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14 CapitalPress.com April 17, 2015 Subscribe to our weekly dairy or livestock email newsletter at CapitalPress.com/newsletters Dairy/Livestock Calif. processors say FMMO hearing unneeded Capitol crowd bullish on Beef Tasty tri-tip proves a bipartisan treat By DON JENKINS Capital Press OLYMPIA — By mid-morning Thursday, tri- trip was smoking on the grill and anticipation was building for the beef industry’s self-de- scribed “shameless promotion.” Cattlemen were preparing to serve 570 pounds of Tyson Foods meat for their annual Beef Day at the Capitol. “I know it’s a favorite day for a lot of people around here,” House Majori- ty Leader Pat Sullivan said in one of his meatier remarks at a morning meeting with reporters. There are many “days” during the legislative session — Gifted Education Day, Credit Union Day, Message Aware- ness Day. The potato industry has its day, and it’s also popular. But Beef Day is more like a phenomenon. Sen. Brian Hatfield, D-Raymond, held a tray with two raw steaks and spoke into a camera for a pro-beef video taped by legislative staffers. “It’s everybody’s favorite day,” he said. The Washington Cattle- men’s Association, Washing- ton Cattle Feeders Association and Washington State Dairy Federation serve slices of beef on buns, with chips and milk. There isn’t much more to it than that. But the line started forming shortly after 11 a.m. By 11:30, it stretched about the length of a football field. The lined moved fast, but for more than an hour, it never got shorter. “It’s a shameless promotion of beef,” the cattlemen’s exec- utive vice president, Jack Field, said. “It’s a great opportunity.” Cattlemen held their first beef day about eight years ago. Franklin County rancher Larry Olberding said cattlemen were kicking around how to raise their profile at the Capitol and came up with Beef Day. “We decided we’d give it a shot, and it’s taken off since then,” he said. “I think it’s one of our best outreach days. It puts a face on who’s doing this and that there are consequences, good and bad, to policies.” At noon, Gov. Jay Inslee dropped by. He ate a slice of beef and mixed with ranchers in the easy-going manner of a suc- cessful politician. He pointed to the line. “Thank you for feeding the masses,” he cracked. By CAROL RYAN DUMAS Capital Press Don Jenkins/Capital Press Don Blakemore of Tuchet, Wash., seasons the meat April 9 on the Capitol campus in Olympia. Producer groups host the popular Beef Day each year to promote the industry. Olberding, a past president of the cattlemen’s association, said agriculture needs to en- gage the public. “I think agriculture as a whole has gotten tremendously better in the last 10 years, but we started too late, and we’re still playing catch up, but strides have been tremendous,” he said. Butter, cheese prices still strong; powder down By LEE MIELKE For the Capital Press C ash cheese prices at the Chicago Mercantile Ex- change saw little change the first full week of April. The block Cheddar closed Friday in Chicago at $1.5775 per pound, down a quar- ter-cent on the week and 59 1/4-cents below a year ago when they tumbled 18 cents, to $2.17. The blocks were un- changed Monday but slipped a half-cent Tuesday to $1.5725. The Cheddar barrels closed Friday at $1.61, up 1 1/2-cents on the week and the highest they have been since Dec. 1, 2014, but are 47 cents below a year ago when they rolled 14 1/2-cents lower to $2.08. They are also 3 3/4-cents above the blocks, as of Tuesday, a spread that typically runs 3-5 cents below the blocks. The barrels were unchanged Monday and Tuesday. Cash butter closed Friday at $1.7525 per pound, up 1 1/4-cents on the week and 21 3/4-cents below a year ago. It was unchanged Monday but jumped 1 3/4-cents Tuesday, to $1.77. Only one car traded hands last week. Cash Grade A nonfat dry milk finished last week at 93 cents per pound, down 4 3/4-cents on the week, 97 cents below a year ago, and the lowest spot price since Aug. 3, 2009. The powder was un- changed Monday but inched a quarter-cent lower Tuesday, to 92 3/4-cents per pound. Fif- teen cars were sold at the CME last week. The CME powder is the only product currently priced below the global price. Dairy Markets Lee Mielke California Class I inches higher The California Department of Food and Agriculture an- nounced its May Class I milk prices at $17.06 per hundred- weight for the north and $17.34 for the south, up 12 cents and 13 cents, respectively, from April but a whopping $8.82 and $8.81 below May 2014. That puts the five-month average at $17.45 for the north, down from $24.42 a year ago at this time and compares to $19.66 in 2013. The southern five month average is $17.72, down from $24.69 a year ago and $19.93 in 2013. The May federal order Class I base price will be announced by USDA on April 22. California processors speak up California’s dairy proces- sors, through their Dairy Insti- tute of California, are diving into the, pardon the pun, milk pool by offering an alterna- tive proposal in the effort to consider a federal milk market order in the Golden State. So are the California Producer Handlers Association and Pon- derosa Dairy. You’ll recall that an initial petition to begin the process was filed by three of Cali- fornia’s largest dairy co-ops, California