Indiana's first new restrictions in years on factory-style livestock farms that generate large amounts of manure have disappointed activists, who say state officials spurned most of their suggestions for beefing up the rules. The new regulations for about 2,000 of Indiana's largest livestock farms were approved earlier this month by a state panel. They take effect next July. State officials contend the updated rules, which replace restrictions approved six years ago, will provide significant new protections for groundwater and surface water.

The Virginia Farm Bureau is discussing plans to lobby the 2012 General Assembly for a constitutional amendment to limit the government's ability to take private land. Both chambers of the Virginia legislature approved a constitutional amendment in the 2011 session to make changes to the state's eminent domain law. If approved in the 2012 session, it would be on the ballot for voters' consideration.

The California Association of Food Banks (CAFB) has joined with Land O’Lakes Inc. and Producers Dairy Foods Inc. to distribute 12,000 one-half gallon cartons of milk to food banks located in the Southern San Joaquin Valley, where an estimated 500,000 children and adults live in poverty. According to Sue Sigler, CAFB executive director, “Because the demand for food assistance remains so high, food banks have to count their pennies and as a result do not often have a steady supply of milk. We are deeply grateful for this donation from Land O’Lakes and Producers Dairy Foods, that will help us to provide a nutritious and well-rounded diet to people in need.”

A new video,“U.S. Dairy Farmers Care,” tells the story of dairy farmers and their commitment to their animals, the environment, local communities and consumers. Merck Animal Health, a company committed to the success of dairy farmers, created the three-minute, animated video to help dairy farmers share their positive stories with non-agricultural audiences. “This video pays tribute to the more than 55,000 dairy farm families dedicated to providing our country and the world with high-quality, nutritious milk and dairy foods,” said Rick Cozzitorto, dairy marketing manager for Merck Animal Health. “And, they do so while caring for their animals, reducing the environmental footprint of dairy production and contributing to our local economies.”

Dairy Farmers of America, Inc.’s (DFA) Fort Morgan, Colorado, plant has been named a Safe Quality Food (SQF) Manufacturer of the Year as part of the organization’s 2011 Quality Achievement Awards. The award was presented at the SQF International Conference held recently in St. Louis, Missouri. Dave Davis, quality assurance manager; Maria Nunez, quality assurance lead; Art Soto, dryer operator; and Ricardo Valles, maintenance mechanic, attended the conference to accept the award.

Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin is offering Commodity Marketing classes to dairy producers and agribusiness professionals. An informational session about the classes and the opportunity to meet the instructor will be held Thursday, Dec. 14, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Greenstone Farm Credit Services located at 1674 Eisenhower Road, DePere, Wisconsin. This introductory class is free. The class instruction that happens over the course of a marketing year will be presented by Carl Babler of the University of Wisconsin – Platteville who has been involved in the futures industry as a broker, educator and hedger for more than 35 years.

Growers of high quality forage will be rewarded with cash prizes in the 2012 World Ag Expo Forage Challenge, presented by Mycogen Seeds. The competition challenges farmers and ranchers in 11 western states to enter their best alfalfa hay, standard corn silage or brown midrib (BMR) corn silage to honor those who produce the highest-quality forages in the West. The deadline to enter is Dec. 15.

An array of leading dairy marketing executives convened by the dairy checkoff showed unity in reporting impressive checkoff-led dairy sales results to nearly 1,000 producer and industry representatives at the 2011 National Dairy Promotion and Research Board (NDB)/National Milk Producers Federation/United Dairy Industry Association (UDIA) Joint Annual Meeting in San Diego, California. The dairy checkoff is driving more dairy sales than ever by working through the power of partnerships, said Tom Gallagher, chief executive officer of Dairy Management Inc., speaking at the joint annual meeting.

Attracting a processing plant that would support southwest Kansas dairy farms is a top priority for Kansas governor Sam Brownback's administration, but dairy industry officials say the region needs to have more cows before the effort will succeed. More than 70,000 cows are milked daily in western Kansas, where a few dozen large dairies have opened in the last 20 years. Brownback's administration would like to attract something like a cheese factory or a milk processing plant to help the region's economy.

Note: The following are opinion commentaries. I am responding to your question of whether or not I favor Foundation for the Future (FFTF). I am a seventh-generation dairy farmer owning and operating a closed herd of 60 registered Holsteins in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. (Visit www.ebyfarm.com for more information.) Many blame co-ops; others blame corporate dairies for the mess we are in. Yes, they are part of the problem, but more importantly they are the result of a much bigger problem.