msue.msu.edu

2013-2014 Annual Report:

Cass County

Proven,

Relevant,

Life Changing

Pork production in Cass County

This past year the MSU Extension Pork Team worked to plan, develop, and deliver educational programs relevant to pork production. These included the Profes-sional Pork Producers Symposium (February), the Back to Basics Educational Meeting (January), and state-wide Pork Industry Information Meetings (March) to inform swine-farm owners and employees of new technologies, updated produc-tion practices, and changing economic, environmental and social considerations. The MSU Extension Pork team also offered pork producers and employees the opportunity to complete or renew Pork Quality Assurance (PQA) Plus and Transport Quality Assurance (TQA) certifications. These certifications are required by numerous market chains and the ability to provide current certifications allow Michigan pork producers to remain competitive in the industry.

The Pork Team is comprised of both field and campus staff, along with an Extension Veterinarian, who have expertise in varying areas of pork production and swine management. Along with providing education on hot issues and new technologies they work actively with producers on farm-specific problems. They offer customized, on-farm educational sessions to help teams get started in pro-duction, change current practices, and assess animal health and welfare or the environmental status of their farms.

The Pork Team works with a diversifying swine industry, including intensively managed commercial operations, niche pork farms, show stock producers and youth show pig producers. Their goal is to provide educational opportunities for ALL aspects of swine production. Pork Quality Assurance (PQA Plus—The Pork Quality Assurance (PQA) Plus pro-gram is an educational tool to help pork producers learn good production practic-es when raising pigs. The PQA Plus program highlights areas of animal care and well-being and focuses on teaching owners and employees how to raise a safe, healthy and wholesome product for the consumer. Certification in this program is a requirement for numerous market chains and pork processers. In order to maintain market assess producers need to have a current certification in place. Michigan State University Extension educator, Beth Ferry, offered numerous pro-grams to producers in Cass County over the past year. 212,410 pigs were

212,410 pigs

were marketed

in Cass County

under producers

certified by MSU

Extension in 2013

Agriculture / Swine

1

Upcoming

Programs 2015:

January 20

PQA—Cass

January 20

Winter Educational

Roadshow

February 19

Professional Swine

Symposium

2

marketed in Cass County under producers that were certified by MSU Extension in the last year. With market pigs averaging $150 per head at market time this equates to $31,861,500 dollars of value. These pigs had market access because of PQA Plus certification offered by MSU Extension.

Lower night time temperatures—It is important to help producers under-

stand that benefit of certain production practices both for the well-being of the pig and the financial gain that the producer can experience. One such practice that was introduced to Michigan producers in 2014 by the MSU Extension Pork team is lowering night time temperatures in nursery facilities. Nursery pig facili-ties typical house pigs from 3 weeks to 12 week of age. It is important for the health of the animal to maintain a properly heated, draft free environment to ensure optional growth and comfort for the animal.

One practice that had been thoroughly researched by academic professionals was slightly reducing the temperatures in nursery facilities at night, equaling a savings in energy costs for the producer. By showing producers how to manage their ventilation systems and implement a curve system that allows tempera-tures to automatically drop, the producers have seen a cost benefit.

A pilot farm on this project is located in Cass County. The owner operator saw positive results from implementing this practice in the severe winter of 2013-14. Although this study is ongoing, he indicated that because of lower night time temperatures, his heating system runs significantly less compared to the past. Further evaluation of this practice will continue.

Restricted Use Pesticide Training & Testing— Cass County annually hosts

2 RUP training and testing sessions for area farmers, agribusiness professionals, and lawn care service providers. The morning is comprised of a training session taught by Extension Educator, Bruce MacKellar, followed in the afternoon by the testing procedure conducted by the Michigan Department of Agriculture. A total of 60 people attend this program annually in order to receive their license to safely handle restricted use pesticides.

Agriculture and Agribusiness Programs

TelFarm—A system

of farm financial

record keeping

available from MSU

Extension's Farm

Information Resources

Management (FIRM)

Team. It is an

educational and

service program

designed to assist

farmers with their

farm financial

records and decision

making. Over several

years, effective tax

planning can save pro-

ducers thousands of

dollars.

Ag Action Day—A collaborative effort of MSU

Extension offices throughout southwest Michigan,

providing a full day of educational programs high-

lighting the latest research and accepted practices

for growing food and ornamental crops in Michi-

gan. There were 168 total participants, of which

13 were from Cass County in 2014.

Even in the severe

winter of 2014, this

pilot program was

able to significantly

lower the amount

of time the heating

system ran, show-

ing a cost benefit.

