The sun is shining, and winter is a distant memory. You may be eager to spend time in the field and catch up on tasks you couldn’t do all winter. But during this busy time, don’t forget how warmer weather is impacting your calves.

John Haeckel of Madison is CEO of Clean Fuel Partners, which specializes in turning organic waste into fuel. His digester plant in Dane, Wisconsin, is located between three farms and processes the manure from the farms, turning it into fuel.

On Oct. 11, 1826, Theodore Jones of London, England, received a patent for what he called “wire wheels.” Jones found if he added wires, or what we now call spokes, to a circular rim, the wheel could bear greater stress while maintaining its round shape.

Want smarter cows? Try raising calves with social companions.

Whether you’ve had auto-feeders for five months or five years, you know how important it is to make sure your investment is paying off with improved calf performance from the start.

In recent years, several research groups have started to prioritize studies on cow behavior to determine the benefits herd management can have on milk production. Early studies have shown the basic needs of a cow will consume 20 to 21 hours per day, which leaves little room for mismanagement. 

Digest Highlights

• Dairy-RP indemnity payments beginning
• Interest rate movement mixed
• Beef, dairy collaboration launches HOLSim program
• New publication provides snapshot of LLCs for Midwest farming businesses
• FFAR grant funds dairy cow heat stress research
• Cargill conducts voluntary recall of select Southern States feed products

U.S. cheese exports hit a record high in March, but a setback in negotiations with China cast some dark clouds over the trade picture.

If the latest USDA projections hold true, U.S. dairy farmers could see the 2019 all-milk price top $18 per hundredweight (cwt), the first time that’s happened since 2014.

The Dairy and Functional Food Research Unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service had planned on determining whether or not milk processing affects the functional properties of A2 beta casein in milk. That study never happened, which may have been due at least in part to the recent government shutdown, Dr. Peggy Tomasula, the research leader, told participants at the 2019 Northeast Pasture Consortium conference.