2019 | April 19 GMP E Newsletter
Georgia Milk Producers Weekly Enews
Georgia Milk Producers Losses Board Member and Top Dairy Farmer - From Farrah Newberry, GMP Exec. Director
During my nineteen years as Exec. Director at Georgia Milk, Dave Clark has served on the Georgia Milk Board of Directors. He faithfully represented the producers of his district, attended meetings, provided discussion and supported our efforts. He often helped with preparing ice for drinks to serve the Board and lended a helpful hand to set up local meetings in his district. Dave always asked about my family and job. He showed compassion, was thoughtful beyond words, and was a brilliant dairyman.  

Last Sunday Dave Clark, 56, moved to heaven and will be forever missed by those in the dairy community and in Godfrey, Georgia. He is the son of Doris Clark and the late, Carroll Clark. Dave was proceeded in death by his son Brent Clark . He is survived by his two daughters Ashley Burt (Daniel) and Megan Bell (Brett) and three grandchildren, Clark and Ellis Burt and Bren Bell as well as a sister, Kathy Daniel (Randy) and sons Joshua, Jeremy, David and Dylan. 

The family will receive friends on today, April 19 at 1 p.m. at A.E. Carter Funeral Home. The memorial service will begin at 2 p.m. in the chapel.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Godfrey Community Park c/o Chad Boyce 1001 Antioch Church Road Madison, GA 30650 or to the Georgia Dairy Youth Foundation 1641 North High Shoals Road, Suite 5 Watkinsville, Ga 30677.

Please keep his family, daughters, grandchildren and close friends in your prayers. Please keep Cuyler Johnson and his family in your prayers.  
Dean Foods Attracts Takeover Interest
by   Andrea Allen , Delimarketnews.com
Dean Foods, one of the United State’s largest milk producers, announced this February that it was looking for “strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value.” One such alternative included an outright sale, although others have speculated that options for the dairy company include a joint venture, shedding assets, or continuing the company’s current business plan. It is, however, $887 million in debt.

According to a  report from The Globe and Mail , Saputo, the Montreal-based dairy company, is interested in pursuing the outright sale option, as it reportedly looks into an acquisition of Dean Foods. Full Story Here >>>
April Georgia Milk Review
From Georgia Milk Producers, Inc.
To download a copy of the April 2019 GA Milk Review, Click below>>>:


This month's report covers GA Milk Referendum next month, results of ACCM referendum, Eberly Family Farm award, Georgia legislative session and the April Dixie Dairy Report.
First Responders Get Training for Livestock Highway Incidents
By Georgia Farm Bureau
Since May 17, 2018, there have been at least four accidents involving tractor-trailers hauling cattle in metro Atlanta as well as an incident on I-16. With the number of cattle haulers moving through Georgia, it’s a fairly safe assumption there will be more
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The Bovine Emergency Response Plan (BERP) training is designed to give first responders – law enforcement, fire and rescue personnel and highway emergency response teams – a framework of knowledge to help manage the incidents when they occur.

The installment held at Henry County Extension in McDonough drew approximately 40 first responders, about three-fourths of whom had worked situations involving cattle. Fewer than five indicated they had experience or training to handle cattle.

“You just want to give people a little bit of background of experience, so they can prevent themselves from getting hurt and have a good outcome from a consumer perception standpoint,” said UGA Extention Animal & Dairy Science Public Service Assistant Jason Duggin.

Approximately 125 first responders from around Georgia received BERP training the week of April 8-12. The one-day sessions included planning tips, a survey on livestock behavior (particularly cattle), hazards involved with transporting livestock, biosecurity concerns, animal care and handling and euthanasia. Read Full Story Here>>>
Working Class Cows - Alabama’s First and Only Organic Dairy Farm 
Written Allison Salerno, The New Southern Fugitives
At 30, Jonny de Jong is lanky and lopes briskly from the small farm office he shares with his mom to the milk processing plant he owns on his parents’ dairy farm. As he walks, he passes dozens of mixed-breed cows behind fences. Jack, the stray dog the family adopted when he walked up to the farm from State Highway 103 a few years ago, jostles behind him.

