Water diversion report deadline July 1

People who divert surface water in California face a July 1 deadline to report that use for 2009. Failure to do so by the deadline could result in hefty fines. The new reporting requirement is included in the package of water bills passed by the Legislature late last year. The intent of the new law is to better identify the amount of water being used in the state’s watersheds. Although there are a few reporting exceptions, Danny Merkley, California Farm Bureau Federation water resources director, said it’s important for landowners to note that reporting diversions to the State Water Resources Control Board has been required for decades, but he said “in the past there were no legal consequences for failure to report. Now, there are.” Farm Bureau has prepared a detailed guidance document to help members meet the new reporting requirements. It’s available online at www.cfbf.com/waterreporting.

Animal well being workshops set for Merced, Stanislaus and Kern counties in June

The second in a series of free educational workshops designed to help dairy producers prepare for a national animal care and well being program gets underway in June. The national Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) program has been endorsed by Dairy CARES. The California Dairy Quality Assurance Program (CDQAP) will conduct the educational workshops to discuss how the FARM program works, how to best prepare for an on-farm evaluation and what to expect during an evaluation.  There are two sets of workshops. The first is Introduction to the Dairy FARM program and will provide an overview. The second workshop is Performance Monitoring of Animal Well-Being and will cover scoring for locomotion, hocks, body condition and hygiene. The workshops are free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis. Reservations are not required. The first workshops get underway in Merced County on June 3 and June 10, followed by Stanislaus County workshops June 8 and June 22, and Kern County workshops June 23 and June 24. Click here for the workshop schedule.

NMPF Overwhelmingly Approves Dairy Policy Reform Package

The National Milk Producers Federation’s Board of Directors overwhelmingly agreed today move forward with a variety of changes in federal dairy policies that will better protect dairy producers, and position them more favorably in an increasingly volatile global marketplace. The NMPF Board voted Wednesday to support the package of concepts contained in the Federation’s approach to reforming dairy policy entitled “Foundation for the Future.” NMPF President and CEO Jerry Kozak said that package will be used as the basis for the future direction of the dairy provisions in the next Farm Bill, or in some other form of federal legislation that Congress may consider in the future. <more> June 10, 2010 NMPF Press Release  

Nominations sought for National Dairy Board

USDA is currently accepting nominations for 12 seats on the National Dairy Board. Dairy producer and farm organizations have through June 18th to nominate candidates. From those nominated, the Secretary of Agriculture will select the dozen individuals to serve three-year terms on the board. Five members will be appointed for Region 2 (California) and one member for each of the remaining seven regions. <more> June 8, 2010 Brownfield Ag News

Dairyman does it his whey. Escalon farmer stars in nationwide TV ad

Johan "John" Bartelink likes entertaining visitors to his dairy on Van Allen Road outside Escalon, hosting 1,200 to 1,400 schoolchildren a year and offering tours to other dozens of other visitors from around the nation and the world. His playful spirit is featured in one of a new series of television commercials focusing on nine different California family dairy farms. In the 30-second spot - which can be found at www.realcaliforniamilk.com/people  - Bartelink squirts milk at school kids visiting his milking barn, eliciting a burst of squeals and giggles. <more> June 7, 2010 Stockton Record

What your board of directors is doing on supply management

 By Jamie Bledsoe, WUD President - - One of the most complex and contentious issues facing the dairy industry is that of supply management. I wanted to let you know some of what your trade association has done and is doing on this issue. WUD formed an industry task force in 2009 to analyze and review the many proposals being brought forward to possibly address the industry’s economic crisis. Many versions of supply management have been put on the table. Our volunteer task force members have devoted considerable time and energy to studying these proposals. Noted economists have weighed in with their extensive analyses. <more> June 4, 2010 WUD Weekly Update

What has crisis taught us?

If humans learn through adversity, dairymen must have gained a ton of insight in the longest, deepest economic downturn any of them can remember.  Jamie Bledsoe, president of Western United Dairymen and a Riverdale, Calif., dairyman, said he can't speak for everyone, but he thinks the biggest lesson is that a severe economic downturn can happen. The downturn wasn't just a phenomenon in the dairy industry. The worldwide financial crash was an anomaly, he said.  "We knew we were going to have a supply-demand issue in 2009, but most dairymen, Americans, didn't know of this financial meltdown at the end of 2008. No one predicted a downturn of this magnitude for this length of time," he said.  <more> June 4, 2010 Capital Press  

JUNE 2010

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