angelburst29
The Living Force
LUBBOCK, Texas - Dairy producers in West Texas and eastern New Mexico are continuing to assess how many animals died in the winter storm last weekend, but the number will probably climb to more than 30,000, an official with a dairy group said Thursday.
Blizzard kills more than 30K dairy cows in Texas, New Mexico; number could climb higher
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/blizzard-kills-more-than-30k-dairy-cows-in-texas-new-mexico-number-could-climb-higher-363947121.html
12/31/2015 - Texas Association of Dairymen executive director Darren Turley said an estimated 15,000 mature dairy cows died in the storm's primary impact area — from Lubbock west to Muleshoe and north to Friona which is home to half of the state's top-10 milk producing counties and produces 40 per cent of the state's milk.
An agent with New Mexico State University's extension service told Turley the area around Clovis, New Mexico, lost an estimated 20,000 dairy cows.
The number of younger animals killed by Winter Storm Goliath in each state could be just as high as the mature cows, he said.
There will be less milk coming from the region for a while, Turley said,
The snow was just one part of Goliath. It was the wind that led to drifts as high as 14 feet, where many animals died. Wind will push animals into a fenced corner where they can suffocate in snow drifts.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime (storm)," Turley said. "It's a bad deal for producers."
The losses will affect production for about year, he said.
During the storm dairy employees and tanker trucks from reaching farms. Hundreds of loads of milk ready for processing were wasted. Some cows normally milked twice a day went almost two days without being milked, which dries up the cows' milk supply, Turley said.
"The ripples from that are going to depend on how fast those animals' milk production comes back," Turley said.
The Texas producers are working with state environmental officials to find ways to dispose of the carcasses. Some counties are allowing producers to put carcasses in their landfills.
Andle van der Ploeg, owner of Mid-Frisian Dairy near Clovis, said Thursday that he lost just 10 animals, but feels great sympathy for producers he knows who lost hundreds of milk cows.
"It was unbelievable," he said.
Texas Goliath impact will bring total to 40,000 lost Southwest dairy cattle
http://www.dairyherd.com/texas-goliath-impact-will-bring-total-40000-lost-southwest-dairy-cattle
December 31, 2015 - Four days after what is possibly the worst storm on record for cattle in the area, operations are returning to normal. The storm rolled into the Clovis, N.M., and Lubbock, Texas, region Saturday evening and was gone by Monday morning.
But the 22” inches of snow paired with wind gusts, some reaching over 60 miles per hour, was too much for many cattle. It also proved impossible for some dairies to continue operating at the time. The uncharacteristic weather was to the extreme for the High Plains region.
Dairy Herd Management reached Turley by phone on Thursday in his Central Texas office. Their area also received snow, but nothing like West Texas, Turley explained. One Lubbock area farmer recalled that he was in his 34th year of dairying there and occasionally started milking late due to weather, but never missed one. Last weekend, that farmer told Turley he missed 1.5 days of milking. Turley said many farms missed one or more milkings on Sunday, with some also missing Saturday evening or Monday morning.
At some locations, the National Guard came in to shut down roads, ensuring no milk was moved from one area to another. Turley expects a small bump in price due to a lack of milk and cheese being delivered, but losses from storm deaths, lingering health issues, and future losses – potentially big as snow melts and makes for muddy conditions – will be far greater.
News was slow to come from the region Monday as producers got to work clearing snow – stuck mostly in feed lanes, head locks, and fences – and power outages rolled through the area.
“It’s a dire situation,” Turley said. “It’s going to be a long time to recover, both emotionally and financially.”
Turley told Dairy Herd Management that with most mature cow loss numbers in, and youngstock losses still being reported, he expects dairy cattle losses in the high 10,000s or even above 20,000 in Texas alone, which would match the range reported on the New Mexico side of the border on Monday by AgWeb.com’s Anna-Lisa Laca.
The Texas Association of Dairyman (TAD) is getting in touch with state and federal leaders for assistance. But in addition to the possible 40,000 dairy cattle lost in the region, beef cattle feedlot numbers will take quite a hit as well.
New Mexico State University reports 25 dairies and 63,000 milk cows in Curry County and 32 dairies and 60,000 milk cows in Roosevelt County, according to the Clovis News-Journal. In Texas, the region affected is home to about 142,800 cows or 36% of Texas’ milk cow population, Turley estimated.
That huge loss will make any indemnity program trying to make a real impact to the afflicted farms hard to achieve, Turley said. He noted most of the dairy cattle losses in Texas will come from just three counties.
