The California Department of Food Agriculture (CDFA) announced that it has awarded nearly $25.4 million in grant funding to methane reduction projects across the state.

CDFA said the projects, part of the Dairy Digester Research & Development Program (DDRDP) and the Alternative Manure Management Program (AMMP), will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from manure on California dairy and livestock farms.

In recent years, more and more countries have erected obstacles and barriers to U.S. dairy exports, hurting dairy processors and thousands of other businesses that rely on U.S. dairy exports for jobs and wages, according to International Dairy Foods Assn. (IDFA) vice president for trade policy and international affairs Becky Rasdall. IDFA is asking the U.S. Trade Representative to eliminate the long-standing barriers.

In its latest quarterly report, Rabobank noted that domestic feed prices continue to find strength. U.S. alfalfa hay prices have continued their seasonal decline but remain well above the five-year average. Meanwhile, byproduct prices offer a competitive option due to recent increases in corn and soybean meal prices.

Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), a global leader in nutrition and partner to the world’s leading consumer brands, has released its view on the five food and beverage trends that will influence the way consumers eat and drink in the new year.

The 2021 Annual Meeting of the American Dairy Science Association® (ADSA®) will be held as hybrid meeting with a virtual component and a corresponding in-person meeting in Louisville, Kentucky. As always it will be the most comprehensive dairy science meeting in the world. We are meeting in the same physical location as the American Society of Animal Science (ASAS), just prior to the ASAS Annual Meeting. There will be an overlap day of shared programming with ASAS on the final day of the ADSA Annual Meeting, along with a shared reception Wednesday evening. As a global forum for professionals, educators, and students, the meeting will attract dairy foods and dairy production specialists from more than 50 countries with common but diverse interests in the future of dairy science. Make your plans to be part of this global event.

For more information visit the 2021 ADSA Annual Meeting website. Visit often as is will be updated frequently as new information becomes available. 

Last week ADSA conducted its 39^th Discover Conference: The Transition Period – From Physiology to Management, virtually. The regular meeting registration limit was reached, so for the first time ever we offered a “Viewer Only” option. This was very well received and provided many more people with an opportunity to view the presentations. Thank you again to the many hands who made this week possible: the program committee, moderators, speakers, graduate student helpers, and sponsors. The program committee included: Co-Chairs Stephen LeBlanc (University of Guelph) and Phil Cardoso (University of Illinois) as well as committee members Buzz Burhans (Dairy-Tech Group), Joe McFadden (Cornell University), Katy Proudfoot (University of Prince Edward Island), and Heather M. White (University of Wisconsin). For more information on the program that was presented, please visit the ADSA website here.

Referrals are the most tried-and-true way businesses grow, and the same is true for FASS. Do you know a colleague working with an animal science group that is in need of high-quality, cost-effective support services? Help them out by referring them to Jeremy Holzner, FASS Executive Director at jeremyh@assochq.org .

Help them benefit from the shared resource concept and the 270+ years of collective experience the FASS staff have in working with non-profit animal science organizations. If your referral becomes a FASS customer prior to June 1, 2021, ADSA will comp your registration to the 2021 ADSA Annual Meeting that will be held July 11-14, 2021 in Louisville, Kentucky. It’s win-win-win. For more information about services offered by FASS, click here.

Do you have the S-PAC and Large Dairy Herd Management Bundle?

The American Dairy Science Association (ADSA®) is pleased to offer the most comprehensive information resource package for dairy professionals’ available. The Searchable Proceedings of Animal Conferences (S-PAC®) and the Large Dairy Herd Management (3rd ed., e-book) are now provided as a package. Students and professionals with purchasing an annual subscriptions to S-PAC now receive a personal copy of Large Dairy Herd Management with their paid S-PAC subscription. Learn more by clicking here. If you have additional questions please contact Ken Olson, PhD, PAS

e-mail: keolson@prodigy.netL Phone: 630/842-5334  

Start making plans to attend the 41^ST ADSA DISCOVER CONFERENCE^SM ON FOOD ANIMAL AGRICULTURE - Health Management of Calves: From Intrauterine Life to Successful Weaning. This conference will explore the many changes in dairy calf management practices, and research conducted over the last decade. Potential Conference Topics include:

•      Opportunities and Key Knowledge Gaps in Calf Management

•      Bull Calves & Dairy-Beef

•      Calf Housing and Behavior

•      Calf Immunology and Vaccines

•      Calf Nutrition Pre-weaning

•      Calf Welfare

•      Colostrum Management

•      Fetal Programming, Influence of Cow Stressors on Calf Development

•      Neonatal Disease Management

•      Transition to the Ruminant Calf: Weaning Strategies to Optimize Future Health and Productivity 

A poster session will be included to allow participants to share and discuss research findings. Details will be posted on the meeting site as they are finalized.