- Thanks to new sponsorship from Merck Animal Health, up to six regional Stockmanship & Stewardship events will be coordinated by the producer education team at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association throughout the United States in 2019. Additional funding and support for the program is provided by the beef checkoff-funded Beef Quality Assurance program. More information on upcoming Stockmanship & Stewardship events will be announced at the 2019 Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show in New Orleans, La.
- Idaho dairy farmers are pioneering a new program to educate and train employees on workplace safety and awareness on the job. Ryan DeWit joined the Idaho Dairymen’s Association in 2017 to develop and implement an on-farm training program dairy farm owners can apply with their employees. The training, which is done in person in Spanish or English, is provided on iPads to provide individual pace and learning. The National FARM Program (Farmers Assuring Responsible Management) has partnered with IDA to create a safety manual resource for dairy producers across the country. FARM is a program managed by the National Milk Producers Federation based in Washington, D.C.
- The top 11 teams of the National FFA Poultry Evaluation Career Development Event are again invited to attend the International Poultry Expo, part of the 2019 International Production & Processing Expo, as a result of the USPOULTRY Foundation’s ongoing initiative to further attract students to the poultry and egg industries. The opportunity for teams of the Poultry Evaluation CDE to attend is made possible in part by endowing Foundation gifts from Prestage Farms and Sanderson Farms. The following Poultry Evaluation CDE teams have been invited to attend IPPE. Their awards were presented by John Starkey, USPOULTRY president, and Ed Scott, director of corporate recruiting for Cal-Maine Foods, and are listed in their order of finish: Katy FFA, Texas; Farmington FFA, Arkansas; Prairie Central FFA, Illinois; Coweta FFA, Oklahoma; Brantley County FFA, Georgia; Caney FFA, Kansas; Assumption FFA, Louisiana; North Clackamas FFA, Oregon; Paris FFA, Missouri; Hillsdale FFA, Ohio; and Manor FFA, Pennsylvania.
- Aptimmune Biologics announces the addition of two members to the company’s management team to start the New Year. Heather Bessoff, DVM, has joined the company as chief executive officer. Perry Harms, DVM, has been named technical consultant for Aptimmune.
