Trade has garnered a lot of attention from the Trump administration and in recent political discussions as of late, but trade has always been an important issue for the U.S. dairy industry. Jaime Castaneda, senior vice president of strategic initiatives and trade policy with the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council, explained the value international trade has for dairy farmers and their bottom line during his presentation at FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative’s annual meeting on Feb. 10.

Most Progressive Cattleman readers regularly perform bull breeding soundness exams.

Sixty. It’s the amount of minutes Mike Wallace had in the popular investigative reporting series; it’s the beginning range for a normal resting heart rate in adults; and it’s the amount of sugar in a Jamba Juice banana berry smoothie.

Getting more involved on social media provides the dairy community with numerous benefits but can be daunting at first. There are over a billion people around the world consumed by social media every day. One post could create millions of lasting impressions. It all starts with baby steps to reach your goals and reap the rewards.

The breeding season is just starting for late-winter-calving operations and will soon start for traditional spring-calving operations. Good planning and proper management prior to and during the breeding season can help ensure success. Breeding seasons should be limited to no more than about 90 days to reduce the potential of heifers getting bred by herd bulls prior to weaning.

Warmer weather, the sight of green grass in weeks to come and thoughts of planting season is refreshing. However, for many producers, planting season also coincides with breeding season, which often results in some extremely important management practices for the cow herd being placed on the back burner.

Breeding season is upon us, and producers are looking for ways to optimize the cost of generating a pregnant cow versus the value of the calf produced. Open cows impact profitability, so producers need to identify a breeding program that improves their operation’s calf crop.

Technology, among other things, has changed the dairy landscape, and as dairy numbers continue to decline and farm sizes increase, it’s important to tell the story of how we progressed to where we are today.

In their February forecast, the Climate Prediction Center labeled much of the region as “drought remains but improves.” The extensive drought has left bare pastures and created sizable stand losses.

Leaks of pictures and videos depicting poor animal handling practices in the dairy industry in recent years have led to growing consumer distrust with the treatment of livestock. Training on proper cattle moving and handling techniques is essential to ensure instances like that do not happen on your farm.