Media Survey -
The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Piscataquis County Office wants to make it easy and convenient for people to get the information they want quickly and through the preferred method by surveying users and potential users. You can help by completing the
survey online
at
http://bit.ly/UMaineSurvey
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Your Monthly News & Updates
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News and events for the Maine Beef Producers from the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry, Maine Beef Producers Association and other agricultural organizations in Maine.
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What's New?
- Cattlemen's College - December 6th and 7th.
- MBPA Pre-conditioned Feeder Calf Auction Results
- Northeast SARE Seeks Farmer Grants
- Call for Nominations for Beef Awards
- Deadline approaching for pasture and forage rainfall index crop insurance
- Nxlevel Farm Business Training
- Meat Science Series: Barbecue 101
- National Beef Prices
- Items of Interest *Featured Resources
- Upcoming Events *Newsletter Subscription Information
- Mission and Quick Links
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Cattlemen's College
December 6, 2019
Pre-event Brisket Dinner & Social Mixer
30 Jones Road - Garland
December 7, 2019
Cattlemen's College
Penobscot County Extension Office
307 Maine Avenue (by the airport)
Bangor
Plenty of parking next to the building!
The Maine Cattlemen's College will provide up-to-date information to Maine beef cattle producers and allow Maine beef cattle producers an opportunity to meet leaders in the industry and fellow producers to share ideas and innovations. All proceeds to benefit Maine Beef Producers Association Scholarship Fund.
Join us for the 3rd annual Maine Cattlemen's College, sponsored by Diamond V.
Our Keynote speaker is Dr. Josh Jackson. Dr. Jackson is a multi-generation beef producers and agricultural professor at the University of Kentucky, specializing in Livestock Systems and Engineering. Also, Chef Robert Dumas, former White House Chef, will be conducting an in house demonstration on exciting ways to prepare lesser quality cuts of beef - samples will be provided. Silent Auction and door prizes!
Cost - Friday $20 Saturday $15
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Agenda
Friday - December 6th at 6:30 pm - Garland, ME (Dr. Colt Knight's Farm - 30 Jones Rd.)
Saturday - December 7th - Penobscot County Extension Office - Bangor
8:00 am - Welcome and Introductions - Dr. Colt, Knight, UMaine Extension
8:15 am - What is happening on Campus? New Rumen Microbiologist, Dr. Sue Ishaq, UMaine
8:45 am - Facility Design with the small herd in mind - Dr. Josh Jackson, Univ. of Kentucky
10:00 am Break (Refreshments Provided)
10:15 am - USDA RFID requirements update - Maine Dept of Ag, Cons. & Forestry - state vet's office
10:30 am Bull Selection and Breeding Soundness - Dr. Colt Knight, UMaine Extension
11:00 am Mark Anderson, Diamond V
11:30 am Exciting ways to prepare less cuts of beef (with samples) - Chef Rob Dumas, UMaine
Noon - Prime Rib lunch Sponsored by Diamond V
12:45 pm Producer Panel - Genetic Selection of your herd
2:15 pm Building a low-cost effective live-weight scale on farm - Dr. Josh Jackson, Univ. Kentucky
3:15 pm Closing and evaluation
For more information, contact Melissa Babcock at melissa.libby1@maine.edu or 207.581.2788.
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Fall Preconditioned Feeder Calf Sale Unofficial Results
Maine Beef Producers Association held their fall preconditioned feeder calf auction on Saturday, November 2, 2019 at Dick Brown's facility in Richmond. There were 66 head conforming to the pre-conditioning protocol and 5 non-conforming. Here are the unofficial results of the conforming cattle.
Sale Averages
Price:
All $1.08/#
Steers $1.17/#
Heifers $1.00/#
Grass Fed $1.17/#
Weight:
All 662#
Steers 639#
Heifers 684#
Grass Fed 629#
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Call for Nominations for Beef Awards!
The Maine Beef Producers Association is asking for nominations for the following beef awards. When completing your nomination please make sure to include your contact information, contact information for the person you are nominating, what award you are nominating them for and why you think they are deserving of the award.
Maine Beef Producers Association Awards Criteria
- Seedstock Producer - A farm operation honored for their accomplishments in the breeding and marketing of purebred seedstock.
- Beef Producer - A farm or individual recognized for the production of consistently high quality beef cattle marketed as feeder cattle, fed cattle, or direct-market beef.
