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Previewing Dairy Policy Options For The Next Farm Bill, Dennis A. Shields

Congressional Research Service Reports

Financial stress in the dairy industry in 2009, brought on largely by sharply lower milk prices, activated standing federal programs to support dairy farmers. In calendar year 2009, the federal government spent more than $1 billion to support the industry through the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) Program, the Dairy Product Price Support Program (DPPSP), and the Dairy Export Incentive Program (DEIP). Following appeals from dairy farmers for more financial assistance, Congress granted another $350 million in October 2009 in the form of supplemental payments to dairy farmers and government purchases of dairy products.

While farm milk prices have increased …

Fy2010 Supplemental Appropriations For Agriculture, Jim Monke

Congressional Research Service Reports

Two separate bills are advancing in the 111th Congress that could provide nearly $4 billion of supplemental funds for agricultural programs in FY2010. The agricultural provisions in these bills have a relatively small funding impact compared with the nonagricultural provisions in the bills.

H.R. 4213 (commonly known as the “tax extenders” bill) would provide up to $3.6 billion for agriculture-related programs. The House and Senate are trading amendments to reconcile differences between each chamber’s version of the bill. The most recent House-passed version from May 28, 2010, includes $1.48 billion for agricultural disaster assistance, $1.15 billion for a settlement of …

Agricultural Biotechnology: Background And Recent Issues, Tadlock Cowan

Congressional Research Service Reports

U.S. soybean, cotton, and corn farmers have rapidly adopted genetically engineered (GE) varieties of these crops since their commercialization in the mid-1990s. Over the last decade, GE varieties in the United States have increased from 3.6 million acres to 143 million acres. Worldwide, 25 countries planted GE crops on approximately 309 million acres in 2008. GE varieties now dominate soybean, cotton, and corn production in the United States, and they continue to expand rapidly in other countries. As adoption has spread, policy debates have continued over the costs and benefits of GE products.

Ongoing concerns include the impacts of GE …

Agriculture In The Wto: Limits On Domestic Support, Randy Schnepf

Congressional Research Service Reports

Most of the provisions of the current farm bill, the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-246), do not expire until 2012. However, hearings on the 2012 farm bill have already begun. Congress is in the process of reviewing farm income and commodity price support proposals that might succeed the programs due to expire in 2012.

A key question likely to be asked of virtually every new proposal is how it will affect U.S. commitments under the WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture (AA), which commits the United States to spend no more than $19.1 billion annually on domestic farm …

Agricultural Disaster Assistance, Dennis A. Shields, Ralph M. Chite

Congressional Research Service Reports

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers several permanently authorized programs to help farmers recover financially from a natural disaster, including federal crop insurance, the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), and emergency disaster loans. The federal crop insurance program is designed to protect crop producers from unavoidable risks associated with adverse weather, and weather-related plant diseases and insect infestations. Producers who grow a crop that is currently ineligible for crop insurance may be eligible for a direct payment under NAP. Under the emergency disaster (EM) loan program, when a county has been declared a disaster area by either the …

Ec10-219 2010 Nebraska Swine Report

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension: Historical Materials

Extension Circular 10-219: Nebraska Swine Report of 2010 provides information of the nutrition, health and genetics.

2009 Major Sponsored Programs And Faculty Awards For Research And Creative Activity

Office of Research and Economic Development: Publications

From discoveries in nanoscience, nutrigenomics and software engineering to innovative initiatives in math achievement, child welfare, water and climate change, UNL faculty are engaged in meeting the challenges of a changing world.

This eighth annual “Major Sponsored Programs and Faculty Awards for Research and Creative Activity” booklet highlights the successes of University of Nebraska–Lincoln faculty during 2009. It lists the funding sources, projects and investigators on major grants and sponsored program awards received during the year; published books and scholarship; fellowships and other recognitions; start-ups and intellectual property licenses; and performances and exhibitions in the fine and performing arts.

