Red Meat Production Up in New York in August

Commercial red meat production for New York totaled 3.8 million pounds in August, up 21 percent from the 3.1 million pounds produced in August 2015, said Blair Smith, state statistician of the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, New York Field Office.
 
Cattle slaughter totaled 3,200 head, up 10 percent from August 2015. The average live weight was up 28 pounds from the previous year, at 1,190.
 
Calf slaughter totaled 4,300 head, up 65 percent from August 2015. The average live weight was down 57 pounds from last year, at 136 pounds.
 
Hog slaughter totaled 6,000 head, up 33 percent from August 2015. The average live weight was up 12 pounds from the previous year, at 243 pounds.
 
Sheep slaughter totaled 5,000 head, 6 percent above last year. The average live weight was 102 pounds, down 3 pounds from August a year ago.

It's National Farm Animals Day

Each year on April 10, we celebrate all those animals on the farm.

Sheep

It's National Farm Animals Day. Annually observed April 10, National Farm Animals Day was created as a day to raise awareness about farm animals and to find home for the abandoned and abused farm animals.

Beef cattle

For more information regarding National Farm Animals Day, see: http://www.farmanimalsday.com/

It's National Pig Day

Some pigs on display at the New York State Fair.

It's National Pig Day.

Here's to all those folks -- even some in New York state -- who raise pigs so we all can enjoy pork and bacon.

According to the National Day Calendar, National Pig Day, celebrated annually on the 1st of March, recognizes the domesticate

d pig. This “unofficial” national holiday includes events and celebrations at zoos, schools, nursing homes and sporting events around the United States. 

There also has been known to be a few pig parties, pig parades and gatherings with pig collectibles to name just a few of the events.

New York's Red Meat Production Up 3 Percent from Last Year

From the USDA:

Total red meat production for New York totaled 3.1 million pounds in June 2015, up 3 percent from the 3 million pounds produced in June 2014 and up 11 percent from May 2015, said Blair Smith, state statistician of the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service, New York Field Office.

Commercial cattle slaughter totaled 3,100 head, up 7 percent from June 2014. The average live weight was down 21 pounds from the previous year at 1,141 pounds.

Commercial calf slaughter totaled 2,000 head, 62 percent below June 2014. The average live weight was up 76 pounds from last year at 198 pounds.

Commercial hog slaughter totaled 3,700 head, up 12 percent from June 2014. The average live weight was up 5 pounds from the previous year, at 229 pounds.

Commercial sheep and lamb slaughter totaled 5,200 head, 41 percent above June last year. The average live weight was 105 pounds, up 7 pounds from a year ago.

Piglets, Sows Will Return to New York State Fair

From the state Department of Agriculture and Markets:

Sow and piglets from a previous state fair

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball and New York State Veterinarian Dr. David Smith today announced the return of the hugely popular piglets and sows exhibit and competition at the 2015 Great New York State Fair.  

In 2014, due to a relatively new virus known as Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv), which has a high mortality rate among piglets, a decision was made by the state Department of Agriculture and Markets to suspend the exhibit to protect the well-being of piglets and their mothers.  

Due to the fact that there were no reported cases at the State Fair as well as county fairs in 2014, coupled with no unusual uptick in cases this winter in contrast with last winter, Commissioner Ball and Dr. Smith have made the decision to allow this exhibit to return in 2015.

“I’ve gotten more questions on the status of this exhibit for 2015 than I can count, and after careful consideration by the one of best animal health experts in the country, we couldn’t be more pleased that this wildly popular exhibit is returning to the Fair in 2015,” said Ball. 

“We are first and foremost an agricultural fair, and we take our responsibility as caregivers to the animals there very seriously," Ball said. "This is great news for fairgoers coming to the premier agritourism location in New York State in 2015.”

“We’ve been monitoring this situation with respect to PEDv very closely since its outbreak almost two years ago,” said Dr. Smith. “Our staff was at every agricultural fair in New York state last year monitoring animal health and no evidence of the virus was reported.  Vaccines were also made available to pork producers last year with some success."

A welcome home party for this popular exhibit will take place during the Fair’s media preview day Wednesday, Aug. 26. At any given New York State Fair, there are between four and six sows with eight to 12 piglets each. Fair officials estimate that as many as half of all fairgoers visit the swine-and-piglets exhibit during the 12-day extravaganza.  

New York had 70,000 hogs on Dec 1, 2014, up from 66,000 on Dec. 1, 2013. 

