Sarah Muirhead is Editor and Publisher of Feedstuffs, a weekly hardcopy and for-fee Internet publication that focuses on the animal agriculture business, especially feeding those animals. An article by Ms. Muirhead was recently published in Farm Futures, a "sister" publication to Feedstuffs. The article is entitled "Higher Costs Unfold as Dairy Tech is Removed", and Ms. Muirhead says the following:
"Options for increasing total milk production for safe, wholesome, nutritious diets are to either (1) increase the number of cows milked, or (2) improve productivity through technology."
Ms. Muirhead says in effect that the recent decline in overall milk production was due in large part to dairy producers not using the bST product, Posilac. Well, some producers have used less Posilac, but your ways to increase milk production misses one key option. That option is the opposite of what is historically done when feed prices get high.
The third option is that dairy farmers can feed more concentrate and milk production will go up. This isn't a new concept. The relationship between feed prices and total milk production is strong and negative. As prices of concentrate feeds rise, and they certainly did that in 2008, dairy farmers don't feed their cows as much. Anybody associated with the industry knew that.
If you don't feed cows as much protein and energy concentrate feeds, like corn grain and soybean meal, then then don't milk as much. Everybody associated with the industry knows that.
Ms. Muirhead, I'm sorry, but with the focus of your publication being feeding animals and with your role as Editor and Publisher you should have not missed this direct cause and effect relationship.
Hope that helps
DairyScienceMark
Monday, December 29, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Clever idea for dairy advisers from Australia
There's times when we observe or hear about clever ideas from other locations, even different continents. I read about one today in the Weekly Times Now published in Australia. Their article describes a service that dairy producers can register to get an e-mail message whenever the combination of heat and humidity gets high enough to limit milk production.
The Cool Cows website is part of the Grains2Milk project in Australia. There's a number of publications written for the Australian conditions, and the part where you can register to get a warning e-mail.
This would be something that any US public or private dairy adviser could put together for the dairy producers is her/his area. The temperature and humidity combination's that limit milk production are well known. An adviser could then create a program by establishing a web-page with links to publications and other resources. A warning e-mail could then be sent to dairy producers when those conditions arise.
Examples of good publications include one from DAIReXNET in eXtension that describes the evaluation and selection of cooling equipment for different locations. The folks from Kansas State University Extension also have some good publications on this issue.
It's cold here in North America at the moment, but there's time for someone to get this program established and promoted before the weather gets hot.
Hope that helps.
DairyScienceMark
The Cool Cows website is part of the Grains2Milk project in Australia. There's a number of publications written for the Australian conditions, and the part where you can register to get a warning e-mail.
This would be something that any US public or private dairy adviser could put together for the dairy producers is her/his area. The temperature and humidity combination's that limit milk production are well known. An adviser could then create a program by establishing a web-page with links to publications and other resources. A warning e-mail could then be sent to dairy producers when those conditions arise.
Examples of good publications include one from DAIReXNET in eXtension that describes the evaluation and selection of cooling equipment for different locations. The folks from Kansas State University Extension also have some good publications on this issue.
It's cold here in North America at the moment, but there's time for someone to get this program established and promoted before the weather gets hot.
Hope that helps.
DairyScienceMark
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Lessons from the Chinese Dairy Scandal
Travelling in Russia, as I am now, has given me the opportunity to reflect on some of the lessons that the US dairy industry might learn from the recent Chinese dairy scandal that I continue to update on in my blog posting.
Bruce McLaughlan is a columnist in the Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch, and he has a business consultancy based in China. He recently wrote:
"Adverts in China give us the image that China's dairy giants control huge green fields full of happy, healthy cows, which troop into gleaming dairies where their milk is efficiently turned into yoghurt, ice cream or formula. The reality is somewhat different. While each of the big-name dairies has its own model farm with a few thousand cows, these account for a tiny proportion of the milk used by these firms."
The US dairy industry has this same kind of image of "happy, healthy cows, which troop in gleaming dairies" that's used in promotion. The California dairy industry uses precisely this kind of false vision in their "Happy California Cows" television ads, most of which can be found on YouTube.