Dairies Inc., Dairy Farmers of America and Land O’Lakes. The Dairy Institute charges that “there are no significant disorderly marketing condi- tions that would warrant either a hearing or, after any hearing, the promulgation of a Califor- nia Federal Milk Marketing Order.” They add that “the Cooperatives’ conclusion that there are disorderly market- ing conditions is merely their assertion and rests squarely on the perceived inequity caused by differences between the regulated prices for milk used to produce cheese and whey under the FMMO and Califor- nia Food and Agriculture pro- grams, respectively.” “Their failure to present any real evidence of disor- derly marketing conditions is not surprising, given that no such evidence exists,” the Dairy Institute charged, but adds that “recognizing that the secretary may nonetheless notice a promulgation hearing on this subject matter, we are concerned that the proposal submitted by the cooperatives would actually create disorder- ly marketing conditions where none now exist. Therefore, the Dairy Institute’s membership has voted unanimously to sub- mit a complete alternative pro- posal for a California Federal Milk Order.” Read all of the petitions of- fered at: http://www.ams.usda. gov/AMSv1.0/CAOrder USDA lowers 2015 output again The Agriculture Department lowered its 2015 milk produc- tion forecast for the sixth time in a row in its latest World Ag- ricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report issued Thurs- day, again blaming growth in output per cow being con- strained by dry conditions in the West. It also raised the Class III milk price average and lowered the Class IV. 2014 production and mar- ketings were reported at 206.0 billion pounds and 205.1 billion, respectively, both unchanged from last month’s report. If real- ized, 2014 production would be up 2.4 percent from 2013. 2015 production and mar- ketings were projected at 210.0 billion and 209.0 billion pounds, respectively. The pro- duction estimate is down 1.1 billion pounds and the market- ing estimate is down 1 billion from a month ago. If realized, 2015 production and marketings would be up about 1.9 percent from 2014. Fat basis imports were raised on demand for butterfat, but skim-solids imports were unchanged. Exports are ham- pered by relatively weak inter- national prices and the strong dollar; thus forecasts for both fat and skim-solids are reduced from last month. Product price forecasts for butter and cheese were raised on domestic demand strength. However, relatively weak ex- ports of nonfat dry milk are ex- pected to pressure prices lower. The whey price forecast was unchanged. The Class III milk price was raised on the strength of cheese prices. Look for the 2015 av- erage to range $16.20-$16.70 per cwt., up from the $15.95- $16.55 expected a month ago, and compares to $22.34 in 2014 and $17.99 in 2013. The Class IV price was re- duced as a lower NDM price more than offsets a higher but- ter price. Look for the Class IV to averaged $14.45-$15.05, down from the $15.30-$16.00 expected last month, and com- pares to $22.09 in 2014 and $19.05 in 2013. in Capital Press’ 31 st Annual SAGE Fact #113 June 5 th , 2015 Our annual Dairy Special Section spotlights dairy operations and operators in California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. It features an in depth look at the situations and successes - needs and concerns of this dynamic industry. Center-pivot irrigation makes up 65% of the irrigation used in Umatilla and Morrow Counties. Center-pivot systems are very efficient as they automatically irrigate large areas of land while conserving the amount of water used. To reach our print and online readers, contact your sales representative or call 1-800-882-6789. Ad space reservation is Friday, May 8 th . PO Box 2048 • Salem, OR 97308 (503) 364-4798 (800) 882-6789 Fax: (503) 364-2692 or (503) 370-4383 www.capitalpress.com ROP-15-4-1/#13 16-1/#6 Dairy Institute of California, representing dairy processors, contends a hearing by USDA to consider establishing a federal milk marketing order for Cali- fornia is not warranted. It did, however, submit an alternative proposal to USDA outlining its preferences if the Agricultural Marketing Service moves forward with a proposal. The Institute responded to a proposal seeking a federal order by California Dairies Inc., Dairy Farmers of Ameri- ca and Land O’Lakes. The co- ops submitted a proposal and a petition for a hearing on the matter in early February to ob- tain a more equitable price for their members on milk used to manufacture cheese. The Institute contends the co-ops’ proposal fails to meet the minimum requirements for a marketing order — that dis- orderly marketing conditions exist. It says the co-ops only assert a perceived inequity due to differences between regulated prices in federal or- ders for Class III milk and the state’s regulated prices for Cal- ifornia’s Class 4b. The Institute says the point of the federal statute estab- lishing federal orders was to remove self-defeating com- petition among producers and allow them to share benefits of Class I fluid milk profits. The basis of every federal order has been that Class I milk revenues are not being shared, the Insti- tute stated. “But that is quite clearly not the principal or principled basis for the