NEWS

Ag Briefs: DMC payments total $94M so far

Wisconsin State Farmer
Midwest briefs

ALLENTON, WI

New Dairy month event in Washington Co.

After a year off, the Washington County Dairy Promotion is back with a new event for June Dairy Month titled, “Dairy Destination –Carloads of Fun”. The event is scheduled for 7-11 a.m. Saturday, June 12, and will be held at Sunset Farms,6600 Sunset Dr., Allenton, WI.

Guests will be guided to an auto trail where they will be able to tour the entire farm from inside your vehicle. The experience will feature the sights of dairy cows and calves, barns and equipment and more. Younger guests will delight in games and surprises along the route.

Each car will receive a signature “Dairy Dream Box” filled with dairy products, treats, and prizes valued at over $30 - highlighting locally available dairy products.

The event is available only through limited advanced ticket sales - $20 per carload - beginning May 1. Tickets will indicate tour arrival time and can be purchased online at  www.washingtoncountydairy.com. Tickets are non-refundable.

MADISON, WI

Rain slows fieldwork

While farmers were able to make some inroads in working land, slow, soaking rains dropped over an inch of precipitation across the state, increasing soil moisture.

According to the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, tillage, manure and fertilizer applications were underway in many areas with some farmers were planting small grains, potatoes and alfalfa.

Pasture and overwintered crops were greening up and reporters commented that there was very little winterkill visible at this time.

To date, 19% of oats were reported as planted, a week ahead of last year and 12 days ahead of the 5-year average. Spring tillage was reported as 20% complete, 10 days ahead of last year and 13 days ahead of the average. Winter wheat condition was rated 75% good to excellent statewide, up 6 percentage points from last week.

ATLANTA, GA

Cow runs loose on Atlanta area interstate

A loose cow is being blamed for a traffic jam on an Atlanta area highway.

Police in Dunwoody, a suburb about 15 miles north of Atlanta, say officers responded Saturday morning to a cow running on Interstate 285. It had apparently fallen out of a livestock trailer.

Michael Gerbick told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the cow surprised him as he headed to work at a Volvo dealership.

"Traffic was moving a little. Cars were slowly getting by. Then all the sudden this cow comes running around the corner with a gentleman chasing him," Gerbick said. 

Associated Press reported that police were able to capture the cow with help from someone with a rope. In a Facebook photo, the cow appears tethered to the front of a police vehicle.

JACKSON, WY

New Wyoming law will allow people to take road kill to eat

Thousands of times a year, motorists inadvertently smash into Wyoming wildlife like mule deer, elk and pronghorn antelope, littering highway right-of-ways with carcasses that sometimes include dozens or hundreds of pounds of fresh, lean, edible meat.

Salvaging that meat has been illegal for generations. That's about to change.

Associated Press reported that Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed a bill into law that directs the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and Wyoming Department of Transportation to create rules governing the harvest of road-killed carcasses by July.

It's a change that gives Wyoming residents who have the misfortune of striking an animal the same liberties as people in about 30 other states, including western neighbors such as Idaho, Colorado and Montana.

WYDOT averages about 3,000 reports of wildlife-vehicle collisions in a year.

The legislation imposes some notable restrictions: whole carcasses will have to be removed; some species - including bighorn sheep, mountain goats, grizzly bears and wolves in some areas - are off-limits; and salvaged meat cannot be donated to nonprofits.

WASHINGTON D.C.

DMC payments total $94M so far

Wisconsin dairy producers that enrolled in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program have received $20.9 million in payments so far, according to USDA data.

Thanks to climbing feed prices, farmers enrolled in the program created by the 2018 Farm Bill, began receiving payments. The safety net offers market protection to dairy producers when the difference between the all-milk price and the average feed cost falls below a certain dollar amount selected by the producer.

Enrollment into the program jumped 25% following the pandemic. The USDA noted that just half of the eligible producers signed up for the program. This year almost 19,000 dairy producers signed on, an increase of 74%. There are 4771 Wisconsin dairy operations participating in the program.

Wisconsin producers received payments of $4,393 on average, slightly below the national average of $4,947.

EAU CLAIRE, WI

Wisconsin FFA Foundation to host golf fundraisers

FFA will be hosting golf outings to raise money for their programs in Eau Claire on July 12, Seymour on July 13 and Middleton on July 26. The money will help FFA members "prepare for careers in agribusiness, agrimarketing, science" and other areas of study. You can register online at wisconsinaged.org/events/golf.

Each event includes 18 holes and lunch for $85 per person. Attendees must be registered for Eau Claire and Seymour outings by July 2 and Middleton by July 16. The locations for Eau Claire, Seymour and Middleton will be Wild Ridge Golf Course, Crystal Springs Golf Course and Pleasant View Golf Course, respectively.

ALGOMA, WI

Algoma School District partners with McKinstry to install solar array

The Algoma School District has partnered with McKinstry, an engineering firm, to design and install a new solar array – a 185 kW-dc solar photovoltaic fixed tilt ground-mount system – that will offset almost 40% of Algoma High School's electricity consumption.

According to a news release, the array will generate 253 megawatt-hours of energy every year, providing significant cost savings. With the school district also receiving $41,500 in grants from two sustainable energy programs, a news release said the array will pay for itself in less than 16 years. Algoma School District Director of Business Services Jason Melotte said "this project provides us with substantial environmental and social benefits."