The Clovis News-Journal reported that while Southwest Cheese of Clovis operated at just 10% of normal delivery on Monday, 90% of deliveries arrived on Wednesday.
Blizzard kills more than 30K dairy cows in Texas, New Mexico; number could climb higher
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/blizzard-kills-more-than-30k-dairy-cows-in-texas-new-mexico-number-could-climb-higher-363947121.html
12/31/2015 - Texas Association of Dairymen executive director Darren Turley said an estimated 15,000 mature dairy cows died in the storm's primary impact area — from Lubbock west to Muleshoe and north to Friona which is home to half of the state's top-10 milk producing counties and produces 40 per cent of the state's milk.
An agent with New Mexico State University's extension service told Turley the area around Clovis, New Mexico, lost an estimated 20,000 dairy cows.
The number of younger animals killed by Winter Storm Goliath in each state could be just as high as the mature cows, he said.
There will be less milk coming from the region for a while, Turley said,
The snow was just one part of Goliath. It was the wind that led to drifts as high as 14 feet, where many animals died. Wind will push animals into a fenced corner where they can suffocate in snow drifts.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime (storm)," Turley said. "It's a bad deal for producers."
The losses will affect production for about year, he said.
During the storm dairy employees and tanker trucks from reaching farms. Hundreds of loads of milk ready for processing were wasted. Some cows normally milked twice a day went almost two days without being milked, which dries up the cows' milk supply, Turley said.
"The ripples from that are going to depend on how fast those animals' milk production comes back," Turley said.
The Texas producers are working with state environmental officials to find ways to dispose of the carcasses. Some counties are allowing producers to put carcasses in their landfills.
Andle van der Ploeg, owner of Mid-Frisian Dairy near Clovis, said Thursday that he lost just 10 animals, but feels great sympathy for producers he knows who lost hundreds of milk cows.
"It was unbelievable," he said.
Texas Goliath impact will bring total to 40,000 lost Southwest dairy cattle
http://www.dairyherd.com/texas-goliath-impact-will-bring-total-40000-lost-southwest-dairy-cattle
December 31, 2015 - Four days after what is possibly the worst storm on record for cattle in the area, operations are returning to normal. The storm rolled into the Clovis, N.M., and Lubbock, Texas, region Saturday evening and was gone by Monday morning.
But the 22” inches of snow paired with wind gusts, some reaching over 60 miles per hour, was too much for many cattle. It also proved impossible for some dairies to continue operating at the time. The uncharacteristic weather was to the extreme for the High Plains region.
Dairy Herd Management reached Turley by phone on Thursday in his Central Texas office. Their area also received snow, but nothing like West Texas, Turley explained. One Lubbock area farmer recalled that he was in his 34th year of dairying there and occasionally started milking late due to weather, but never missed one. Last weekend, that farmer told Turley he missed 1.5 days of milking. Turley said many farms missed one or more milkings on Sunday, with some also missing Saturday evening or Monday morning.
At some locations, the National Guard came in to shut down roads, ensuring no milk was moved from one area to another. Turley expects a small bump in price due to a lack of milk and cheese being delivered, but losses from storm deaths, lingering health issues, and future losses – potentially big as snow melts and makes for muddy conditions – will be far greater.
News was slow to come from the region Monday as producers got to work clearing snow – stuck mostly in feed lanes, head locks, and fences – and power outages rolled through the area.
“It’s a dire situation,” Turley said. “It’s going to be a long time to recover, both emotionally and financially.”
Turley told Dairy Herd Management that with most mature cow loss numbers in, and youngstock losses still being reported, he expects dairy cattle losses in the high 10,000s or even above 20,000 in Texas alone, which would match the range reported on the New Mexico side of the border on Monday by AgWeb.com’s Anna-Lisa Laca.
The Texas Association of Dairyman (TAD) is getting in touch with state and federal leaders for assistance. But in addition to the possible 40,000 dairy cattle lost in the region, beef cattle feedlot numbers will take quite a hit as well.
New Mexico State University reports 25 dairies and 63,000 milk cows in Curry County and 32 dairies and 60,000 milk cows in Roosevelt County, according to the Clovis News-Journal. In Texas, the region affected is home to about 142,800 cows or 36% of Texas’ milk cow population, Turley estimated.
That huge loss will make any indemnity program trying to make a real impact to the afflicted farms hard to achieve, Turley said. He noted most of the dairy cattle losses in Texas will come from just three counties.
The Clovis News-Journal reported that while Southwest Cheese of Clovis operated at just 10% of normal delivery on Monday, 90% of deliveries arrived on Wednesday.