2

4-H Youth Development Program

3

4-H programs teach

youth life skills that

help them succeed in

school and college

while preparing them

for the workforce,

especially highly

sought after jobs in

science, technology,

engineering and

mathematics.

The Michigan 4-H Youth Development Program is the largest youth develop-ment program in Michigan. In Cass County, we serve over 780 youth ages 5-19 years with the support of 262 adult volunteers. The 2014 4-H program year be-gan in September 2013 with many fundraisers, educational opportunities, and award celebrations throughout the year.

The 4-H program centers on the development of life skills through hands-on learning using various projects to interest youth participants, allowing youth to learn important skills to be successful members in their communities.

County Opportunities:

The 3rd annual “Off the Street Trunk or Treat” event brought together the MSU Extension office and the Cass County Fair Association to create a safe and edu-cational atmosphere for over 1,500 community youth. We strive to provide a safe and fun place for area youth to “Trick or Treat” while teaching them the skills they need in order to be safe in their community. 4-H Coordinator, Steph-anie Consford, plans to continue this amazing program for the 4th annual “Off the Street Trunk or Treat” event which will take place Saturday, October 25, 2014 from 4:00—6:00 p.m. at the Cass County Fairgrounds.

The March reading challenge was another big success this year with over 55,000 total pages being read. This was the 3rd year the challenge was put out to the 4-H youth in Cass County. The top 2 clubs for the 2014 challenge were 4-K 4-H Club and Quality Kids & Critters 4-H Club.

March is also the time of year Cass County 4-H celebrates the outstanding lead-ers, seniors, and youth participants at the Senior Leader Award Program. Grad-uating seniors are recognized, county medals are awarded, and leaders are rec-ognized for their years of service to 4-H. Seniors are also eligible to receive one of the two $500 college scholarships for the college of their choice.

The 4-H program began steps toward creating a shooting sports program for Cass County. Three new leaders were certified for different aspects of shooting sports including archery and air rifle; plans are underway to have them be certi-fied in other disciplines to expand this program. Over 20 youth are interested in joining this program.

New this year in Cass County was the formation of a Swine Quiz Bowl competi-tion. This program, which was developed and run by Cass County 4-H youth members, premiered at the 2014 Cass County Fair. Participants formed 3 to 4 person teams and competed against each other to test their knowledge of swine information and animal care. Eight local 4-H youth that had competed in the Swine Quiz Bowl competition at a state level worked with MSU Extension to design, promote and administer this activity on a local level. Their efforts re-sulted in the participation of 20 youth at the 2014 event, monetary support from the Cass County Fair Board, and increased interest for 2015 at both the state and local level.

4-H Youth continued on page 8

Cass County added 2

new 4-H clubs in

2013-14 making a

total of 27 clubs

Cass County has:

780 4-H youth

members

262 adult volunteers

10 youth volunteers

2

Greening Michigan—Entrepreneurial Development

4

MSU Product Center

The MSU Product Center Food-Ag-Bio assists county residents in developing products and businesses in the areas of food, agriculture, natural resources and the bio economy. Select MSUE educators around the state have special training as innovation counselors to deliver these services. Business counsel-ing is conducted on a one-to-one basis and may take place at the MSUE office or the client’s home or business location.

The assistance provided is tailored to meet the needs of the client and may include things like developing a business plan, navigating the regulatory maze, accessing the supply chain, or seeking funding options. The educator also assists clients in accessing specialized services they may need that are offered through Michigan State University like feasibility studies, nutritional labeling and packaging assistance.

The Michigan State University Product Center (www.productcenter.msu.edu) helps Michigan entrepreneurs and businesses to develop and launch new

product and service ideas into food, agriculture, natural resources, and bioenergy markets.

The MSU Product Center Food, Ag, Bio helps develop and commercialize high value, consumer-responsive products and businesses in the agricul-ture and natural food sectors. Budding entrepreneurs and established companies can utilize the center as a key to the front door of MSU's vast and varied technical expertise, research, outreach, and educational ser-vices. The MSU Product Center Innovation counselors serve as the initial con-

tact, and are certified to assess the business/product development, identify markets, and assist with innovation of new products to guide the process from start-up to market. Additionally, MSU Product Center conducts the premier new food product trade show “Making It In Michigan” in Lansing eve-ry fall. It offers new food producers an opportunity to make contact with re-tail and wholesale outlets to better establish marketing channels. Mark Thomas, Innovation Counselor, worked with 8 established and emerg-ing businesses in Cass County.

