Earlier this week, California Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 523 by Republican Assemblyman David G. Valadao into law. AB 523 modifies the existing California Ethanol Producer Incentive Program (CEPIP) to ensure that any funding provided for the program beyond its existing expiration of July 1, 2013, cannot be used for corn ethanol projects.

Last week, the Sacramento Superior Court of the State of California rejected claims by PETA to discredit communications from the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) about how California dairy farmers care for their dairy herds. The Court determined that “the Department [of Food and Agriculture] and CMAB members have extensive experience and knowledge that provides strong evidentiary support for the claims made by the challenged marketing statements.”

On Sept. 11-13, the 19th edition of Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show (COFS) will be held at Canada’s Outdoor Park in Woodstock, Ontario. The COFS team and its exhibitors have worked tirelessly planning demonstrations and events for the 40,000+ attendees – including two major field demonstrations. "Our field demonstrations provide a unique opportunity for our exhibitors to showcase their products in a field of competitors," says Paul Roper, COFS exhibitor sales and demonstrations coordinator. "This year, we are excited to run two major field demonstrations for moldboard ploughs and solid manure spreaders."

Angel A. Aguilar, Ph.D. Martinsville, Indiana Technical Services – Dairy Specialist Lallemand Animal Nutrition

Farmers and ranchers are foraging for hay on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, reports USA Today. They're also hitting up Craigslist and other similar sites.   Nebraska cattleman Gary Hanz told USA Today that he's looked all over the Internet for hay. "Nobody's letting go of anything they've got because they're not going to have enough to support their own livestock," he said. "For what little there is, there's such a high price."

Kansas farm groups are putting together a workshop on electric fencing and livestock watering options amid the deepening drought. The free, daylong workshop will be held Sept. 11 near Jamestown in Republic County.

Livestock producers will now be able to calculate the overall value of forage inoculants through a new, easy-to-use online tool from DuPont Pioneer.

The Pioneer Inoculant Value Calculator is a calculator/product selection tool that helps producers gain a “hands-on” look at how inoculants can make a difference in their operations.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), the practice of tail docking in the dairy industry began in the early 1900s in New Zealand as a method to reduce the incidence of leptospirosis in milking personnel. It continued as producers cited a variety of benefits, such as improved comfort for milkers and animal handlers, enhanced cow and udder cleanliness, reduced incidence of mastitis and improved milk quality. The most commonly used method for docking tails in dairy cattle is the use of elastrator bands. Usually performed on pre-fresh heifers or calves near weaning, the elastrator band is applied to remove one-third to two-thirds of the tail. Other methods of docking include using a cauterizing docking iron, use of emasculators and surgical excision.