Ag Report: Nov. 9, 2012

Simpsonville breeder

Submitted

Kolt Bitzer (right) presents Tractor Supply Company store manager Brandon Carney with the “Class Champion” award for meeting the company goals during the 4-H/TSC Spring 2012 Paper Clover Promotion. The Paper Clover Promotion from the Shelbyville TSC store netted more than $400 in proceeds that benefit Shelby County 4-H programs.

joins Angus association

Rankin B Dumesnil of Simpsonville is a new member of the American Angus Association, a national breed organization headquartered in Saint Joseph, Mo.

The American Angus Association, with more than 25,000 active adult and junior members, is the largest beef breed association in the world. Its computerized records include detailed information on more than 17 million registered Angus.

The association records ancestral information, keeps production records on individual animals, and develops industry-leading selection tools for its members. These programs and services help members select and mate the best animals in their herds to produce quality genetics for the beef cattle industry and quality beef for consumers.

USDA looks for input

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, which administers the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, a federal program that provides technical and financial assistance to land users to address natural resource concerns, is asking for local input for the fiscal year 2013 program.

All EQIP applications are evaluated and available funding is provided to the highest ranked applications. For fiscal year 2013 EQIP will be administered in Kentucky using four ranking areas across the state, each consisting of multiple counties.

Applicants within each ranking area compete only with others in that ranking area.

Local working groups will be meeting in November to provide input for the fiscal year 2013 EQIP.  This is your opportunity to have input regarding the ranking criteria for the EQIP. Contact your local conservation district or NRCS office for meeting time and location.

Conferences discuss farm issues

Kentucky farmers, officials, and business people are involved in several meetings this week and next to discuss the future of agriculture and the need to cultivate the next generation of producers in three conferences this month.

“Agriculture is changing rapidly with advances in technology and consumer interest in local food,” Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer said. “But the industry also is encountering new challenges. Prices for inputs, machines, and land are going up. Government regulations are adding new burdens to farmers.

“Labor is becoming harder to come by. On top of all that, the average age of the American farmer is nearing sixty.”

The 13th annual Kentucky Women in Agriculture Conference concluded Thursday in Louisville, followed by the Kentucky Agricultural Summit, concluding today at the Kentucky Exposition Center.

On Thursday, the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture will host a conference on farm transitions at the Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park conference center in Gilbertsville and Friday at the James E. Bruce Convention Center in Hopkinsville. The conference is intended to encourage farmers to develop a plan for transitioning family farms to the next generation.
For more information, contact your local cooperative extension service office.
 

Bulletin board

• A second Master Stocker session on nutrition management will be 6-9 p.m. Thursday at the Shelby County Extension Office. Registration fee is $50 to cover meals and materials. Registration form and information is available at  http://ces.ca.uky.edu/oldham/UpcomingEvents.
• The Kentucky Farm Service Agency says ballots for the 2012 FSA county committee elections are due Dec. 3, the last day for voters to submit ballots in person to local USDA Service Centers. Ballots returned by mail must be postmarked no later than Dec. 3. For more information, contact the FSA office on Brunerstown Road in Shelbyville.
• The National Farm Machinery Show Championship Tractor Pull will be Feb. 13‐16 in Freedom Hall with five pulls at 7:30 p.m. each evening and at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Reserved tickets are $40 and $45, depending upon the day. Ticket sales begin at 10 a.m. Dec. 3.

The Kentucky Ag Report is compiled weekly from news releases distributed by Keeton Communications, the Kentucky Press News Service.