Dairy science students from four universities recently attended the second annual Western regional meeting of the American Dairy Science Association-Student Affiliate Division (ADSA-SAD) in Visalia, California. The meeting was held March 3-4 and attracted 38 students and advisors, in addition to several industry professionals.

Sixty students from six western universities and one Canadian university competed in the seventh annual Western Regional Dairy Challenge March 1-3, 2012 in Visalia, California. The Western Regional Dairy Challenge is an innovative dairy management analysis competition developed by industry and university professionals from across the U.S.

The University of Kentucky and Alltech have a long and deep collaboration on a range of issues in the areas of human and animal health and nutrition.

With a name like World Ag Expo, this event is bound to attract people from all over. Not only were some attendees arriving two-by-two, others were coming in a busload at a time. Progressive Dairyman was able to catch up with four different tours that made their way west to Tulare, California.

Over the past decade the export market has become a viable portion of the U.S. dairy industry. A panel of dairy producer leaders shared their experience in learning more about this growing opportunity. California dairy producer and Dairy Management Inc. board member Jim Ahlem explained how the DMI business model has evolved over the years to increase the impact of each dollar invested by dairy producers.

Everyone seems to have a comment to make about food these days. The U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) is encouraging those that spend their days producing food to become a part of the conversation. USFRA is a coalition of more than 70 national, regional and state agricultural groups and their partners committed to continuously improving how food is grown and raised to provide healthy choices for people everywhere.

This article was #8 of the Top 25 most well-read articles on www.progressivedairy.com in 2012. to jump to the video. It was published in the March 1, 2012 Extra. Click here for the full list of the Top 25. In the other virtual farm tour video from World Ag Expo, Michigan dairy producer John Verhaar explains his experience in dealing with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He was convicted of hiring and harboring unauthorized workers. He was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to pay hefty fines. John believes his challenges in finding qualified labor for his dairy are similar to other producers.

From robotic milking to renewable energy and genomics to grazing, producers attending the 2012 Pennsylvania Dairy Summit were offered a variety of topics to stretch their minds. The event was held Feb. 8-9 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Those not able to attend the entire two-day conference in person could participate in the “Core Dairy Track for Dairy Managers,” new to the summit this year.