MCA Prime Cuts

Merry Christmas from the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association!

The staff and officers of the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. We hope you enjoy spending the holiday season with your friends and family.

The MCA office will be closed next week, December 25 through 29, in addition to Monday, January 1, in observance of Christmas and New Year’s Day. In addition, there will not be an issue of Prime Cuts sent next week. We will resume the normal schedule of Prime Cuts on January 4, 2007. Happy Holidays!

MCA Members Celebrate Success of 2006; Set Policy for 2007

Awards were presented, officers elected, policy set, and good times and great beef were enjoyed by all at the recently concluded 2006 Missouri Cattle Industry Convention and Trade Show, held December 7-9 at the University Plaza Hotel & Springfield Expo Center in Springfield, Mo. The new officers and award winners include:

Officer Team

President: Merrel Breyer, Richland

First Vice President: David “Blue” Geier, California

Second Vice President: Paul Gibbs, Boonville

Northeast Regional Vice President: Jim Lolli, Macon

Southwest Regional Vice President: Jim McCann, Miller

Secretary/Treasurer: Carl Elliott, Holden

Seedstock Council Chair: Monty Wheeler, Bolivar

Stocker/Feeder Council Chair: Jimmie Long, Cole Camp

Also completing the second year of their two-year terms are Northwest Regional Vice President James Sparks and Southeast Regional Vice President Steve Willard.

Award Winners

Industry Award Winner: Andy Atzenweiler, Missouri Beef Cattleman magazine

Cattleman of the Year: Howard Hardecke, Bolivar

CattleWoman of the Year: Dawn Thurnau, Ashland

Pioneer Award: Eldon Cole, Mt. Vernon

Convention Appreciation Recognition: Mickey and Eugene Buxton, Warrenton, and Dale and Virginia Watson, Kirksville

Top Recruiter: Nick Flannigan, Springfield

Top Hand Gun Winners: Nick Flannigan, Al Kennett, David “Blue” Geier, Jackie Moore, Rick Anstine, and Kenny Beltz.

Awards for Excellence:

First Place: Texas County Cattlemen’s Association

Second Place: Macon County Cattlemen’s Association

Best Beef Promotion: Southwest Cattlemen’s Association

Best Event: St. Clair County Cattlemen’s Association

2007 Missouri Beef Queen: Katie Allen, Marceline

2007 Missouri Beef Ambassador: Rebecca Stephen, Stewartsville

MCA Points System Top Overall Exhibitor: Tawnia Misemer, Mt. Vernon

Junior Division Quiz Bowl Champions: Mallory Early, Hannah Bartholomew, Josie Yoakum, and Cooper Black

Senior Division Quiz Bowl Champions: Brittany Early, Trey Neill, Garren Bellis, and Austin Black

Editor’s note: Congratulations to the 2007 MCA officer team and to all the award winners. Thanks to all those who helped make the 2006 Convention & Trade Show a success – MCA members who attended convention, the convention committee, the host committee, the trade show exhibitors, sponsors, and volunteers. We look forward to another great convention in Springfield Dec. 6-8, 2007.

Cattlemen Submit Petition to Challenge Air Standards on Ranches
After reviewing hundreds of pages outlining the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final rule on fugitive dust, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has decided to challenge the rule in court. NCBA filed a petition today in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit seeking review of EPA’s air quality standards that regulate agricultural dust.

The EPA released the rule revising the Clean Air Act National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Particulate Matter (PM) on October 17. NCBA has maintained that there is no scientific evidence warranting the regulation of dust on farms and ranches.

“On livestock operations, dust is produced by tilling soil, planting and harvesting crops, driving on dirt roads, spreading nutrients on fields, mixing feed, and by cattle simply moving around in feedlots. These are examples of the dust that that would be regulated under a coarse PM NAAQS,” says Tamara Thies, NCBA’s director of environmental issues. “Many farms and ranches are simply unable to control dust to the level EPA requires, even when using best management practices. The EPA has put agriculture in an impossible situation, with no scientific justification.”

NCBA submitted extensive comments on the issue, including technical evidence demonstrating that fugitive dust from agriculture operations presents no public health concerns. EPA set the limit at 150 micrograms per cubic meter during a 24-hour period, which is an impossible threshold in naturally dusty and rural landscapes. Even EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee’s (CASAC) Particulate Matter Review Panel recommended excluding rural areas from coarse PM NAAQS regulation.

“Ranchers are experienced in managing air quality and utilizing dust control practices on their ranches,” says Thies. “Dust is – at most – a nuisance issue and should be regulated accordingly. It is not a health issue that warrants regulation at the level that EPA’s rule requires.” - NCBA

Governor’s Column on Missouri Agriculture - December 2006

By Governor Matt Blunt

Agriculture is the bedrock of the state’s economy, the foundation of our future and a high priority in my administration. In order for Missouri’s farm families and ranchers to continue to increase their productivity and remain competitive in a global economy we must build on the successes of the last two years.

During the upcoming legislative session I will ask the state legislature to increase the amount of tax credits available through the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority from $6 million to $10 million. The tax credits help young farmers reduce the risks to their farming operations by waiving interest payments for one year.

Missouri has the potential to become the nation’s best and most profitable beef industry. We must continue to chart a new course for Missouri’s beef industry that recognizes the full value of Missouri beef by aggressively marketing the Missouri beef brand.

