LMD May 2012 by Livestock Publishers

Livestock “The greatest homage we can pay to truth is to use it.”

MARKET

Digest W

by LEE PITTS

Background Check

– JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL MAY 15, 2012 • www. aaalivestock . com

Volume 54 • No. 5

Meatless on Mondays F by Lee Pitts

ifty years ago when I was a young whippersnapper in grade school I had mixed emotions about Fridays. I was overjoyed that it was the end of the week and we’d get a two day reprieve from the prison we called Blanchard School, but I was also sad because Fridays meant that the ladies who slung the hash in the school cafeteria weren’t allowed to feed us any meat. The Protestant kids like me dreaded the deceitful beans and rock-hard cornbread we had to eat on Fridays just because of the Catholic kids. It almost caused an elementary-school religious war. Now there’s another group trying to make us go meatless one day of the week. This time on Mondays. Although they say it’s for health reasons, not religious ones, the people pushing the idea are every bit as zealous as the most pious priest ever was.

“Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself. —MARK TWAIN

days.” Don’t let the catchy name fool you, the folks pushing the idea want to make vegetarians of us all. Even though Americans are eating way less beef than they were 40 years ago, per-capita consumption of all meat has increased by eight percent during that time. We are currently consuming 5.3 ounces of meat per day, which is below current dietary recommendations. But

for the food police that 5.3 ounces is 5.3 ounces too much. Meatless Monday was founded in 2003 by a marketing genius named Sid Lerner. He’s the guy who came up with the idea not to “Squeeze the Charmin,” only now he doesn’t want you to prod the pot roast either. Or any other meat. And don’t for one minute foster the idea that these people just want you to quit eating meat one day of the week. As they say,

“Some meat may be “less bad,” but no meat is good.” Meatless Monday calls itself a nonprofit initiative of The Monday Campaigns Inc. which is associated with the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health Center for a Livable Future. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help you reduce your meat consumption by 15 percent.” But they also don’t mind selling you a tee shirt for $22.99 either! The Meatless Monday campaign really took off in 2009 when schools, hospitals and restaurants began to embrace the concept and it has spread around the world to 23 countries, and growing. Those last two words are the scary part! Sid Lerner was on Madison Avenue for 50 years and he was looking for something to do in retirement when he was told by his doctor that his cholesterol and blood pressure were way too continued on page two

Don’t Squeeze The Steak

NEWSPAPER PRIORITY HANDLING

Amidst the pink slime (lean, finely textured beef) and mad cow (BSE) uproar, it’s hard to tell if consumers are currently eating less beef because they are scared of mad cows, or rising beef prices. In the midst of all the hoopla there is yet another far more insidious threat to the beef industry. It goes by the cute sounding name “Meatless Mon-

Riding Herd

Two New Studies Identify Major Flaws in the Equal Access to Justice Act To support the nation’s veterans, seniors and small business, Wyoming Senator and Congresswoman call for swift passage of Government Litigation Savings Act Government Litigation Savings Act ends misuse of tax-payer reimbursements, and improves EAJA for needful users. he Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Notre Dame Law School published separate studies on the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) in early May that show funds intended for the nation’s veterans, seniors and small businesses are flowing to environmental groups contrary to Congressional intent. The Notre Dame law review article provides a comprehensive history of EAJA, and relies on a broad analysis of court records and public tax returns to show that millions of dollars are paid out to environmental groups using a social safety-net program not designed for them. The GAO study confirms that while the amount of tax-payer reimbursements to environmental groups is likely in the millions, the federal government has not kept track. “We have known for some time that the Equal Access to Justice Act needed attention, but these new reports from respected institu-

tions shine a spotlight on the urgency of the matter,” Rep. Lummis (R-WY) said. “These two studies confirm that EAJA is broken and the government is not keeping track; it throws up unnecessary roadblocks to those who deserve the help, and at the same time is a free-flowing spigot for those the law was not intended to assist. But it can and should be fixed as soon as possible. Environmental laws exist for environmentalists; EAJA is for seniors and veterans in need.” “It’s time to return EAJA back to its original intent of helping our nation’s veterans, seniors and small businesses,” said Barrasso. “For far too long, we’ve watched special interest groups fund their anti-multiple use agenda with Americans’ hard earned taxpayer dollars. These new reports confirm the pressing need for more accountability and transparency when it comes to EAJA payments. Americans deserve to know who their money is going to and how exactly it’s being spent.” H.R. 1996, the Government Litigation Savings Act, will modernize the Equal Access to Justice Act by improving the process for legal fee reimbursement for veterans, seniors and continued on page four

e met at high noon, she was dressed completely in green from her pilates shoes to her forest green sweatband. She wore spandex leotards, an Audubon pin and a Sierra Club tee shirt with John Muir’s face on it. The leotards and Muir’s likeness were distorted by her 250 pounds of greenness. I wore jeans, boots and a free cap from an auction market. It was obvious that we were from different warring tribes. She sneered at me and drew first as both our hands reached for the door to the ice cream novelties in the frozen food aisle of our local grocery store. I’d seen her around town ever since she and her diminutive husband moved from the big city to our little town. I knew her only by reputation. She’d immersed herself in local politics and spent six nights a week going to meetings, and I bet her henpecked husband sure dreaded that seventh night when she stayed home. She was busy saving salamanders, watching birds through binoculars, carrying protest signs and going on sit-down strikes. And believe me, she had a considerable amount to sit down! When she took the last box of Skinny Cow® fudge bars I was in a fighting mood. “That’s a nice tee shirt you have there,” I said politely. “John Muir was quite a man.” “I’ll say,” she snarled. “He saved Yosemite from being decimated by your kind.” “He was one once, you know?” “Who?” she asked with a sour smile and a politically correct accent. “John Muir. The founder of the Sierra Club was a sheepherder when he first came to California. He also worked in saw mills where he stripped the beautiful trees of their branches before ripping the flesh from their bodies and turning them into lumber.” “That can’t be true. He continued on page twelve

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May 15, 2012

Meatless on Mondays high. So the still-meat-eating Sid, unluckily for us, chose harassing meat producers as his retirement project. If only he’d have taken up golf instead! Sid started his own nonprofit, hired a few employees and used them to raise money from his Madison Avenue cronies and to sign up hospitals, schools and chefs to help spread the word about going meatless on Mondays. He

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people discovered for the first time that they could eat less and feel no worse – frequently for the better.” It was so successful the gomeatless campaign was reinvigorated under President Franklin Roosevelt during World War II, and Harry Truman asked Americans to eat less meat and have voluntary meatless days so that war-ravaged Europe might have

Studies suggest we are more likely to maintain behaviors begun on Monday throughout the week. recruited two of the biggest names in eating: Wolfgang Puck and Mario Batali, and, of course, he’s got one the most recognized names in the universe to sing the praises of Meatless Monday: Paul McCartney. With the former Beatle on board the idea went platinum.

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Why Monday, and not Wednesday, or Saturday? Lerner says he picked Monday to take advantage of “the rhythm of the week. Friday is payday, Saturday is play day, Sunday is pray day. But Monday? It’s ripe for change,” says Sid. “Monday is the January of the week,” according to Meatless Monday. “The perfect time for a fresh start. People are more likely to begin exercising, start a diet or quit smoking on Monday than any other day. Studies suggest we are more likely to maintain behaviors begun on Monday throughout the week. That makes Monday the perfect day to make a change for your health and the health of our planet.” The idea of one day a week without meat is not as new as you’d think, and Lerner may have gotten his inspiration from Herbert Hoover. During World War I, Hoover was head of the U.S. Food Administration and his agency urged all Americans to reduce their consumption of key staples to aid the war effort. “Food Will Win the War,” the government proclaimed, and “Meatless Monday” and “Wheatless Wednesday” became part of America’s weekly ritual. Meatfree recipe booklets were distributed and vegetarian menus appeared in newspapers, magazines and pamphlets. We can only hope that the current meatless campaign is not as successful as the one during the first World War when 10 million families, 7,000 hotels and 425,000 food dealers pledged to observe national meatless days. According to a 1929 Saturday Evening Post article in 1917, “New York City hotels saved some 116 tons of meat over the course of just one week. Americans began to look seriously into the question of what and how much they were eating. Lots of

some. But it’s one thing to stop eating meat to help our soldiers win a war, it’s quite another when you use meat as a whipping post for all that ails us.

Vegetarian Day Before you discount the effectiveness of Meatless Mondays consider this: ■ The Baltimore City Public Schools were the first schools to go meatless on Mondays. On Mondays 80,000 kids are served no meat and for dessert they are given a healthy dose of propaganda on how, “To eat and learn about healthy, environmentally friendly choices.” The school district says it will buy 120,000 fewer pounds of meat per school year by eliminating it from Monday menus. We don’t have to tell you the impact if several big city school districts followed suit and did the same thing. ■ Last year after a borough president proposed that all New York City public schools switch to Meatless Monday, several schools in the Big Apple did just that. ■ Thirty-two U.S. hospitals have signed on to the Balanced Menu Challenge, a commitment to reduce meat purchases by 20 percent. ■ Michigan had a one-day “Meatout” when folks were encouraged to go meatless. ■ As one would expect, the overgrown hippies in San Francisco became the first US city to officially declare Mondays to be “meat free”, calling it their “Vegetarian Day”. The Board of Supervisors encouraged restaurants, schools and stores to offer “plant-based options”. (Great, now we’re electing politicians to tell us what to eat!) ■ The Johns Hopkins Hospital launched Meatless Monday in their cafeteria. ■ Chef Mario Batali unveiled Meatless Monday menus in all 14 of his restaurants. ■ Andrew Freeman & Co. included Meatless Monday in their 2011 Trend List: 18 upand-coming ideas that restaurateurs should be watching, noting that “Meatless Mondays and vegetable based tasting menus continued on page three

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May 15, 2012

Meatless on Mondays are gaining traction as guests realize it’s not all about the meat on the plate.” ■ The food and catering firm Sodexo announced in January 2011 that it would be offering Meatless Monday materials to more than 900 hospitals in their network. This effort was expanded in April 2011 when they provided materials to more than 2,000 corporate and government client locations in North America, including Toyota, Northern Trust Bank and the U.S. Department of the Interior. ■ No surprise to beef producers, Oprah Winfrey has been a BIG supporter of Meatless Mondays by mandating that vegetarian options would be available in her Harpo Studios cafeteria. She asked her studio audiences to take part in the campaign and hosted guests who promoted the idea, including Michael Pollan who said, “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. Even one meatless day a week, a Meatless Monday, which is what we do in our household. If everybody in America did that, that would be the equivalent of taking 20 million mid-size sedans off the road.” He also said, “We don’t realize it when we sit down to eat, but that is our most profound engagement in the rest of nature . . . To the extent that we push meat a little bit to the side and move vegetables to the center of our diet, we’re also going to be a lot healthier.” ■ In June of last year Aspen, Colorado became an official “Meatless Monday city” with

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over 20 local restaurants, the hospital, elementary school, The Aspen Club & Spa, and The University of Colorado School of Medicine participating. ■ The AARP began offering Meatless Monday recipes to AARP’s online community in June 2009. ■ Campus dining halls from coast to coast, from the University of California at Davis to Yale University have also gotten on board the Meatless Monday bandwagon. ■ While Meatless Monday is based in the United States the idea seems to be catching on worldwide. The United Kingdom has “Meat-free Mondays” while their Ethical Vegetarian Alternative group promotes “Veggie Thursday”. Meatless Monday has turned into a global movement with a wide network of participating hospitals, schools, worksites and restaurants around the globe. We wondered, has all of this had any effect on meat consumption? According to the American Meat Institute, in a February 2011 survey they found that 18 percent of American households were participating in Meatless Mondays!