Working Cows Dairy, Alabama’s first and only certified organic milk farm, is a grazing dairy and on this visit the cows are readying for winter. This means the cows are fed no grain whatsoever and instead eat a variety of hay and haylage or stored grasses. 

Jonny lives on the farm with his wife, who also serves as the plant’s bookkeeper, and their toddler daughter. Running a family dairy farm, organic or not, is a rarity these days.
 
“It’s hard to be debt-free in dairy,” Jonny said. “It all comes down to financials and what you can afford to keep going.” Full Story Here>>>
Missing My Friend
By Mark Rodgers, GA Dairy Farmer, Hoard's Dairyman
The Georgia dairy community recently lost an excellent farmer, an individual who pushed me to be a better dairyman.

This past weekend, I was stunned to hear that a friend of mine had passed away. He was the same age as me, and we had been friends for more than 30 years.

He owned a beautiful dairy a little more than an hour away from my family’s farm. We served on dairy industry boards together, attended conferences, and made a few road trips to visit other dairies together, just to get ideas on how to improve both our operations.

This dairyman challenged me more than anyone to make changes and improve the way that my family operates our dairy and manages our farm. We usually called each other monthly or more often to compare herd stats, milk check prices, weather, and crop conditions. Another thing we had in common was we each have a daughter working on farm, and we would share how they were making an impact on our farms.

My friend was innovative and always striving to be the best at all things dairy. He set the bar high and would say, “I don’t see why we can’t do that as good or better than anyone else.”

He was the guy that I competed with, benchmarked my operation against, and strived to keep up with. We compared milk averages, butterfat averages, dry matter intakes, weaned calf intakes, air speed over freestalls, and even the amount of rainfall we received (and we both agreed that was controlled by a higher power). This dairyman pushed me to think outside the box and achieve more than I would have if it were not for our good-natured competition.

I am truly grateful for the friendship we shared. I will miss our conversations, his competitive spirit, and his tenacious approach to farming. Most of all, I will miss my friend. Blog post found here on Hoard's>>>
Ag Census results show size of Georgia farms shifted
From GA Farm Bureau
The 2017 U.S. Census of Agriculture shows the biggest change in Georgia agriculture since 2012 has been a shift in the size of farms.

Census results the USDA released April 11 show Georgia has 42,439 farms. Of these, 3,540 farms had acreage changes between 2017 and the previous ag census of 2012.

Georgia’s number of small (10-179 acres) and mid-size (180-999 acres) farms decreased while micro farms (1 to 9 acres) showed a significant increase and large farms (1,000 acres or more) showed a slight increase.

The census, conducted every five years by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, indicates more Georgians were farming in 2017 than in 2012 . The number of Georgia farms increased from 42,257 in 2012 to 42,439 in 2017. That’s an increase of 0.4% or 182 farms. Acres of land farmed in Georgia increased from 9.6 million acres in 2012 to 9.95 million acres in 2017. That’s an acreage increase of 3.5% (up 332,894 acres). Georgia’s average farm size increased from 228 acres in 2012 to 235 acres in 2017, up 3.1%.

But, put in a historical perspective, the latest census numbers show Georgia has lost 6,904 farms since the 1997 ag census and 1.35 million acres of land being farmed. Georgia had 49,343 farms in 1997 and 11.26 million acres of land being farmed. Full story here>>>
Ground beef likely source of multi-state E.coli outbreak
From Krissa Welshans , Feedstuffs
The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) provided an update on a multi-state outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coliO103 infections that has sickened 109 people since March 2, 2019.

“Seventeen people have been hospitalized. No cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure, have been reported. No deaths have been reported,” CDC stated.

