CDA Names New Assistant State Veterinarian

LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture, John Stulp, has named Dr. Nick Striegel, of Fort Collins, assistant Colorado state veterinarian.

“We are very pleased to bring Dr. Striegel on as part of our veterinary team and believe that he will be a valuable asset to the livestock industries of Colorado,” said Colorado State Veterinarian, Dr. Keith Roehr. “His career experience and skills will be a significant benefit to the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s Division of Animal Industry.”

Striegel, 54, is currently a veterinarian with the Colorado State University Extension in Boulder County. He also has extensive experience in livestock and small animal practices and is pursuing a Masters of Public Health from The University of Iowa.

“There are many challenges ahead for animal agriculture, the degree that I am pursuing is helping me be better prepared to work in the common arena where animal health and human health overlap,” said Striegel. “It is also enhancing my knowledge and skills in the area of animal emergency management, zoonotic diseases, foreign animal diseases, and epidemiology.”

The principal responsibility of the assistant state veterinarian is to provide support to the state veterinarian in controlling and preventing animal diseases and promoting a profitable agricultural economy. As assistant state veterinarian, Striegel will also oversee emergency animal health and veterinary response teams, participate in rulemaking processes, and provide assistance with animal care and welfare programs.

"I am excited about being able to be involved in the work of the Colorado Department of Agriculture,” continued Striegel. “I look forward to working with livestock producers in the state and in the important task of protecting the health of animals.”

Striegel’s projected start date is June 15th. For more on CDA’s Division of Animal Industry, visit www.colorado.gov/ag/animals.

Trapping program tracks movement of Emeral Ash Borer

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS), in cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture and Fairfax County, is about to embark on a statewide survey to determine the extent of areas infested with the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). EAB larvae kill ash trees by feeding on the inner bark and disrupting the tree's ability to transport water and nutrients. It was introduced accidentally into the United States, most likely in wood packing materials coming from Asia, and was first detected in Michigan in 2002. The first EAB detection in Virginia occurred in Fairfax County in 2003, at an elementary school where infected ash trees sent from a nursery in Michigan had been planted. To prevent the spread of EAB, all ash trees within a half mile radius of the school were cut and chipped.

Over the next few years, ongoing surveys for EAB were negative, which suggested that the infestation had been contained and effectively eradicated. Unfortunately, EAB was detected again at multiple sites in Fairfax County in 2008, which resulted in the issuance of a quarantine for ten northern Virginia counties and independent cities, including the Counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun and Prince William and the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax City, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park. The quarantine restricts the movement of regulated articles from quarantined localities to non-quarantined localities. The regulated articles, which include ash trees, green (non-heat treated) ash lumber and ash wood products, as well as hardwood firewood, pose a significant risk of transporting EAB.

VDACS Commissioner Todd P. Haymore explained the reasons for the upcoming survey, which will start in mid-April and run through the end of August. “EAB has already killed millions of ash trees in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Ohio and we are aware of several infestations in Northern Virginia. The damage caused by this invasive insect can mean the loss of millions of dollars for homeowners, landowners, nursery, and forest products industries. It is extremely important to track the progression of EAB in order to alert localities to its possible spread which will help in making management decisions. If we can determine its spread, it will help unaffected localities develop options for the management of this destructive pest.”

As part of the upcoming EAB survey efforts, VDACS personnel will install 3,500 traps throughout the state. Most of the traps will be placed in the quarantine area, but a limited number of traps will also be placed at select points in every county in Virginia. The traps are easy to spot. They are purple in color, triangular in shape, and measure 14" wide by 24" long. The traps are baited with natural plant oil and covered with a non-toxic glue to catch the insects. The traps are especially useful for revealing new infestations that would otherwise remain undetected. VDACS staff will check the traps periodically to ensure proper placement, replace the lure, collect specimens, and remove the traps at the end of the survey.

