CLICK HERE for the latest market quotes from the Iowa Agribusiness Network!
CLICK HERE for the latest market quotes from the Brownfield Ag News Network!
CLICK HERE for the latest market quotes from the Iowa Agribusiness Network!
CLICK HERE for the latest market quotes from the Brownfield Ag News Network!
The president of the National Pork Producers Council says pig farmers are taking a financial beating as the Trump Administration seeks to reduce the U.S. trade deficit. “The president has said he wouldn’t abandon farmers and we’ve taken him at his word, but we need him to end these trade disputes now.” That’s Jim Heimerl, an Ohio hog farmer who leads the organization. Heimerl is in Des Moines this week for the World Pork Expo. He had this message for reporters during a news conference. “I wanted to come here wearing band aides to get the point across to you, to say that, you know, we are bleeding,” Heimerl said. According to an Iowa State University analysis, hog futures have plummeted 18-dollars per head since China first proposed retaliatory tariffs.
“That’s a $2.2 billion dollar industry loss on an annualized basis,” Heimerl said. Heimerl says while that drop isn’t completely due to trade issues, it’s the dominant factor and involves more than just the impasse with China. Mexico imposed tariffs on U.S. pork this week. “Now, with Mexico’s action, the toll on rural America will mount. We need to get this fixed now. Mexico is the number two export market for pork and China is number three,” Heimerl said. “We appreciate all the trade issues the administration is balancing, but we are starting to take on water fast.” Heimerl Farms is located outside of Columbus, Ohio, and operates 140 livestock barns and a feed mill. About 20-thousand people are attending the World Pork Expo in Des Moines. A thousand of them are international visitors, representing 40 different countries.
(Radio Iowa)
The City of Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department is seeking a part-time Park Foreman. The right person will assist with the maintenance and management of the Parks and Recreation Department. For full job Description email sstaashelm@cityofatlantic.com
Salary- Part-time position at $15 an hour, 1,500 hours a year maximum.
Special Training, Certifications and Licenses:
Please send Resume with cover letter by June 18 before 5pm to:
Seth Staashelm- Director
23 E. 4th St.
Atlantic, IA 50022
Email: sstaashelm@cityofatlantic.com
Office- 712-243-3542
Park cell- 712-254-0637
Clarinda, Iowa – Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will host a Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) training program on June 20, 2018 at Wibholm Hall on the Page County Fairgrounds. The program will cover numerous best management practices and will qualify producers for BQA certification. Iowa beef producers, veterinarians, feed industry personnel, and anyone interested in beef cattle production are invited to participate. The program will include a general overview of the BQA program and cover all the major production practices required for BQA certification.
“There is growing demand from packers and retailers that producers become BQA certified. It may soon become necessary for producers, especially those marketing fed cattle, to become certified in order to maintain market access,” says Chris Clark, ISUEO Beef Field Specialist. “Beyond that, the program does include a lot of really good information. BQA has evolved into a pretty comprehensive program and there should be value in the content for those that attend.”
The meeting will run from 6:00 pm to approximately 8:00 pm at Wibholm Hall on the Page County Fairgrounds in Clarinda. There is no cost to attend and a meal will be provided. Page County Cattlemen will begin serving meals at 5:30 pm. To assist organizers with planning, please preregister by June 18 by calling Kimberly Cavalier at the Page County Extension Office at (712) 542-5171.
Cass County Master Gardeners (CCMG) offer a $1,000 scholarship annually, available to students who are graduating seniors or graduates of any Iowa school districts in which current members of CCMG reside. The 2018 scholarship was awarded to Cole Madsen of Exira-EHK, who will be attending DMAAC, enrolled in their horticulture program. Pictured with Madsen is Master Gardener Kathy Johnson, who lives in the Exira-EHK school district, presenting the scholarship at the school’s Award Night in May.
Cole Madsen
The goal of the Master Gardener program is to support horticulture education and community service. CCMG members provide many hours of volunteer service in their communities. Accordingly, this scholarship is intended to provide post-secondary funds to individuals who are studying, or intend to pursue a career in, a horticulture-related field. The scholarship winner is selected based upon academic success, history of community service, and career goals. Demonstration of interest and experience in horticulture is also encouraged.
For more information on the Master Gardener Program, contact the Cass County Extension office at 712-243-1132 or email keolson@iastate.edu, or visit the Cass County Extension website at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.
