Feedlot Update - August 2016

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Feedlot Update

August 2016

Temporary poultry testing lab closing during relocation

poultry testing lab

Board of Animal Health-Animal Bytes newsletter:
Friday, Aug. 19 is the last day for testing samples at the temporary Minnesota Poultry Testing Laboratory (MPTL), 1109 High Ave. in Willmar. On Monday and Tuesday, Aug. 22-23, it will be closed during the move to the newly-renovated building at 622 Business Hwy. 71. On Wednesday, Aug. 24, the lab will begin to accept samples at the 622 Business Hwy 71 NE location; however, it will not be running tests.

Full operations are expected to resume Monday, Aug. 29 (diagnostic serology, bacteriology, NPIP testing, Board programs). PCR testing and poultry necropsies will not be available until technicians are trained and a diagnostician is hired. An open house at the renovated lab (photo) is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 22

Testing services while the MPTL is closed are available at labs listed below. All testing performed at these laboratories during this time will be billable to the client unless prior approval has been provided by the Board of Animal Health.

University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, St. Paul, MN; 800-605-8787; vdl@umn.edu  

South Dakota State University Diagnostic Laboratory, Brookings, SD; 605-688-5171;  sdsu.adrdl@sdstate.edu

Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Ames, IA; 515-294-1950; isuvdl@iastate.edu

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Poultry return to State Fair livestock show

chickens

The open class poultry show will return to the 2016 Minnesota State Fair following the 2015 statewide cancellation of poultry exhibitions due to H5N1 avian flu. Some changes for this year: Shortening the length of time open class poultry is in the barn from eight days to four days.

In 2015, the Open Class livestock entries totaled more than 835 beef cattle; 1,097 dairy cattle; 820 rabbits; 770 swine; 1,058 sheep; 161 boer goats; 877 dairy goats; 177 llamas; and 22 stock dogs.

State Fair livestock information.

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EcoExperience

eco experience

The Eco Experience is a huge exhibit at the Minnesota State Fair, filled with hands-on activities, demonstrations and resources. Check it out during the 12 days of the Minnesota State Fair: Aug. 25 - Sept. 5, daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. It's the MPCA’s premier outreach opportunity, and this year we have many new exhibits.

Paul Bunyan for textile reuse. Minnesotans throw away nearly 12 grocery carts full of clothing and other textiles every minute. A lot of that material can be repaired, reused, or recycled. Be sure to see the 15-foot tall Paul Bunyan in an outfit made entirely out of re-used textiles. 

The Repair for Reuse Room. The repair room at the Eco Experience gives you a chance to do just that—get a hands-on reuse experience! Our craft/hobby room provides a space for both the seasoned repair person and the new DIYer to sharpen their skills. Each Saturday, you can upcycle t-shirts into grocery bags. On Sundays, we offer sample fix-it clinics with information on common repairs. Demonstrations are held every day on topics such as tool identification, using chalk paint, how to repair outdoor gear, book making and bike repair.

A partnership between the Minnesota State Fair, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, and more than 150 organizations and businesses across the state, the Eco Experience has become the second most visited exhibit at the fair. The Eco Experience is the largest environmental event of its kind, nationally, in the last two decades. In 2013 the Eco Experience won the People’s Choice Award voted on by the fair goers at the Minnesota State Fair. Since 2006, more than 3.2 million visitors have attended the 25,000-square-foot exhibit to learn more about clean air and water, saving energy, climate change, recycling, healthy local food, gardening, transportation, green building and remodeling, and other ways to lead more eco-friendly lives.

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Soybean growers president applies for ag water quality certification

Farmfest 2016-Wohlmann

The Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program now exceeds more than 100,000 enrolled acres. One of the latest to participate, Paul Freeman, was interviewed at Farmfest: "It's a process we're all growing on and just improving. The game on farming is I want to be improving all the time and this's a good program to benchmark where I'm at." Freeman is president of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association.