cooperatives’ pro- posal,” the Institute’s attorney stated in comments to USDA. Processors contend the co-ops’ proposal fails to pro- vide any accepted basis for its claim of disorderly mar- keting and is legally insuffi- cient and incomplete. Recognizing that USDA might nonetheless hold a hear- ing on the issues, processors said they are concerned the co-ops’ proposal would create disorderly marketing. Unlike the co-ops’ propos- al, which fundamentally alters FMMO policy, the processors proposal is modeled on exist- ing marketing orders, particu- larly the Upper Midwest order because it has similar Class I utilization and significant cheese production, the Insti- tute stated. In addition to the price of California’s 4b milk, proces- sors and dairymen disagree over mandatory pooling of milk and its profits except for Class I fluid milk. Both agree on maintaining quota value, which provides additional revenue for dairy- men holding quota certificates, but they disagree on who will contribute to that additional payment. Pooling of milk other than Class I is voluntary under fed- eral orders, and the secretary of agriculture has routinely re- jected mandatory pooling. The secretary has found oppor- tunistic pooling (leaving and entering the pool on a monthly basis and a key concern for dairymen) to be destabilizing, but USDA’s solution has been to limit re-pooling options in future months, the Institute stated. On the price issue, the Institute maintains that mar- ket-clearing prices for manu- factured products produced in California are different from such prices in other parts of the country — with federal order prices overstating the value to western dairy processors, es- pecially for whey. “Minimum regulated prices that are too high, when cou- pled with mandatory order pricing for milk used in man- ufacturing, will not be market clearing and will lead to disor- derly marketing conditions,” the Institute stated. The Institute said regulat- ed minimum milk prices be market clearing and reflect the western value of products on which they are based. As for quota, the Institute disagrees with the co-ops’ pro- posal to extract quota value from the total pool, which in- cludes out-of-state dairymen, before calculating an order blend price. Out-of-state pro- ducers have never and will nev- er own a quota, but the value of their pool will be based on the remainder of pool dollars, put- ting them at a disadvantage. Proposals have also been submitted by California Pro- ducer Handlers Association and Ponderosa Dairy. The pro- posals are available at http:// www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ CAOrder Parasites protect cattle from disease, study finds By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Researchers have found that some parasites in African cattle may help the animals ward off another parasite that carries a lethal disease. The researchers monitored 548 shorthorn zebu calves in Kenya. Of the 454 that survived the first year, 86 percent were infected by Theileria parva, which causes East Coast fever disease, the main cause of death among cattle in East Africa. However, only 18 percent of the cows showed symptoms of the disease. The reason, the re- searchers found, was that other parasites, Therileria mutans and Theileria velifera, protected the cattle against the disease. An international team, in- cluding co-author Thumbi Mwangi, a Washington State University infectious disease epidemiologist based in Kenya, recently published their findings in the journal Science Advances. Animals often have more than one parasitic infection, and the expectation is that sev- eral infections would worsen the health of the host, Mwangi said. He works for the Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health at WSU. “But here we are reporting a situation where infection with a parasite that does not usually cause disease (provides) protec- tion against a lethal parasite re- sponsible for most deaths in cat- tle in East Africa,” Mwangi told the Capital Press in an email. East Coast fever is responsi- ble for “huge” economic losses for livestock keepers and is a major hindrance to livestock de- velopment in the region, translat- Courtesy of WSU Washington State University researcher Thumbi Mwangi, left, is co-author of a study that found a lesser parasitic infection may help livestock survive a more deadly parasite. ing into poor economic growth and poverty, Mwangi said. The study suggests a new weapon to fight East Coast fe- ver, and a concept that can be applied to animals and people in any location. “Our study demonstrates the value of looking at the multi- ple infections simultaneously as opposed to single-pathogen focus epidemiological studies,” he said. Research may reveal combi- nations of infections that show the infected individual has bet- ter outcomes than when infect- ed with only the lethal patho- gen, he said. The finding also has some bearing for humans, Mwangi said. In the South Pacific, peo- ple with a genetic mutation that makes them susceptible to the less deadly Plasmodium vivax may be protected from the more deadly Plasmodium falciparum, which causes malaria. The next step is to experi- ment to see if infecting animals with the benign Theileria mu- tans parasite will act as a vac- cine against East Coast fever, Mwangi said.