We all know that the cows in California are not managed in this fashion, so when the reality is brought out, as in a PETA video and PR blitz, the industry takes another black eye.
How long does the dairy industry wish to willingly put itself into a postion of accepting black-eyes?
Just a thought, and I hope that helps.
DairyScienceMark
Monday, October 20, 2008
Russian Dairy Products
A wide variety of dairy products are now available in Russia. Most are produced locally, some with major international labels. Photos to follow.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Unusual 'Cow in the News' Story
I know it's not Friday, which is going to be my usual day for a 'funny cow post' in Dairy Adviser's Coffeeshop, but dairy advisers often get asked about the validity of news items. There was a recent news item distributed by UPI that is quoted below:
"Farmer Graham Vallis said by conducting a meditative mooing session with his cows for five minutes before each milking session, he has been able to increase the amount of milk he gets from them, The Sun reported Saturday."
The Sun is a reputable newspaper in the UK, and UPI news items are often used on the local radio stations that dairy producers and advisers listen to.
If you get asked about this, look back on this post and I'll try to upda
te the post with research-based support that I find on the topic. This photo is from the Wisconsin Historical Society and has a interesting story behind it.
A recent Hoard's Dairyman article (November 10, 2005; page 757) by Mary Beth de Ondarza discusses if cows are psychologically comfortable, and this may be the key to the success of the UK farmer's mooing. Hoard's is available on-line, but requires a subscription to access archive articles.
One recent research article on a related topic is at:
DairyScienceMark
"Farmer Graham Vallis said by conducting a meditative mooing session with his cows for five minutes before each milking session, he has been able to increase the amount of milk he gets from them, The Sun reported Saturday."
The Sun is a reputable newspaper in the UK, and UPI news items are often used on the local radio stations that dairy producers and advisers listen to.
If you get asked about this, look back on this post and I'll try to upda
te the post with research-based support that I find on the topic. This photo is from the Wisconsin Historical Society and has a interesting story behind it.
A recent Hoard's Dairyman article (November 10, 2005; page 757) by Mary Beth de Ondarza discusses if cows are psychologically comfortable, and this may be the key to the success of the UK farmer's mooing. Hoard's is available on-line, but requires a subscription to access archive articles.
One recent research article on a related topic is at:
Title of Journal: Applied animal behaviour science.Hope that helps.
Vol/Iss/Month: 53/June
Date: 1997
Page(s): 175-182.
Title of article(s): Effect of music on voluntary approach of dairy
cows to an automatic milking system.
Author(s) of article: Uetake,-K.; Hurnik,-J.F.; Johnson,-L.
This is from a search of the Dairy-L archives.
If you're not a part of the Dairy-L discussion group, check it out.
DairyScienceMark
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
"The Churning Point"
Today's Washington Post Food Section had an article by Jane Black entitled "The Churning Point." Ms. Black writes:
"Bobby Prigel seems like a poster child for the local-food movement. A fourth-generation dairy farmer, he wants to build a creamery to make organic butter, yogurt, cheese and ice cream. He wants to sell those products to consumers in nearby Baltimore instead of shipping his milk out of state. He wants to make enough money to pass on the farm to a fifth generation."
This article describes the problems faced by a Maryland dairy producer as he tries to establish a new niche marketing alternative for products from his newly-certified organic dairy farm. This farm is just outside of Baltimore and is surrounded by 'city and suburban-types' who bought land and were a part of the 'white-flight' out of Baltimore. The Prigel's are surrounded by neighbors with influence upon governing systems, and they are organized in the Long Green Valley Conservancy. It pits neighbor against neighbor.
The local county Board of Appeals has yet to rule on the zoning request. The Baltimore Sun has an article on the issue also, and that article was in a recent ChickenFlicker blog post.
Most of the legal argument revolves around whether churning butter, pasteurizing/homogenizing milk and making ice cream or yogurt is an agricultural enterprise. The Prigel family sold their farm's development rights to the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation over a decade ago, so the farm can't be developed. Agricultural enterprises are allowed, however, and as the phrase goes 'therein lies the rub.'