Preliminary epidemiologic information suggests that ground beef is the source of this outbreak. However, CDC said the investigation is ongoing. Read Full Story Here>>>
Other Stories to Check Out This Week >>>
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UGA/UF Corn Silage and Forage Field Day
The 2019  UGA and UF Corn Silage and Forage Field Day  will be held in Tifton, Georgia on June 20. The program starts at 8 AM and concludes with field demonstrations after lunch. The event includes a test plot tour along with educational stops that cover topics like pest control, grazing management and forage quality. A discussion concerning best management practices for making corn silage will also be held. The event will be held at the UGA Tifton Conference Center in Tifton. T o register click here - there is no charge to attend, registration is needed for refreshments and lunch . View Brochure and Agenda Here>>>
Upcoming Events >>>
April 25-26 - GA FFA State Convention, Macon

June 1 - Putnam Dairy Festival, Eatonton

GA Dairy Classifieds
TO ADVERTISE: EMAIL AD AND CONTACT INFORMATION TO FARRAH NEWBERRY at gamilkproducers@gmail.com

For Sale: 2016 Tatoma Vertical Twin Screw Mixer. Equipped with Front Discharge and Side Discharge Extension - $37,500.00. Please contact Jim or Stephanie Waite 334-222-7957 for more information. 

Calves wanted:  Competitive pricing with a 6 day a week pick up. Will buy bulls and heifers of all ages. Peter's Cattle Co. 470-255-8515

Young Stock Supervisor wanted -  Hart Agriculture Waynesboro GA
Grazing 500-1000 animals,   Must be familiar with rotational grazing and breeding. Please contact Maggie 352-507-2042 or   maggie@hartagriculture.com
 
Dairy Manager wanted -  Hart Agriculture Waynesboro GA
300-700 milking cows,   60 bale rotary, New Zealand style grazing system. Please contact Maggie 352-507-2042 or   maggie@hartagriculture.com

Bull Calves WANTED:  Competitive pricing with 6 day a week pickup. Brandon Mason Cattle Company 912-632-4490

For HIRE: Southeast DHIA  has a position to fill in the  West Central Georgia area for a  FIELD SERVICE TECHNICIAN.   Responsibilities include data  collection on area dairy farms  during milking time. S chedule is somewhat flexible  but the hours are non-typical. S ome travel and out-of-town work likely.  Applicants should be comfortable  with computers and software and have good communication and  organizational skills as well as  reliable transportation. Pickup Truck required. I f interested send a resume to   brian.winters@dhicoop.com

For Sale: Custom manure application and Dryhill manure equipment sales.  Contact Edwin @ 478-299-0717 with Agboys Custom Services LLC -  New 8"x52' lagoon pump with outriggers $24,000 (Pictured right)

For Sale: 3000 gallon Surge/Westfalia milk tank and wash system. Three phase condensers. 2002 model. Excellent condition. John B Gay, 478-494-5107

WANTED : DeLaval Westfalia  Neck Transponders: TN Dairy seeking used Westfalia neck band transponders.  Please contact Bill or Peggy Howell if interested at 423-972-9254 or 423-371-3032.

WANTED:  Looking for used pasteurizing and bottling equipment in working condition; Linda and Darrell Rankins, Jr.;  334-745-2357  (best times: mid-day and after 8 p.m.)

For Sale:   Jersey cows, heifers and calves for sale. Registered with AJCA, all ages! Contact Matt Holton at 770-718-8271, call or text. Dawsonville, GA.

FOR HIRE : Custom Silage Harvesting. Late model JD chopper. Will travel. Let me put your quality forage up! Nic Haynes, Muddy H Farms, 678-617-3379.

FOR SALE :  We have a continuous selection of fresh and springing heifers.   Call William at   (706) 768-2857  or visit our website at   crumpdairyreplacements.org   

Bullcalves Wanted :  Looking for Bullcalves to purchase - Barron Tench 864-844-2295 or  barron.tench@gmail.com    

TO ADVERTISE: EMAIL AD AND CONTACT INFORMATION TO FARRAH NEWBERRY at gamilkproducers@gmail.com