Who Are These People? Who is behind this meat-free movement? As you’d expect, it’s the same old unholy trinity of vegetarians, animal rightists and environmentalists. And in attacking meat they are using the same old mistruths, based on the premise that if you tell a lie often

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enough, it becomes the truth. The Monday Gang claims . . . ■ By going meatless you’ll significantly reduce your carbon footprint because “the meat industry generates nearly onefifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions, far more than transportation.” We’re also supposed to be impressed

gaining traction and resonating with consumers? According to an AP-NBC Universal telephone poll of 1,006 adults they found that 23 percent of those surveyed said they would be likely to make a special effort to give up meat as a way to protect the environment. A tracking study conducted by FGI research

The big fear for ranchers should be that the vegetarian idea catches on with youngsters who will carry these habits into adulthood. because Al Gore has endorsed Meatless Mondays on his Climate Crises blog. (From the looks of his body lately he needs Twinkie Free Tuesdays a lot more.) Gore lists Meatless Monday as one of the Top 12 Things You Can Do Now for a better world. ■ The Meatless Monday coalition claims that the water needs of livestock are far above those of vegetables or grains. They proclaim, “An estimated 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef. Soy tofu produced in California requires 220 gallons of water per pound.” (I didn’t even know they grew soybeans in California!) ■ “And did you know that “If we all stopped eating animals completely and shifted to vegetarian foods, that would save 84 billion gallons of gas per week.” (We’d love to see how they arrived at this number!) Is any of this propaganda

found that in May of 2011, U.S. awareness of the Meatless Monday campaign had reached 50.22 percent (up from 30 percent six months previously). Of those aware of Meatless Monday, 27.47 percent said the campaign had influenced their decision to cut back on meat. Who is going meatless? If there is one particular demographic that is going whole hog, so to speak, over the idea, it is women. Hollywood soccer moms seem to really like the idea, and for every male supporter listed by Meatless Monday there appear to be 10 highly visible women. Where school kids are being forced to dine on vegetarian chili and grilled cheese sandwiches we haven’t found any mothers rise in protest yet. Speaking of protests, one might be tempted to say that these are the same women who went on sit-down strikes to ban the bra in the sixties and that didn’t put Maidenform out of

Page 3 business. But most of these women supporters weren’t even alive in the sixties. Besides that would be taking these women way too lightly, and if there’s one thing we should know by now, never underestimate the power of a woman. The big fear for ranchers should be that the vegetarian idea catches on with youngsters who will carry these habits into adulthood. The American Meat Institute says “students are being served up an unhealthy dose of indoctrination.” And John Stossel says there is much more at stake here than selling a few t-shirts. “Who becomes a regulator except people who want to regulate? Some come from activist groups that hate industry. Some come from industry and want to convert their government job into a higher-paying industry job. Some just want attention. They know that saying, “X will kill you,” gets more attention than saying that “X is probably safe.” Stossel writes that “whenever someone claims that some chemical — or food ingredient, like fat — is a menace, we are primed to believe it. That makes it easy for government to leap in and play the role of protector.” This Monday club of veg heads is the same old cast of characters who simply don’t want other people to enjoy the finer things in life without their permission. If they get away with this, can Tea-less Tuesdays, No Whipped Cream on Wednesdays, Tofu Thursdays, French Fry Free Fridays and Wineless Weekends be far behind?

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Livestock Market Digest

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Two New Studies small businesses, and providing greater certainty on the amount of reimbursements available for these deserving groups. At the same time, H.R. 1996 removes tax-payer subsidies for litigation filed outside the boundaries set by the nation’s environmental laws. The bill is supported by over 100 groups representing conservationists, sportsmen, outdoor recreationists, small businesses and farmers and ranchers. Highlights from the GAO and Notre Dame studies include: · ■ Intended originally as a cost saving mechanism, the $125 an hour cap on attorney’s fees is routinely “evaded,” and despite court instructions to narrowly interpret EAJA’s language to increase fees for special factors, EAJA reimbursements range from $157 to over $500 an hour. Notre Dame Journal of Legislation, pgs. 36 – 41. — The Government Litigation Savings Act corrects this problem by creating a clear hourly rate

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applied equally to all legal representation no matter their area of expertise. · ■ The absence of an equitable cap on the net worth of groups eligible to receive EAJA reimbursement, combined with the absence of any federal oversight provides the opening for wellheeled organizations to sue the federal government repeatedly over procedural issues outside the bounds of environmental law. Notre Dame Journal of Legislation, pages 41-45. — The Government Litigation Savings Act corrects this problem by establishing a uniform net worth cap of $7 million, and institutes a robust tracking and reporting requirement. · ■ Reviews of open court documents from September of 2009 to October of 2010 reveal payments to twenty environmental litigants that totaled at least $5.8 million, while an examination of tax returns from these same

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Donates $51K to Control Wolves by KFBB NEWS TEAM

hunting group has made a large donation to Fish Wildlife and Parks to help manage the wolf population. The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is giving $51,000 to the state. That money will go directly to Wildlife Services, a division of the USDA. They’ll be using the donation to collar wolves and respond to deprivation problems. Fish Wildlife and Parks says it will extend their ability to respond and do additional management work. Ron Aasheim, FWP Bureau

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Chief says, “We have about $110,000 state dollars that we spend right now. But with all the activity, that doesn’t last forever, so this helps a lot. It’s a good partnership, so we’re pleased, and we’ll start reaping the benefits pretty quick.” Ron says anytime wildlife is affected in Montana, a lot response from the public follows, and the wolf management has brought it to a level never seen before. In May, they’ll start the season setting process for next year. That’ll be followed by public input and a final decision by the commission in June.

May 15, 2012

twenty groups showed the average yearly attorneys’ fees totaled $9.1 million. Notre Dame Journal of Legislation, pages 48 – 54. — The Government Litigation Savings Act corrects this problem by requiring an EAJA applicant to show a “direct and personal” impact of the government’s action to receive reimbursement. · ■ After interviewing 75 bureaus and agencies within the United States Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior, the GAO determined that only 10 could provide any data on EAJA reimbursements. One of those ten, which is housed in the Department of Interior, relied on employee memory to create the data. The GAO study is clear that the number of cases and awarded amounts the agency could identify are not “comprehensive, or precise.” Limited Data Available on USDA and Interior Attorney Fee Claims and Payments, Government Accountability Office. · ■ GAO, which relied only on what the 10 agencies were able to provide, still identified $4.4 million in EAJA payments. This number does not match court documents, tax returns, and is derived from a much larger amount of legal fees. For example, the Forest Service identified over $16 million in legal fees, but could only identify the source of $2.3 million. — The Government Litigation Savings Act corrects both of these problems by requiring a robust tracking and reporting requirement administered by a third par-

ty, disallowing any agency from making the decision that a payment of tax-payer dollars is “too small” to track, or “not needed.” Light was first shed on this issue when Cheyenne, Wyoming attorney Karen Budd-Falen did the ground breaking research to uncover just how bad the abuse of public tax dollars really. She learned that literally tens of millions of dollars have been funneled to environment groups via EAJA,

other fee shifting statutes and sweetheart settlement deals with so-called environmental groups. The Western Legacy Alliance took up the cause leading to the introduction of legislation in Congress and numerous national media reports. The GAO report confirms Ms. Budd-Falen’s research and expands on what the anti natural resource groups are costing Americans in real need.

Animal ID Plan Sent to White House Following BSE Find by ALAN BJERGA, Bloomberg Businessweek

proposal to strengthen the tracking of U.S. cattle has been sent to the White House for a fast-track review after a case of [BSE] mad cow disease was discovered in California and spurred calls for a more stringent system. “We have a lot of confidence in a rule we think will work,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters in Washington. He said he hopes the Office of Management and Budget will approve the new animal-identification plan quickly. Critics including Representative Rosa DeLauro, Democrat of Connecticut, have said the discovery of the first U.S. case of [BSE] mad cow disease since 2006, announced by the government on April 24, 2012 points to the need for a more effective livestock-tracking system.

A nationwide animal-identification plan that would allow officials to quickly trace sick livestock back to their farms of origin — and help identify other infected animals — has been promised by the USDA since just after the country’s first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, surfaced in late 2003. The latest infection was the fourth confirmed in U.S. herds. A voluntary animal ID plan was abandoned in 2010 after some ranchers refused to participate, citing cost and concerns that the proposed registry would give competitors proprietary information. The rule Vilsack referred to, which the USDA proposed in August, would require registration and tagging of livestock moved between states, with guidelines tailored to different species. It would be put in place gradually, applying first to older animals in the U.S. cattle herd.

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was visiting with Bill in Alabama. He’s a cattleman, a bit of a philosopher and a constant worrier. I mentioned that one of my friends had sold a set of 520-lb. feeder cattle for $1.99 a pound! That’s more than a thousand dollars a head! “I know,” said Bill, “I’ve sold some myself but . . .” then he paused and added, “I’m wondering if the price is getting too high?”I cast a skeptical eye, but he was serious. “Whattaya mean?” I asked “Is it possible that the price will drive people away from beef and ruin our business?” he said. I immediately thought of that Yogi Berra observation, “The place is so crowded, nobody goes there anymore.” Due to the government’s cheapfood policy re-established with each new Farm Bill, and the tremendous advances in production brought on by modern ag technology, food prices have stayed cheap in relation to other essential commodities. I compared the number of 500-lb. feeder cattle it took to buy a new ¾ ton pickup in the last four decades. In the 70s it took 22 head, in the 80s it took 36 head, in the 90s it took 72, and in the 00s it took 79 head. With each passing decade the farmer’s product declined in value relative to his costs. Then suddenly in 2012 the number of feeders it took to buy a pickup dropped to 64 head! That’s back to the mid-80s average. We in agriculture have grown used to being treated like Cinderella’s stepchild or the

kindly old hick uncle who still has cows, plants a garden and drives a real tractor. The consumer believes we live a simple life, Ma and Pa Kettle, like the sodbusters on the plains that need to be protected by the hero (a congressman or senator) who shoots the bad guy and runs off with the farmer’s daughter! It would be an eye opener for a good portion of consumers to spend a day with a Washington feedlot operator, Illinois corn grower, Georgia seed stock producer, Utah rancher or an Arkansas cotton farmer. To see computer projections of average daily gain, soil testing, laser leveling, vineyard irrigation systems, dairy genetic selections, swine and poultry’s meticulous ration calculations and the voluminous scientific research being used in all phases of agriculture. The corn seed or semen sample that is put to work on our farms and ranches every day has as much technology behind it as a satellite on its way to Mars. But the trusting consumer doesn’t see all that. They only see us driving a grain truck out to the mill or taking a trailer load of feeders to the sale. We, in our greasy overalls or well-worn cowboy hat, are the tip of the technological, tried and trusted, diligent, essential iceberg that puts food on their table. So if the price of beef, grain, milk and strawberries are now a little closer to what they are really worth, I’m gonna be thankful. Of course, if corn hits ten bucks, I just might start to worry.

May 15, 2012

“America’s Favorite Livestock Newspaper”

Dow AgroSciences Introduces First New Treatment for Mesquite Control in 25 Years n late March Dow AgroSciences introduced SENDERO™ herbicide as the new standard in mesquite control to enhance long-term productivity of southwestern rangelands. SENDERO is the first new mesquite herbicide to reach the market since the company released RECLAIM® herbicide in 1987. For 25 years, RECLAIM herbicide tank-mixed with REMEDY® herbicide (later REMEDY ULTRA herbicide) has been the predominant mesquite treatment used on millions of acres. Company officials now expect SENDERO to replace the tank mix as the treatment of choice. Like the original standard, SENDERO is labeled for aerial, ground broadcast and foliar individual plant treatments. “There’s no question that SENDERO is now the best mesquite treatment available,” said Dave Owens, Range and Pasture portfolio marketing leader for Dow AgroSciences. “In trials, it has delivered both better and more consistent control than the previous standard.” In a series of aerial trials, SENDERO™ herbicide averaged more than 10 percentage points better control than the tank mix of RECLAIM and REMEDY ULTRA used in the same trials.[i] The trials were funded by Dow AgroSciences and conducted by range specialists within Texas AgriLife Extension Service. In those aerial trials, SENDERO averaged 76 percent rootkill two years after treatment compared to 64 percent for the RECLAIM/REMEDY ULTRA tank mix.[ii] Perhaps more important, company officials said, mesquite control with SENDERO was about 40 percent more consistent than that from the old standard tank mix of RECLAIM plus REMEDY ULTRA.[iii] In addition to mesquite, SENDERO controls many species of broadleaf weeds and provides soil residual activity to control many later-emerging broadleaf species for weeks after treatment. Beyond the first season, there is no long-term forb shock from the herbicide. That means both livestock and wildlife can benefit from the lasting effects of mesquite control with SENDERO. SENDERO™ herbicide does not harm desirable grasses, so native grass recovery can be as fast as environmental conditions allow. SENDERO combines two molecules discovered and developed by Dow AgroSciences for use on rangeland and pastures: aminopyralid and clopyralid. Aminopyralid is one of the ingredients in both GRAZONNEXT® HL herbicide and CHAPARRAL™ herbicide. Both products have proven effective in weed control and brush

suppression. Clopyralid is the single active ingredient in RECLAIM® herbicide. Mesquite control offers several benefits. It allows cattle more access to grazing land and ranchers more access to their cattle. Reducing dense stands of

once mesquite achieved more than 25 percent canopy cover.[iv] Following a high level of control from mesquite treatment, enhanced grass production can last at least 20 years, the researchers reported.[v] Success with SENDERO still

Herbaceous production on clay loam soils declined severely once mesquite achieved more than 25 percent canopy cover. mesquite improves rangeland health and may increase groundwater recharge. When grasses replace brush on rangeland, sediment may be reduced in runoff. Applied in patterns, SENDERO can create more edge habitat for wildlife. Left untouched, mesquite cover tends to increase over time. Range scientists with Texas AgriLife Research documented that herbaceous production on clay loam soils declined severely

depends on proper application, Dow AgroSciences experts emphasized. Those include timing with carbohydrate movement in the mesquite plant, leaf condition, soil temperature and growing conditions. “Without the proper conditions for mesquite and weather, even the best herbicide treatment will provide less than satisfactory control,” said Dow AgroSciences field scientist Chad Cummings.