Entrepreneurship / Product Innovation

5

Entrepreneurship Training and Cottage Food Law Classes

The Michigan Cottage Food Law enabling the production of certain foods in a home kitchen for direct sales is still relatively new.

Members of MSU Extension and Product Center Counselors

collaborated with the MSU Extension Food Safety Team to provide food safety, cottage food, and business development content in a single session that could be easily presented around the state. On average, of participants who completed the course, 93% understood what is necessary to run a successful food business, and 78% felt that the sessions met or more than met their needs in starting a cottage food business. Training related to entrepreneurship and the cottage food law was provided to 12 Cass County residents.

Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities (CEC) Conference

Cass County was one of many communities represented at the MSU Extension CEC conference held in Marshall in 2013 and attracting workshop experts in a variety of fields. This event was attended by 95 individuals from 56

communities around the state. Thomas served as a member of planning team and presenter of the interactive Community Readiness Indicator Session.

Cooperative Development Services Coordination

The Product Center cooperative development services provides assistance and educational services to individuals and groups in rural areas desiring to organize cooperative businesses or seeking to expand existing cooperatives. This is

accomplished by both individual counseling to potential cooperatives and by an annual conference held in various parts of the state. This year the sites were the Southwest Michigan and Northwest Michigan MSU research stations and a retail location in Dundee. Total attendance numbered about 85. MSU Extension Educators coordinate needs with resources.

2

Health and Nutrition

6

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed)

SNAP-ED Program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education ) is a program that teaches nutrition education in the schools, home, and group settings. The target population for this program is an audience that is at least 50% food stamp eligible, although the program will still serve other participants. From the beginning of October 1st –June 23rd, the program has been taught in 3 elementary schools in Cass County this year, (Kincheloe, Patrick Hamilton, Sisters Lakes Schools) reaching 260 youth. Of those three schools, the highest

percentage of students was 95% and the lowest being 68% of students receiving free and/or reduced lunch. This shows that there is definitely a need for nutrition education in Cass County. With the adults that received the SNAP-Ed program in the same time frame, 23 have participated in the SNAP-ED program 6 week

series, and there have been 22 adults that have participated in the OTP (one-time presentation) class, all of whom were food stamp eligible. The SNAP-Ed Program has been well received in schools, the court system, other agencies, and from

participants themselves.

Adults and Youth who participate in MSU Extension health and nutrition pro-grams will:

Increase their ability to select low-cost, nutritious food

Better their food resource management

Improve food safety and preparation practices

Incorporate more fruits and vegetables in their diets

Learn to prepare healthy meals and snacks

Gain essential nutrition knowledge

Keep babies healthier through breastfeeding

Increase physical activity

Improve their overall nutrition practices by over 90% (graduates)

The nutrition education received helps benefit our community by:

Helping families become more self sufficient

Reducing taxpayers dollars spent on health care (for every $1 spent there is a $10 savings in health care cost)

Having healthier individuals miss less work and school

Having healthy youth be more likely to be involved in positive ways in the community

Reducing the need for health care resources by healthier individuals.

Other MSUE Programs Benefitting Cass County

7

Public Policy—Training in Good Governance

As a resource for boards and communities in southwest Michigan, MSU

Extension developed individualized lessons on local public policy and

conducting effective meetings. These workshops reached over 500

community leaders. Topics taught this year included basic parliamentary procedure, the evolution of local government, finance, and administration of local government. County Commissioners are invited to attend one of the upcoming New Commissioner workshops offered by the Government and MSUE GMI Public Policy team in November and December. Evaluations prove the workshop is effective in providing an overview of county

government and providing attendees with the information to make them more successful in their new roles.

Lawn and Garden Hotline

MSU Extension has a statewide Lawn and Garden Hotline to answer homeowners’ questions. The MSUE Lawn and Garden Hotline is a toll free number at 1-888-MSUE-4MI and provides volunteers to answer questions from 9 a.m. – noon and 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. People who call at other times are directed to the “Ask an Expert” feature on the online section, “Gardening in Michigan” of the website at www.mi.garden.msu.edu.

Soil Testing

A new home soil test sample and self-mailer is

available at the MSUE Bookstore. The soil test kit in-cludes a postage-paid return mailer that homeowners can purchase online from at www.bookstore.msue.msu.edu.

The soil is analyzed by the staff at the MSU Soil and Plant Nutrient Lab and the homeowner is emailed their soil test results and access to an interactive website,

which provides customized fertilizer calculations, instructions on correct

application and links to additional resources available. Cass County residents purchased and used 206 kits.