Find additional information about the EAB at www.emeraldashborer.info. For additional information about EAB and other forest pest activities in Fairfax County, visit http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dpwes/environmental/trees.htm.

Ag license plate funds farm transition workshops

The Office of Farmland Preservation (OFP) of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) has announced the initial allocation of money generated by the sale of Virginia Agriculture license plates. For every “Farming Since 1614” plate sold, $15 of the annual fee goes to support efforts by OFP to preserve Virginia agriculture for the future. Since the introduction of the plate in 2004, sales have generated more than $62,000.

OFP used $15,300 of the license plate funds to support a wide range of Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) workshops and programs designed to help Virginia farm families and their service providers develop and implement plans to transition farms and farming operations to the next generation. An additional $5,190 was awarded to VCE for three seminars and workshops that focus on building communication among family members as well as increasing the ability of service providers such as attorneys, financial planners and Extension agents to assist families with transition issues.

According to Todd P. Haymore, VDACS Commissioner, “The average age of Virginia farmers is 57+ years. So we expect that in the next ten years, a large number of farms will transfer to the next generation. However, a farm transfer involves much more than estate planning. It represents the key to the survival of the Virginia agricultural industry and the families who depend on it for their livelihood. I endorse the use of funds generated by the sale of Virginia Agriculture license plates to help farm families develop and implement transition plans that will keep Virginia farms in agricultural production and help maintain agriculture as Virginia’s largest industry.”

Programs funded by the license plate sales include these:
• Introductory one-day workshops to increase the awareness of the entire farm family to the need to plan for the future of their farm business;
• Detailed hands-on workshops to instruct primary farm business managers and families in all aspects of transferring the farm business to the next generation;
• One-day in-service training for VCE agents to increase their knowledge and skills to better educate farm families about the need to plan for the farm business transition;
• One-day workshop to provide continuing legal education and continuing professional education credits for lawyers and Certified Public Accountants on how the legal and accounting professions can serve the needs of multi-generational farm businesses.

Find additional information about farmland preservation on the VDACS Web site at http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/preservation/index.shtml.

Kentucky's Incredible Food Show!

OCTOBER 3 – 4, 2009

at

The Lexington Convention Center and Rupp Arena 

Featuring 2 Shows with Food Network Chef Bobby Flay! 

      LEXINGTON, KY (May 28, 2009) -- The Kentucky Proud Incredible Food Show is the event of the year for everyone who loves food, cooking and entertaining. 

      Coming to the Lexington Center and Rupp Arena October 3 - 4, this two-day, food lover’s dream is packed with more than 120 exhibitors including Kentucky Proud producers and growers, specialty food companies, cooking-related equipment and wineries.  In addition, cooking demonstrations and seminars by regional and local chefs will be presented by Sullivan University culinary school.

      The Incredible Food Show is highlighted by two presentations featuring Chef Bobby Flay, author and show host of Food Network’s Throwdown, Boy Meets Grill & Iron Chef. Catch one or both at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. 

      “I am thrilled that Chef Bobby Flay is coming back to Kentucky for The Incredible Food Show,” Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer said. “We will have one of the world’s most famous chefs and fresh, healthy, delicious Kentucky Proud foods all under one roof. This will be the biggest event of the year for Kentucky food lovers.”

   

 

        Tickets go on sale Friday, July 10 at the Lexington Center Ticket Office, Ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster Outlets.  Tickets are priced as follows:

Adult One Day Pass - $12
Children ages 4-12 One Day Pass - $5  
Children 4 and under – Free!

 

            General admission includes cooking demonstrations, food and entertainment-related presentations and product sampling on the exhibit floor. Additional tickets are required for Bobby Flay presentations.  The Bobby Flay Celebrity Kitchen Theatre tickets, which also includes admission to the food show exhibit halls, range from $35 - $75*. 

 

*$75 Ticket includes autographed copy of Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill.   

