COW97 Ag News from Brownfield

The 2022 U.S. hay harvest is expected to be up slightly from 2021. The USDA projects this year’s harvested area for all types of hay at 51.507 million acres, up 771,000, including 15.465 million acres of alfalfa and alfalfa mixtures and 36.042 million acres of all other types of hay. Demand for hay has climbed… ... Continue Reading

The USDA says producers planted more corn acres than expected this year, while soybeans fell short of projections. That followed significant planting delays in some key U.S. growing areas against nearly ideal conditions in other parts of the region. Corn planted area was 89.921 million million acres, about a half a million more than in… ... Continue Reading

A meteorologist says the amount of rainfall has varied widely across the Midwest.  Brownfield’s Greg Soulje says last weekend’s storms left most farmers wishing for more rain, but a few narrow bands got a lot of water. “Some spots through southern Wisconsin, parts of eastern Iowa, far northern Illinois, one to three (inches of rain)… ... Continue Reading

A Wisconsin cow-calf producer says by simplifying her facilities, she improved both feed and labor efficiency. Shari Overby of SKOR Cattle Company in Clear Lake tells Brownfield she designed their fence line feeding area with a 16-foot alley to get the most out of the cattle with very little feed waste. “It’s a 300-foot fence… ... Continue Reading

A mostly-dry week allowed Wisconsin farmers to get a lot of fieldwork accomplished.  USDA reporters say there were six days suitable for getting into fields, but it was hot and many said they could use some rain. Ninety-five percent of the corn has emerged with 78% of the crop reported to be in good to… ... Continue Reading

Wisconsin’s egg production during the month of May was up ten percent from the previous month, but down 33% from the same month last year.  USDA’s Wisconsin statistician Greg Bussler tells Brownfield that avian influenza influenced those numbers. The average number of all layers in May was just over five million, up 4% from the… ... Continue Reading

A Wisconsin farmer says along with worrying about crops, weather, and input costs, now he is concerned about having electricity when he needs it. Tony Mellenthin Tony Mellenthin raises crops near Menomonie, Wisconsin, and uses several irrigation pivots. He says, “We’ve gotten a letter in the mail from our power provider about the possibility of… ... Continue Reading

Fifteen Wisconsin projects are getting funded by the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant program. State ag officials say the projects will get more than a million dollars for work designed to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crop industries using research, education, and market development. The funded projects range from promoting the growth of chestnuts to… ... Continue Reading

Wisconsin farmers are nearly done with corn and soybean planting after a week of mostly-favorable weather. USDA reporters say there were 5.2 days suitable for fieldwork, which many farmers took advantage of to finish planting or to cut hay.  The first crop of alfalfa is 84% harvested, which is about a day behind average.  Some… ... Continue Reading

Wisconsin officials have lifted the ban on poultry shows. The order had been in place since April to help prevent the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza.  The state’s Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection is still advising poultry producers to maintain strong biosecurity practices including cleaning and disinfecting, restricting access by visitors and… ... Continue Reading

Milk production during May was down on the year with a smaller herd canceling out a rise in average yield. The USDA says milk production in the top 24 dairy states was 18.841 billion pounds, 0.6% less than in May 2021. The average yield was 2,114 pounds per cow, 8 pounds above last year, with… ... Continue Reading

The President of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is not pleased with the lack of information about the meatpacker investigation by the Department of Justice. Don Schiefelbein says, “It’s hugely frustrating” and tells Brownfield NCBA wants to know what the Department of Justice has found so far. “You have a Department of Justice whose only… ... Continue Reading

The President of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is not pleased with the lack of information about the meatpacker investigation by the Department of Justice. “ Don Schiefelbein says, “It’s hugely frustrating” and tells Brownfield NCBA wants to know what the Department of Justice has found so far. “You have a Department of Justice whose… ... Continue Reading

A fuel expert is optimistic diesel prices might soon be less painful on the pocketbook. Troy Thompson is the Energy Division Manager for ProVision Cooperative based in Wisconsin.  He says, “The world market I think is starting to show maybe a little relief on the diesel fuel heading into fall.” Thompson tells Brownfield the availability… ... Continue Reading

Wisconsin’s new State FFA President is Casey Denk.  The Mondovi FFA member served as state Vice President over the past year.  She was named to succeed Ben Styer of Menomonie at the close of the state FFA Convention in Madison Thursday. State Convention delegates also selected new state officers, including Isaac Hopke of Spooner, Heidi… ... Continue Reading

A state FFA Advisor says finding qualified agricultural educators remains a challenge.  Sally Ladsten from Wisconsin tells Brownfield there is a shortage of ag educators to teach, oversee FFA chapters, and manage the supervised agricultural experiences the FFA members take on. Ladsten says Wisconsin is using some new initiatives to help fill some positions. “Some… ... Continue Reading

The director of the Center for Dairy Research says he’s confident new chemicals and compounds made from dairy byproducts will be on the market soon. Dr. John Lucey says, “We are really pushing this here at the CDR as the next thing to look out for.” Lucey says the University of Wisconsin campus also has… ... Continue Reading

Wisconsin’s outgoing FFA President says working under both virtual and in-person conditions has been challenging but fun.  Ben Styer of Menomonie tells Brownfield he was a state officer during and after the COVID lockdown, which meant trying to get normal FFA activities back on track. “I was a state officer last year serving as the… ... Continue Reading

A crops and soils expert says many dairy farmers are relying less on alfalfa and more on alternative forages. University of Wisconsin Extension agent Kevin Jarek tells Brownfield multiple years of alfalfa field damage led to trying different feed options. “We had a lot of alfalfa fields damaged in late 2018, very wet. 2019, (the)… ... Continue Reading

Preparing the stage for the 2022 Wisconsin FFA Convention Wisconsin’s FFA State Convention officially opens Tuesday but an important part of the event started Monday. State FFA Executive Director Cheryl Zimmerman tells Brownfield selecting the state officer team for the upcoming year is a multi-step process. “They’re going through a personal interview, a knowledge interview,… ... Continue Reading