- Youth - A person under the age of 21 recognized for their beef production and promotion accomplishments.
- Service - An individual or organization recognized for their distinguished service to Maine beef producers.
- Hall of Fame - Awarded to an individual, a farm operation, or an organization honored for making a significant contribution to beef production in Maine.
Nomination deadline is November 13th.
Awards will be presented on January 16th at the MBPA meeting at the Maine Ag Trades Show at the Augusta Civic Center.
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Deadline Approaching for Pasture and Forage Rainfall Index Crop Insurance
Please share the
attached announcement (pdf)
about the Pasture, Rangeland and Forage (PRF) program. This crop insurance policy protects grazing or haying acres from a single peril- lack of precipitation using data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Producers must enroll with a crop insurance agent before the November 15
th
deadline for 2020 coverage.
To learn more about PRF and to hear from a Massachusetts farmer who has used the policy, please view the following
webinar
recorded last year.
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Nxlevel Farm Business Training
Where? At the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Deering Building, located at 90 Blossom Lane off Route 9 in Augusta.
When? 9:00 AM -3:30 PM on December 18, January 8 & 29, February 12 & 26, and March 11. Lunch provided.
Remote participation available. While all six sessions will take place live in Augusta, you can participate in one or all of them remotely via any internet-linked computer. Recordings of each class will also be available to all participants.
Cost is $275 per farm. Up to 2 people from each farm can attend each class.
A la carte registration available too. Don't want to sign up for all six sessions? You can sign up for just the ones you want to attend as well at cost of $50 per session.
Photo: Erin Roche
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November 15th
@ 6:30 pm - 9:30 pm | $40
Have you ever wanted to know the secret to real barbecue, or how to smoke like a Southern pit master? Join Chef Robert Dumas and Colt Knight for a crash course in slow smoked barbecue. During the course, participants will learn to make dry rubs and barbecue sauce from scratch in the University of Maine commercial kitchen. In addition, participants will gain hands-on experience prepping and trimming whole chickens, pork spare ribs, and pork shoulders. Don’t fret, there will be barbecue for everyone to try. Let us help you unravel the mystery to making great Southern-style smoked barbecue.
Only a couple slots left.
Photo: Colt Knight
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Maine Farmland Trust announced their 2020 Farming for Wholesale program. Registration is now open! Please note that the application for the 201 track of the program (for farmers currently selling to wholesale accounts and looking to scale up significantly) is
December 1.
The registration deadline for the 101 track of the program (for experienced farmers who currently sell wholesale and want to expand and farmers who want to start selling to wholesale markets) is
December 23.
Scholarships and reimbursements for some costs associated with attending workshops are available.
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Due 5 p.m. ET on December 3, 2019
The Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program has released the call for applications for 2020 Farmer Grant projects. Proposals are due online by 5 p.m. ET on Tuesday, December 3, 2019.
Farmer Grants provide research funds for commercial farms to explore new ideas in almost any aspect of production, marketing and other topics that influence successful farming in the region. Application materials, including detailed instructions and supporting documents, are posted on the Northeast SARE website at
www.northeastsare.org/FarmerGrant.
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National Beef Prices
USDA Ag Marketing Service
publishes agriculture price for a number of commodities throughout the US. Here is the latest cattle dashboard graph showing the current, last year and three year average of live cattle.
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Information
Grants & Loans
Equipment, supplies, etc.
Agriculture Jobs
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Website:
Do You Have Enough Forage This Year?
First, you need to determine how much forage you will need this year. This depends on the type of livestock you keep, number of head, age, weight, level of production, etc. Then you need to determine how much forage you have on hand. You need to know the volume of your storage and the density of the forage. (UMaine Extension)
Videos:
So, you're in the cattle business.
Do you know where you're going? This video will share five key steps to creating a successful farm or ranch operation. Alabama Extension. (5 minutes)
Social Media
:
Farmers Under Forty -
A group for young and beginning farmers to network and exchange tips for growing your farm from the ground up!
Publications:
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- November 15, 2019 Meat Science Series: Barbecue 101, 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm, Pilot Plant, Hitchner Hall, University of Maine, Orono. $40. Register online - Only a couple slots left.