Kentucky chefs vie for seafood supremacy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

For more information contact:
Bill Clary

(502) 564-1137

 

 

 

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky chefs will vie for state seafood supremacy at the fourth annual Great Kentucky Seafood Cook Off on June 8 at the Jefferson Community and Technical College in Louisville.

 

Chefs are required to submit two of their best recipes using Kentucky farm-raised seafood ingredients. One pound of product will be supplied to each chef for his or her chosen recipe for the competition. The competitors will prepare their seafood dishes for an independent panel of culinary judges. Entries should be consumer-friendly and easy for the at-home chef to prepare. Dishes will be judged on taste, execution of skills and presentation, and ease of preparation.

 

The winner will represent Kentucky in the Great American Seafood Cook Off in New Orleans in July. The national competition will be covered by The Food Network and judged by National Marine Fisheries and Coastal Living and Southern Living magazines.

 

The 2009 Great Kentucky Seafood Cook Off is sponsored by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, the Kentucky Aquaculture Association, Kentucky State University and Jefferson Community and Technical College.

 

Deadline to register to compete in the cook off is June 1. For more information, contact Angela Caporelli at (502) 564-4983 or angela.caporelli@ky.gov.

Composting may be one alternative to the problem of dead animal disposal.

by Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer

I’ve made no secret of my disappointment over the tunnel vision shown by out-of-touch Washington bureaucrats in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in their recent decision to impose an enhanced animal feed ban rule.

 

The new rule prohibits the use of certain cattle-derived materials from being used in any animal feed. It will put many of Kentucky’s small family farmers, renderers, haulers and associated businesses out of business and will have unintended consequences to public health and the environment.

 

This isn’t over; I’m going to continue to work with Kentucky’s congressional delegation to find a solution that will serve Kentucky’s livestock industry while also protecting consumers and the environment.

 

But in the meantime, I believe that on-farm composting of animal carcasses could be an alternative to rendering. The University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service explains the procedure in detail in a publication titled “On-Farm Composting of Animal Mortalities” (ID-166).

 

Animal mortalities are a part of animal production. Mature swine, beef, and dairy animals die at an average rate of 2 to 5 percent per year. The highest mortality rate, 10 to 12 percent, is with younger animals from birth to weaning.

 

Composting can provide animal producers with a convenient on-farm method for carcass disposal while providing a valuable soil fertilizer. Finished material can also be reused to top-dress future carcasses, speeding up the decomposition process by providing beneficial bacteria that prevents the release of odors, which attract flies, vermin and buzzards.

 

Composting is a natural decomposing process conducted by microorganisms that can be controlled under managed conditions. Composting reduces the size of the material by removing organic products, water, and energy in the form of carbon dioxide, vapor and heat. Pathogens that cause approximately 80 percent of animal mortalities are destroyed by high temperatures during the composting process.

 

Kentucky law (KRS 257.160(1)(f)) allows disposal of animal carcasses by composting if the disposal is performed in an approved facility and according to the Kentucky State Board of Agriculture’s administrative regulations.

 

Obtaining permits and constructing the composting facility are essential steps to beginning the process. A $25 permit from State Veterinarian Dr. Robert Stout is required, and all animal composting facilities are subject to inspection by the state veterinarian’s office.

 

The composting area should not be built in a floodplain or within 300 feet of a water well, stream, sinkhole, pond, property line or public road. The compost area may be covered with a roof to control moisture runoff, and a water supply should be nearby to add water to the compost pile as needed.

 

Other than animal carcasses, an ingredient necessary for composting is a bulking agent. Some sort of ground-up wood product – such as sawdust, wood shavings and wood mulch – works best because it is high in carbon and can wick up moisture. Chipped wood can be acquired at little or no cost through tree removal companies. Horse muck and corn stover can also be used.

 

A couple of tools are necessary to manage composting facilities. A front-end loader may be needed to place carcasses in the compost pile, move the composting material, turn or flip the pile contents and section the carcasses. A long-stemmed compost thermometer is also useful to monitor the decomposition process.