Many people across the US and around the world will face similar issues as urbanization increases. It's just that we're facing them sooner in the urban Mid-Atlantic region. If you're ever faced with giving advice to a farmer, a good resource is New Jersey's "Farmer-to-Farmer Advice for Avoiding Conflicts With Neighbors and Towns."
In the interest of full disclosure, I've known the Prigel family for decades, and have enjoyed meals in the family home. I have not, however, been an adviser to the family on this current project, nor have I visited Bellevale Farm for some years.
Hope that helps
DairyScienceMark
"Bobby Prigel seems like a poster child for the local-food movement. A fourth-generation dairy farmer, he wants to build a creamery to make organic butter, yogurt, cheese and ice cream. He wants to sell those products to consumers in nearby Baltimore instead of shipping his milk out of state. He wants to make enough money to pass on the farm to a fifth generation."
This article describes the problems faced by a Maryland dairy producer as he tries to establish a new niche marketing alternative for products from his newly-certified organic dairy farm. This farm is just outside of Baltimore and is surrounded by 'city and suburban-types' who bought land and were a part of the 'white-flight' out of Baltimore. The Prigel's are surrounded by neighbors with influence upon governing systems, and they are organized in the Long Green Valley Conservancy. It pits neighbor against neighbor.
The local county Board of Appeals has yet to rule on the zoning request. The Baltimore Sun has an article on the issue also, and that article was in a recent ChickenFlicker blog post.
Most of the legal argument revolves around whether churning butter, pasteurizing/homogenizing milk and making ice cream or yogurt is an agricultural enterprise. The Prigel family sold their farm's development rights to the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation over a decade ago, so the farm can't be developed. Agricultural enterprises are allowed, however, and as the phrase goes 'therein lies the rub.'
Many people across the US and around the world will face similar issues as urbanization increases. It's just that we're facing them sooner in the urban Mid-Atlantic region. If you're ever faced with giving advice to a farmer, a good resource is New Jersey's "Farmer-to-Farmer Advice for Avoiding Conflicts With Neighbors and Towns."
In the interest of full disclosure, I've known the Prigel family for decades, and have enjoyed meals in the family home. I have not, however, been an adviser to the family on this current project, nor have I visited Bellevale Farm for some years.
Hope that helps
DairyScienceMark
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
China Milk Scandal: Updated - 8 October 2008
For those who are interested in the dairy industry, there is a lesson to be learned from the milk scandal that was finally brought under control in China. For those who have had their head under a rock for the last few days, more than 10,000 children had to be hospitalized across China after consuming formula or dairy products contaminated with melamine, a cheap industrial chemical. The latest estimates have over 90,000 children sickened by the melamine-tainted milk.
To quote from a recent International Hearld and Tribune article:
To quote from a recent International Hearld and Tribune article:
"China has brought under control a tainted milk scandal in which thousands of children fell ill with kidney stones, a senior official said Wednesday, as Prime Minister Wen Jiabao vowed tougher monitoring.Beijing is battling public alarm and international dismay after close to 13,000 Chinese children crowded hospitals, ill from infant milk formula tainted with melamine, a cheap industrial chemical that can be used to cheat quality checks."
Reaction by Chinese dairy farmers was summarized in a recent news article. A description of the situation and the regulatory approach for the Chinese dairy industry has been published. Additional problems with milk powder continue to be found, even in October, 2008. Of course, the problems are found with milk powder, which has a long storage life and is made when there is excess fresh milk.The background on why it happened is below, but the lesson to be learned is the same lesson we've learned over and over again. When a problem is found, be proactive about it. Inform people and correct the problem as soon as possible. When Johnson & Johnson found problems with Tylenol, they operated what has become the textbook case of doing it right.
What happened in China is that it appears that there was heavy pressure to not have any bad news before or during the recent Olympic Games. The Chinese milk companies knew of problems and people becoming sick when they asked the Chinese government to help them manage the media during the Olympics.. Outside investors encouraged the individuals to recall products, but it was not done. This may become instead, the textbook case of doing it wrong.