Page 5

Fourth annual South Poll field day to be held in Missouri he fourth annual meeting and field day of the South Poll Grass Cattle Association will be held on Friday and Saturday, June 22 and 23, at Voss Land & Cattle Co. in Linn, Mo. The two-day event will feature an open forum on farm management practices, the annual South Poll seed stock auction, a pasture walk with nationally-known grazier Greg Judy and a talk from Dr. James Horne, the president and CEO of the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Poteau, Okla. Judy, who will speak on Friday, will go into the basics of evaluating animal performance on pasture, biological monitoring, diversity of grasses and what to look for in grass genetic cattle. Dr. Bruce Shanks, of Lincoln University in Jefferson City, will make a presentation on multi-species grazing,

while writer Ralph Voss will talk on soil amendments such as milk, sea salt, molasses, coral calcium and liquid fish. Voss will also give a demonstration on taking brix readings on grass. Saturday will kick off with a welcome from breed founder Teddy Gentry. He will explain the genetic history of the South Poll breed which is a four-way cross including Hereford, Angus, Senepol and Barzona breeds of cattle. Dr. Horne will make a presentation on the sustainability of the overall agricultural system. Gentry says he hopes to have 25 of the finest bulls, cows and heifers the breed has to offer to be sold at the cowboy auction Saturday at 1 p.m. After the auction Judy will lead a pasture walk. Gentry says the field day continued on page six

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May 15, 2012

Dairy Market Outlook Signals Need for Policy Change by MICHAEL LICHTE

ll livestock industries deal with the impact of everyday commodity markets. Dairy is no different, except that the timing of the dairy commodity cycle appears to differ from other major livestock sectors. During the past 15 years, the dairy cycle has repeated every three years, which would mean

that after experiencing modest to good returns during the past 1824 months, the dairy industry should anticipate bearish market pressures. This type of downturn has not happened since 2009, which was the worst financial year for U.S. dairy producers in a generation.While current signs suggest that financial pressure will not be as severe as that felt during 2009, the pressures will be significant.

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Across different groups of commodity economists, a common phrase is used . . . “high prices create low prices.” 2010 and 2011 were years in which most U.S. dairy producers were able to achieve modest profits. These profits fueled growth in the national dairy herd, which in combination with a mild winter throughout much of the United States, has led to an explosion of U.S. milk production. This growth is exceeding our steady upward trend in U.S. dairy consumption and is creating an imbalance in supply and demand fundamentals. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that U.S. milk production in February, after being adjusted for leap year, was 4.3 percent higher than the prior year (the 10-year annual average growth rate is 1.6 percent). February’s growth rate was not seen as an outlier, as it followed strong growth in January of 3.5 percent. Growth at the magnitude experienced during the first two months of 2012 points to the fact that the United States is producing more than what is being demanded by consumers.The quickest form of curtailing extreme growth in milk production is to reduce the milking herd. Reports of strong cull cow values throughout different regions of the country may provide a natural signal for dairy producers to divert marginal-producing cows out of the milking string and obtain the beef value, which would assist in limiting the current strong growth patterns.

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Even though consumption of dairy products as a beverage is stagnant at best, there are positive consumption trends occurring, specifically in the yogurt and cheese categories. As a result, less uncommitted inventory of cheese is being held for future sales, which is a positive sign for price rebounds to occur during the upcoming summer and into fall.

There are positive consumption trends in the yogurt and cheese categories. The same cannot be said for butter and nonfat dry milk (NFDM), which, along with cheese, are major components in determining the value of milk. Traditional commodity milk marketing logic would suggest that butter and NFDM manufacturing is an outlet of last resort for the U.S. milk supply. Butter and NFDM production is low during periods of declining U.S. milk production, but in periods of U.S. milk production growth, butter and NFDM production is high. With U.S. milk production growing substantially, it is easy to rationalize that butter and NFDM production growth rates have been or are expected to exceed double digits on a percentage basis in the near term. The current expectation is for the commodity values of butter and NFDM to weaken in the near term, but strengthen into the fall as the winter holidays approach; however, this forecast may not hold true if there is a prolonged period where U.S. milk production grows at high levels or if global milk-producing countries in the Southern Hemisphere have strong milk production growth in the fall. While we are dealing with an oversupply of milk at home, it is important to note that the U.S.

dairy industry has steadily developed into a substantial exporting nation since the turn of the 21st century. This occurrence not only causes us to keep a keen eye on domestic trends, but our focus now needs to include supply and demand trends abroad. Global demand is strong, particularly in developing nations such as China or in Southeast Asia, but global milk production is strong too. Milk production in New Zealand, Australia and even Argentina has reportedly grown rapidly this year. If global demand is not able to cope with the growth from multiple key dairy exporting nations such as these, then it may limit the continuation of solid growth in U.S. dairy exports and therefore pressure our domestic commodity inventory levels. The factors mentioned to this point speak to the top line value of milk on dairy producers’ milk checks, which is an important piece of on-farm profitability. An equally important factor is the cost of milk production, particularly feed costs. Global demand and failure to meet trend line yield for grains during the past few years have positioned U.S. feed stocks near historical lows and driven feed costs to high levels. If the value of corn, forages and protein continue to remain high during the balance of 2012, this will cause severe financial pressure for U.S. dairy producers. The dynamics of livestock production have shifted mostly at the hand of extreme price and margin volatility. This dynamic increase in volatility absolutely calls for the dairy industry to change, especially in regard to dairy policy. In order for U.S. dairy producers to remain competitive in the global marketplace and to sustain profitable margins for future generations, real change must occur quickly as the status quo will not be sufficient. The dairy industry’s most viable opportunity for a timely solution is the Dairy Security Act. Michael Lichte is director of dairy marketing for Dairy Farmers of America, Inc., anational dairy marketing cooperative that serves and is owned by nearly 15,000 members in 48 states.

South Poll Field Day will be an opportunity to learn about progressive grazing methods and some of the newest information on soil amendments. He says the $6 plus corn market has put small and efficient grass cattle, like the South Poll, more and more in demand. “Tender beef off grass, especially when we look at profit per acre, is what our breed is all about,” he said. Preregistration for the twoday event will be needed, with a $50 per person fee being charged by the association for

continued from page five

entrance to all the activities. Youngsters 16 and under will be admitted free. Anyone registering after June 15 will be charged $85. A free lunch will be served on Friday and Saturday with a free wiener roast being offered Friday evening after the tour of the Voss farm. Registration may be sent to the South Poll Association, c/o Jerry Voss, P.O. Box 109, Linn, Mo., 65051. Call Voss at 573/694-1681 for more information or visit our website at: www.southpoll.com

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New Mexico Youth Beef Ambassador Contest hroughout the state of New Mexico there are many outstanding youth, ages 12-20, who could pursue the opportunity to become the next spokespersons for the New Mexico beef industry by competing in the New Mexico Beef Ambassador Program Contest to be held June 24, 2012 in conjunction with the New Mexico Cattle Growersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Summer Conference at the Inn of the Mountain Gods in Ruidoso. Senior and junior age state winners will then be eligible to compete in the National Beef Ambassador Program (NBAP) Contest slated for September 28-30, 2012 in Sacramento, California. The National Beef Ambassador Program is managed by the American National CattleWomen, Inc. and funded, in part, by Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Beef Producer Check-Off Program through the Cattlemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Beef Board. The NBAP strives to assist youth in educating consumers and students about beef nutrition, food safety and stewardship practices of the beef industry. The state level contest is directly sponsored by the New Mexico CowBelle organization, with additional support from the New Mexico Beef Council, the New Mexico Cattle Growersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, local CowBelle women, within the state, and New Mexico ranchers. Senior age contestants must be 17, but not over 20 years of age by September 1, 2012. During the state contest, a panel of judges will critique a 5- to 8minute speech presented by the contestant. The speech must be factually based on data provided from the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Beef: From Pasture to Plateâ&#x20AC;? website: www.beeffrompasturetoplate.org or on a beef industry topic that is developed through personal research.

500,000 Chickens Lost In Fire At Egg Farm Near Roggen, Colorado from CBS DENVER

nvestigators donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what started an intense fire that caused millions of dollars of damage to a chicken egg farm near Roggen in early May. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been so hot investigators havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been able to get close enough to search for clues. Firefighters say about 500,000 chickens died in the fire at the Boulder Valley Poultry farm. That equals a loss of about 250,000 eggs a day. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about half of the farmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total production. The fire damaged three of nine buildings at the farm. Boulder Valley Poultry farm provides about one-quarter of Coloradoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s egg supply. The farm provides eggs for King Soopers and Samâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Clubs, but King Soopers said the fire shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have an impact on supply or price in the short term.

The state contest will also include a brief written response to a published news article regarding the beef industry, as well as participation in a mock media interview and a consumer promotion activity. The national contest does not include the speech presentation, but requires that three beef related lessons be presented to youth before the national contest deadline. The junior level contest is open to youth between the ages of 12 and 16 and consists of a 58 minute speech, as in the senior contest, along with participation in the mock media interview and consumer promotion categories. The senior and junior winners

will receive monogrammed award jackets and shirts and will be eligible to participate in an expense paid trip to compete in the National Beef Ambassador

Page 7

award, after national requirements are completed, along with a total of $5,000 in cash prizes from the American National Cattle Women and other sponsors. The top three junior division national winners each receive cash prizes. The five per-

The program strives to assist youth in educating consumers and students about beef nutrition, food safety and stewardship practices of the beef industry. Program Contest. The New Mexico senior winner may also apply for a $500 college scholarship from the New Mexico CowBelles upon fulfillment of his or her responsibilities as a New Mexico Beef Ambassador. Each of the top five national winners will receive a $1,000

son national team will have the opportunity to travel across the U.S. educating consumers, peers, students, and producers about the beef industry as they participate in state fairs, beef industry events, and other venues as diverse as the Boston Marathon and the National Har-

bor Food and Wine Festival to more traditional consumer agriculture events such as the Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Agriculture exhibit, in Harrisburg, Pa., which is billed as the largest indoor consumer agriculture show in the nation. For a complete copy of the national contest rules and study materials go to the National Beef Ambassador website at www. nationalbeefambassador.org. To receive an entry form, brochure and additional contest information contact the New Mexico Beef Ambassador Chair, Shelly Hathorn, at the address below. ENTRY FORMS ARE DUE JUNE 1, 2012 TO: Shelly Hathorn, NM Beef Ambassador Chair, San Juan County Extension Office, 213A South Oliver Drive, Aztec, N.M. 87410, 505/334-9496 (work) or 575/447-7447 (cell), shporter@ nmsu.edu

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Total Herd Reporting: Truly building better beef he Red Angus Association of America (RAAA) was the forerunning breed association to create and implement Total Herd Reporting (THR). This new concept revolutionized the fee structure for Red Angus registrations, but more importantly, focused the industry on the relationship between complete data and the value of subsequent genetic predictions. Today, THR has become a pillar of the Red Angus breed and has set the bar for other breed associations to report ALL progeny records into their databases — not just the calves that breeders

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tion is to place its faith in objective tests and in-herd comparisons of factors of economic importance and known heritability. By making this policy an integral part of the registration system, Red Angus breeders can achieve faster progress toward the ultimate goal of more efficient beef production.”

A Concept is Born Discussion at the first Brain Trust meeting in 1993 in Denver, Colo., stimulated the need for a strategic plan for the RAAA. One of the areas the Strategic Planning Committee addressed was the inaccuracy of beef industry EPDs. “The only reason we could identify for the dramatic shifts in our EPD calculations was biased progeny reporting,” said Melvin Leland of Sidney, Mont., who served as RAAA president from ’92 to ’94. “Breeders weren’t reporting all of their progeny and, consequently,EPDs weren’t reflecting all of the data.” At that time, the Red Angus membership was only reporting 46 percent of its calf crop based on the traditional method of paying on a per-calf basis to register stock. “Breeders were being penalized with a fee to do the right thing of registering and transferring animals,” continued Leland. RAAA leaders worked for two years to convince the membership that THR was essential to the success of the Red Angus breed, but it was a hard sell. “No one likes ‘mandatory’ things,” said Leland. Jim Leachman of Billings, Mont., brainstormed the final solution to assess a fee to keep cows active on a breeder’s inventory with no additional costs to report their offspring or transfer ownership. The new registration concept was appealing to the membership and, at the 1994 Red Angus convention, THR passed unanimously.