This …

Chapter 5- Technologies And Advances In Water Management, Prem S. Paul, Monica Norby, Gillian Klucas, Ashley Washburn, Elizabeth Banset, Vicki Miller

Office of Research and Economic Development: Publications

Highlights of Research and Educational Programs Related to Agricultural Water Management in Nebraska

Farmers are challenged to use water more efficiently while maximizing net return, Suat Irmak said. Researchers at the University of Nebraska– Lincoln (UNL) are investigating ways to improve agricultural practices and minimize water loss.

Center pivot irrigation research is designed to measure and understand crop response to water and chemigation under limited and full irrigation settings with the goal of determining how much farmers can reduce irrigation while maintaining high yields.

Irrigation treatments investigated range from dryland conditions to 50 percent irrigated to fully irrigated, and measurements …

Chapter 6- A View From Agricultural Producers, Prem S. Paul, Monica Norby, Gillian Klucas, Ashley Washburn, Elizabeth Banset, Vicki Miller

Office of Research and Economic Development: Publications

Rainfed and Irrigated Production in Argentina

Martin Pasman, an Argentine agronomist with a master’s degree in business administration, began his career as a consultant to farmers and has experience in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil, where he was instrumental in helping to develop 80,000 hectares in the western part of the Cerrado area. His farming experience stems from his family’s farms, located in five areas of Argentina. Most are rainfed, but one area receives less than 500 millimeters of rain annually. Pasman also runs an irrigation business serving 80 percent of the Argentine market, giving him vast experience in developing …

Malondialdehyde–Acetaldehyde Adduct Is The Dominant Epitope After Mda Modification Of Proteins In Atherosclerosis, Michael J. Duryee, Lynell W. Klassen, Courtney S. Schaffert, Dean J. Tuma, Carlos Hunter, Robert P. Garvin, Daniel R. Anderson, Geoffrey M. Thiele

United States Department of Veterans Affairs: Publications

Antibodies to malondialdehyde (MDA)-modified macromolecules (adducts) have been detected in the serum of patients with atherosclerosis and correlate with the progression of this disease. However, the epitope and its formation have not been characterized. Studies have shown that excess MDA can be degraded to acetaldehyde, which combines with proteins to from a stable dihydropyridine adduct. To investigate, mice were immunized with MDA adducts in the absence of adjuvant and showed an increase in antibodies to MDA adducts and the carrier protein as the concentration of MDA was increased. In fact, a number of the commercially available antibodies to MDA-modified proteins …

The Leading Object:March 2010, John C. Owens

Leading Object

Perspectives; INTSORMIL helps improve varieties of grains in developing countries; Engler’s donation to support agribusiness entrepreneurship; Career with Monsanto proves fulfilling; State ranks high during National Ag Week; CARET delegates support IANR; Lindgren retires from UNL after 34 years; Masek given March KUDO award; McAndrew receives service award; Vet sciences building gets new name; Fritz accepted into leadership program

Tenderness – An Enzymatic View, Caroline M. Kemp, Paul L. Sensky, Ronald G. Bardsley, Peter J. Buttery, Tim Parr

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center: Reports

One of the most common causes of unacceptability in meat quality is toughness. Toughness is attributed to a range of factors including the amount of intramuscular connective tissue, intramuscular fat, and the length of the sarcomere. However, it is apparent that the extent of proteolysis of key proteins within muscle fibres is significant determinant of ultimate tenderness. The objective of this manuscript is to describe the main endogenous proteolytic enzyme systems that have the potential to be involved in muscle postmortem proteolysis and whether the experimental evidence available supports this involvement.

Assessment Of Selenium And Atrazine Exposure And Effects To Wildlife At The North Platte National Wildlife Refuge, Scottsbluff, Nebraska, Matthew S. Schwarz, Christina D. Lydick

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

This study evaluated selenium and atrazine exposure and effects to fish and wildlife at North Platte National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska. Atrazine was detected in 2 of 54 water samples and at low concentrations that are not of concern. However, concentrations of selenium and strontium exceeded toxicity guidelines in water, sediment, invertebrates, whole-body fish and wood duck eggs. Concentrations of selenium in water at Refuge sites frequently exceeded a 2 μg/L total recoverable threshold for selenium bioaccumulation and were greatest at Stateline Island (9.7 μg/L) and Little Lake Alice (24 μg/L). In sediments, strontium concentrations were …