Ed Dutton, owner of Churchill Farms in Holland, NY, said, “As a longtime exhibitor, I think this is great news for fairgoers because seeing piglets with their mothers up close is always one of the most positive experiences at the Fair.” 

Dr. Smith encourages exhibitors at every agricultural fair in the state to practice sound biosecurity to protect their animals, including:

• 4H-ers purchasing feeder pigs for their fair projects should only acquire their feeders from reputable farms. If they’re from out of state ask to see the certificate of veterinary inspection.
• All swine should be examined closely before taking them to the fair.  Exhibitors should take their animals’ temperature prior to the trip to the fair. Swine with temperatures over 102.5 should be left home.
• If any of your pigs have diarrhea, no pigs from the affected farm should go to the fair.

• All exhibitors should practice a high level of sanitation at every fair, including avoiding unnecessary contact with other swine and other exhibitors’ equipment.
• Left over feed and bedding are best discarded at the fair and not brought home, since these materials are very difficult or impossible to disinfect.
• Isolate all pigs after returning home for at least 2 weeks. Observe pigs closely during this period and consult a veterinarian if any become sick

Hand sanitizers will again be used at barns located throughout the 12-day fair.

PEDv is relatively new to the US, first appearing in the Midwest in May 2013 and has taken a heavy toll on the nation’s hog farmers, having caused the death of millions of piglets since its outbreak. When sows and litters become infected, PEDv kills nearly 100 percent of piglets less than 10 days old, while pigs older than 10 days tend to recover.

"Farmland" Coming to Theaters Next Month

The new documentary "Farmland" is supposed to start hitting theaters May 1.

A check of the www.farmlandfilm.com website shows the film coming to Auburn (the only site on the website so far in Central New York) but a date and time has yet to be announced. The website also shows the film coming to Albany and New York City.

The film is by Academy Award-winning filmmaker James Moll and includes interviews with farmers in Minnesota, Colorado, California, Georgia, Nebraska and Pennsylvania.

To see the trailer and learn more about the film, go to www.farmlandfilm.com

New York State Fair 'One Thing' Series -- Today's Feature, Swine

Duroc sow with her piglets at the New York State Fair

Pigs and hogs aren't huge in New York state, compared to other animals such as cattle or horses.

In fact, New York ranks 32nd in the country in hogs. Iowa is number one.

According to the Census of Agriculture for 2002, there were 1,527 hog and pig operations in New York state raising 81,886 head of swine. 

The 2007 Census of Agriculture shows more pigs and hogs, with 1,871 operations and 85,741 swine. In 2010, there were about 110,000 pigs and hogs raised in the state, with a total value of $11.8 million.

But compare this to Iowa. About a quarter of all the swine in the country come from Iowa -- in 2002, there were 10,205 hog and pig operations in Iowa and a total of 15,486,531 pigs and hogs being raised.

I talked to Joe Krenzer, of Caledonia, Livingston County, about swine. He raised pigs and hogs for 53 years. He said the 'one thing' he would like the public to know about pigs is "they should eat pork. It's good for you."

According to various nutrition websites, pork is a great source of protein. But you do have to watch out for various cuts that can contain more fat than others. Look for something like pork tenderloin --  3.5 ounce serving has 135 calories and 30 grams of protein, according to sharecare.com.  

Pork is the world's most consumed meat.

By the way, in case you are wondering, there is a difference between a hog and a pig. Hog is the general name for the animal while a pig is a young hog. A gilt is a female that has not yet been bred to have a litter of piglets. 

Happy International Bacon Day!

Today is International Bacon Day.

So let's all have my favorite sandwich -- a BLT.

Photo taken from a blog

Check out http://bacontoday.com/international-bacon-day-2013/ this website for more information than you've ever wanted on bacon.

Oh, and for all those bacon aficionados out there, here are a few things I found online for you by going to google, searching bacon and then clicking "images."

Photos of a suit made of bacon; a casket that looks like strips of

Photo take from a blog

bacon; Yankee Candles with the aroma of frying bacon; bacon-scented soap; bandages that look like strips of bacon; a sculpture of Kevin Bacon made of, you guessed it, bacon; gummy bacon candies; bacon frosting; bacon candy canes; a bacon coat for dogs; bacon jerky; bacon lip balm; bacon on a s'more; a bacon bra; a bacon tie; and a bacon costume for little kids.

So have a great bacon day, and kiss a pig to celebrate.

Reports Says There are Too Many Veterinarians

Interesting story on cattlenetwork.com

See it at http://www.cattlenetwork.com/e-newsletters/drovers-daily/AVMA-report-indicates-excess-veterinary-capacity-204363291.html