Benefits The most important benefit of THR is a more accurate database

May 15, 2012 of Red Angus genetics built from the records that producers submit on their cowherds. That equates directly to more accurate EPDs — the original goal of the conceptual founders of THR. “With complete contemporary group reporting, we are provided with comparisons between all animals which results in reliable EPDs,” explained Larry Keenan, RAAA director of breed improvement. “It’s common sense — since EPDs rely on measured variation within a contemporary group — that THR produces more reliable EPDs and faster gains in EPD accuracy by ensuring the variation in performance of each calf is counted.” How does this affect the commercial producer who is studying EPDs at a bull sale? Keenan sited another core policy that states the RAAA will strive to have the best objectively described cattle in the industry and to provide the best service to RAAA members’ customers — commercial producers. “Our responsibility is to provide commercial producers with the best prediction of an animal’s true genetic merit,” said Keenan. “So when a producer purchases a bull whose EPDs indicate he will be a calving-ease sire, the bull performs as expected.” The popularity of genomic technology has exploded in the seedstock industry in recent years. But geneticists needed a basis on which to build their DNA technology when they began identifying trait markers. EPDs were the logical choice for that foundation. As the Red Angus breed moves forward to incorporate 50,000 (50K) SNP markers, accurate EPDs are more important than ever. “Reliable genomic products are dependent upon reliable EPDs,” said Keenan, who explained that geneticists correlate the 50K DNA SNP information to existing EPDs to achieve molecular breeding values. “Red Angus stakeholders will enjoy advanced reliability of the Red Angus-specific 50K product that is built on Total Herd Reporting-based EPDs,” said Keenan.

Challenges Even though the RAAA has practiced Total Herd Reporting for over a decade, some breeders still struggle with the concept that they can benefit from this unique breed registry structure of paying an annual fee to keep a cowon active status. “With THR it’s important that our members realize the benefits of reporting on the complete cow inventory as opposed to a selection-based fee structure,” said Kenda Ponder, RAAA director of member services. “The breeder reports a cow’s production whether it’s a live calf, a stillborn calf or one that dies before weaning age, as well as a reason code if the cow doesn’t have a calf. That is all valuable information we incorporate into EPDs.” “If a breeder’s ultimate goal is to provide reliable genetics to commercial producers, they

should manage their cowherd like it is a commercial cowherd,” said Keenan. “Therefore, if a cow’s producing ability results in her being inactive, she should be culled from the herd. A producer may think they beat the THR financial system, but they can’t beat the genetic evaluation system, which will reveal a cows inability to remain productive.” “THR works to your advantage,” said Ponder, who has directed the program since 1998. “Don’t try to beat the system — instead, let it work for you.”

The Next Level of THR As with any successful program, growth and change are inevitable, and withthe genetic advancements the past few years, it is time to raise the bar for THR as well. Currently, breeders are only required to submit birth and weaning dates and weaning weights, but they are encouraged to submit additional data that is used to formulate important EPDs. An example is the data collected when an animal reaches a year of age — yearling weights, scrotal measurements and carcass ultrasound data. The RAAA encourages producers to weigh their cows at weaning time and evaluate their body condition scores. This information is incorporated into the formula for the Maintenance Energy (ME) EPD. The Heifer Exposure Report provides valuable data toward the calculation of the Heifer Pregnancy (HPG) EPD. Members submit this simple report at the end of their breeding season to identify which heifers were exposed and should be entering the producer’s herd in the coming year. The HPGand Stayability (Stay) EPDs rely heavily on yearly data in order to accurately predict these traits, said Keenan. Once RAAA had a decade’s worth of THR-based data, the Stayability EPD was upgraded from the old calculation that treated all data as non-THR data. “Through our Stayability EPD upgrade, we were able to evaluate the impact THR data provides in predicting an animal’s genetic merit for that trait,” said Keenan. “In comparing the two Stayability models (evaluated as THR data vs. non-THR data) we found significant differences — high-accuracy sires had a rank correlation of 0.55. Forty-five out of 100 sires changed rank when evaluated with the upgraded THR model. We are now able to provide commercial producers with a reliable tool in selecting for Stayability.”

Additional Benefits of THR There are additional benefits included in the RAAA registry that add value to Red Angus cattle for commercial producers. Ponder emphasized that RAAA does not charge members to transfer animals within 60 days of the sale in order to encourage breeders to transfer continued on page nine

“America’s Favorite Livestock Newspaper”

May 15, 2012

Page 9

Total Herd Reporting

Total Herd Reporting focuses on the relationship between complete herd data and the value of subsequent genetic predictions.

continued from page eight

those animals into the new owner’s name. “It is imperative that bulls are transferred to their new owners,” she said. When members sell and transfer ownership of their bulls, those commercial producers become eligible to enroll their calves in the Feeder Calf Certification Program (FCCP) and tag them with the Red Angus “Yellow Tag.” Enrollment in FCCP certifies that the calf wearing the yellow tag is genetic, age and source verified with the USDA. It opens up marketing opportunities and increases profitability for that producer — both forfeeder calves entering a feedlot and for heifers sold as replacement females. If Red Angus bulls are not transferred, the RAAA cannot verify those commercial producers own the bulls and therefore they cannot enroll their calves into the FCCP. “Our largest competitor isn’t another breed — it’s non-registered and non-transferred bulls,” said Ponder. The RAAA also mails a complimentary one-year subscription to the American Red Angus magazine to producers who have had an animal transferred to them. This expanded mailing increases readership to Red Angus customers — those producers using Red Angus genetics. “THR is about far more than reporting birth and weaning weights,” said Ponder. “The integrity of the Red Angus breed is built on the honesty of the breeders and the reliability of the cattle they raise. Red Angus leadership set the bar high when they implemented THR. Today’s breeders are challenged to continue that tradition, ensuring they are producing the best possible genetics and that our stakeholders have confidence in Red Angus cattle all the way down the chain.”

Ranchers add value, marketing options with Red Angus programs anchers are taking advantage of value-added programs to increase the profitability of their calf crop, and each year more producers are enrolling their Red Angusinfluenced calves in the Feeder Calf Certification Program (FCCP). For the past three years, the Red Angus Association of America (RAAA) has enrolled over 100,000 head of Red Angusinfluenced calves in FCCP each year — last year exceeding 125,000 head. The Association is on track to continue that recordbreaking trend this year as program enrollment and tag sales have exceeded first quarter growth with the enrollment of 78,000 Red Angus-sired calves. Enrollment in the FCCP program entitles producers to tag their Red Angus-influenced calves with the yellow tag, satisfying USDA age, source and genetic verification requirements for all four major packing plants

— Cargill, Tyson, JBS and U.S. Premium Beef. “Traceability to age, source and genetics continues to be important for cattle markets,” said Myron Edelman, RAAA director of added-value programs. “The feeder and fed-cattle markets are still strong. However, cattle that have age and source verification maximize revenue for all classifications of cattle, making them the most profitable." The FCCP is the beef industry’s oldest USDA-verified genetic, age and source program, originating 19 years ago. “Since 1993, the FCCP ‘Yellow Tag’ has been adding value to Red Angus customers’ calves and granting access to branded product lines for Red Angus fed cattle,” said Clint Berry, RAAA commercial marketing director. “By verifying Red Angus bloodlines, producers are providing a more consistent end-product than cattle selected on a simple

hair coat color.” The USDA age and source verification also adds marketing options to FCCP-tagged cattle, making them eligible for U.S. export markets. “Experience pays off,” added Berry. “We are working on two decades of adding value to Red Angus-sired cattle and we’ve learned that to be successful, a program must be user-friendly and inexpensive.” Red Angus producers do not have to pay an enrollment fee for FCCP. The only cost is the tag itself. “We focus our efforts on

keeping the program as simple as possible,” said Berry, “and assisting our commercial cattlemen in achieving the highest possible value for their Red Angus calves.” The FCCP "Yellow Tag" is available in two options. First, as the traditional visual tag at only 99-cents each, or as a combination visual and RFID tag for $3 each. Calves must have at least one registered Red Angus parent and ranchers need to answer a few calving and breeding management questions. Producers can enroll their calves at any time in the FCCP program as long they are tagged before they leave the ranch of origin. Producers can call the RAAA office at 940/387-3502 to enroll their calves in FCCP, making them eligible to purchase the Red Angus “Yellow Tags.” The enrollment process is simple and easy, taking less than 15 minutes. For additional information on Red Angus marketing programs, visit RedAngus.org.

Association offers tools to market Red Angus cattle New Association, New Leadership for Southwestern Red Angus Producers he Southwest Red Angus Association, formed in December, 2011 by a group of Red Angus seedstock producers, is working to represent and promote southwestern Red Angus producers and their interests. Led by President Tim Head, Quality Genetics Red Angus, Van Horn, Texas; Vice President Micaela McGibbon, Santa Rita Ranch, Green Valley, Ariz.; and Secretary/Treasurer Will Crockett, Crocket Ranch, Lovington, New Mexico, the new association is committed to the success of members and of cattle ranching as a business. “It is the intent of the association to provide animals with exceptional genetic traits that through heterosis enhance the quality and value of the herds of commercial cattlemen,” Head said. “While still new and small, we have already been able to assist some of our members sell their Red Angus seedstock. We are looking forward to continuing and increasing the prior successes of our efforts.” Interest, participation and membership are welcomed in the Southwest Red Angus Association. Members must own registered Red Angus cattle, and should send a $50 check for annual membership dues to the Southwest Red Angus Association, P.O. Box 1380, Van Horn, TX 79855. “Join us, contribute to the future and help select the path on which we shall go,” he said.

he FCCP “Yellow Tag” adds marketability to Red Angus-influenced calves through USDA approved genetic, age and source verification, and the RAAA offers additional tools to help producers find a buyer for their cattle. Every Red Angus bull customer has access to a variety of RAAA marketing programs such as FeederFax, an email-based notification for Red Angus-sired calves marketed by video auctions, through private treaty sales or at livestock markets. FeederFax is distributed to RAAA’s active buyer base. The Red Angus Stockyards, a web-based listing on RedAngus.org, has marketed nearly 100,000 head of replacement females, Red Angus bulls and/or Red Angus-influenced cattle. In addition, RAAA sponsors several of the major video auctions, including organizing special sections featuring Red Angus cattle throughout the

summer video sale season. For ranchers looking to market their calves in a more traditional manner, each fall and winter, RAAA staff helps organize Red Angus Feeder Calf Sales held in livestock markets spread across the U.S.

“All of these marketing options give producers the opportunity to add value to their calf crop and, along with the use of the FCCP ‘Yellow Tag,’ can secure Red Angus bull customers’ continued success,” said Berry.

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Livestock Market Digest

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The Perils of a Taxpayer in a Foreign Land “The border is not a fence or a line in the dirt . . . it is a third country that joins Mexico and the United States.” — Quote by David Aguilar, Chief Border Patrol Agent under the Obama-Napolitano regime. he above statement made by Obama’s head Border Patrol agent set off a firestorm of controversy and anger from everyone except those encamped in the midst of the radical left and guaranteed Mr. Anguilar a permanent seat at the current administration’s round table that has been graced with the likes of Tony Rezko, James Meeks, Sam Graham-Felsen, Van Jones and others. Given the U. S. Border Patrol’s already tenebrous mission statement, coming from controversial characters like Aguilar, Napotitano and even the President himself, one can’t help but question what is the true course of action we are pursuing on the Mexican border. In the next paragraphs I will leave innuendo and commentary behind and stick to documented facts. You and your imagination can do the rest. Since February 21, 2012 until today, April 20, 2012, in a 12-mile stretch at the international boundary starting at Naco, Arizona and going west to the San Pedro River there have been no less than 10 drive-through loads of narcotics breaching the new steel fence that is 13 feet high. This same fence is the one that many thought would be a cure-all solution to our current smuggling problem. One of the first drive-throughs traversed the bottom of a mesquite infested wash where whole crews of Mexican outlaws felled trees and bridged arroyos creating a road through the wilderness north to highway 92 some 3 miles distant. By drive-

through I mean Mexican Cartel agents cutting truck size holes in the metal barrier facilitating the passing of whole truck loads of dope headed north to parts unknown. The last three of these ten loads of narcotics, which average 1,000 to 1,500 pounds per load, passed through a freshly cut hole on Sunday night April 15, 2012. All ten loads negotiated the supposed sealed border within one mile of each other and all were less than one half mile from a Border Patrol camera that is on top of a tower 85 feet in the air. At that distance these cameras costing in the hundreds of thousands of dollars to install and maintain can easily read a license plate on a car or see the expression on a man’s face. All ten of these truck loads of dope passed through a cattle ranch owned by a family who has made their living raising cattle on this same property going back to the late 1800s. At the east end of the ranch lies the border town of Naco whose main industry is the Naco Border Patrol Station which boasts somewhere in the vicinity of 400 agents. The ranch owners long ago cooperated with the Border Patrol and welcomed the instillation of four of these mega expensive ultra high tech cameras which are supposedly monitored 24/7 at the Naco Border Patrol station a short distance away. When questioned by the rancher the Border Patrol’s excuse for this breach of security was that “no agents were avail-