50 Cfr Part 17: Endangered And Threatened Wildlife And Plants; Determination For The Gunnison Sage-Grouse As A Threatened Or Endangered Species; Proposed Rule, Allan Pfister

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce our 12–month finding on whether to list the Gunnison sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). After reviewing the best available scientific and commercial information, we find that the species is warranted for listing. Currently, however, listing the Gunnison sage-grouse is precluded by higher priority actions to amend the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants. Upon publication of this 12-month finding, we will add the Gunnison sage-grouse to our candidate species list. We will develop a proposed …

Tympanic Temperature In Confined Beef Cattle Exposed To Excessive Heat Load, Terry L. Mader, John B. Gaughan, Leslie J. Johnson, G. Leroy Hahn

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Angus crossbred yearling steers (n=168) were used to evaluate effects on performance and tympanic temperature (TT) of feeding additional potassium and sodium to steers exposed to excessive heat load (maximum daily ambient temperature exceeded 32°C for three consecutive days) during seasonal summer conditions. Steers were assigned one of four treatments: (1) control; (2) potassium supplemented (diet containing 2.10% KHCO3); (3) sodium supplemented (diet containing 1.10% NaCl); or (4) potassium and sodium supplemented (diet containing 2.10% KHCO3 and 1.10% NaCl). Overall, additional KHCO3 at the 2% level or NaCl at the 1% level did not improve performance or heat stress tolerance …

What Is The Taxonomic Identity Of Minnesota Wolves?, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

The taxonomic identity of the historical and current wolf (Canis lupus L., 1758 or Canis lycaon Schreber, 1775 or their hybrids) population in Minnesota (MN) and the Great Lakes region has been, and continues to be, controversial. So too does its legal status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. This review summarizes the morphological and genetic information about that population and concludes that historically the MN population consisted of a gray wolf (C. lupus) in the west and an eastern type (Canis lupus lycaon or C. lycaon) in the east with intergrades or hybrids between …

Endangered And Threatened Wildlife And Plants; Designation Of Critical Habitat For The Salt Creek Tiger Beetle

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service/USFWS), designate critical habitat for the Salt Creek tiger beetle (Cicindela nevadica lincolniana) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). In total, approximately 1,933 acres (ac) (782 hectares (ha)) located in Lancaster and Saunders Counties, Nebraska, fall within the boundaries of the critical habitat designation.

Avian Foods, Foraging And Habitat Conservation In World Rice Fields, Richard M. Kaminski, Kenneth J. Reinecke, Joshua D. Stafford

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Worldwide, rice (Oryza sativa) agriculture typically involves seasonal flooding and soil tillage, which provides a variety of microhabitats and potential food for birds. Water management in rice fields creates conditions ranging from saturated mud flats to shallow (<30 cm) water, thereby attracting different guilds of birds. Grain not collected during harvest (i.e. waste rice) is typically the most abundant potential food of birds in rice fields, with estimates of seed mass from North America ranging from 66-672 kg/ha. Although initially abundant after harvest, waste rice availability can be temporally limited. Few abundance estimates for other foods, such as vertebrate prey or forage vegetation, exist for rice fields. Outside North America, Europe and Japan, little is known about abundance and importance of any avian food in rice fields. Currently, flooding rice fields after harvest is the best known management practice to attract and benefit birds. Studies from North America indicate specific agricultural practices (e.g. burning stubble) may increase use and improve access to food resources. Evaluating and implementing management practices that are ecologically sustainable, increase food for birds and are agronomically beneficial should be global priorities to integrate rice production and avian conservation. Finally, land area devoted to rice agriculture appears to be stable in the USA, declining in China, and largely unquantified in many regions. Monitoring trends in riceland area may provide information to guide avian conservation planning in rice-agriculture ecosystems.

