Airoso Dairy Farms will be celebrating its centennial anniversary of dairy farming in California during World Ag Expo. The Tulare County family will be hosting two open houses and a registered dairy cattle sale as part of the celebration. “We’re celebrating 100 years of being in the dairy business and 45 years of breeding registered Holsteins,” fourth-generation dairyman Joey Airoso says. Dairy producers and the general public are invited to an open house at Airoso Dairy on Tuesday, Feb. 14, and Wednesday, Feb. 15, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. The dairy is located at 18829 Road 64 in Tulare.

Tractors are a primary source of work-related injury on farms, however, not all of the injuries happen while the tractor is being used for work. Nationally, nearly one-third of all farm work fatalities are tractor related. Injuries occur for a variety of reasons and in a number of different ways. This article will describe types of tractor hazards and the nature and severity of injuries associated with using farm tractors.

Visit the seminar center at World Ag Expo on Feb. 14 to see these forage seminars. 10 to 10:30 a.m. Hay Situation and Outlook in Western States New records were established in the hay and dairy industries in California and other Western states in 2011 – some positive and some not-so-positive for hay growers.Record-high alfalfa and other-hay prices and strong profitability were great news for hay growers.

The following seven products were chosen by a committee of industry professionals and dairymen as the newest, most innovative dairy products and will be showcased during World Ag Expo Feb. 14-16 in Tulare, California. Progressive Dairyman asked each of the product inventors or sponsoring companies to discuss how their products fill an industry need. Photos in this section are courtesy of World Ag Expo or the company marketing the product.

Mildewed feed given to cows caused the high levels of a cancer-causing toxin found in milk from China's biggest dairy company and a smaller one, according to a government safety agency investigating the troubled dairy industry's latest scandal. An expert review identified the mildewed feed as the cause of the excessive levels of aflatoxin in milk from industry giant Mengniu Dairy Group and the Fujian Changfu Dairy Industry Group, the quality supervision and inspection agency said in a statement posted on its website.

Twice a week, Gabriel Cellerini waits on the sidewalk while his bus driver goes through the ritual. Gia Engel runs antiseptic wipes over every surface the 4-year-old might touch as he enters the bus: the door handle, the hand rail, the front, back and sides of his seat. Of the preschoolers who attend the Early Childhood Special Education class at the Linn-Benton-Lincoln Education Service District headquarters, Gabriel is the first one on Engel's route. To further minimize contamination, she makes sure he sits in the same seat each day.

Saudi Arabia's largest dairy company said recently it is buying Argentine farm operator Fondomonte S.A. for $83 million to secure access to a supply of animal feed. The acquisition will give Riyadh-based Almarai Co. control of roughly 30,000 acres of farmland in the South American nation just ahead of tough new limits likely to be imposed by Argentina's government on foreign ownership of productive land. Almarai said the deal is in line with the desert kingdom's policy of "securing supplies and conserving local resources."

While fresh demographic information on U.S. farmers won't be available until after the next agricultural census is done next year, there are signs more people in their 20s and 30s are going into farming: Enrollment in university agriculture programs has increased, as has interest in farmer-training programs. For example, Utah State University officials say its agricultural school is outpacing other departments in student growth. The Logan Herald Journal reports (http://bit.ly/tBUi4W) that over the past three years, the College of Agriculture has seen the highest percentage increase in the number of enrolled students.

Missouri cropland is so dry from last summer's extreme heat and lack of rainfall that University of Missouri researchers said the state would need 13 feet of snow this winter to make up for it. That's probably not going to happen, though, and The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/rHcs1g) reported Sunday that the lack of moisture could soon have an impact on consumers.