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Roundup for 9.28.24

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Volume 36 Number 23 • September 28, 2024

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The Weekly News Source for Ranchers, Farmers and AgriBusiness Community • www.wylr.net

A Look Inside Prairie chicken analysis casts doubt on species classification.......................... Page 5 UW Extension discusses the reality of rabies............. Page 6 Horse owners encouraged to pay attention to hoof care between farrier visits.... Page 9 Federal interest rate cut could provide relief to the ag industry....................... Page 14

Quick Bits USDA Grants On Sept. 19, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced USDA is awarding more than $35 million in grants to 15 independent meat processors in 12 states to increase processing capacity, spur competition to expand market opportunities for U.S. farmers and create jobs in rural areas. This marks the final investment in the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program, funded by President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan, which was first launched in 2022. For more information, visit usda.gov.

Sen. Barrasso testifies before the DOE on advanced computing On Sept. 12, U.S. Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (ENR), addressed the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) role in con-

ducting advanced computing research in three specific areas – artificial intelligence, quantum computing and cybersecurity. The hearing includes testimony from DOE’s Office of Critical and Emerging Tech-

nologies Director Helena Fu, DOE’s Science-Security Initiative Integration Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Dr. Shaun Gleason and American Policy Ventures Senior Fellow Dr. Divyansh Kaushik.

Sen. Joe Manchin, III (I-WV), chairman of ENR, began the hearing by stressing to the committee, “Computing technology is advancing rapidly across the globe, and the U.S. must proceed Please see DOE on page 4

Pregnancy Diagnosis Fall is the time for cattle producers to consider options for pregnancy diagnosis

Chilly morning temperatures and an array of golden hues mark the beginning of fall and the end of summer grazing. Around this time, producers start to gather their cows off of summer range or mountain forests and trail them to meadows at lower elevations. As they enter this next phase of the production cycle, beef cattle experts remind producers of the benefits of pregnancy diagnosis, as well as available options.

Benefits of pregnancy diagnosis University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Beef Cattle Reproductive Physiologist Rick Funston notes, although research has shown diagnosing pregnancies in cattle herds ultimately adds to a producer’s bottom line, it is “grossly underutilized” with only 20 percent of producers employing some kind of pregnancy diagnosis at the Please see PREGNANCY on page 8

WYLR photo

New Initiative The U.S. Department of Agriculture is announcing the launch of the Distressed Borrowers Assistance Network, an initiative designed to provide personalized support to financially distressed farmers and ranchers across the nation. Through a series of cooperative agreements, this national network will connect distressed borrowers with individualized assistance to help them stabilize and regain financial footing. For more information on the initiative, visit fsa.usda.gov.

Reservoir

The Bureau of Reclamation will be lowering the water level in Alcova Reservoir after the irrigation season draws to a close. The annual drawdown of the reservoir will begin on Oct. 1. Boat owners and recreationists should be aware of the declining level of Alcova Reservoir and take proper precautions. During October, the reservoir water surface elevation will be lowered about 10 feet, at a rate of approximately four inches per day. The reservoir’s normal winter operating range is between 5,487 and 5,489 feet. Water released in the drawdown of Alcova Reservoir will be restored downstream in Glendo Reservoir. For more information, contact Elizabeth Smith at esmith@usbr. gov or 406-591-4761.

CHECK OUT THE 2024 FALL CATTLEMEN'S EDITION INSIDE

WASDA update State ag departments across the West address common issues during annual meeting The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) hosted its annual meeting Sept. 22-25 in Indianapolis, where commissioners, secretaries and directors of agriculture from all 50 states and four U.S. territories gathered to discuss the latest in the industry. Themed “Cultivating Common Ground,” the event’s agenda was jampacked with committee and regional meetings, as well as informational sessions and guest speakers. On the first day, regional state departments of agriculture broke off to hold their own meetings. Discussions in the Western Association of State Departments of Agriculture (WASDA) meeting centered around the common issues of wildfire, water, drought, livestock, crops, food safety, trade, public lands and funding. WASDA is made up of state agriculture departments from Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming, as well as the American Samoa Government Department of Agriculture and Please see WASDA on page 7

PLC honors awardees, elects president The 56th Annual Public Lands Council (PLC) Meeting took place Sept. 17-19 in Grand Junction, Colo. During the last day of the event, PLC recognized two outstanding individuals and named their new president. Individuals honored Wyoming’s Dick Loper was among the two individuals honored by PLC, receiving the 2024 Friend of PLC Award for his work as a range consultant and advocate of public lands grazing since the early 1980s. According to a Sept. 24 PLC press release, Loper’s relationships with staff and political officials in the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of Interior have “provided key insight and opportunities to improve conditions for permittees and rural communities.” “During his legendary career, Loper has worked extensively with state and federal agencies, grazing permittees and other agriculture organizations, and his contributions continue to impact decisions today,” reads the release. PLC President Tim Canterbury presented Loper with his award, stating, “Loper is a great friend to all grazing permittees and has worked tirelessly to improve range management on public lands for the land and for the ranchers. He has provided a tremendous amount of support for our industry and has consistently promoted all of the benefits grazing has on the landscape.” “Sheep and cattle producers are so grateful to Loper for his commitment and service to this industry. Generations of ranchers will benefit from Loper’s expertise and Please see PLC on page 16

UNL works to launch ag in space For a University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) research team, launching agriculture in space is not such an out-of-thisworld idea. Over the past few years, UNL Department of Biological Systems Engineering Assistant Professors Yufeng Ge and Santosh Pitla have set out to achieve the lofty goal of pioneering the first center for agriculture in space and finding ways to sustainably grow food on celestial bodies. “We’ll be on Mars and the moon – we’ll have settlements – and people have to eat,” says Pitla in a Nov. 6, 2023 Nebraska Today article written by UNL Communication and Marketing Specialist Scott Schrage. “One of the things we are

looking at is how we grow food in space.” Robot farmer The creation of a flexible robot (FlexRo) in 2019 by UNL’s Biological Systems Engineering Department, led by Pitla, kicked off the project. Flex-Ro, a compact multi-purpose tractor of sorts, can collect data with a variety of sensors used to measure everything from reflectance, plant height, temperature and humidity. “Before humans go to Mars, we’ll want some essential resources there – and for this, we will send robots,” says Pitla. “Think about a greenhouse on a spaceship landed on Mars, and it’s already started

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Please see UNL on page 6


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