This week ISUEO Field Agronomist Joel DeJong notes that he has been in a few older alfalfa stands that did not survive the winter very well. Sometimes they looked OK from the road, but when in them you could see that the stands were thinned significantly by the winter we just experienced.
Continue reading “Evaluate Alfalfa Fields For Winter Injury”
The monthly dairy outlook with Mark Stephenson and Bob Cropp is available Here
Milk production in Iowa during March 2019 totaled 449 million pounds, down 1 percent from the previous March according to the latest USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service – Milk Production report. The average number of milk cows during March, at 217,000 head, was down 3,000 from both last month and last year. It is noteworthy that Iowa has lost over 100 dairy herds over the past past year.
Monthly production per cow averaged 2,070 pounds, even with last March.
Continue reading “Iowa Milk Production Down 1 Percent In March”
The Census of Agriculture has identified Iowa’s top commodities.
Key ResultsAMF index up 4.2%, average price US$6,126/MT Full results have been published on www.globaldairytrade.info. |
Rock Valley Hay Auction for Monday, Apr 15, 2019 Receipts: 35 loads Last Week: 16 loads Year Ago: 14 loads Alfalfa: Supreme: Large Rounds, 1 load 235.00. Premium: Large Squares, 1 load 200.00. Good: Large Rounds, 4 loads 170.00-180.00. Fair: Large Rounds, 5 loads 140.00-162.50; Small Squares, 1 load 165.00. Utility: Large Rounds, 3 loads 135.00-137.50. Grass: Premium: Small Squares, 1 load 205.00. Good: Large Rounds, 5 loads 150.00-170.00; Small Squares, 1 load 170.00. Fair: Large Rounds, 3 loads 132.50-145.00. Utility: Large Rounds, 1 loads 115.00. Alfalfa/Grass Mix: Good: Large Squares, 1 load 175.00; Large Rounds 155.00-175.00. Straw: Large Squares, 1 load 115.00 Corn Stalks: Large Rounds, 4 load 45.00-57.50.
Dairy producers have reported receiving Employer Correction Requests from the Social Security Administration (SSA). Commonly called “No-Match” letters, these letters inform employers of mismatches between submitted W-2 form information and SSA records. The “No-Match” letters were implemented in 1993 and discontinued in 2012, only to be resumed this year.
The letters instruct employers to access a list of their affected employees on the SSA’s Business Services Online (BSO) system. To use the BSO system, first complete a one-time registration process at:
www.socialsecurity.gov/bso/bsowelcome.htm
Ignoring the letter and failing to take action on the request could result in some jeopardy for the producer.
The milk production forecast for 2019 is lowered from last month as higher milk cow numbers are more than offset by lower expected growth in milk per cow for the year. The 2019 fat basis import forecast is unchanged from last month, but the export forecast is lowered on slower expected shipments of butterfat products and whey products.