Effects Of Chronic Ammonium Sulfate Treatment On The Forest At The Bear Brook Watershed In Maine, Jose Alexander Elvir, G. Bruce Wiersma, Suzanne Bethers, Peter Kenlan

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

At the Bear Brook Watershed in Maine (BBWM), the forest tree composition was characterized and the effects of the chronic ammonium sulfate ((NH₄)₂SO₄) treatment on basal area growth, foliar chemistry, and gas exchange were investigated on forest species. The BBWM is a paired watershed forest ecosystem study with one watershed, West Bear (WB), treated since 1989 with 26.6 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ and 30 kg S ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ applied bimonthly as (NH₄)₂SO₄, while the other watershed, East Bear (EB), serves as a reference. Tree …

Animal Science Collection Development Policy, Dana W.R. Boden

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Collection Development Policies

The Animal Science collection supports the teaching, research and service activities of the entire university community. Its primary audience is the faculty, staff, and students of the Animal Science department in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources within the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The collection’s primary focus is support for the undergraduate and graduate curricula for Animal Science. Specific and transient research needs of Animal Science faculty and graduate students are supplemented through Interlibrary Loan.

The focus of the Animal Science collection is diverse in nature as it encompasses disciplines that are well established within colleges …

Γ-Zeins Are Essential For Endosperm Modification In Quality Protein Maize, Yongrui Wu, David R. Holding, Joachim Messing

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Essential amino acids like lysine and tryptophan are deficient in corn meal because of the abundance of zein storage proteins that lack these amino acids. A naturalmutant, opaque 2 (o2) causes reduction of zeins,anincreaseofnonzeinproteins,andas a consequence, adoubling of lysine levels.However, o2’s soft inferior kernels precluded its commercial use. Breeders subsequently overcame kernel softness, selectingseveral quantitative loci (QTLs), called o2modifiers,without losing the high-lysine trait. These maize lines are known as “quality protein maize” (QPM). One of the QTLs is linked to the 27-kDa γ-zein locus on chromosome 7S. Moreover, QPM lines have 2- to 3-fold higher levels of the 27-kDa γ-zein, …

Risk Factors For Poor Attendance In A Family-Based Pediatric Obesity Intervention Program For Young Children, Natalie A. Williams, Mace Coday, Grant Somes, Frances A. Tylavsky, Phyllis A. Richey, Marion E. Hare

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Objective—This study examined the role of demographic characteristics, psychological factors, and family functioning on attendance in a randomized controlled trial of a family-based pediatric obesity program.

Method—Participants included 155 children between the ages of 4 and 7 years (M age = 5.77, 57.4% female, 73.6% African-American, M BMI = 25.5) and their primary caregivers who were randomized to the treatment group. Three groups of participants were created based on their patterns of attendance during the program: 1) noncompleters, 2) partial completers, and 3) completers.

Results—Results indicated no differences among the attendance groups in child gender, child BMI, …

Study Of Strawberry Flavored Milk Under Pulsed Electric Field Processing, Daniela Bermúdez-Aguirre, Jaime A. Yáñez, C. Patrick Dunne, Neal M. Davies, Gustavo V. Barbosa-Cánovas

United States Army: Publications

Few studies exist on flavored milk processed by pulsed electric fields (PEF). The main concern is product stability. This study aimed to analyze the degradation of coloring agent Allura Red in strawberry milk under PEF. Four systems were tested containing Allura Red: two commercial milks and two model systems. PEF conditions were 40 kV/cm, 48 pulses (2.5 μs), and 55 °C; coloring agent was quantified via RP-HPLC. After processing, only minor changes were observed in color, Allura Red concentration, and pH. During storage (32 d) at refrigerated conditions (4 °C) commercial samples maintained pH above 6. Model systems dropped below …

Acute Caffeine Consumption Enhances The Executive Control Of Visual Attention In Habitual Consumers, Tad T. Brunyé, Caroline R. Mahoney, Harris R. Lieberman, Grace E. Giles, Holly A. Taylor

United States Army: Publications

Recent work suggests that a dose of 200–400 mg caffeine can enhance both vigilance and the executive control of visual attention in individuals with low caffeine consumption profiles. The present study seeks to determine whether individuals with relatively high caffeine consumption profiles would show similar advantages. To this end, we examined the effects of four caffeine doses (0 mg, 100 mg, 200 mg, 400 mg) on low- and high-level visual attention in individuals with high consumption profiles (n = 36), in a double-blind study using a repeated measures design. Results from the Attention Network Test indicated that caffeine enhanced both …

