The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) thanks West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin for vetoing legislation allowing consumers to obtain unpasteurized milk through herd-shares, or arrangements under which they become part owners of a dairy cow.

A new sports recovery drink developed by a Penn State researcher, produced by the Penn State Berkey Creamery and tested by Penn State football players, is now available.

Nicole Barlass Director of Member Relations Dairy Business Association Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin

HumaneWatch.org, a project of the Center for Consumer Freedom, has released a second video interview with a former undercover investigator for the animal liberation group Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

Dairy commodity prices have dropped 45 percent from a high above $24 per hundredweight in September 2014 to a low below $14 per hundredweight in March 2015. Meanwhile, the dairy industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace as hard working dairy farmers must possess a unique set of business skills to maximize high-quality milk production while managing pricing risks and maintaining successful profit margins.

Reproductive efficiency is a major driver of dairy profitability. That’s because improved pregnancy rates allow producers to maximize the number of cows in the most profitable stage of their life cycle, as well as empower producers to make better culling and replacement decisions.

Management of the transition period, strategies to improve reproductive efficiency based on estrous detection programs, and management of dairy personnel were among the hot topics discussed at the 2014 Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) annual meeting held last November in Salt Lake City, Utah.

As I write this editorial from my home office, I’m staring out my window at a fresh dusting of snow and nursing a cold. No, you’re not looking at a winter issue. The first day of spring has come and gone here in western Pennsylvania, and we’re still feeling the last clutching of winter.I’m seeing 70ºF days in the forecast and keeping my fingers crossed that we’ll have green grass by the time this issue hits mailboxes.

Have you been to a McDonald’s lately? They are creatively marketing your milk to their loyal consumers through Milk Chugs and McCafe drinks, and new cheeseburgers and frappés, other menu items.