Milk quality experts representing 28 countries gathered in Glendale, Arizona, for the National Mastitis Council (NMC) 55th Annual Meeting, Jan. 31-Feb. 2.

Trading into the weakest global dairy market in more than a decade, U.S. dairy exports declined in 2015, ending a streak of five straight years of expansion, according to Alan Levitt, market analyst with the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC).

During the 2016 Wisconsin Junior Holstein Association Convention, this tune took home top honors in the “Bell-R-Ring” contest. The contest challenges each county to come up with a creative roll call response, such as a song or skit. Sung to the beat of a Taylor Swift song, these kids from Calumet and Manitowoc Counties brought down the house with their “cow-showing” version of “Shake It Off.”

The most important and least appreciated component of most farm operations is the organic matter in the soil. Some folks will read that first sentence, roll their eyes and stop reading.

U.S. alfalfa hay exports overcame market challenges to rebound in 2015, according to annual data from USDA’s Foreign Ag Service. 

Ag producers and cattle ranchers will see ample supplies of grain, feedstuffs and fuel, with good weather and favorable production keeping those trends in play for the remainder of 2016.

The rapid expansion seen by the cattle industry over two years will continue in 2016, although probably into a lower gear as the market accommodates larger protein supplies.

Feeding dairy cows the correct total mixed ration (TMR) is critical to their health and productivity.

“We see no concerns, from our standpoint, looking at 2016 as being any sort of recessionary year. But that doesn’t mean that more of what’s going on outside of the borders can’t have an effect on the United States,” said CattleFax analyst Mike Murphy.

In December, we published our final stand-alone issue of El Lechero magazine. We wish to thank the thousands of dairies who requested this magazine over its lifetime. It’s been exactly a decade since we launched this magazine for dairy managers and owners.