Views On Agriculture, Energy And Food In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska, Rebecca J. Vogt

Nebraska Rural Poll

Well-Being in Non-Metropolitan Nebraska: Perceptions of the Present and Views of the Future

Human-Animal Medicine: Clinical Approaches To Zoonoses, Toxicants And Other Shared Health Risks, Katie Portacci Dvm, Mph, Dacvpm

Zoonotics and Wildlife Disease: Publications

Oftentimes, the wide breadth of literature available on zoonotic diseases can be difficult to obtain in a clinical setting, yet veterinarians are looked on as a primary source of information for zoonotic diseases. Human- Animal Medicine: Clinical Approaches to Zoonoses, Toxicants and Other Shared Health Risks serves as a consolidated resource for a number of zoonotic and other disease risks that may be shared between humans and other animals. The book highlights the role of veterinarians in the detection of diseases that may have an impact on human, wildlife, or pet health. It also serves as a reminder that veterinarians …

Genetic Assessment Of The Mating System And Patterns Of Egg Cannibalism In Atka Mackerel, M. F. Canino, I. B. Spies, J. L. Guthridge, M. M. Hollowed

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

The mating system and patterns of gender-specific egg cannibalism in Atka mackerel Pleurogrammus monopterygius were examined through genetic parentage analysis of embryos in egg clutches produced in captive and wild populations. Like other hexagrammid fishes, Atka mackerel exhibit polygynandry, which is characterized by serial matings by both genders within a breeding season. Most matings in captivity were pairings of females with nest-attendant males, although parentage analysis of clutches produced in a small tank with limited nesting substrate revealed that 31% contained contributions by non–nest-guarding males. In contrast, all egg clutches produced in a large exhibit tank were sired by guardian …

Foraging Effort Of Juvenile Steller Sea Lions Eumetopias Jubatus With Respect To Heterogeneity Of Sea Surface Temperature, Michelle E. Lander, Thomas R. Loughlin, Miles G. Logsdon, Glenn R. Vanblaricom, Brian Fadely

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Among many other factors, the decline of the western distinct population segment of Steller sea lions Eumetopias jubatus in Alaska (USA) has been attributed to changes in the distribution or abundance of prey due to the cumulative effects of fisheries and large-scale climate change. However, the depletion of localized prey resources due to small-scale environmental variability and perturbations may be impeding recovery, resulting in the need to understand how the environment currently affects this species on smaller spatial and temporal scales. The objective of this study, there-fore, was to assess how Steller sea lions respond to changes in localized environmental …

Dreissena And The Disappearance Of The Spring Phytoplankton Bloom In Lake Michigan, Henry A. Vanderploeg, James R. Liebig, Thomas F. Nalepa, Gary L. Fahnenstiel, Steven A. Pothoven

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

We determined the clearance rates of the profunda morph of the quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis) using seston and Cryptomonas ozolini, a high-quality algal food, for the temperature range 1–7 °C,which is the full temperature range this morph is likely to experience during isothermal conditions or in the hypolimnion of deep lakes. Experiments at 3 °C with the shallow-water morph of the quagga and the zebra mussel provided very similar results. The clearance rates were combined with dreissenid abundance in 0–30 m, 30–50 m, 50–90 m, and >90m depth zones of the southern basin of Lake Michigan to …

Lake Michigan Lower Food Web: Long-Term Observations And Dreissena Impact, G. Fahnenstiel, T. Nalepa, S. Pothoven, H. Carrick, D. Scavia

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Lake Michigan has a long history of non-indigenous introductions that have caused significant ecological change. Here we present a summary of eight papers that document recent changes and the current state of the lower food web of southern Lake Michigan after the establishment of large dreissenid populations. Results are based on long-term data sets collected by federal and academic research and monitoring programs that place recent changes into a historic context. Dramatic and significant changes in the lower food web, such as the loss of the spring diatom bloom, large declines in phytoplankton productivity, and a decline of Mysis populations, …