- November 18, 2019 Farmland Access & Transfer Conference, 8:30 am to 3:30 pm, Civic Center, Augusta. Sponsored by Maine Farmland Trust & Land For Good. $15
- November 21, 2019 Legacy Planning for Farmers, 8:30 am 9 9 am free continental breakfast program 9 am to 11 am, Governor Hill Manson, 135 State Street, Augusta, sponsored by SCORE and MassMutual. Register here.
- November 23, 24, 2019 Maine Harvest Festival, Cross Insurance Center, Bangor.
- December 3 & 4, 2019 Corn and Forage Meetings 9:30 am to 2:30 pm. Sponsored by University of New Hampshire in two locations. $25 to $30 includes lunch. 3.5 pesticide credits. Click here to sign up for Nov. 3 in Westmoreland and click here to sign up for Nov 4 in Northwood.
- December 6, 2019 Pre-conference Brisket BBQ at Dr. Colt Knight's Farm, at 6:30 pm, 30 Jones Rd., Garland. $20. Register melissa.libby1@maine.edu or 207.581.2788.
- December 7, 2019 Cattlemen's College, Penobscot County Extension Office, 307 Maine Ave. (by the airport) Bangor ME. 8 am to 3 pm. How to build a cheap scale for small scale beef farms. $15 Register melissa.libby1@maine.edu or 207.581.2788.
- January 14-16, 2020: State of Maine Agricultural Trades Show, Augusta, ME.
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Maine Beef Producers Association
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Join the Maine Beef Producers Association.
The Maine Beef Producers Association is accepting dues for the 2020 year. Annual dues are $35. For an extra $25 you can get a year subscription to County Folks. For more information on this organization and for membership application go to
http://www.mainebeefproducersassociation.com/forms.html
The Maine Beef Producers Association has a Facebook page. Like and follow to get the fastest information from Maine Beef Producers Association.
Facebook
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Newsletter Subscription Information
The Maine Beef Newsletter (MBN) is now received by over 690 readers, has been offered as an educational resource by University of Maine Cooperative Extension since 2011. As of January 1, 2015, the MBN transitioned to electronic-only delivery. There will still be four ways to receive the MBN from UMaine Extension:
1) Maine Beef Newsletter remains available online for free! You can sign up to receive the newsletter through your email or view the archived issues anytime at
http://bit.ly/PPfarming
If you currently do not have an email, you can get one for free from several email hosts. If you do not have a computer, community libraries have computers for you to use to access information on the Internet and to view your email.
2) Those with no email can opt to pay an annual subscription to receive the newsletters monthly for $15/year. If you are interested in subscribing send a $15 check made out to UMaine Extension to Piscataquis County Cooperative Extension, 165 East Main St., Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426.
3) A third option is to come into the Piscataquis or Penobscot County Extension Office and pick up a free printed copy of the newsletter.
4) Maine Beef Producers Association members who do not have an email on file will receive a printed copy of the newsletter as a benefit of their membership.
We appreciate our readers referring others to the newsletter, and sharing it with your family and friends.
Thank you for your continued support of the MBN, providing valuable agricultural information from Extension for beef producers and those interested in the beef industry in Maine since 2011.
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Mission
The University of Maine Cooperative Extension is the major educational outreach program of the University of Maine with offices statewide. UMaine Extension provides Maine people with research-based educational programs to help them live fuller, more productive lives.
Mention or display of a trademark, proprietary product, or firm in text or figures does not constitute an endorsement and does not imply approval to the exclusion of other suitable products or firms.
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Local Weather Anytime
Many farming activities are driven by the weather. Our local National Weather Service in Caribou has meteorologists on staff 24 hours a day. They are willing to talk with you about rain predictions for your town. Give them a call at 492-0180. Or check out their online detailed maps at
http://www.weather.gov/car/.
Need Pesticide Credits
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Contributors
Donna Coffin, Extension Educator
Colt Knight, Extension Specialist
Goal
The goal of the Maine Beef Newsletter is to provide timely information on the production and marketing of beef grown in central Maine.
The University of Maine does not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, including transgender status and gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, genetic information or veteran status in employment, education, and all other programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Director, Office of Equal Opportunity, 101 North Stevens Hall, 207.581.1226.
Photos: Donna Coffin unless indicated otherwise.
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Open Monday - Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm
307 Maine Ave Bangor, ME 04401 207-942-7396 or 800-287-1485
Piscataquis County Office -
website
Open Monday, Thursday, Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm
Open By-chance on Wednesday, Closed Tuesday
165 East Main St Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426 207-564-3301 or 800-287-1491
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