Dear Editor, Taxpayers on the hook for $3 billion to push small dairy farms out of business? The proposed cure is worse than the disease. The disease is farm milk price volatility and ongoing narrow to negative milk-to-feed margins that have crippled many dairy farm businesses. The proposed cure is the Dairy Security Act which was introduced by Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN).

Picture this. You’ve decided to take a quick mental break from your work day by logging on to Facebook. You’re minding your own business, just scrolling through your news feed, when – BAM – it hits you. Your second cousin from the big city has posted the latest anti-animal agriculture video to hit YouTube, courtesy of an animal rights group.

Here are some of the new products or updates to previous products that have been announced as of February 27, 2012. Return to this section of the Progressive Dairyman website periodically to find out what new products will be impacting the dairy industry.

Emily Zweber Elko, Minnesota
 Executive Director AgChat Foundation

Activists say a bill requiring people who file frivolous lawsuits against Indiana livestock farms to pay the farms' legal fees would make people reluctant to take action, even when they have legitimate complaints about smells or waste. The measure, which supporters call a right-to-farm bill, passed the House on a 57-39 vote and goes before the Senate judiciary committee for a hearing. It has strong support from the Indiana Farm Bureau and Indiana Pork Producers, but environmental groups are opposed.

"Buy fresh, buy local," the familiar movement that has sparked a surge in farmers markets, community supported agriculture operations and farm-to-school programs across the country, now is making its way into the restaurant industry. And Shore Gourmet, a local nonprofit that supports a growing number of the Delmarva Peninsula's value-added producers, is taking full advantage of the trend.

A Cornell University crop and soil science professor says a warming climate could present a profitable opportunity for farmers in northern New York: soybeans. Professor William Cox says soybeans aren't labor intensive and they're commanding a high price. He recently released results of field trials to help growers decide which varieties to plant in 2012.

The Missouri House has endorsed a proposed constitutional amendment barring voters from enacting laws that affect the raising of livestock through initiative petitions. The proposal would add a "right to raise livestock" to the Missouri Constitution.