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able to respond.” The fact is that they had all been sent to the northern boundaries, wherever that is, of Aguilar’s imaginary Third Kingdom. Within a few days Border Patrol agents in Naco will be moving into a newly constructed station that cost the American taxpayer, including Third Kingdom residents, 42 million dollars to build. Among other important amenities it will include an indoor shooting range with a 14 million dollar price tag. According to a recent article in the Arizona Commercial Real Estate online newspaper the new station has been built to “Anti-Terrorist Force Protection standards.” Oh really? Since 1992 there have been on this one cattle ranch, where the aforementioned dope passed, no less than 500 thousand illegal aliens apprehended. By their own admission the Border Patrol catches no more than 20 percent that cross the border. Since Obama became president they apprehend fewer than that. You can’t have low numbers if you catch large quantities. That means upward of two and a half million people have traversed this one family’s property. Whether you live within the confines of a gated community in Scotsdale or on an Illinois corn farm you should be able to relate. Imagine having two and a half million people tromping through your corn field uninvited. For good measure throw in a few dozen $60,000 Ford Raptor pick-ups with Border Patrol insignia on the doors crashing about your property piloted by agents in green uniforms who having a high level of testosterone and a low level of respect for you and your corn destroying everything in their path. Why should border ranchers who grow calves instead of corn have to continually hump up and take it while Middle America sits idly by and does nothing? I am not Paul Revere but I have a message for you: the Mexican Cartels are not coming, they are here, aided by ambiguous ideology and total distain for constitutional law coming from leftist bureaucrats who have a corrupt axe to grind. The cartels move through a virtual open door. It astounds me that the National Cattleman’s Beef Association, which is supposed to be cattle ranching’s biggest and most powerful lobby, hasn’t come forth with more support for their constituents who live in close proximity to the border. In Frederick Bastiat’s book The Law he states and I quote, “to say that the aim of the law is to cause justice to reign is to use an expression which is not rigorously exact. It ought to be said, the aim of law is to prevent injustice from reigning. In fact, it is not justice which has an existence of its own, it is injustice. The one results from the absence from the other.” The Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security are in the business of creating unjust policies financed by taxpayer dollars,

May 15, 2012 a good example being the derailed and ill-advised Fast and Furious program. David Aguilar’s self-proclaimed concept of a third country, which is wholeheartedly supported by the Department of Homeland Security is not only completely devoid of justice it is a gross violation of the constitution itself. Because of this odyssey into a hinterland of undefined proportions Border Patrol agents are allowed, even ordered, to abandon the line in the dirt, as Aguilar calls it, and take their dog and pony show north to parts unknown leaving gaping and bleeding holes which they try to hide with gesticulations of fatigue and cries for more funding and equipment: if we just had a better helicopter, or perhaps another 14 million dollar shooting range. Recently Arizona State Senator Sylvia Allen introduced legislation proposing a volunteer militia trained by law enforcement and deployed to aid in the patrol of the border itself. She has received very little support and much criticism. The truth is the only time in history the Mexican border has been sealed is when the Minutemen peacefully and lawfully sat down and occupied the border itself in 2007; right there on the ground within arms reach of the line in the dirt that Aguilar says doesn’t exist. The U.S. Border Patrol did, do, and always will hate the Minutemen and others like them. They accomplished what the Border Patrol claimed couldn’t be done. Aguilar and his union-protected Brownshirts aren’t programmed for success. Personally I applaud Senator Allen for thinking outside the box that bureaucrats and gangster politicians have us all incarcerated in. On February 24, 2012 I attended, along with numerous Cochise County ranchers, a meeting at the stupendously opulent Tucson Sector Office Complex

and Headquarters. This multicathedral-like edifice which cost untold millions to construct is completely devoid of any signs of economic recession; taxpayer dollars literally grow on the shrubs outside and ooze out of the finery within. Tucson Sector Chief Rick Barlow was in attendance along with the chiefs from the Douglas, Willcox, Naco, Sonoita, and Nogales stations. Two government attorneys were in attendance representing the Border Patrol’s interests. The Arizona Cattlegrowers’ Association was present in support of the ranchers who were allowed to speak and voice certain grievances. A certain Cochise County rancher (not myself) related to all present at this meeting that they were well acquainted with David Aguilar who was at one time the Tucson Sector Chief. This individual went on to say that he (Aguilar) was a most dishonest and corrupt individual (their words not mine) and the Border Patrol had taken a visible turn for the worse under his leadership. In wonder I observed this communication and couldn’t help but notice the lack of denial. The Tucson Sector top brass along with attorneys who no doubt were experts in constitutional law sat in silence with no visible expression of anger or insult, but instead bore a melancholy countenance, not unlike one drinking vinegar. Ten truck loads of marijuana coming undisturbed out of Mexico upon reaching Phoenix, Denver or your hometown would have a street value of 10 to 15 million dollars. Could there be something fishy going on here? Oh, but wait! I promised to stick to the facts, the facts, the facts, the facts . . . You supply the imagination. — ED ASHURST Apache, Ariz., April 20, 2012

Congressmen lean on Vilsack to set record straight on LFTB by RITA JANE GABBETT, meatingplace.com

hirty members of Congress from 16 different states signed a letter in late April asking Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to provide them with the steps USDA plans to take to set the record straight about the safety of lean finely textured beef (LFTB). “We agree with you that consumers should always have the ability to exercise choice in the marketplace . . . However, in the current environment of rampant and intentional mischaracterization and misinformation, it is incumbent on all of us to ensure consumers are able to make choices that are based on facts, rather than emotion and hysteria,” the letter stated. The legislators pointed to job losses and the possibility of consumers paying more for

their ground beef. “We have been watching with great concern as this campaign of misinformation has unfolded and have been particularly concerned about the loss of jobs that’s resulted from it. No company should be forced to close its doors due to a smear campaign by a few overzealous individuals in the media. LFTB is a safe product and should be promoted as such,” the legislators wrote. Vilsack appeared with Iowa Gov. Terry Brandstad on March 29 at a news conference where he called the product safe, healthy and affordable, but defended USDA’s decision to give school lunch programs the option to choose ground beef without LFTB. He said that decision reflected USDA’s dual role of ensuring safe food and to serve customers.

May 15, 2012

“America’s Favorite Livestock Newspaper”

Equine Welfare: What IS Humane? PERSPECTIVE FROM THE NEW MEXICO CATTLE GROWERS’ ASSOCIATION AND NEW MEXICO FARM & LIVESTOCK BUREAU he issue of “humane” care and treatment of horses has become extremely volatile in New Mexico and across the nation in recent weeks. Unfortunately, the problem isn’t nearly so recent. The issue has been in the national spotlight long enough that the Government Accounting Office (GAO) has had time to do an in-depth study, identifying the problems and pointing out challenges for the U.S. Department of Agriculture as well as horse owners and lovers. What are the options and the alternatives for unwanted and feral horses? Where does the funding come from? The focus should be on the quality of life for horses and the assurance for a humane end of life. Reality is that regardless of their use and the emotions tied to them. Horses, like all animals, have limited lifetimes. New Mexico currently has only nine (9) certified horse rescue operations. There may be others taking in unwanted horses, but only these nine are certified by the New Mexico Livestock Board who is charged with the responsibility of humane oversight of horses and other livestock in the state. (http://www.nmlbonline.com/ind ex.php?id=23 ) These rescue operations are not government funded and operate largely on donations. Not only are these facilities not well distributed around the state, but capacity is limited. The ideal capacity for the entire group of certified rescues is 257 head — those facilities are currently holding 266 horses. Immediately prior to a sale, Southwest Livestock Auction houses up to 300 head of horses. Prior to the current investigation, Southwest routinely held four sales per month. The cost of maintaining a horse varies with the age, size and condition of animal, but care and feeding just one emaciated horse, which is the condition most horses are in when rescued, can easily run from $800 to $1,000 per month, according to one rescue owner. Hay alone, which must be supplemented with grain, vitamins, and minerals as well as routine health care, presently runs at $300 per month and up. Maintaining a healthy horse costs a minimum of $150 per month. Sadly, rescues are finding that when they do rehabilitate a horse, there are no permanent homes available for them. Additionally horses that cannot be rehabilitated then must be disposed of by the rescue. New Mexico, including tribal lands, is home to literally tens of thousands of feral or unwanted horses. Because of the drought and current economic conditions the problem is growing literally

by the moment. Families who were once able to maintain horses for enjoyment are now having to choose between caring for their families or their animals. A Coggins Test, which is required to transport a horse costs $35 per head. Farrier or horse-shoeing expenses can run from $40 to $120 per month per head for regularly maintained horses, plus milage. Horses that have been neglected can be exponentially higher. According to a 2005 survey by the New Mexico Horse Council, nearly 100,000 New Mexicans are involved in the equine industry. Within that group 72 percent of New Mexico horse owners have an annual household income of $75,000 or less. The report also states that 76 percent of these owners are 30 to 60 years of age with only 13 percent under the age of 30. When horses can no longer be cared for, the options for disposition are limited and cost prohibitive. While landfills have the option of accepting animal carcasses, few choose to and they come with strict requirements including an appointment to bring the carcass, a veterinary certificate indicating that the animal did not succumb to an infectious disease, and payment of special charges for heavy equipment and operators. These costs can easily add up to $300 per horse carcass. That is added to the cost of euthanasia, which if done by a licensed veterinarian costs $150 and up. Then the animal must be transported from its’ location to the landfill, which can cost from $180 to $220. On-sight burial requires heavy equipment and a permit the Public Regulatory Commission, with unknown impacts to water quality. Selling unwanted or feral horses presents an entirely different set of problems. According to the GAO report, the price of horses has dropped dramatically since 2007 because there is little salvage value due to limited options for marketing. Many auction markets will not even accept horses and most of those who do will accept only those that are in healthy condition. The markets that do accept horses in lesser condition find that they soon are the recipients of numerous horses that are left, often in the dead of night which places a greater burden on limited Livestock Board resources. Horses that go through auction markets that are not purchased as working or pleasure horses are destined for slaughter plants in Mexico. Those animals are loaded onto trailers averaging 30 head or more and trucked to the Mexico border. There they are unloaded and put on another truck to cross the international border. They are unloaded and put on yet another truck to travel

up to 17 hours into the interior of Mexico for slaughter. Once the animals cross into Mexico, they are not subject to any US oversight and many of these plants are not subject to inspections. Mexico will not accept intact studs (males) or pregnant mares. Feral or unwanted studs must be castrated, which if done by a veterinarian, can cost $300 per head. If not done by a veterinarian, there are sanitary and recovery time issues. Mares are often allowed to foal, with the offspring left behind when shipped. Numerous unwanted horses are merely hauled to an open space — including private, federal, tribal or state lands. There they are either turned loose to fend for themselves or perhaps

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shot on-sight. These horses create grave concern for livestock owners and managers due to the potential for disease transmission. Individual reports are that horses are routinely abandoned on tribal lands near Albuquerque leaving the tribes to deal with disposal. Because of New Mexico’s border with Mexico, the state is recipient of unwanted horses from the entire nation. This compounds the number of horses in distress that New Mexico is home to. There are numerous other facets to the current unwanted or feral horse problem that will require more in-depth consideration. Under the current drought with little water and forage available horses are doing an incredible amount of resource damage. Horse hooves have an entirely different impact on the ground the travel than cloven hoofed animals, compacting the soil rather than breaking it. Horses are also in competition with oth-

er domestic livestock and wildife for scare resources. On the subject of animal cruelty investigations, New Mexico statistics follow the results found by the GAO. The New Mexico Livestock Board reports the following animal cruelty investigations from 2004 to present. The vast majority of these were horses. Not all of the investigations were founded, but required time and resources none the less. 2004 – 53 2006 – 56 2008 – 117 2010 – 90

2005 – 38 2007 – 41 2009 – 128 July 2011 to Mar 2012 – 91

The Board changed over to fiscal year statistics in 2011, so this number is skewed because the first 6 months of 2011 are not reported. The estimated calendar year number for 2011 would be well over 100. continued on page twelve

Farm Credit Bank of Texas Reports Solid Earnings and Asset Growth arm Credit Bank of Texas (FCBT), a wholesale funding bank, reported an increase in loan volume during the first quarter of 2012. The bank’s gross loan portfolio totaled $10.6 billion at March 31, 2012, up 3.3 percent since Dec. 31, 2011. This growth was attributed primarily to increases in the bank’s participations loan portfolio, offset by a decrease in the bank’s direct loans to its affiliated lending cooperatives. The quality of the loan portfolio also improved, with 93.8 percent of total loans classified as acceptable or other assets especially mentioned at March 31, 2012, compared with 91.2 percent at Dec. 31, 2011. Nonaccrual loan volume decreased 13.1 percent during the quarter to $89.2 million at March 31, 2012. FCBT net income for the first three months of 2012 was $34.2 million, a decrease of 18.1

percent from the same period of 2011. The decrease was mainly attributable to a decrease in net interest income, due primarily to concession expenses on debt that was called and replaced with lower-cost debt, and to an increase in provision for credit losses. “Farm Credit Bank of Texas is pleased to report solid earnings and growth in our loan portfolio during this sluggish period for the financial sector,” said Larry Doyle, FCBT chief executive officer. “Although many farmers and ranchers are still feeling the impact of last year’s drought as well as higher operating costs this year, agriculture remains a bright spot in the nation’s economy,” added FCBT Board Chairman Jimmy Dodson. Shareholders’ equity totaled $1.2 billion at March 31, 2012, an increase of 2.8 percent.