The man who’s been state ag secretary since March appears to have fallen a fraction short of the 35 percent threshold he needed in yesterday’s (Tuesday’s) primary to win the Republican Party’s nomination for ag secretary. Shortly after 1 a.m. today (Wednesday) all 99 counties had reported results and Mike Naig had 34-point-74 percent. That means delegates at the Iowa G-O-P’s state convention on June 16th will decide who to nominee for state ag secretary. State Senator Dan Zumbach, a farmer from Ryan, finished close behind Naig. Ray Gaesser, a farmer from Corning, is also in the extended race with Naig.
“My strategy for our team has always been that we thought it would go to the state convention,” Gaesser says. “I”ve personally made about 1600 calls to the delegates to the state convention and shared with them my vision for Iowa agriculture.”
Gaesser is the former president of the Iowa and the American Soybean Associations. Gaesser says he was part of many trade missions and developed relationships with officials in countries that can yield expanded access to foreign markets for Iowa farmers.
Former Iowa Farm Bureau president Craig Lang, another of the G-O-P’s ag secretary candidates, issued a written statement early this (Wednesday) morning, saying the election returns show he had “broad support across the entire state” and “that makes a strong case” Republican state convention delegates should nominate him.
(Radio Iowa)
If you are a local business or organization that deals with food, Cass County ISU Extension wants to know: what you do with the “extras”? Kate Olsen, Extension Program Coordinator, says they are working with a team of local partners to explore options for reducing food waste in Cass County. Identifying existing food waste and food recovery efforts going on in Cass County is one of their priorities. The team would like to learn about existing programs, businesses, and organizations that assist in food recovery and waste management throughout the county. They would also like to find organizations that might be interested in participating in programs like this if they were developed. Kate says they are asking local businesses and organizations you to take a brief survey to help the team understand the current situation in Cass County.
They would like to have the surveys returned by June 11th. Here’s the survey link: https://iastate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_aW5Ko3FTNApWiKp
Kate says they “Hope to lay the ground work for future activities and resources that can assist in getting food to its highest purpose- helping where it is needed most and decreasing the amount of food that is wasted every day. If you would like more information on this project, or would like to be involved in our project team, please call or email Kate Olson at the Cass County Extension Office- 712-243-1132 or keolson@iastate.edu.
(You can listen to an interview with Kate Olsen on the “Heartbeat Today” podcast found under the “Podcast” tab on the kjan.com home page)
NEW YORK (AP) — Four more deaths have been linked to a national food poisoning outbreak blamed on tainted lettuce, bringing the total to five. Health officials have tied the E. coli outbreak to romaine lettuce grown in Yuma, Arizona. The growing season there ended six weeks ago, and it’s unlikely any tainted lettuce is still in stores or people’s homes, given its short shelf life. But there can be a lag in reporting, and reports of illnesses have continued to come in. In an update today (Friday) on the nation’s largest E. coli outbreak in a decade, health officials said 25 more cases have been added, raising the total number of illnesses to 197 in 35 states. At least 89 people were hospitalized.
Previously one death had been reported, in California. On Friday, health officials said they had learned of four more — one in Arkansas, one in New York, and two in Minnesota. The first illnesses occurred in March, and the most recent began on May 12, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many of the new cases were people who became ill two to three weeks ago, when contaminated lettuce was still being sold. Some said they did not eat romaine lettuce but were in close contact with someone who got sick after eating it.
Most E. coli bacteria are not harmful, but some produce toxins that can cause severe illness. People who get sick from toxin-producing E. coli come down with symptoms about three to four days after swallowing the germ, with many suffering bloody diarrhea, severe stomach cramps and vomiting. Most people recover within a week, but some illnesses can last longer and be more severe.
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — Concepts for a riverfront revitalization plan in Council Bluffs include an elevated walkway through the trees, a pavilion with a rooftop restaurant and a marina. The Omaha World-Herald reports that those were among ideas floated Wednesday during a community meeting on plans to transform the Council Bluffs side of the Missouri River.
On June 12, the Riverfront Revitalization Planning Committee plans to present a master plan for the Omaha riverfront during an open house at Gallup in Omaha.
A national team of experts is working to develop a master plan for areas in and around River’s Edge from north of Hanafan Park to the Union Pacific Bridge in Council Bluffs, as well as Gene Leahy Mall, Heartland of America Park and Lewis and Clark Landing in Omaha.
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
RSS