Other programs continued on page 8

2

Other MSUE Programs Benefitting Cass County

8

ServSafe

ServSafe is a national food safety certificate program through the National Restau-rant Association. The program provides training in food service to help participants gain knowledge about food safety procedures. Topics covered include: Providing Safe Food, Forms of Contamination, The Safe Food Handler, The Flow of Food, Safe Facilities, Pest Management, and Cleaning & Sanitizing.

Happy 100th Anniversary Cooperative Extension!

2014 celebrates the 100-year signing anniversary of the Smith-Lever Act, which

officially created the national Cooperative Extension System. President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation that extended the land-grant university concept beyond university campuses to reach into communities across the United States. For 100 years, the Smith-Lever Act has stimulated innovative research and vital educational programs for youth and adults through progressive information delivery systems that extend knowledge and improve lives using a state-by-state network of

Extension educators.

Extension is a unique partnership between federal, state, and county governments. County-based community partnerships in Michigan have been thriving for nearly 100 years as MSU Extension, Michigan’s land grant university, delivers education throughout the state and uniquely in the southwest region.

4-H news continued from page 3

State and National Opportunities

This June we had 31 youth and 5 adults attend the largest pre-college preparatory experience in Michigan, 4-H Exploration Days. At 4-H Exploration Days, youth

pre-register for sessions that engage them in active, hands-on learning experiences.

The Cass County 4-H program also had 3 delegates attend the Citizenship

Washington Focus (CWF) trip this year. Youth travel to Washington, D.C. where they tour the city, meet with state representatives, attend workshops and semi-nars, and gain valuable life skills along the way.

Join the Club Recruitment Campaign

This August, a new statewide 4-H recruitment campaign is being launched. This campaign will target volunteer recruitment and some member recruitment.

To see the 6 minute video, visit the Michigan 4-H webpage at http://4h.msue.msu.edu/programs/volunteering.

Most youth

attending CWF

insist this is their

best experience

during their 4-H

careers.

2014 National

4-H Week

October 8-11

STAFF DIRECTORY

Administration:

Ginger Hentz—District Coordinator hentz@msu.edu

Educators:

Elizabeth Ferry—Extension Swine Educator franzeli@anr.msu.edu

Mark Thomas - Innovation Counselor mthomas@msu.edu

Program Associate:

Nora Lee - Nutrition & Physical Activity Program Associate leeno@msu.edu

Program Coordinator:

Stephanie Consford - 4-H Program Coordinator consford@anr.msu.edu

Support Staff:

Patricia Dohm - Secretary dohmp@anr.msu.edu

Mary Wilkinson - Secretary wilki153@msu.edu

Other Extension Educators Serving Cass County:

Brad Baughman, Horticulture Educator baughm30@msu.edu

Deb Barrett - Senior Extension Educator - Children & Youth smithde6@anr.msu.edu

Beth Clawson, Community Food Systems and Aquatic Invasives clawsonb@anr.msu.edu

Joanne Davidhizer, Innovation Counselor davidhiz@anr.msu.edu

Tom Dudek, Senior Extension Educator Commercial Horticulture & Marketing dudek@msu.edu

Rebecca Finneran, Consumer Horticulture, Landscape & Turf finneran@msu.edu

Ron Goldy, Upland Vegetables goldy@msu.edu

Kevin Gould, Beef Livestock gouldk@msu.edu

Tom Guthrie, Equine guthri19@msu.edu

Diana Hassan, Health and Nutrition alysed1@anr.msu.edu

Jane Herbert, Water Resource Management jherbert@anr.msu.edu

Khurram Imam, Financial Housing and Education Literacy Program Instructor imamkhur@msu.edu

Lyndon Kelly, Irrigation kelleyl@anr.msu.edu

Adam Kantrovich, Farm Management/Financial akantrov@msu.edu

Jeannie Nichols, Food Safety nicho115@msu.edu

Kathy Lee, Dairy leeka@anr.msu.edu

Mark Longstroth, Small Fruit and Horticulture longstr@msu.edu

Bruce MacKellar, Field Crops mackella@msu.edu

Dean Baas, Sustainable Agriculture, Research, & Education mutch@msu.edu

Daniel O’Keefe, Sea Grant Coastal Communities okeefed@anr.msu.edu

Julie Pioch, Public Policy piochj@anr.msu.edu

Bill Shane, Tree Fruit shane@msu.edu

Heidi Wollaeger, Floriculture wollaege@msu.edu