Michael Gavin, president of PortaScience Inc. (PSI), recently returned from Rwanda where he participated in the educational segment of a program funded by a grant from Feed the Future Partnering for Innovation (FFPI) to commercialize a milk quality test for East African small farms.

Optimism for the dairy industry’s future filled the convention center in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where 264 college students gathered to improve skills, network and learn about careers and industry innovation. The national Dairy Challenge held April 3-5 attracted students from 37 colleges in 25 states and three Canadian provinces.

The Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association (MADA) and Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program (PDPP) board of directors recently elected officers for the 2014 term during their annual reorganization meeting.

Schreiber Foods will begin construction of a distribution center in Richland Center, Wisconsin, in order to handle increased production from its two Richland Center yogurt plants.

Semex has opened its newly expanded Génbank-Semex Hungary facilities in Mezőhegyes, Hungary, meeting the company’s increased sire housing, semen collection, processing and distribution needs.

More than 300 dairy calf and heifer growers, industry representatives and allied associates met in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for the Dairy Calf and Heifer Association (DCHA) 2014 annual conference held April 1-3. Producers in attendance represented more than 500,000 cattle.

The Missouri House of Representatives has passed the “Missouri Dairy Revitalization Act of 2014” (HB 1326) by an overwhelming vote of 137-4. HB 1326 is sponsored by Representatives Casey Guernsey (District 2) and Bill Reiboldt (District 160).

The 2014 annual conference of the American Butter Institute (ABI) and the American Dairy Products Institute (ADPI) is scheduled for April 27-29 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. The conference will feature two days of speakers and programs on various industry topics.

With the threat of hidden cameras, rogue employees and slanderous anti-animal agriculture agendas, standing guard against activist groups should be part of every dairy’s business plan.

The Composite Dairy Cattle Registry (CDCR) has made numerous strides since July 2013, offering registration opportunities to the Fleckvieh, Montbeliarde, Norwegian Red, Red Dane, Swedish Red and White, and any other dairy cross that breeders and producers wish to register to preserve and document the ancestry of their animals.