PROFITABLE AND SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS

INITIATIVE TEAM MEETING

SHERIDAN, JUNE 6, 2001

 

 

Present: Brett Moline, Scott Hininger, John Hewlett, Jim Krall, Jim Gill, Bill Taylor, Glen Whipple, Jerry Langbehn, Doug Hixon, Tom Thurow, Ron Delaney, Wayne Tatman

 

 

1)       Team members filled out “Team Effectiveness Grid” as part of research project of State Coordinating Committee.

2)       Report from members of Drought Issue Team.

a)       Have not heard results of grants applied for.

b)       Stock Growers holding session on drought at this meeting.

c)       Governor’s Task Force – the Governor wants practical responses.

d)       Wyoming does not have legal coverage for prescribed fire.

e)       Drought website with many links has been established.

f)         Proposed studies would look at decades of commodity and weather data.

g)       Message from PSAS team to Drought Issue Team – give us materials and comparisons/alternatives we can use now – this summer and fall.

i)         Use of CRP land.

ii)       Use of crops for grazing

(1)     Sugar beets.

(2)     Corn stalks

(3)     Hay ground

3)       Discussed issue of getting initiative involvement.

a)       Need to share programs with other educators

i)         Initiative team meetings scheduled Monday pm before EPIC.

ii)       Ask for summary presentation during EPIC to all educators and get feedback.

(1)     Wayne will take this back to EPIC committee

iii)      Each need to share ideas/questions/issues with individual educators, departments, colleagues .

iv)      District meeting presentations.

v)        Invite other interested or needed educators to attend meetings.

b)       Need to send meetings to Susan J. to put on activities calendar.

c)       Need to get involvement before fall, especially for fall and winter programs.

d)       Survey questions: What we are looking at – are they the right things?

e)       Team needs to block out basic program and develop issue teams to handle specific issues listed.

i)         Not all initiative team members need to be on each issue team.

f)         Complexion of team may change as Area Educators are instituted.

g)       Why should educators work on issues raised by the teams?

i)         Internal funding.

ii)       External funding.

iii)      Appraisals.

4)       Title of the present issue team was changed slightly to more accurately reflect the issue and became: Sustainable, Efficient Forage-Based Livestock Systems.

a)       The initial effort of this issue team will be to address beef female systems up to the 2nd calf cow (3 year old).

b)       Doug H. reported on similar programs that might be used as models:

i)         Kansas, Oklahoma, Elanco have packaged programs

ii)       NCBA maintains a “Beef Info Base”.

(1)     Costs $50 or can subscribe on web.

iii)      Our purpose is broader than most of these.

c)       Doug then reported on the inventory each department was asked to take to determine what resources they could bring to bear on this issue:

i)         Vet Science

(1)     Woodard

(a)     Immunization of heifer

(2)     Bill Jolley

(a)     parasite control

ii)       Animal Science

(1)     Genetics, sire selection

(2)     Reproduction

(a)     Avoiding calving difficulty

(b)     Estrus synchronization

(3)     Nutrition.

iii)      Ag Econ

(1)     Bastian

(a)     Risk management

(b)     Marketing

(2)     John Foulke

(a)     Livestock budgets

(3)     Jim Freeburn

iv)      Renewable Resources

(1)     CRP

(2)     Mgmt of native types of range or pastures

(a)     Cool seasons vs. warm seasons

(b)     Performance comparisons

(c)     Intensive grazing systems

v)        Plant Sciences

(1)     Koch

(a)     Forages to extend grazing season

(b)     WY forage quality data

(2)     Gray

(a)     Irrigated pastures

(b)     Mosley (Montana State) would do better

(3)     Whitson

(a)     Weeds

(4)     Krall

(a)     Alternative crops

(b)     Crop residues

(5)     Other resources

(a)     CSU

(i)       Dave Schultz – grazing annuals

(b)     Montana State University

(c)     U of Neb. – Scottsbluff

(d)     Fort Keogh

(e)     Elanco publication on getting the heifer bred.

d)       Suggested program title: “Evaluating Alternatives – What’s best for you?”

e)       Program ingredients

i)         Health

(1)     Immunization

(2)     Parasites

ii)       Animal Science

(1)     Genetics

(2)     Reproduction

(3)     Nutrition

iii)      Ag Econ

(1)     Risk management

(a)     Production, marketing, legal, financial, human

(2)     Budgets

iv)      Forages

(1)     Forage alternatives, crop residues

(2)     Weed & pest management

v)        Drought management

vi)      Human resource management

f)         Program venues

i)         Web site with components, materials

(1)     Personal response to questions

(2)     Web master – Randy Anderson

ii)       Schools, workshops, series

(1)     Location? – multiple

(a)     By district

iii)      Printed handbook or CD

g)       Resource allocation

i)         State specialists

(1)     Time, program share, travel

ii)       Web master

iii)      Materials and supplies

iv)      Publicity

v)        Compressed video

vi)      Planning expenses, travel

h)       Issue team members

i)         Brett

ii)       Doug

iii)      Jim G. – co-chair

iv)      Wayne – co-chair

v)        Other suggested members

(1)     Koch

(2)     Whitson

(3)     Woodard

(4)     Alan Gray

(5)     Smith or Waggoner

(6)     Hewlett

(7)     Freeburn

(8)     Foulke

(9)     Bastian

(10) Magagna

(11) Reese

(12) BLM

(13) USFS

(14) NRCS

(15) WACD

i)         Resource procurement

i)         Charge fee

ii)       Endowment

(1)     Alumni, private sources

iii)      Grants

(1)     4-H Foundation

(2)     Experiment station

(3)     SARE

(4)     Risk management grants

iv)      State CES

v)        Ag groups such as Stock Growers, Wool Growers, Farm Bureau, commodity groups

vi)      Fund for Rural America

j)         Issue team meeting June 28th, 10:00 a.m. at Casper Extension Office.

5)       Initiative and Issue team meetings at EPIC in October.

6)       CES budget request due by end of month.

a)       Meeting expenses

i)         Bill will do

b)       Project funding

i)         Cost of CD production - $500

ii)       2 planning meetings - $500

iii)      Presentation (including honorariums) $5000

c)       Granting activities

i)         Seed money

ii)       Suggest state held central pool for all teams

7)       Training requests – deadline September 28th.