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Livestock Market Digest

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Book Review

By Caren Cowan

Hard Country BY MICHAEL MCGARRITY • ISBN number: 978-0-525-95246-6 ON SALE MAY 10, 2012

vid readers of mystery and Western lore have long enjoyed the ventures of Kevin Kerney in modern day New Mexico which provide a tremendous view of the landscapes and the issues that Westerners face today through his eyes. Hard Country goes back in time to begin the story of how Kerney’s family came to ranch in the Land of Enchantment. The story vividly captures the hardships and challenges of John Kerney becoming a father and widower and losing a brother and nephew all in the same day. The epic that follows trails Kerney as he abandons his struggling West Texas ranch to find

the killers. That journey takes him to the far corners of the New Mexico Territory in the late 1800s and leads to settlement in the vast lands west of the Sacramento Mountains. That region is home not only to the Mescalero Apache Tribe, but to many of the legends that shaped New Mexico as it gained entry into the Union. Michael McGarrity skillfully weaves all of that into Hard Country. The depth of reality in both geography and history demonstrate the care which McGarrity has taken to research all facets of the times and area greatly adds to the enjoyment of the book Along the way to avenging his brother’s family, Kerney lost and then found his son, developed life-long friendships and founded a ranch that would carry generations forward. Hard Country exceeds those Western history novels that preceed it. Not only is it a tale of the West, but the story explores the tri-culture, personal character and relationships that built the West, ranging from single parenthood and divided homes to living with the vagaries of Mother Nature. Hard Country leaves the reader anxious for more about how Emma Kerney, John’s daughter-in-law, who suffered her own trials and tribulations before marrying into the family. Emma and her sons hold the reins of the Kerney ranch and future as the as the first of the trilogy concludes in the early 1900s. It is a book that is hard to put down and definitely worth reading.

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May 15, 2012

Equine Welfare Since the USDA stopped inspection at horse slaughter plans in the U.S. in 2007, New Mexico’s cruelty investigations have doubled on an annual. Because of the varied nature of these investigations, it is impossible to provide a cost to the Livestock Board and the ranchers in New Mexico who fund the Board through inspections and mill levys even though the investigations are on behalf of all New Mexicans. That GAO report entitled HORSE WELFARE: Action Needed to Address Unintended Consequences from Cessation of Domestic Slaughter was published in June 2011 and can be located at: http://www.gao.gov/ new.items/d11228.pdf . In brief here is the object of the report and findings on cruelty. Since fiscal year 2006, Congress has annually prohibited the use of federal funds to inspect horses destined for food, effectively prohibiting domestic slaughter. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is responsible for overseeing the welfare of horses transported for slaughter. In 2007, Congress directed GAO to examine horse welfare since cessation of domestic slaughter. GAO examined (1) the effect on the U.S. horse market, if any, since cessation; (2) any impact of these market changes on horse welfare and on states, local governments, tribes, and animal welfare organizations; and (3) challenges, if any, to USDA’s oversight of the transport and welfare of U.S. horses exported for slaughter. GAO

Riding Herd saved Yosemite.” “You may not want to believe it but I assure you it’s true. I just finished reading a book about Muir. He was an accomplished man and besides founding the Sierra Club he invented a wooden alarm clock that would tip you out of bed at the desired hour. But where he really made his money was as a rancher. You know, just like me.” She turned scarlet, which did not go well with her green outfit, and tried to evade me but I followed her to paper products. I did my best impression of a chainsaw before saying, “Muir was quite a capitalist, you know? He actually invented another machine that made 2,500 broom handles a day. But I’m sure you know all this because you have his face emblazoned across your body. Just imagine, John Muir made his money herding cows so he could one day start the Sierra Club.” Again, she wheeled her cart away and I didn't run into her again until she tried to run into me. Literally. She was in pet foods buying bird seed for her feathered friends. “I’m sure you know that John James Audubon’s family in America owned a lead mine where they mined lead for

continued from page eleven

analyzed horse price and shipping data, and interviewed officials from USDA, state and local governments, tribes, the livestock industry, and animal welfare organizations, and reviewed documents they provided.” GAO found that since domestic horse slaughter ceased in 2007, the slaughter horse market has shifted to Canada and Mexico. From 2006 through 2010, U.S. horse exports for slaughter increased by 148 and 660 percent to Canada and Mexico, respectively. As a result, nearly the same number of U.S. horses was transported to Canada and Mexico for slaughter in 2010 — nearly 138,000 — as was slaughtered before domestic slaughter ceased in the U.S. Comprehensive, national data are lacking, but state, local government, and animal welfare organizations report a rise in investigations for horse neglect and more abandoned horses since 2007. For example, Colorado data showed that investigations for horse neglect and abuse increased more than 60 percent from 975 in 2005 to 1,588 in 2009. Also, California, Texas, and Florida reported more horses abandoned on private or state land since 2007. These changes have strained resources, according to state data and officials that GAO interviewed. USDA faces three broad challenges in overseeing the welfare of horses during transport to slaughter. First, among other management challenges, the current transport regulation only applies to horses transported directly to slaughtering facilities.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE

bullets?” (Here I did my great impression of a Thompson machine gun!) Then I really laid it on: “Audubon was quite a hunter and fisherman too?” “No, he painted birds, he didn’t sh-sh-shoot them,” she raged at me. “Before he painted them he shot them from the sky. You didn’t think he got such great detail by observing them through a looking glass, did you? He was also a taxidermist and created his own nature museum of a variety of dead animals that he killed.” By now I was only talking to myself as my greenie friend left her loaded cart in the store and ran outside. Too bad too because I also wanted to tell her that Al Gore, the father of Global Warming and the man who said gassy cows caused it, was the son of a cattle breeder himself, and that Bruce Babbitt, the man who tried to run ranchers out of business, came from one of the great ranching families in America. But I got the impression she really didn’t want to hear any more about her Gods of Green. So I took the fudge bars from her abandoned cart and rushed them home to my freezer before they began to melt. Global warming, you know?

“America’s Favorite Livestock Newspaper”

May 15, 2012

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DNA: an arriving tool for beef cattle ight now, it’s hard to imagine how future tools will change the beef cowherd.

Today, heifer development costs are high and getting higher as ranch profit goals demand efficiency while consumers want quality. DNA technology is one of the emerging solutions for beef production, in line with the role it has played in agronomy. “It takes so much time to develop a herd of cattle — a lifetime, honestly — that’s designed to be feed-efficient or have high

reproduction,” says Cody Jorgensen, of Jorgensen Land and Cattle, Ideal, So.Dak. “The more knowledge you have about DNA to help you make the right decision, the better.” His family has DNA-tested standout Angus bulls and donor cows for years, but he plans to step it up a notch this fall. “It’s going to be a tremendous tool to add, along with the quantitative genetic research that we do,” Jorgensen says. And although the registered cattle world will be quicker to use the tool, he says the new lower-density, lower-cost tests “could impact commercial cattle heavily.”

“Data is a power,” he says. “You get a lot of cost and time and energy stuck into a bred female, and every day that it may be in the wrong group, it’s very expensive. If a guy knew early in a calf’s life if it had the abilities we want, it would definitely improve the costs of raising replacement heifers.” Larry Kuehn, geneticist at the USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center, Neb., says DNA is the best forecasting tool available right now for young calves. “It basically helps you skip time,” he says. “You’re trying to

The Pollution Solution y far the most common response to providing air quality control has been command-andcontrol regulations where the government decides what actions shall be taken by individuals and organizations to meet the environmental objective and enforces them with its police powers, says Gary D. Libecap of the Hoover Institution. There are several fundamental problems with this approach that limit its effectiveness and exacerbate its negative impacts. Regulators do not have the information required to set a cap on the right amount of air pollution, and this lends itself to inefficient regulatory actions. Furthermore, because regulators do not have the correct information, they typically mandate uniform technologies or performance standards for all parties that inhibit flexibility and retard market forces’ adaptability. Finally, because the ultimate decision usually lies with an agency expert, it is susceptible to manipulation by those with a vested interest and political inroads. An alternative form of environmental regulation that maximizes flexibility for market participants is a cap-and-trade system that allows strong property rights on issued permits. The way this works is that, in the case of air pollu-

tion, the total annual amount of allowable emissions is set by a regulator. The regulator subsequently issues permits to firms in the market that they can trade in to allow a given amount of emissions. This is the limit of the agency’s participation in the regulation — the market will then adapt as firms seek to reduce their emissions levels. The total number of allowable emission shares can be reduced each year until the desired cap or pollution objective is met. Crucially, firms can trade permits, allowing those with high pollution control costs to buy shares from others that have lower control costs. By placing the ball in the court of the firms and providing them ample flexibility in meeting emissions standards, the incentive to protect the environment is internalized into the firm’s decision making. Regulation through this mechanism captures the inherent creativity and innovativeness of the market to meet emissions goals: firms that can create new, emissions-reducing technologies will be rewarded, while those with little interest in that endeavor can simply pay for additional permits.

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New Report: Global Warming Policies Might Be Bad For Your Health olicies to reduce global warming may be doing more harm than good to public health in both developing and industrialised countries. This is the conclusion of a new report published by the Global Warming Policy Foundation. In his report, Dr. Indur Goklany, a leading expert on human health and climate change, shows that ■ Global warming does not currently rank among the top public health threats; ■ The contribution of muchpublicized ‘Extreme Weather Events’ to global mortality is negligible and declining; ■ Poverty is a much larger public health threat than global warming; ■ Present climate policies are already adding to death and disease; and ■ Focused adaptation to climate change and/or economic development would provide greater health benefits at lower costs than climate mitigation policies. The report warns that exag-

increase your accuracy earlier. It’s potentially cheaper to pay for a test to increase accuracy when a bull is born, for example, versus waiting for it to be ultrasounded itself, and especially waiting for it to be progeny-tested.” The technology has gotten better and cheaper in the last five years, says Bill Bowman, American Angus Association COO and president of Angus Genetics Inc. “With some of the very early DNA tests, we were using individual genes or individual markers and in many cases they didn’t account for very much of the genetic variations.” Researchers streamlined the process when they began looking at changes in the DNA sequence — or “snips” (from singlenucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs) — and how they impact specific traits. That’s when the 50K tests were born, looking at 50,000 of these snips. Scientists hope that even higher-density tests and genome

gerating the impact of global warming on human health seriously risks misdirecting the world’s priorities and resources in combating poverty and improving public health. “Climate policies that hinder or slow down economic development or increase the price of energy and food threaten to augment poverty and, as a result, increase net death and disease,” Dr Goklany said. The increase in biofuel production between 2004 and 2010, for example, is estimated to have increased the population in absolute poverty in the developing world by over 35 million, leading to about 200,000 additional deaths in 2010 alone. “Focused adaptation designed to reduce vulnerability more broadly to today’s urgent health problems would deliver greater reductions in deaths at a lower cost than climate mitigation policies,” Dr Goklany added. A full copy of the report is available at: http://thegwpf.org/ images/stories/gwpfreports/goklany-public_health.pdf.

continued on page fourteen

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sequencing will allow them to find “functional mutations,” the specific points of differentiation from one animal to another. That will be important in trying to apply DNA tests across breeds, Kuehn says. The accuracy of the high-density tests improves confidence in more basic, less-expensive ones that draw on a reduced number of snips. An example is GeneMax®, from Certified Angus Beef LLC, that evaluates gain and grade potential in commercial Angus cattle. Today, DNA works especially well in predicting carcass traits. “The genetic correlations derived at AGI suggest that 30 percent to 40 percent of the variation within a given carcass EPD is explained by available genomic tests,” Kuehn says, adding that there are other profit-related traits of interest as well. Reproduction, longevity and animal

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Livestock Market Digest

Page 14

T HE L I V E S T O C K M A R K E T D I G E S T

Real Estate GUIDE

New Mexico/ West Texas Ranches

INTEREST RATES AS LOW AS 3%. PAYMENTS SCHEDULED ON 25 YEARS

Campo Bonito, LLC RANCH SALES P.O. Box 1077 • Ft. Davis, Texas 79734

NEED RANCH LEASES & PASTURE FOR 2012 & 2013 DAVID P. DEAN Ranch: 432/426-3779 • Mob.: 432/634-0441 www.availableranches.com

JOE STUBBLEFIELD & ASSOCIATES 13830 Western St., Amarillo, TX • 806/622-3482 Cell 806/674-2062 • joe3@suddenlink.net Michael Perez Assocs Nara Visa, NM • 575/403-7970

May 15, 2012

TEXAS & OKLA. FARMS & RANCHES • 735 acres Paris, Texas, excellent pasture, paved road frontage, huge lake, mansion home. $2,750,000. • 274 acres in the shadow of Dallas. Secluded lakes, trees, excellent grass. Hunting & fishing, dream home sites. $3,550/ac. Can add 300 more acres, only 30 miles out of Dallas. • 1,700-acre classic NE TX cattle & hunting ranch. $2,750/ac. Some mineral production. • 256 Acre Texas Jewel – Deep sandy soil, highrolling hills, scattered good quality trees, & excellent improved grasses. Water line on 2 sides rd., frontage on 2 sides, fenced into 5 pastures, 5 spring fed tanks and lakes, deer, hogs & ducks. Near Tyler & Athens. Price $1,920,000. Make us an offer! • 146 horse, hunting cattle ranch N. of Clarksville, TX. Red River Co. nice brick home, 2 barns, pipe fences, good deer, hogs, ducks, hunting. PRICE REDUCED to $375,000. • 535 ac. Limestone, Fallas, & Robertson counties, fronts on Hwy. 14 and has rail frontage water line, to ranch, fenced into 5 pastures, 2 sets, cattle pens, loamy soil, good quality trees, hogs, and deer hunting. Priced reduced to $1,750 per ac. • 10 Wooded Acres with a 6-bedroom, 3.5 bath and a 2-car garage and shop for $199,000. • 134 acres Wortham, Texas, $1,750/ac. Hunting and cattle. Fronts FM Hwy.

