policy

Bob Young, American Farm Bureau's chief economist, is seeing food costs going up through their consumer surveys.

Our surveys' would suggest those food prices are up, and up significantly.

However, there are enough of uncertainties in the market places that suggest that food prices will only be a factor but not the driver.

Other activity in agriculture suggests that the sector as a whole is doing well. There still are issues with corn and bean prices remaining high, with impacts to cattle prices. But over all 2012 looks pretty good.

DairyCast 0437 Show Notes:

• Susan Bora, Senior VP for communications at the Food Marketing Institute, discussed efforts underway at the Food Marketing Institute to better communications from retailer to consumers.  She shares her thoughts on transparency and foreknowledge of issues which might impact perception at the recent Food Systems Summit. 

DairyCast 0433 Show Notes:

• Should animal agriculture continue to have access to antibiotics?  This question and others was discussed by a wide range of stakeholders in the use of antibiotics in food animals under the leadership of the National Institute for Animal Agriculture.  A panel including representatives from poultry, beef, dairy and swine logged in to share thoughts and answer questions in this Q&A audio.
• Link to all presentations from NIAA's Antibiotic Use In Food Animals: A dialogue for a common purpose

DairyCast 0431 Show Notes:

• The U.S. Farmer & Rancher Alliance worked to reach across the aisle with the recent 'Food Dialogues Town Hall Meeting'.  The nation wide conversation featured four locations and top agrimarketers, retailers and consumer advocates.  Today we share a few comments from the opening session in Washington, D.C.
• Link to the Food Dialogues Town Hall Meeting videos.

DairyCast 0427 Show Notes:

• The National Milk Producers Federation is fully supporting H.R. 3062, titled "The Dairy Security Act of 2011".  NMPF CEO Jerry Kozak explained the legislation and background on this important initiative to reporters.

Running a business, even in agriculture, requires having a sense of how the operations are working and keeping an eye on potential trouble spots. When money is involved, the opportunity for theft does exist. Having in place controls and process to keep theft away is an important management responsibility.

Unfortunately, embezzlement is not uncommon and is often difficult to detect. Embezzlement is a crime of opportunity and trust. A person who is trusted is placed in a position that allows him or her complete access to the financial data of the business, typically with minimal or no oversight by the supervisor or owner. The best way to prevent embezzlement is to first, be honest yourself in your activities.

Here are 7 actions to take:

• Assign designated duties.
• The owner should review reports.
• Review your bank statement.
• Know where your money is going.
• Establish office policies.
• Watch your overhead numbers.
• Be a fair, consistent, honest leader.

DairyCast 0424 Show Notes:

• Colorado State's Dr. Temple Grandin believes handling procedures have improved dramatically over the past decade but harbors concern for the 10% of handlers that shouldn't be near animals.