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14 CapitalPress.com May 8, 2015 Dairy/Livestock Subscribe to our weekly dairy or livestock email newsletter at CapitalPress.com/newsletters Western teams have good showing at dairy challenge By MITCH LIES For the Capital Press Jim Krahn knew he had a strong team in the four Ore- gon State University students that entered the North Amer- ican Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge in Syracuse, N.Y., in April. But against far larger university programs, he won- dered just how well the team would fare. He need not have worried. OSU’s Dairy Challenge Team placed second among the eight teams in its draw, topped only by the University of Tennessee. “This was a huge accom- plishment for them when you compare the size and vol- ume of some of these other schools,” Krahn said. “And these girls worked hard at it. They put a lot of time in on their own.” Krahn began coaching the team in 2014 after retiring as executive director of the Or- egon Dairy Farmers Associa- tion, a role he served in for 22 years. The university previ- ously didn’t have a team. The April 9-11 Dairy Challenge in Syracuse marked the first time OSU entered a team in the na- tional competition. The team was financially supported by ODFA. In all, 32 teams compet- ed in four randomly selected sections, with eight teams in each section. Other West Coast universi- ties also fared well: Washington State University and California Polytechnic State University each won their section. OSU joined Cornell University, the University of Illinois and Penn State in claiming seconds. The University of Guelph was the other section winner. The North American Dairy Challenge involves students working as teams managing real-world dairy farms. In the competition, students tour farms, are provided informa- tion on individual farm issues, then develop recommenda- tions for nutrition, reproduc- tion, milking procedures, animal health, housing and financial management. With financial management a major part of the challenge, Krahn believed the OSU team had a good chance to score well, considering that two of the team’s four competitors, Mieke DeJong and Rebecca Thomas, interned with finan- cial institutions last year. Andrea Smaciarz, who like Thomas and DeJong is a senior, interned at Land O’Lakes, and all three grew up on dairies. Sophomore Danielle Bull, the fourth member of the team, is a former Oregon Dairy Prin- cess who was involved in dairy through 4-H and FFA while she was growing up. “These four young ladies are massively sharp,” he said. “And I knew we’d be real tough on the financial part because of these girls’ experiences.” Nonetheless, with the fire power behind some of the oth- er university dairy programs, Krahn said he was delighted when he learned the team fin- ished second. “It was a tremendous ef- fort by these young ladies and a great achievement,” he said, “especially when you consid- er that half of those schools we competed against have more dairy professors than we have dairy students. “Cornell had three Ph.D. professors there as coaches,” Krahn said. “That’s for four kids.” In addition to providing the students a sense of ac- complishment, Krahn said the challenge also provides an opportunity for top dairy students to meet prospective employers, many of whom annually attend the event. “My objectives (for taking the team back there) was to make it something that was practical for them and for them to make connections and meet people,” he said. It’s a good bet that placing second didn’t detract from that, however. CDFA sets hearing on 4b milk pricing Cash dairy prices holding steady By CAROL RYAN DUMAS C Capital Press The California Depart- ment of Food and Agricul- ture has set a June 3 hearing on its own motion to consider proposed amendments to the pricing formulation for Class 4b milk, used to manufacture cheese.The hearing will ad- dress the value of whey in the 4b formula. That value has been a point of contention with pro- ducers for the past few years, as the gap between that value in California’s pricing and pricing in federal milk mar- keting orders began to widen. The issue led to numerous petitions to CDFA for hear- ings to consider an adjust- ment to the value and is now behind a producer effort to establish a federal milk mar- keting order for the state. “While the industry must continue to work towards long-term structural reforms to address these issues, I am concerned that the current conditions impacting the pro- duction of milk and the mar- keting of dairy products may warrant short-term adjust- ments to the current pricing levels, CDFA Secretary Karen Ross stated in a press release. The meeting is set for 8 a.m. at CDFA auditorium, 1220 N Street, Sacramento. Tim Hearden/Capital Press Cows lounge in a pen at VanderWoude Dairy near Merced, Calif. The California Department of Food and Agriculture has set a June 3 hearing