Joe Priest Real Estate 1205 N. Hwy 175, Seagoville, TX 75159

Jake Marbach, Broker

972/287-4548 • 214/676-6973 1-800/671-4548

Farm, Ranch, Residential

joepriestre.net joepriestre@earthlink.com

DNA: an arriving tool health top the wish list. “Just a few percentage changes in fertility would have a much higher impact in wholesystem profitability than most of these carcass measures we’re talking about,” he says. The Angus breed is working on measuring longevity and survivability currently. “Once you get data and ways to measure traits like that, then a DNA test is soon to follow,” Bowman says. Jorgensen dreams of a system similar to what has shaped the crop side of their business. “If we could genetically select for all the things that challenge us — if that’s the fescue grass or the elevation — if we could understand DNA that could handle that type of environment or that was resistant to respiratory disease — just imagine that. It would be a game changer.” E. coli resistance. Fertility. Ability to handle “hot” rations.

EACH AGENCY IS INDIVIDUALLY OWNED AND OPERATED

Associated Professionals, Inc. 1205 West Pierce Street, Carlsbad, NM 88220 Business 575/885-9722 • Cellular: 575/706-4533 Fax: 575/885-1358 • Email: marbachhay@live.com

Selling New Mexico

LLC

■ 675 Ac. Grass Runway, Land your own plane: Major Price Reduction. 3-br, 2ba home down 1 mile private land. New 40x42 shop, 40x60 livestock barn, over 450 ac. in grass. (Owner runs over 150 cow/calves, 2 springs, 20 ponds, 2 lakes, consisting of 3.5 and 2 ac. Both stocked with fish. Excellent fencing. A must farm to see. MSL #1112191 ■ NEW LISTING, 327 ACRES: Cattle/horse ranch. Over 225 acres in grass. 3/4 mile State Hwy. frontage. Live water, 60x80 multi-function barn. 2-bedroom, 1-bath rock home. Priced to sell at $1,620 per acre. MLS #1204641

See all my listings at: paulmcgilliard.murney.com

PAUL McGILLIARD Cell: 417/839-5096 1-800/743-0336 MURNEY ASSOC., REALTORS SPRINGFIELD, MO 65804

TOM SIDWELL Associate Broker

We may not be the biggest, the fanciest or the oldest but we are reliable and have the tools.

4,408± Deeded acres with 328± State Lease. Ranch is located 21 miles west of Tucumcari, N.M. Well-improved ranch, 2,000 sq. ft. home, 2 sets of pens, one with scales, 4 wells. This is a beautiful Mesa Ranch, with your own mesa and lower country. Nice ranch. Price: $1,608,920

Agrilands REAL ESTATE

RANCH & FARM REAL ESTATE

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Farms & Ranches

O: 575/461-4426 • C: 575/403-7138 • F: 575/461-8422 • E: nmpg@plateautel.net www.newmexicopg.com • 615 West Rt. 66, Tucumcari, NM 88401

■ 483 Ac., Hunter Mania: Nature at her best. Don’t miss out on this one. Live water (two creeks). 70+ acres open in bottom hayfields and upland grazing. Lots of timber (marketable and young) for the best hunting and fishing (Table Rock, Taney Como and Bull Shoals Lake) Really cute 3-bd., 1-ba stone home. Secluded yes, but easy access to Forsyth-Branson, Ozark and Springfield. Property joins National Forest. MLS#1108090

Place your Real Estate ad in the 2012 FME

Tests for these traits are all on the horizon. “Any places we can increase efficiency by selling one more calf, because we have one more fertile female,” Kuehn says, “or have one more calf sold for slaughter because he made it through the feedlot without respiratory disease, or fewer foodborne pathogens are advantageous — those sorts of changes are a boon for the industry in terms of perception and environmental footprint.” Jorgensen has been pulling DNA samples for their files, “just in case” they want to analyze them. “It’s not like the poultry or swine business where they can do 2.4 turns per year,” he says. “You just can’t make that much progress in a year’s time. It’s critical to know whether those cattle will do it or not.” It matters to individual ranchers and to those further down the beef production chain. “Meat demand is not going down, especially worldwide, Kuehn says. “It’ll take focus if we’re going to keep beef competitive to other protein sources.”

REAL ESTATE COMPANY RICHARD RANDALS Qualifying Broker

Missouri Land Sales

continued from page thirteen

Ben G. Scott & Krystal M. Nelson, Brokers 1301 Front St., Dimmitt, TX 79027 1-800/933-9698 day/night ➤ www.scottlandcompany.com ➤ www.texascrp.com

541/473-3100 JACK HORTON www.agrilandsrealestate.com

ATTENTION LAND OWNERS: We have sold ranches and other related properties in the Southwestern United States since 1966. We advertise extensively and need your listings (especially larger ranches). See our websites and please give us a call to discuss the listing of your property. We have a 1031 Buyer for a $2,225,000± ranch in Central, Southern or North Texas, Western and Central Oklahoma.

w w w . a a a l i v e s t o c k . c o m

JU-Ranch 30,148 Acres 20 Miles South of Elida, NM · 6,520 Deeded Acres · 14,988 State Lease Acres · 8,640 BLM Acres · 650 Animal Units Year Long · 1/ 2 sand country, 1/ 2 hard country · Good water; windmills & submergible tanks · Extensive pipeline system · Modest improvements for living quarters

Arroyo Sanchez Ranch: Villanueva, N.M.: ±2,000 acres has 160 deeded acres and a huge New Mexico state grazing lease. Partially fenced, several good dirt tanks, one pipeline drinker and good pasture grasses. Price is $398,750. Sombrero Ranch, Trujillo, N.M.: 1,442 deeded acres has 2 pastures on Hwy. 84 S of Trujillo. Perimeter fenced, 3 good cold water wells, 2 dirt tanks and springs in the coolie. This has been a successful 30 cow/calf operation for many years. $445 per acre. Apache Mesa Ranch Parcels, Las Vegas, N.M.: 120 acres and one 64 acre view parcel located on Apache Mesa Rimrock are priced $140,000 and $79,000. 120 acre parcel is perimeter fenced and has two good tanks.

Ribera, N.M.: 77 tall pine covered acres has 50 gpm and 10 gpm water wells, drill pipe fence, good CR access, gated. Close to National Forest. Priced at $374,900

MR.COWMAN!

Apache Springs, N.M.: Moon Dance Ranch 140 acre parcel has good access, overhead electric on site. Located off Hwy. 84 SW of Las Vegas. Great views of Apache Mesa! Price is $119,900.

Come to Our Country!

CALL FOR PRICE

Charles Bennett • 575/356-5616 www.vista-nueva.com

Coletta Ray • 575/799-9600 • coletta@plateautel.net 2504 Ashford Dr., Clovis, NM 88101 Office 575/762-4200 • Fax 575/762-4999 www.clovisrealestatesales.com

Ledoux, N.M.: 65-acre dry land terraced farm is perimeter fenced, has overhead electric on site. Past crops are winter wheat, spring oats, alfalfa, barley and feed grasses. ~7 acres is sub-irrigated. Located 1/2-mile north of Ledoux. Great views and easy access. Price is $270,000

Wind Farm potential on an 1,100-acre parcel coming soon . . .

UNITED COUNTRY VISTA NUEVA, INC.

320 acres approx 10 miles north of Clovis, N.M. 2 irrigation wells with no pumps. Wells are not guaranteed, but the wells are registered with the state engineer. Leased until December 31, 2012. $178,000. Call Coletta 575-799-9600.

KEN AHLER REAL ESTATE CO., INC. 1435 S. St. Francis Drive, Suite 210, Santa Fe, NM 87505 Ofc.: 505/989-7573 • Toll Free: 888/989-7573 • Mobile: 505/490-0220 Email: kahler@newmexico.com • Website: www.SantaFeLand.com

WORKING COW and HORSE RANCHES CUT OVER TIMBER LAND, LAKES and STREAMS Write or call for free publication:

CASCADE REAL ESTATE 10886 Hwy. 62 • Eagle Point, OR 97524

1-800/343-4165 E-mail: deuprees@yahoo.com

“America’s Favorite Livestock Newspaper”

May 15, 2012

Climate change alarmist recants: ‘I made a mistake’ ritish environmental expert James Lovelock now admits he was an “alarmist” regarding global warming — and says Al Gore was too. Lovelock previously worked for NASA and became a guru to the environmental movement with his “Gaia” theory of the Earth as a single organism. In 2007 Time magazine named Lovelock one of its “Heroes of the Environment,” and he won the Geological Society of London’s Wollaston Medal in 2006 for his writings on the Gaia theory. That year he wrote an article in a British newspaper asserting

that “before this century is over billions of us will die and the few breeding pairs of people that survive will be in the Arctic where the climate remains tolerable.” But in an interview this week with MSNBC, Lovelock said a book he is now writing will reflect his new opinion that global warming has not occurred as he had expected. “The problem is we don’t know what the climate is doing,” he said. “We thought we knew 20 years ago. That led to some alarmist books — mine included — because it looked clear-cut, but it hasn’t happened. “The climate is doing its usual

Payoff for efficient cars takes years acing rising gas prices, American auto consumers are increasingly flocking to hybrids and plug-in cars as a means to escape the financial pain. However, studies incorporating mileage performance and costs associated with different models suggest that many of these options do not yield sufficient savings to justify the upfront price premium, says the New York Times. Consumer patterns in car use and reasonable expectations of future gas prices suggest strongly that many of these models would have to be driven for many years before purchasers would break even. ■ The average consumer drives a new vehicle for six years. ■ Yet if gas cost $4 a gallon, TrueCar data estimates that the payback period for a hybrid Ford Fusion over the conventional Fusion would be eight and a half years. ■ Similarly, a buyer who chose the plug-in Nissan Leaf instead of a conventional Nissan Versa would need to drive it for almost nine years at today’s gas prices in order to eclipse the $10,000 difference in price. ■ For many models, gas would have to approach $8 a gallon before they could be expected to pay off in the six-year average window.

The reality of these disappointing statistics likely explains many of the mixed results that the new fleet of vehicles has seen in the market. ■ Though hybrid sales have surged more than 60 percent this year, they still account for less than 3 percent of the total market. ■ Plug-in cars represent a minuscule fraction of sales, and General Motors even halted production of the Chevrolet Volt in response to less demand than it expected. ■ The Lundberg Survey, which tracks fuel prices, said in March that gas prices would need to reach $12.50 a gallon and $8.53 a gallon for the plug-in Volt and Leaf, respectively, to make sense purely on financial terms. Still, market analysts are quick to point out two important caveats. First, the starkness of the figures involved is not a perfect science — gas prices may vary substantially in the near future or consumer driving habits may exceed assumed levels. Second, demand for plug-ins and hybrids is not determined entirely by financial sense, as some consumers accept the price premium in the name of benefitting the environment. Source: Nick Bunkley, “Payoff for Efficient Cars Takes Years,” New York Times, April 4, 2012.

June 26 Mescalero Reservation Range and Forest Field Trip

t DigesClassifieds To place your Digest Classified ad here, contact CAREN COWAN at caren@aaalivestock.com or by phone at 505/243-9515, ext. 21

Equipment

Auction Schools COME TRAIN WITH THE CHAMPIONS. Join the financially rewarding world of auctioneering. World Wide College of Auctioneering. Free catalog. 1-800/423-5242, www.worldwidecollegeofauctioneering.com. BE AN AUCTIONEER – Missouri Auction School, world’s largest since 1905. Free CD and catalog. Call toll-free 1-800/8351955, ext. 5. www.auctionschool.com. LEARN AUCTIONEERING for the 2000s! Nashville Auction School “Free Catalog” 800/543-7061, learntoauction.com, 112 W. Lauderdale St., Tullahoma, TN 37388.