Melamine when added to milk or other food-like products 'tricks' the chemical tests on the product into appearing to have higher levels of protein. Protein is often the most costly ingredient in something like pet food, so the melamine was added to pet food ingredients exported from China in 2007, and ended up poisoning dogs and cats in many countries.
With milk, melamine was added in China during 2008, and possibly before, to boost protein content after adding water to milk. Evidently milk freezing point was not evaluated as it is in the US to check for addition of water to milk. A Chinese feed mill operator was quoted by Reuters as saying that addition of melamine to milk "was rampant" for two reasons. The first was water dilution, but the second was more subtle. Protein levels in milk can decline when cows are feed very low quality feed. Farmers would have their milk rejected if milk protein levels were low, so melamine was added so that milk companies would accept their milk. Chinese dairy farmers now view themselves as victims. The Chinese government has announced toughened rules for the dairy industry.
New Zealand seems to have taken the lead in testing for melamine, perhaps due to the connection between and investment from a New Zealand dairy company, Fonterra, in the leading Chinese dairy company. High levels of melamine have now been found in candy imported from China. This is likely from milk being used in the candy manufacturing process.
Now, there is increased call for testing in Europe of cookies, chocolates or toffees where the level of milk powder used in manufacture is more than 15%.
Other countries are now following suit and expanding the number of products that are being tested for melamine. Descriptions of some of the various products have been published.
Adding water to milk to boost milk volume is nothing new. Dairy farmers are often paid according to the volume of milk delivered, and everyone knows water is cheaper and easier to obtain than milk. I'm sure it's tempting, and I remember being a young boy and asking my dad why people didn't add water to milk. He told me "Adding water would be cheating, and cheaters always get caught."
In retrospect, he's right. They get caught, but sometimes after tragic damage. Let's hope this never happens to the US dairy industry! An interesting post by Chris Galen discusses why he thinks we have the precautions in place in the US to prevent it from happening here.
Hope that helps.
DairyScienceMark
What happened in China is that it appears that there was heavy pressure to not have any bad news before or during the recent Olympic Games. The Chinese milk companies knew of problems and people becoming sick when they asked the Chinese government to help them manage the media during the Olympics.. Outside investors encouraged the individuals to recall products, but it was not done. This may become instead, the textbook case of doing it wrong.
Melamine when added to milk or other food-like products 'tricks' the chemical tests on the product into appearing to have higher levels of protein. Protein is often the most costly ingredient in something like pet food, so the melamine was added to pet food ingredients exported from China in 2007, and ended up poisoning dogs and cats in many countries.
With milk, melamine was added in China during 2008, and possibly before, to boost protein content after adding water to milk. Evidently milk freezing point was not evaluated as it is in the US to check for addition of water to milk. A Chinese feed mill operator was quoted by Reuters as saying that addition of melamine to milk "was rampant" for two reasons. The first was water dilution, but the second was more subtle. Protein levels in milk can decline when cows are feed very low quality feed. Farmers would have their milk rejected if milk protein levels were low, so melamine was added so that milk companies would accept their milk. Chinese dairy farmers now view themselves as victims. The Chinese government has announced toughened rules for the dairy industry.
New Zealand seems to have taken the lead in testing for melamine, perhaps due to the connection between and investment from a New Zealand dairy company, Fonterra, in the leading Chinese dairy company. High levels of melamine have now been found in candy imported from China. This is likely from milk being used in the candy manufacturing process.
Now, there is increased call for testing in Europe of cookies, chocolates or toffees where the level of milk powder used in manufacture is more than 15%.
Other countries are now following suit and expanding the number of products that are being tested for melamine. Descriptions of some of the various products have been published.
Adding water to milk to boost milk volume is nothing new. Dairy farmers are often paid according to the volume of milk delivered, and everyone knows water is cheaper and easier to obtain than milk. I'm sure it's tempting, and I remember being a young boy and asking my dad why people didn't add water to milk. He told me "Adding water would be cheating, and cheaters always get caught."
In retrospect, he's right. They get caught, but sometimes after tragic damage. Let's hope this never happens to the US dairy industry! An interesting post by Chris Galen discusses why he thinks we have the precautions in place in the US to prevent it from happening here.
Hope that helps.
DairyScienceMark
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