Cooperative fuels athletic programs
Dairy Farmers of America – along with 13 of its regional farmer-owned milk brands – is helping to fuel school athletic programs with the launch of its first-ever “Fuel Their Drive” promotion. The fall promotion will award $1 million to high school athletic programs across the country when consumers purchase milk from one of the cooperative’s participating brands.
More than 250 grants ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 will be awarded across 13 of Dairy Farmers of America’s brand communities in 26 markets. The grants may be used to update a sports field, revamp a school gymnasium, purchase athletic equipment, or whatever an athletic department deems as its greatest need.
Milk provides student athletes high-quality protein for strong muscles, fluids to rehydrate, and nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D and phosphorus. And winning milk money is made easy for consumers, according to Dairy Farmers of America.
The participating regional brands are listed.
Visit fueltheirdrive.com for more information.
Milk-quality-expert nominations sought
The National Mastitis Council recently opened nominations for its Award of Excellence for Contribution to Mastitis Prevention and Control. The award recognizes a council member who has provided sustained contributions to mastitis prevention and control through research, Extension and-or education, clinical practice. or service to dairy producers.
The award carries a cash honorarium and a travel stipend to attend the National Mastitis Council Annual Meeting, which will be held Feb. 1-3 in San Diego. The award, sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health, will be presented during the meeting.
Nominations are due Oct. 31. The nomination form may be found on the council’s website. In addition to the completed form, submit two or three letters of support. The letters should describe how the nominee has met award criteria, including time in the dairy industry, positions held, major contributions to mastitis prevention and milk quality, research, publications, leadership roles, participation in National Mastitis Council activities and industry involvement. Also include the nominee’s curriculum vitae and-or resume. Visit nmconline.org/award-of-excellence for more information.
Foot-and-mouth disease plan tested
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship recently partnered to test state and federal animal-health officials’ plans to respond to a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak if it were to occur. The disease hasn’t been detected in the United States since 1929.
During the training exercise state and federal animal-health officials discussed their vaccine-distribution strategy. They practiced actions that would need to be taken at the beginning of an actual foreign animal-disease outbreak. The training exercise involved detecting a hypothetical case in a susceptible animal, identifying the strain of the virus, and activating the North American Foot and Mouth Disease Vaccine Bank. It also involved shipping the placebo vaccine from a European manufacturer to the United States and distributing the placebo to participating livestock producers and veterinary clinics in multiple states. It was essential to demonstrate that the placebo vaccine could be held within a specific temperature range during shipping and that chain of control could be maintained during the entire distribution process.
The foot-and-mouth virus affects cows, pigs, sheep, goats, deer and other animals with divided hooves. The virus can cause a fever, blisters and lameness in livestock, resulting in decreased protein and milk production. If a positive case of the disease was confirmed in the United States, it could disrupt the food-supply chain, international trade and the economy.
There are vaccines available to protect livestock from foot-and-mouth disease but they must be matched to the specific type and subtype of the virus to be effective. To date there are more than seven known types and 60 subtypes of the virus. Visit aphis.usda.gov/aphis/home for more information.
Product competition targets gamers
The 10th annual National Dairy Council New Product Competition seeks the next innovative dairy product from U.S. college students. Undergraduate students and graduate students are eligible to compete by developing innovative dairy-based products for gamers. Successful entries will meet competition criteria, demonstrate innovation, and provide value to consumers.
The competition is an opportunity for students to develop products in line with industry and consumer insights to uncover innovative products for gamers.
The judging panel is comprised of experts from the dairy industry. Winning teams will be recognized at the American Dairy Science Association’s annual meeting in Kansas City June 19-22. A combined $16,000 in cash prizes will be awarded – $8,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place and $3,000 for third place.
The deadline for submissions is Jan. 17. Visit usdairy.com or contact rohit.kapoor@dairy.org for more information.
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