Tulare County dairyman and Western United Dairymen president Tom Barcellos expects “double-digit bankruptcy filings” by local dairymen in coming weeks as the feed price crunch caused by the Midwest drought hits the credit crunch at home this summer. Barcellos told the Visalia Times-Delta/Tulare Advance-Register that dairymen in the area are "getting out of the business – sending their cows to slaughter as fast as they can."

Groups including the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and United Dairymen of Arizona have joined a coalition called Farm Bill Now. The coalition is comprised of 39 agricultural organizations with a shared goal of raising public awareness of the need for Congress to pass a new, comprehensive, five-year farm bill before current farm programs expire in September.

Swiss food and drinks giant Nestle SA posted an 8.9 percent rise in first-half profits and strong sales that showed it was taking the rising costs for many of its ingredients in stride. But the company predicted the remainder of 2012 will be challenging as it warned of a slowdown in its key U.S. market.

Russia has joined the World Trade Organization, a body which restricts import duties and subsidies to make international trade fair, after 18 years of negotiations. Consumers in Russia are expected to benefit from the lower cost of imported goods, while some industrial sectors, like agriculture, will lose state subsidies, exposing them to foreign competition. Last year, Russia imported a total of $2.1 billion from the world, making it a key destination for butter, cheese and other high-value dairy products.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced he’s easing some environmental regulations so that dairy farmers can more easily own more cows. The news came at the first ever yogurt summit convened by Cuomo at the State Capitol Aug. 15. Cuomo chaired a public meeting that brought together dairy farmers, yogurt makers and an array of state officials. He says with the phenomenal success of Greek yogurt, the struggling upstate economy has been presented with one of the best entrepreneurial opportunities in “30 or 40 years”.

On Aug. 21, USDA-NASS released the semi-annual United States and Canadian Cattle report, which reported July 1, 2012 along with 2007-2011 cattle numbers by class for each country. The report can be accessed at: http://usda01.library.cornell.edu/usda/current/USCC/USCC-08-21-2012.pdf. It was not a surprise that total cattle inventories in both countries continue to decline, because beef cow numbers in both countries have been declining for several years.

Technological advancements abound in our society and the cattle industry is no exception. Attendees at the first-ever, dual-breed Beef Profit Alliance seminar learned first hand about new and emerging technology.

In a sign of changing times in California agriculture, the University of California will dedicate its first full-sized center pivot overhead irrigation system at the UC West Side Research and Extension Center. The dedication will take place during the Twilight Conservation Agriculture field day at 4 p.m. on Sept. 13. The center is at 17353 W. Oakland Ave. in Five Points.

Farmers and other members of the public are invited to the free event to see the system in operation and learn how overhead irrigation can be combined with no-till or minimum-till farming methods to create a more sustainable, profitable and environmentally sound agriculture industry.

USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) reminds producers of the expanded coverage availability for the Forage (Alfalfa) Seed Pilot Multi-Peril Crop Insurance (MPCI) program to all qualifying producers in Idaho, Oregon and Washington.

Prior to crop year 2012, the pilot program only allowed for coverage availability to producers in limited areas – e.g., Idaho: Canyon and Owyhee counties; Oregon: Malheur County and Washington: Grant and Walla Walla counties.