Equipment POWDER RIVER LIVESTOCK EQUIPMENT. Best prices with delivery available. CONLIN SUPPLY CO. INC., Oakdale, CA. 209/847-8977. SALT CREEK HYDRAULIC CHUTE with scale and Honda hydraulic pump $10,000, 530/681-5046. NEW HOLLAND pull type bale wagons: 1033, 104 bales, $5,100; 1034, 104 bales, unloads both ways, $4,400; 1044, 120 bales, $3,700; 1063, 160 bales, $10,800; 1010, 56 bales, $1,200. Also have self propelled wagons. Delivery available. 785/ 336-6103, www.roederimp.com.

KADDATZ Auctioneering and Farm Equipment Sales

New and used tractors, equipment, and parts. Salvage yard, combines, tractors, hay equipment and all types of equipment parts. ORDER PARTS ONLINE.

www.kaddatzequipment.com • 254/582-3000

Rodent Control BLACK-TAILED PRAIRIE DOG PROBLEMS? Don’t risk having to do it over again with ineffective products. Rozol Prairie Dog Bait is a restricted-use pesticide approved for use by state certified applicators on blacktailed prairie dogs in CO, KS, ND, NE, NM, OK, SD, TX and WY. Made with food-grade winter wheat, a preferred food source, to ensure quick rodent acceptance and control. No pre-baiting required. Proven in university trials on over 11,000 burrows to provide over 94% control in a single application. For use in-burrow only. It is the responsibility of the user to read and follow all label directions. Protect your range and pastureland from damage with Rozol. For info call: 888-331-7900 or visit www.rodent-control.com

g•u•i•d•e To list your herd, call CAREN COWAN at call 505/243-9515, ext. 21, or email caren@aaalivestock.com

BRANGUS

RED ANGUS

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Bell Key Angus Dennis Boehlke 208/467-2747 Cell. 208/989-1612

A few Choice Bulls Available at Private Treaty. NAMPA, IDAHO

Bradley 3 Ranch Ltd.

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A SOURCE FOR PROVEN SUPERIOR RED ANGUS GENETICS 14298 N. Atkins Rd., Lodi, CA 95240

209/727-3335

HEREFORD

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HEREFORDS

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at the Ranch NE of Estelline, TX

Washington’s Oldest Source of Herefords “SINCE 1938”

HERD ESTABLISHED 1953

SELLING RANGE BULLS IN VOLUME (TOP REPLACEMENT HEIFERS)

See our ad in the April issue!

CLAY SCHUSTER • shuster@gorge.net 509/773-6051 Home • 541/980-7464 Cell GOLDENDALE, WA 99620

Call: 979/245-5100 • Fax 979/244-4383 5473 FM 457, Bay City, Texas 77414 dwendt@1skyconnect.net

Ranch-Raised ANGUS Bulls for Ranchers Since 1955

M.L. Bradley 806/888-1062 Fax: 806/888-1010 • Cell: 940/585-6471

Santa Gertrudis Cattle Polled and Horned

Our Next Bull Sale: February 16, 2013

forest and range field trip is planned for Tuesday, June 26, 2012 to coincide with summer meetings of the New Mexico Cattle Growers and the New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts. The tour leaves from the front entrance of the Inn of the Mountain Gods near Ruidoso at 1 p.m. and returns by 5 p.m. Led by Dan Abercrombie of the Mescalero Apache Department of Resource Management, the trip will feature forest thinning projects and watershed management plans. Groundwater well and solar pump systems will also be included. This tour is part of an initiative for regional range resource management tours sponsored by the New Mexico section of the Society for Range Management and the the New Mexico Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative to look at rangeland improvement projects around the state. For more details and information contact Dan Abercrombie (dan@ mescalerodrmp.net) or Tony Benson (benson1@newmex.com)

tricks. There’s nothing much really happening yet. We were supposed to be halfway toward a frying world now. “The world has not warmed up very much since the millennium. Twelve years is a reasonable time. [The temperature] has stayed almost constant, whereas it should have been rising. Carbon dioxide is rising, no question about that. “We will have global warming, but it’s been deferred a bit.” MSNBC reported: “He pointed to Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth and Tim Flannery’s The Weather Makers as other examples of ‘alarmist’ forecasts of the future.” Lovelock also declared in the interview that “as an independent and a loner,” he did not mind saying, “All right, I made a mistake,” adding that university or government scientists might fear that admission of such a mistake could jeopardize their funding. In response to Lovelock’s interview, the Climate Depot website stated: “MSNBC, perhaps the most unlikely of news sources, reports on what may be seen as the official end of the manmade global warming fear movement.”

Page 15

Livestock Market Digest

Page 16

Mesalands Rodeo Team smashes another national record and brings home the regional championship t’s official, the Mesalands Community College Men’s Rodeo Team clinched the Grand Canyon Regional Championship title, for the second consecutive year, at the rodeo at New Mexico State University (NMSU) in Las Cruces, NM last weekend. The Women’s Team also had their best year, finishing second in the region with 3,801.50 points. The Men’s Team recently broke their own National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA) record this season, by earning 1,357.5 points in Crownpoint, the most points earned at a single rodeo. The Men’s Team has done it again and set another national record for the most points earned during a single season, with a total of 9,707.5 points earned this season. “We beat the record close to 1,000 points. The national office is still auditing the points, but going into the last rodeo we only needed 7.5 points to beat the national record,” C.J. Aragon, Intercollegiate Rodeo Coach at Mesalands said. Last year was the first time in

the program’s history, that the College won a regional championship title, ending NMSU’s eight-year winning streak. Winning the regional title two-years in a row demonstrates how remarkable the Mesalands Rodeo Team has performed and improved over the years. “It’s pretty nice to be able to defend our Team title. Many people might have thought we were just lucky last year, but after winning two years in a row in a pretty convincing fashion, it legitimizes our Team and our rankings as the current number one team in the nation,” Aragon said. In Las Cruces, the Men’s Team finished in first place with 1,025 points and brought home four individual championship titles. The Women’s Team took second place with 480 points and won one championship title. Freshmen Macy Fuller, from Clarkston Wash., has led the Mesalands Women’s Team this season. Fuller took the championship title in the team roping, heading for fellow teammate Daniel

News With A View & A Whole Lot More . . . THE most effective advertising medium in ranching today!

f you have livestock, a product or service that stockmen and their families need, they will find out about it quickly if you advertise in the Digest. Digest readers know value when they see it and they respond rapidly to a good offer. Before you plan your advertising budget, think hard about how to stretch your dollars and where they are spent the most efficiently. Are you paying more to reach fewer qualified potential customers than you would receive in the Digest? The Digest’s circulation is concentrated in the most important livestock producing states: Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Idaho, California, Oregon, Washington and Texas. The Digest caters to the most active readers in the livestock world — who ARE the buyers and sellers of livestock, the ones who show up and speak up. It is the ONLY place to get Lee Pitts’ perspective on the world and how we are going to thrive into the future.

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To plan your advertising, contact Caren Cowan at: caren@aaalivestock.com or 505/243-9515, ext. 21

On the web at www.nmagriculture.org

Munoz-Boezi from Chihuahua, Mexico. Fuller also finished second in the Women’s All-Around, and fifth in the barrel racing. As the top female rodeo recruit last year, Fuller has performed as expected this season. Fuller finished first in the region in the Women’s AllAround, second in goat tying, third in breakaway roping, fourth in the team roping (header), event and eighth in barrel racing. “It’s difficult because I ride four horses and I have six horses here that I have to keep in shape. It’s especially hard to focus when your mind is racing around about team roping, breakaway, goat tying, and then turn around and get on a barrel horse. You just have to stay focused,” Fuller said. “I feel pretty good about my performance this spring. In the fall I didn’t really have any points in any events, so I had to make those up this semester. This year has been a great experience.” Nationally, Fuller is currently ranked first in the Women’s AllAround, 10th in goat tying, and 20th in the breakaway event.

May 15, 2012 Sophomore Fran Marchand of Omak, WA has consistently performed well this season. Last weekend Marchand won two individual championship titles, the Men’s All-Around and the bareback riding title. He also finished fourth in the saddle bronc riding. Marchand finished the season first in the region in the Men’s All-Around and first in the bull riding and took third in bareback riding and saddle bronc riding. He is also currently leading the nation in the Men’s All-Around, fifth in bull riding, 10th in saddle bronc riding, and 15th in the nation in bareback riding. Freshman Jordan Minor of Navasota, Texas also shined this season finishing first in the region in the tie down roping. Minor is currently ranked 15th in the nation in tie down roping. Other individual regional yearend standings include: Christian Stremler, 2nd Saddle Bronc Riding; Ty Nuffer, 4th Saddle Bronc Riding; Chase Massengill, 2nd Steer Wrestling, 4th place in Men’s All-Around, 8th place in Tie Down Roping, 12th place in Team Roping Header; Austin Woods, 5th place in Steer Wrestling, 9th place in

Republicans vote against Obama’s nominee for assistant secretary of the Interior Department by ROD BOYCE, newsminer.com

anking Republican U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, Alaska, led the her party in voting against allowing President Obama’s nominee for assistant secretary of the Interior Department to proceed to the full Senate for a confirmation vote in late April. The nomination of Marcilynn Burke as assistant secretary for lands and minerals was in front of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Burke has been serving in that position in an acting capacity, pending confirmation. Murkowski said she objected to the Burke’s past association with Defenders of Wildlife, a national organization that has filed lawsuits over Alaska wildlife issues. Murkowski also objects to Burke’s effort to consolidate the Bureau of Land Management and the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, agencies of the Interior Department. “I have concerns about Ms. Burke’s nomination from a number of standpoints, including her role in the proposed OSM-BLM consolidation and her involvement in litigation interfering in the wildlife management decisions of Alaska,” Murkowski said in a news release. “These concerns, and others, have caused me to oppose her nomination.” “The official reason given for the consolidation has been administrative efficiency but after five months of repeatedly asking for estimates on the costs and savings, we have still received nothing,” Murkowski said. “Given the generally insufficient level of communication about the consolidation, I have serious concerns about how forthcoming and collaborative Ms. Burke would be if confirmed.” The energy committee approved forwarding the nomination, with all Republicans in opposition. The nomination goes to the full Senate, where Republicans may again try to block confirmation.

Men’s All-Around, 9th place in Team Roping (Header); Cody Heffernan, 4th in Bull Riding; Adriano Long, 7th place in Bull Riding; Kody Decker, 10th place in Bull Riding; James Hayes, 12th place in Bull Riding; Jesus Gonzalez, 13th place in Bull Riding; KC Peterson, 5th place in Bareback Riding; Kit Pettigrew, 2nd place in Tie Down Roping; Hayden Moore, 3rd place Steer Wrestling; Tyler McCormick, 6th place in Steer Wrestling; Lane Wilson, 7th place in Steer Wrestling; Cody Lensman, 10th place in Steer Wrestling; Tyler Virden, 11th place in Steer Wrestling; James Ellet, 12th place in Steer Wrestling; Chaz Kananen, 7th place in Team Roping Header (Header); Daniel Munoz-Baeza, 4th place in Team Roping (Heeler); Daniel Robertson, 7th place in Team Roping (Heeler); Dillon Archuleta, 13th place in Team Roping (Heeler); Shelby Rita, 3rd place in Barrel Racing; Bailey Bates, 4th place in Breakaway Roping; Emily Woolbright; 8th place in Breakaway Roping; Meghan Fewins, 14th place in Breakaway Roping; Kelbee Cheeney, 12th place in Goat Tying.

DIGEST

Events To advertise your upcoming events here, please call Caren Cowan at 505/243-9515, ext. 21 or email caren@aaalivestock.com

May 2012 15-16 – Indian Livestock Days, Rt 66 Casino west of Albuquerque 18-19 – Navajo Equine Days, Window Rock, AZ 21-24 – ANCW 2012 Joint Region V & VI Meeting, Kohala Coast, HI

June 2012 3-8 – N.M. Youth Ranch Management Camp, Valles Caldera National Preserve 21-23 – Texas Cattle Feeders Association Summer Conference, Mescalero, NM 24-26 – Mid-Year Meeting New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Assn; New Mexico Wool Growers, Inc.; New Mexico CowBelles; New Mexico Farm & Livestock Bureau, Mescalero, N.M.

July 2012 13-14 – HMI Cows & Quail Workshop, Van Horn, TX 17-19 – Arizona Cattle Growers’ Convention, Prescott, AZ

September 2012 13-23 – New Mexico State Fair, Albuquerque, NM

November 2012 30 – Horses For Heroes Cowboy Christmas, Santa Fe, NM

December 2012 6-9 – Joint Stockmen’s Convention, Albuquerque, NM

February 2013 16 – Bradley 3 Ranch Bull Sale, Estelline, TX