The voluntary program for farmers and landowners protects the state’s water resources. Farmers seeking certification can receive priority for technical and financial assistance to implement water quality practices. Dept. of Agriculture Assistant Commissioner Matt Wohlman said, "When it comes to water quality, all across our state we have lots of challenges, and it's not because farmers aren't doing good work. It's because we have a changing landscape. I think it's really important that farmers continue to demonstrate their water quality ethic."

Photo: Matt Wohlmann interviews with KEYC-TV at Farmfest about the AWQC program. KEYC-TV interview.

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Feedlot program news briefs

Latest version of MMP spreadsheet posted on web

The MPCA Manure Management Planner spreadsheet has been recently updated to correct a few known issues as well as incorporate the U of M revised recommendations for growing corn on irrigated sandy soils.  A few other notable additions include: Better support for indicating commercial fertilizer applications, assistance with developing a rotation that will not build soil P over a six-year period, and the ability to create a PDF of the MMP with the click of a button. The MMP spreadsheet can be downloaded for free from the MPCA's website at the Feedlot Nutrient and Manure Management webpage.

Two feedlot construction projects on public notice

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is inviting public comment on Environmental Assessment Worksheets (EAW) as well as operating permits for the proposed expansion and construction two feedlots.

The Joe Wagner farm near Brandon in Douglas County proposes to expand the capacity of the facility from the current 970 beef feeder cattle to a capacity of 4,000 beef slaughter steers and 4,000 beef feeder cattle. Comments on the EAW and the permit are due Aug. 17. 

Johnson Pork Producers of rural Frost in Faribault County is proposing an expansion of its finishing hog business from 2,400 in one existing barn to a total of 4,800 in two barns. The EAW and permit are on public notice through Sept. 7.

Copies of the draft permits and EAWs are available on the MPCA Public Notices webpage and the Environmental Assessment Worksheet webpage.

EAWs to be prepared for two Riverview Dairy proposals

Riverview Dairy is proposing to build two large dairies in western Minnesota. Both proposals are for 9,500 Jerseys (8,670 cows and 830 heifers). The MPCA will be preparing Environmental Assessment Worksheets planned for public notice by mid to late September. Louriston Dairy will be located in Section 14 of Louriston Township, Chippewa County.  Campbell Dairy will be located in Section 35 of Campbell Township, Wilkin County.

MPCA, counties schedule regional training meetings

The MPCA and county feedlot officers have scheduled four regional training meetings this fall. Topics include: PCA program update, land application, record-keeping, process wastewater, Tempo record-keeping system. Meeting dates and locations are: Sept. 13, Owatonna; Sept. 14, Marshall; Sept. 22, Detroit Lakes, and Sept 26, Alexandria. The MPCA has delegated feedlot program administration to 52 counties, which are represented by the Minnesota Association of County Feedlot Officers. After the MACFO conference this fall, future annual conferences will be in the spring, starting with the 2017 conference April 11-13 in Moorhead.

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Start fall manure application planning now, before harvest

fall manure land application

Fall is a busy time for farmers, and not only for the harvest; for those with livestock it’s time to apply stored manure on harvested cropland. And just as important as it is to plant and harvest crops correctly, manure application requires proper techniques to get the most value as fertilizer and avoid runoff that could pollute waters. MPCA feedlot program officials encourage livestock farmers and manure applicators to check their equipment, review manure application rates, and be aware of nearby sensitive land and water features.

  • Review and record last year's manure application records. Records for the 2016 crop should include all manure applied from Sept. 1, 2015 through Aug. 31, 2016.
  •  Accurate records provide useful information: Know which fields will have a second year manure credit available for 2017 crops. Pevious manure applications benefit soil fertility and crop production for a couple of years. Accounting for these benefits can improve a farmer’s agronomic plan and bottom line.
  • Review 2017 crop rotation. Some crop rotations benefit more from manure applications than others. Some fields would benefit more than others from manure due to differences in soils and nutrients.
  • Review last year’s manure sample and adjust manure application rates accordingly. When hauling from the same manure source every year, a running average of previous manure samples may be used to calculate planned application rates.
  • Review field maps for special protection areas. Review what precautions are required when applying manure within 300 feet of special protection areas. Managers and supervisors please be sure that staff are aware of the setbacks as seen in the sketch below.
  • Inspect equipment to ensure a safe haul and that equipment does not leak.

