CarmOlimp expects pig meat exports to rise in 2012

Romanian cold meats producer CarmOlimp expects EU pig meat exports to account for 9% of its 2012 turnover, contributing to a 20% increase in its overall turnover, after the European Commission lifted the ban on the country's exports to the EU market beginning January 1, 2012.
The ban of meat and processed pork products from Romania to the EU was put in place in 2003 due to the swine flu, and the European Commission extended the block in 2007. The company is predicting an overall turnover of €29 million in 2012.

Irish welfare aid restored to pig, poultry producers

Ireland’s minister of agriculture has announced the re-opening of a grant aid scheme run by the Irish government to encourage investment by pig and poultry producers.
The Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme had been suspended earlier in 2011 because of the uncertain budgetary situation in Ireland. The government will make funds available for grant aid to be offered in 2012 towards projects on farms to improve poultry and pig welfare as well as for bioenergy and job creation. Among the applications of TAMS previously had been financial help where pig units needed to change the accommodation of their sows in gestation towards a loose housing arrangement in line with imminent European Union animal welfare requirements.  

Armenia egg supply expected to meet demand for new year

Armenia's egg supply will more than meet demand for the 2011-2012 New Year holiday, and the 2010-2011 shortage will not be repeated, said expert Manase Yepremyan during a press conference.
The country's current storage stands at 5 million eggs, and another 5 million will be imported, said Yepremyan. Local poultry farms will also produce roughly 35 million eggs in the month of December.
Leading up to the 2010-2011 New Year holiday, an egg shortage caused prices to triple.

USPOULTRY Foundation awards grant to University of Arkansas

The USPOULTRY Foundation has awarded a $19,043 student recruiting grant to the University of Arkansas’ poultry science department.
Such funds from the USPOULTRY Foundation are vital in the university’s outreach to K-12 youth and community college students, according to Dr. Michael Kidd, director of the Center of Excellence for Poultry Science at the university. “These funds give us the means to develop forums to attract and explain the vast and lucrative career possibilities that a poultry science major can provide," said Kidd. "Moreover, it’s a testament that the U.S. poultry industry wants to help us recruit today’s youth, contribute to their education and develop future leaders in these careers."
The USPOULTRY Foundation board recently approved student recruiting grants totaling more than $180,000 to six U.S. universities with poultry science departments and 14 other institutions with poultry programs. The Foundation provides annual recruiting funds to colleges and universities to attract students to their poultry programs.   

Corn, soybean futures rise on falling prices

Corn futures for March delivery rose 0.9% on December 6, to $5.965 a bushel, up from a two-month low on speculation that prices that have fallen 20% since September 1 will increase demand from meat, food and fuel processors.
Similarly, soybean futures for January delivery rose 0.3%, to $11.295 a bushel. “Prices have fallen so much since September that there is a little bit of buying beginning to surface” from U.S. fuel and meat producers, said Dave Marshall, a farm marketing adviser for Toay Commodity Futures Group LLC. Corn prices dropped 6% in November, while soybeans dropped 7.1%.

Orange peels in cattle feed may fight E. coli, Salmonella

Adding orange peels to cattle feed may reduce the prevalence pathogenic bacteria, such as E. coli and Salmonella, in cows' gastrointestinal tracts, according to a new study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service.
Researchers found that sheep fed orange peel pellets resulted in a 10-fold reduction in Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 in the animals' intestinal contents.
The ARS study brought together two other, separate studies: one focusing on the anti-microbial properties of citrus oils and another investigating the potential uses of citrus wastes as animal feed. Citrus peels contain a chemical that is toxic to pigs and poultry, but cows, with their four stomachs, have no trouble digesting the peels, according to the study. The researchers' next move is to field-test the orange-peel-infused feed in cattle around the U.S.

Ukraine corn farmers may plant record acres in 2012

Ukraine's corn farmers may plant more than 4 million hectares (9.88 million acres) for the 2012 harvest after record 2011 production, according to the country's Agriculture Ministry.
The 2011 harvest is already at 21 million metric tons, and there are still 150,000 hectares left to be collected, said Oleksandr Demidov, head of the Ministry's crop department. Plantings for this crop were 3.57 million hectares.
Ukraine's total grain harvest was 57 million metric tons as of December 1, with wheat making up 22 million metric tons and barley 9.1 million metric tons. Total grain plantings for 2012 will be 15 million hectares, according to Demidov.