INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Indiana’s new corn checkoff program has a new crop of farmer-leaders guiding the investment of Indiana corn checkoff funds. The Indiana Corn Marketing Council (ICMC) welcomed eight new farmer-directors and three incumbent directors to the Council at its Sept. 13 meeting. Eight of the directors were elected through the Aug. 27 ICMC elections.

ICMC is responsible for investing corn checkoff funds in programs that strengthen the demand for corn and corn products, such as ethanol, distiller’s grains and corn starch plastics.

In addition to welcoming new directors, the council elected new officers for 2007-08. Mike Shuter of Frankton was elected president, replacing Dean Eppley, who stepped down. Shuter, a Madison County grain and livestock producer, has served on ICMC since 2001.

Also elected were Vice President David Howell of Middletown, Secretary Gary Lamie of Westpoint and Treasurer David Gottbrath of Pekin.

ICMC election results were announced at the council’s September meeting. This year, ICMC had three seats up for election in districts 1, 4 and 7. The reelected producers are, for District 4 (Clay, Fountain, Montgomery, Owen, Parke, Putnam, Tippecanoe, Vermillion, Vigo and Warren counties), Gary Lamie of West Point and for District 7 (Daviess, Dubois, Gibson, Greene, Knox, Martin, Pike, Posey, Spencer, Sullivan, Vanderburgh and Warrick counties), Dennis Whitsitt of Huntingburg.

John Whaley of Brook was appointed by the board to fill a vacancy in District 1 (Benton, Jasper, Lake, LaPorte, Newton, Porter, Pulaski, Starke and White counties).

ICMC expanded its board of directors to meet the requirements of the revised Indiana Corn Checkoff Law that went into effect July 1. Under the new law, the board expanded to 17 voting farmer-directors, with 15 elected by the state’s corn producers. Six seats were filled through a special election held in conjunction with ICMC’s annual election. These directors were given staggered terms of one to three years.

Producers elected to the six at-large seats include: Ronnie Mohr of Greenfield and Michael Nichols of Richland, three-year terms; Glenn Conner of Peru and Dennis Maple of Greentown, two-year terms; and Mark Bacon of Milroy and Ralph Kauffman of Atlanta, one-year terms.

The two remaining voting members on the board were appointed from the two largest general farm organizations in the state by Randy Woodson, Glenn W. Sample Dean of Agriculture at Purdue University. They are Michael Buis of Martinsville, representing Indiana Farmers Union, and Randy Kron of Evansville, representing Indiana Farm Bureau.

Two directors representing grain purchasing companies serve on the council as nonvoting ex-officio members. Bruce Hartley of Hartley Grain Co. and Tim Henady of ADM, Inc. have been appointed by Indiana State Director of Agriculture Andy Miller to serve three-year terms with the council.

Four representatives of the Indiana General Assembly will be appointed later this year to serve as nonvoting ex-officio members.

BOAH names Region 7 area veterinarian

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Indiana State Veterinarian Dr. Bret D. Marsh, DVM, announced the appointment of Dr. James Combs, DVM, as area field veterinarian for the Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH). Combs will serve Region Seven, which encompasses much of west-central Indiana.

A 1982 graduate of the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine, Combs enjoyed a successful 25-year career in private practice. He owned and operated Combs Veterinary Clinic, a five-doctor small animal practice, for 23 years. Prior to that, Combs worked in a mixed animal practice in Lawrenceville, Ill.

An active member of Indiana’s beef cattle industry, he raises commercial and purebred Angus cattle and served as a past president of the Greene County Cattlemen’s Assoc. He is a member of both the Indiana Veterinary Medical Assoc. and the American Veterinary Medical Assoc.

“We are excited to have Dr. Combs join our team,” said Marsh. “With a long history in private practice, as well as his proven leadership abilities, Dr. Combs will be a huge asset.”

USDA appoints McKinney FSA state committee member for Indiana

WASHINGTON, D.C. — USDA announced the appointment of Tom McKinney to the Farm Service Agency (FSA) State Committee in Indiana.

State committees are responsible for the general direction and supervision of state FSA programs. They keep farmers informed of agency program activities while resolving appeals and complaints. Members also maintain cooperative relationships with the agribusiness community.

McKinney is from Tipton County, where he owns and operates his family farm. He specializes in the production of seed corn, seed soybeans, commercial corn and soybeans, and has a swine finishing operation. In the summer, McKinney and his wife manage up to 600 teenage employees who detassel corn for a U.S. company that produces hybrid seeds.

McKinney is involved in his community and is a member of the Indiana Farm Bureau. He has also served as chairman of the board for the Tipton County Foundation and president of the Purdue Council for Agriculture Research, Extension & Teaching.

MSU dairy scientist earns national award

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The American Dairy Science Assoc. (ADSA) has selected David K. Beede, Michigan State University C.E. Meadows endowed chair professor of animal science, for its 2007 Award of Honor in recognition of his leadership and distinguished service.

The Award of Honor is given annually to an individual with more than 25 years of ADSA membership who has served the association with unusual distinction. Beede served as a member of the ADSA board of directors from 1998-2004, and then as vice president and president. He also served on the board of directors of the Federation of Animal Science Societies.

During his 13 years at MSU, Beede has conducted extensive research and extension programs on dairy cattle nutrition and management. Beede specializes in the environmental benefits of balancing the phosphorus requirements of dairy cattle with farms’ environmental sustainability.

Beede is an active member of the MSU Dairy and Animal Agriculture and the Environment Area of Expertise teams and serves as publisher of the Michigan Dairy Review, a statewide publication for the dairy industry funded by the Animal Agriculture Initiative (AAI).

The AAI is Michigan’s animal agriculture research, teaching and extension initiative at MSU.

Jackson & Sons wins Historic Herd Award

HOPE, Ind. — William Jackson & Sons of Hope has received the Historic Herd Award from the American Angus Assoc. (AAA). The herd was established by Jackson at Greensburg, Ind., in 1947, and he joined AAA that same year.

Jackson’s eldest son, Bill, helped manage the original herd and then began a herd of his own in 1960. The farm remained in Decatur County until 1971, when the family relocated to Columbus, Ind. A former professor at Iowa State University, Bill has served as president for both the Southern Indiana Angus Association and Indiana Angus Association, and Janice was elected as president of the Indiana Angus Auxiliary. In 1999, the farm moved to its current location at Hope. The family is still involved in raising Angus cattle and although they have retired from careers in education, Bill and Janice continue their full-time work on the farm along with sons Mark and Greg and son-in-law Kip Bonnell.