The Nebraska Department of Agriculture announced Wednesday that it  is working with South Dakota officials who Tuesday announced the finding of a bovine tuberculosis-positive cow in a southeast South Dakota cattle herd. 

State Agriculture Director Greg Ibach said Nebraska officials have been asked for information and assistance associated with the South Dakota Animal Industry Board’s epidemiological investigation of the TB-positive cow.

Nebraska was contacted as South Dakota officials begin to trace the movement of cattle into and out of the affected herd.

“At this point we anticipate the need for epidemiological work that will include the quarantine and testing of cattle in Nebraska,” Ibach said.  “Preliminary trace work has us focused on the northern part of the state.  At this point, we have no information to indicate the South Dakota case is connected to our ongoing TB investigation in Rock County.”

Information about bovine TB can be found on the NDA web site at www.agr.ne.gov, under the bovine TB button on the right side of the home page.

Nebraska senators Ben Nelson and Mike Johanns has expressed disappointment with Taiwan  failure to properly implement a planned expansion of the US-Taiwan beef trade. 

Nelson has sent a letter to the Representative of Taiwan to the U.S., Jason Yuan, expressing disappointment with Taiwan’s action. According to Nelson, Taiwan’s legislative body, the Legislative Yuan, voted this week to bar certain U.S. beef products in an apparent breach,Nelson said, of a US-Taiwan beef import protocol reached earlier this fall. 

 “I am greatly concerned by Taiwan’s commitment to fair trade of U.S. beef,” said Senator Nelson in the letter. “These actions by your government will impair Taiwan’s credibility and reputation as a reliable trading partner.”

 A strong advocate for the ending of Taiwan’s trade restrictions on U.S. beef, Nelson met with Yuan in both July and September of 2009 to discuss opening up more of Taiwan’s market to Nebraska beef producers.  The decision, he said, of the Taiwanese Legislative Yuan will restrict imports of ground beef and other ground beef products that had been allowed in the protocol.

Johanns said the ban partially reverses an agreement negotiated by the U.S. and Taiwan only two months ago.

“This is an unfortunate and unnecessary setback in our relations with Taiwan,” he said. ”I am disappointed that they are reversing their position on an agreement we just signed and I will work with the Obama Administration to resolve this important issue for Nebraska and other beef-producing states.”

 Johanns also sent a letter to Taiwanese officials urging them “to rely on science-based international standards when making trade decisions … and to communicate [Senator Johanns'] concerns to the appropriate representatives in [Taiwan's legislature].”

Johanns’ letter also highlighted how the U.S. government “has spent years developing and implementing a multilayered system of interlocking safeguards to provide for the safety of American beef.”

Lastly, Johanns wrote, any such action “would hinder years of effort to reach agreement to further open markets.”

It has been a tough month for cattle producers in Nebraska as  strong winter storms with blizzard conditions gave much of Nebraska a heavy blanket of snow, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, Nebraska Field Office.

The USDA reported that corn harvest progressed slowly during the last half of the month as heavy drifting in the eastern third of the state currently limits corn harvest. During the second week temperatures turned bitter cold and averaged 18 degrees below normal with precipitation in the form of heavy snow. The last week temperatures averaged nine degrees below normal with precipitation in the form of freezing rain and snow.

Livestock care was difficult with producers using hay and other supplemental feeds due to ice and snow cover and extreme low temperatures.

Depth of snow at the end of December averaged eight inches across the state with the Northeast District reporting the largest amount of snow cover at nearly 20 inches and the East Central District recording 13 inches. Much of the western half of the state recorded only minimal amounts of snow cover.

Temperatures averaged below normal the entire month. During the last week of the month, soil temperatures ranged from a low of 24 in western parts of the state to a high of 34 in the east.

Corn harvested was at 96 percent complete compared to 93 percent for the week ending December 20, 2009. Wheat conditions statewide rated 0 percent very poor, 2 poor, 33 fair, 61 good, and 4 excellent, below last year.

Hay and forage supplies rated 0 percent very short, 6 short, 90 adequate, and 4 excellent, near a year ago.

Cattle and calves condition rated 0 percent very poor, 2 poor, 20 fair, 75 good, and 3 excellent, below last year’s 83 percent good or excellent.

In central Nebraska, snow, cold, and wind have challenged cow-calf producers who are calving now. The weather has also slowed all livestock production and increased feed requirements. Grain farmers with corn still in the fields are finding north rows and/or end rows with snow drifts up to the tassels, restricting harvest.

Three of the nine district seats on the Nebraska Soybean Board (NSB) will be eligible for election this year.  Soybean producers in Districts 2, 4 and 8 are invited to run for election to the Nebraska Soybean Board by filing a candidacy petition by the May 14, 2010 deadline. The election of directors will be conducted via direct-mail ballots and candidate information will be provided to all producers residing within the district in which an election is to be held.

NSB Directors receive no salary but are reimbursed for expenses incurred while carrying out Board business.

(Three-year terms for these seats begin October 1, 2010 and end September 30, 2013)

Seats open for producer election in 2010 are:

District 2:       Counties Burt, Cuming, Dakota, Dixon, Stanton, Thurston and Wayne.

District 4:       Counties of Boone, Hamilton, Merrick, Nance, Platte, Polk and York.

District 8:       Counties of Arthur, Banner, Blaine, Box Butte, Brown, Chase, Cherry, Cheyenne, Custer, Dawes, Dawson, Deuel, Dundy,  Frontier, Furnas, Garden, Garfield, Gosper, Grant, Greeley, Harlan, Hayes, Hitchcock, Hooker, Howard, Keith, Keya Paha, Kimball, Lincoln, Logan, Loup, McPherson, Morrill, Perkins, Phelps, Red Willow, Rock, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan, Sherman, Sioux, Thomas, Valley and Wheeler.

Candidates for the Nebraska Soybean Board must be:

• Residents of Nebraska
• At least 21 years of age
• Soybean producers in Nebraska for at least 5 previous years

Prospective candidates must collect the signatures of fifty soybean producers in their district using an official Nebraska Soybean Board Candidacy Petition and return such petition to the Nebraska Soybean Board office on or before May 14, 2010, to be eligible for placement on the ballot.  To obtain a candidacy petition, contact Victor Bohuslavsky at the Nebraska Soybean Board by calling 402-432-5720 or emailing victor@nebraskasoybeans.org.

The nine-member Nebraska Soybean Board collects and disburses the Nebraska share of funds generated by the one half of one percent times the net sales price per bushel of soybeans sold.  Nebraska soybean checkoff funds are invested in research, domestic and foreign markets, including new uses for soybeans and soybean products.