers alone and in combination with moist heat to reduce potential listeria contamination of disassembled stainless steel and aluminum deli components.
