It used to be that the best and easiest way to communicate was face-to-face conversations. People would stop and chat over backyard fences, at the grocery store or stop on the side of the road and chat before continuing on to their destination.

With no two production systems the same, producers may have to explore what works for them when backgrounding calves. Most producers hate to sell at today’s prices, so many are looking at the possibility of backgrounding their calves, a least through the winter.

You continually measure and review the performance of your lactating cow herd, but are you doing the same for your calves and heifers?

As we wrap up the fall harvest and start to prepare for next year here on our dairy farm, I have been doing some reflecting. There are a couple of practices rather common in agriculture we as farmers should maybe push back against. These practices are:

President-elect Donald Trump has already toned down some of the campaign rhetoric that propelled him to a surprise victory over Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. With agricultural issues playing virtually no role in election debates, Trump’s election as the 45th U.S. President has the food and agriculture sector awaiting further clarification on his policies and positions.

The factors with potential to restrict global hay marketing that hatched last September came home to roost in USDA’s latest export report. Despite declining volumes and values, however, U.S. hay exports were still stronger than a year ago.

Many producers, blessed with an abundance of spring and summer moisture, are quickly discovering this year’s hay crop has a little more mold growth than they are used to.

California Class 1 price jumps $3. Fluid milk sales improve. Dean Foods reports better dairy quarter. Canada announces dairy support programs. Find those articles and other dairy economic news updates here.

To better serve valued customers and reach new ones, Vitalix acquired the company Uniblok Canada on Sept. 30, 2016. Similar to Vitalix, Uniblok is a family-owned company that produces protein and mineral supplements for cattle, horses and sheep.

For most cattle producers, it is common knowledge that lighter weight cattle bring higher prices per hundredweight than heavier cattle. This phenomenon is known as the “price slide.”