 

You can read the UK Extension report through a link on the Kentucky Department of Agriculture’s Web site. Go to www.kyagr.com, click on the “Programs” icon at the top of the page, select “State Veterinarian” from the list and under “Animal Carcass Disposal,” click on the last item, “On Farm Composting.”

Commissioner Farmer says test your forages.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
For more information contact:
Bill Clary
(502) 564-1137

 

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer advises forage and livestock producers to test their forages. The Kentucky Department of Agriculture provides a forage testing service for a small fee.

 

“Testing provides livestock producers with valuable nutritional information,” Commissioner Farmer said. “By knowing the nutritional value of their forages, producers can minimize the cost of their feed while maximizing the production of their livestock.”

 

The Department tests samples for $10 per lot (same field, same cutting). Producers receive a laboratory analysis of their forage’s nutritional value and an “Interpreting Forage Quality Report” from the KDA. The analysis helps forage producers determine a fair market value for their product and helps livestock producers formulate the most nutritious and economical feed ration for their animals.

 

For producers who wish to sell their forages, a KDA inspector will make a visual evaluation and list the product in the Department’s online Hay Sales Directory. Each listing describes a lot’s type, cutting date and number, bale size and weight, color, odor, relative feed value (RFV) and other characteristics. Listings may be sorted by any combination of county, RFV, bale size and type of hay.

 

Producers and brokers looking to buy or sell hay also may contact the KDA’s toll-free Hay Hotline at (888) 567-9589. The Department makes no guarantees or claims to the quality, price or nutritional value of hay and forages submitted through the hotline.

 

The KDA has a forage testing van used for testing and educational purposes. The van may be booked for hay contests, meetings, fairs and other events by calling toll free 1-800-248-4628.

 

For more information on the KDA’s Forage Testing Program, go to www.kyagr.com, click on Programs, and click on Forage Testing, Hay for Sale (Tested) or Hay Hotline, or contact Kim Field at Kimberly.field@ky.gov or 1-800-248-4628.

Recent outbreaks show the need for animal disease surveillance.

by Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer

Over the past five months, we certainly have seen how important it is to have a diligent, well-funded animal disease surveillance system staffed by experts in their fields.

 

Last December, routine surveillance turned up a case of contagious equine metritis in a central Kentucky quarter horse stallion. An investigation turned up 18 stallions in six states (including four in Kentucky) and five mares in three states that tested positive for CEM. Approximately 750 horses in 47 states were exposed to the organism that causes the disease. Thanks to quick and aggressive action by our state veterinarian’s office, our partners at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and private practitioners, Kentucky is well on its way to regaining CEM-free status with minimal disruption of the 2009 quarter horse breeding season.

 

That action did not come without a cost. At the recent annual conference of the Southern Animal Health Association in Lexington, our state veterinarian’s office reported that testing and treatment of horses in Kentucky infected or exposed to CEM has cost the state Department of Agriculture in excess of $160,000 so far.

But the cost of inaction would have been far greater. A CEM outbreak in Kentucky in 1978 cost the Thoroughbred industry an estimated $1 million a day.

 

Now a new hybrid flu strain is spreading in the United States and around the world. While this strain has not been identified in Kentucky (at this writing) and has not been found in swine or any other animal, State Veterinarian Robert C. Stout has increased surveillance at Kentucky livestock markets and has alerted the state’s livestock disease diagnostic laboratories in Lexington and Hopkinsville to test all swine samples for this strain.

 

Understandably, people have reacted to this outbreak with great concern. Unfortunately, sales of pork products have fallen sharply as a result of the outbreak, even though experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and USDA repeatedly have stated that people cannot catch this strain by eating properly handled and cooked pork products. Once again, the value of careful surveillance and a source of timely, accurate information is evident.

 

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture is a consumer protection and service agency that touches every Kentuckian every day. Make sure your legislators know you value the Department’s services.