Last year we made progress in positioning Missouri as a leader in the use of alternative fuels by requiring that gasoline sold in Missouri be blended with 10 percent ethanol by 2008. This new E-10 standard fulfills a commitment I made to Missourians. Next year I will again call for full funding for the biodiesel and ethanol incentive funds to ensure our continued success in the growing alternative fuels industry. Over the last two years my administration has worked to pay back the incentive payments that were promised to the Missouri farm families that invested in ethanol cooperatives, but were not made before I took office. The next budget I will propose will include fulfilling all outstanding incentive payments.

To ensure that Missouri’s alternative fuels industry continues to grow we must address regulatory barriers so that we can create agricultural centers like dairies and finishing operations near ethanol plants where livestock can feed on distillers’ grains. We also must advocate for more E-85 pumps and encourage the United States’ auto industry to produce more flex-fuel vehicles and expand the number of models that are flex-fuel capable.

Missouri’s agriculture industry is strong and now even stronger because of the successes of the previous two years. We must continue to build on our past accomplishments to ensure Missouri’s farm families remain competitive in our global economy. - The office of Governor Matt Blunt

Producers Invited to Attend 2007 East Central Grazing Conference

Jim Gerrish to speak on Grazing Strategies

The Montgomery and Warren County SWCD’s, Bear Brush, Charrette Creek and Elkhorn Creek AgNPS SALT Projects in cooperation with USDA-NRCS are sponsoring Jim Gerrish, American GrazingLands Services LLC, at the 2007 East Central Grazing Conference.

Gerrish will speak on Grazing Strategies for Dry Times and Getting the Most Out of Your Winter Pasture on January 23, 2007 at the Merchants Building in the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Montgomery City, MO. Doors will open at 3:00 PM and the program will begin at 4:30 PM. RSVP’s to the Warren County SWCD office in Warrenton Missouri should be submitted by January 12th, 2007. Registration is $15.00 in advance and $20.00 at the door per person and includes a steak dinner.

For more information or if you are interested in being a vendor at the conference please contact the Warren County SWCD at 636.456.3434 ext 3.

- Sarah Szachnieski, Warren County NRCS

Mid-Missouri Grazing Council offers Outstanding Program on January 23

The Mid-Missouri Grazing Council will offer another outstanding program on January 23, 2007 at the Boone County Fairgrounds. Registration and the trade show begin at 8:30 am with several vendors from Missouri showcasing their products available to livestock producers attending the conference.

Concurrent sessions will start promptly at 9:30 am, covering such topics as: Managing summer annual forages, de-worming small ruminants, a demonstration using breeding barns for artificially inseminating cattle with a question/answer session following the demonstration, the second session includes: managing summer annual forages, understanding and utilizing hay tests (which is ever more important with high feed costs) and determining parasite loads in small ruminants. The third set of concurrent sessions, starting at 11:30 am, include topics in the areas of: pasture weed control, protecting yourself from livestock theft, and a demonstration on weed control with a spray table. The lunch and keynote speaker will begin around 1:00 pm with Richard McConnell from Springfield, Mo. speaking about "Low-Stress Handling Methods for Livestock". Mr. McConnell was a student of the famous Bud Williams Livestock Handling School in Texas and will talk to the audience on why and how producers can use low-stress handling methods in their livestock operations to not only help their animals, but their own well being. Mr. McConnell will also give a live demonstration during the afternoon session, showing how his methods can work with livestock. During this time, there will also be two concurrent sessions going on as well, which include; de-worming small ruminants and pasture-weed control.

Registration is $30.00 BEFORE January 12, 2007, and should be sent to the Cole County SWCD c/o Ed Gillmore, 1901 Boggs Creek Road, Jefferson City, MO 65101. A $10.00 discount will be given to those sending an updated forage analysis (taken since August 1, 2006) with their registration form. Other information can be found on MMGC's official website: http://extension.missouri.edu/cmregion/ag/mmgc/grazingconf.shtml. Hope to see you there!

- University of Missouri Extension

Missouri Agribusiness Academy Applications Now Available

The Missouri Department of Agriculture is now accepting applications for the 2007 Missouri Agribusiness Academy (MAbA), a youth leadership program designed for high school sophomores to explore career opportunities in agribusiness, government and production agriculture. MAbA helps to provide youth with a foundation in agricultural leadership and prepares them to meet the challenges and reap the rewards of Missouri's largest industry, agriculture.

Applications are available at www.mda.mo.gov and are due no later than Friday, Feb. 2, 2007. To be eligible for MAbA, academy members must be a high school sophomore and come from a farm family or be active in 4-H or FFA. - Missouri Department of Agriculture

New Reserved Camping at the 2007 Missouri State Fair

Beginning in 2007, the Missouri State Fair will offer reserved camping for fair patrons. Reservation costs are $275 and reserves a location in the reserved area in the southern section of the campground. Reservations can be made now through May 1, 2007 by visiting http://www.mostatefair.com/camp07.html. and reservations must be made for the duration of the State Fair.

- Missouri Department of Agriculture

Calendar of Events

Dec. 21 Vernon County Cattlemen’s Association – Vernon Co. Fairgrounds, 6:30 p.m.

Dec. 25 Merry Christmas from the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association

Dec. 28 Lewis-Marion County Cattlemen – Highland High School Cafeteria, 7:00 p.m.

Jan. 2 Southwest Cattlemen’s Association, 7:00 p.m.

Jan. 8 Macon County Cattlemen – Lolli Bros. Livestock Market Café, 6:30 p.m.

For more cattle industry events, visit www.mocattle.com/calendar.htm

The Fine Print

This newsletter is a publication of the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association. All rights reserved – this newsletter may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without permission of the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association. Did someone forward this message to you? To subscribe yourself, send an email to cattleinfo@mocattle.com.

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If so, please contact McKenzie Disselhorst at (573) 499-9162 or mckenzie@mocattle.com.