More information is available on the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) nutrient and manure management webpage. Factsheet: Practices for successful fall livestock manure application.

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setbacks from waters

Ag and animal science conference Sept. 20

animal science conference logo 2016

A great line-up of speakers awaits those planning to attend the sixth annual Ag and Animal Science Conference in Willmar.  Key topics include:

  • Animal welfare
  • GMO labeling
  • Perception overall of industry – including consumer perception
  • Policy and regulatory issues
  • Sustainability/Feeding the World – What responsibility does our industry have?

Keynote speaker Robert Saik is founder of The Agri-Trend® group and a consultant. He is the author of an Amazon 2014 Best of Books, “The Agriculture Manifesto” – 10 Key Drivers That Will Shape Agriculture in the next Decade. See the conference web page for more details and to register.

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LPE Learning Center webcast: Manure transport and safety

LPE News logo

The webcast series is back from its summer vacation with a presentation on manure transport and safety - a followup from a presentation made at the North American Manure Expo. Learn from a dragline manure applicator with more than 20 years’ experience on the necessary steps to help ensure a safe and efficient manure application, from an attorney ideas and recommendations to reduce liability, and from the experience of farmers, manure applicators and town board officials simple steps to reduce road damage and increase safe manure transportation in tankers and trucks. More...  Aug. 19 at 1:30 p.m. Check out the information on the new webinar system under "What's Going On In the LPELC?" Presenters include: Kevin Erb, University of Wisconsin, Rick Martens, Martens Mannurigation, and Robert Moore, Wright and Moore Law Firm

The Agriculture Environmental Stewardship Act has been introduced by a bipartisan group of legislators. The bill would provide an investment tax credit for qualifying biogas and nutrient recovery systems. The introduction is being applauded by the American Biogas Council and the National Milk Producer's Federation.

    A joint US Geological Survey and USDA Agricultural Research Service study looked at the impact of conservation practices on nutrient transport in the Upper Mississippi River Basin. They found that they could detect impacts of conservation on nitrogen loading more so than phosphorus. Journal article... | News release...

    Edible Bale Wrap. How many Ph.D. students does it take to solve a longstanding farm cleanup challenge? Three men in the U.K. are in the process of patenting a biopolymer for wrapping hay and silage that is edible. (Jill's note - This could very well become one of my favorite inventions of all time.) More...

    Discovery Farms. The "Confluence" newsletter published a nice article about six Discovery Farms programs throughout the country. Discovery Farms are working, private farms on which data is collected related to water quality and management practices. The goal of the programs is to reduce nutrient losses is runoff. More... | In addition to the six states mentioned in this article (Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Arkansas, Illinois, and Washington), Iowa has also developed a Learning Farms program. 

    Anaerobic Digestion. A new research article examined the co-digestion of poultry manure with sugar beet pulp. They looked at batch and semi-continuous conditions as well as different ratios of beet pulp and manure. Abstract...

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      In the news

      Melrose dairy farmer recognized for his conservation efforts
      Dairyland Peach, 7/27/16

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      Calendar

      Sept. 20: Ag and animal science conference, Minnwest Technology Campus, Willmar.
      Nov. 29-Dec. 1: Minnesota Milk Dairy Conference, St. Cloud.
      Dec. 1-3: Minnesota State Cattlemen's Association convention, Bloominton DoubleTree.
      Jan. 12-13, 2017: Organic agriculture conference, St. Cloud.
      Jan. 13-14, 2017: Minnesota Elk Breeders Association conference, Arrowwood, Alexandria.
      Jan. 17-18, 2017: Pork Congress, Minneapolis Convention Center.

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      Send the news

      The MPCA Feedlot Update welcomes news from partners about, projects, people, and upcoming events. Email submissions to forrest.peterson@state.mn.us. Past issues of Feedlot Update are available on the feedlot program publications webpage.