on its own motion to consider proposed amendments to the pricing formulation for Class 4b milk. Alternative proposals to the whey value in the cur- rent pricing formula can be submitted to the agency by 4 p.m. May 20. For information, contact Hyrum Eastmen of Candace Gates at (906) 900-5014. ash cheese ended April and began May in a stronger than expected position. The Cheddar blocks closed Friday, May 1, at $1.61 per pound, unchanged on the week but 46 cents below a year ago when they tumbled 14 cents, to $2.07 per pound. The blocks were unchanged Monday and Tuesday and have been at $1.61 since April 22. The Cheddar barrels fin- ished at $1.6175, down a quarter-cent on the week and 43 3/4-cents below a year ago when they rolled 16 1/2-cents lower, to $2.0550. The barrels jumped 6 cents Monday, setting a new high for 2015, and then gave it back Tuesday, dropping 6 1/4-cents, to $1.6150. Only four cars of block traded hands last week and none of barrel. Spot butter saw a fourth consecutive week of gain, closing Friday at $1.85 per pound, up 2 cents, but 22 1/2-cents below a year ago when the spot blasted 16 1/2-cents higher, to $2.0750 per pound. The spot price dropped 2 cents Monday but gained pack a penny Tuesday, closing at $1.84. Only three cars of butter traded hands last week at the CME. Cash Grade A nonfat dry milk finished the week at 93 3/4-cents per pound, up three quarter-cents on the week but 85 cents below a year ago when Dairy Markets Lee Mielke it was trading at — better sit down for this — $1.7875 per pound. The powder gained a penny and a quarter Monday but inched back a quarter-cent Tuesday, closing at 94 3/4-cents per pound. No powder was sold last week at the CME, the gains all came on unfilled bids. Global auction down 3.5 percent Tuesday’s Global Dairy Trade auction saw the weight- ed average for all products offered drop 3.5 percent, fol- lowing a 3.6 percent decline in the April 15 event and a 10.8 percent drop April 1. This is the fourth consecutive session of loss. Only one product offered saw a gain and that was Ched- dar cheese, up 9.1 percent, which followed a 2.7 percent jump last time. Leading the declines was buttermilk powder, down 14 percent, which was up 2.1 per- cent in the last event. Rennet casein was next, down 11.0 percent, following a 0.6 percent slip last time, then skim milk powder, down 7.5 percent, fol- lowing a 7.8 percent drop last time. Anhydrous milkfat was down 6.3 percent, following a 2.3 percent gain last time. Next was whole milk powder, down 1.8 percent, following a 4.3 percent loss last time, and butter rounded up the losses, down 0.8 percent, following a 6.6 percent drop last time. FC Stone reports the aver- age GDT butter price equated to about $1.36 per pound U.S., down from $1.3727 in the April 15 event. Contrast that to CME butter, which closed Tuesday at $1.84. The GDT Cheddar cheese average was $1.37 per pound U.S., up from $1.3099. The U.S. block Cheddar CME price closed Tuesday at $1.61. GDT skim milk powder, at 93 cents per pound U.S., is down from $1.02, and the whole milk powder average at $1.08 per pound U.S., is down from $1.1093 in the last event. The CME Grade A nonfat dry milk price closed Tuesday at 94 3/4-cents per pound. April FO Class III milk up 25 cents The Agriculture Department announced the April Federal order Class III benchmark milk price at $15.81 per hundred- weight, up 25 cents from March, $8.50 below April 2014, but $1.59 above California’s compa- rable 4b milk price, and equates to about $1.36 per gallon, up from $1.34 last month and com- pares to $2.09 a year ago. Idaho Dairy Council dietitian awarded national title in field By CAROL RYAN DUMAS FARM INSURANCE Call for a review & proposal 509-483-3030 or 800-326-8583 5727 N. 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As health and wellness manager, she also coordinates health fairs, workshops and Fuel Up to Play 60 events at Ida- ho schools. Launched by the Nation- al Dairy Council, the Idaho Dairy Council and the NFL, the national program is de- signed to help prevent child- Do You Have the Right Coverage? With thin profit margins, it’s more important than ever to have the right crop insurance coverage. For details contact: Corvallis, OR 19-2/#5 www.RainandHail.com Rain and Hail Northwest Division 200 North Mullan Rd Suite 111 Spokane, WA 99206 1-800-967-8088 19-2/#14 19-1/#4X hood obesi- ty and help youth devel- op life-long healthy eat- ing and daily physical ac- tivity habits. Jaclyn St. “We are John very proud of Jaclyn and the work she does on behalf of Idaho’s dairy farm fami- lies to promote nutrition and healthy activities through- out the state,” Crystal Wil- son, IDC’s senior director of health and wellness, said in a press release. “Not only is Jaclyn de- serving of this recognition, she is a role model for other young dietitians in her pas- sion and enthusiasm for her role in the industry,” Wil- son said.