Holstein Association USA Board of Directors Holds Fall Meeting
Brattleboro, Vermont (December 15, 2006)—The Board of Directors of Holstein Association USA held its latest meeting November 16-17, 2006 in Fresno, Calif. President Randy Gross welcomed staff and directors to the meeting, including newly-elected directors Robert Nigh, Viroqua, Wis. and Hank van Exel, Lodi, Calif.
Update on 2006 Business Plan and Presentation of 2007 Plan
During the meeting, staff presented updates on the 2006 Management-by-Objective Business Plan, year-to-date financials and the 2007 Business Plan and budget.
Updates on information through September 30 included that registrations total 224,129, down just slightly from 224,665 in 2005 and transfers totaled 59,925, up .8 percent from 2005. The Classification Team has been outfitted with a new handheld computer which provides fast, efficient, customer-friendly service to the Holstein Association Classification and SET program participants.
The Holstein Association hosted a Chinese delegation during the third week in October, so they could learn more about our dairy industry. The group was composed of AI station managers, researchers and directors of the Dairy Association of China.
2006 Financial Update
CFO and Treasurer Barbara Casna presented a financial update, reporting total operating revenues through September 30 at $11,519,000, an increase of seven percent compared to last year. Total operating revenues are projected to be $15,401,000 at year end. Total operating expenses through September were $11,262,000, 12 percent higher than last year.
2007 Budget
Following discussion of the 2007 Business Plan, CFO Casna presented the projected 2007 budget for the Association, which showed both revenues and expenses increasing by seven percent, resulting in a net profit for the Association of $3,000.
Committee Reports
The board received reports of the following committees:
- Audit
- International
- Junior Advisory and Youth Activities
- Milk Marketing
- National FAIR and Animal ID Issues
- Show
Committee recommendations accepted by the board of directors include the following:
- From the Junior Advisory Committee, institute a new contest to recognize states that increase their National Junior Membership the most, promote junior production awards in the Holstein Pulse, update the show policy to institute a National Junior Show Leasing Program in 2008.
- The Milk Marketing Committee adopted a new mission statement: The Holstein Association USA, Inc. will actively seek to develop a comprehensive national dairy policy, initiating discussion on dairy policy issues whenever feasible and possible to enhance dairy farmer profitability. Several courses of action were identified as ways to achieve the mission.
- The Show Committee recommended changes to the 2007 National Show Program along with the proposed junior leasing rules. The 2007 National Show program will designate the Ohio State Fair as the 2007 Mid-East Summer National Show. The rest of the 2007 show schedule will be the same as 2006. Additionally, the Association will continue research on defining heifer classes by height rather than age.
Membership
The board approved the Association’s membership report that showed, as of October 20, 2006, the Association has 24,047 adult members, which includes 278 new members since the June board meeting. Junior membership continues to grow also, as 245 new members have joined since June, bringing the total to 8,703 junior members. There are 74 associate members, bringing the overall total membership to 32,750.
Upcoming Meetings
The board approved the schedule for future meetings:
- Spring board meeting in Brattleboro, Vt., March 22-23, 2007.
- Summer board meeting in Knoxville, Tenn., June 22-23, 2007.
- Fall board meeting, November 15-16, 2007 in Chicago, Ill.
Association Announces New Awards for Producers and Cows
Brattleboro, Vt ., December 14, 2006—Holstein Association USA has announced several exciting new awards that will be available for cows and people in 2007. The new awards are designed to ensure achievements and contributions are recognized across a broader spectrum of both cows and people. These new awards will be presented in addition to the current Distinguished Young Holstein Breeder, Progressive Breeders Registry, and Progressive Genetic Herd awards.
Elite Breeder Award
The Holstein Association is made up of many elite breeders who are known nationally and internationally for their outstanding accomplishments. Each year the Association’s Elite Breeder Award will be presented to a living Holstein Association USA member, family, partnership, or corporation who has bred outstanding animals for many years and has made notable contributions to the advancement of the Holstein breed in the United States.
The Elite Breeder Award recipient will have been a member of Holstein Association USA for at least five years. This new award will be a featured presentation made annually at the National Holstein Convention.
Star of the Breed
The Star of the Breed award has been established to annually recognize one cow that has excelled in the show ring and the milking parlor. The outstanding cows eligible for the Star of the Breed must have finished in the top five of their class in a national show during the award year. In addition, the Star of the Breed will have completed a 305-day lactation during the award year or previous year, will come from a herd enrolled in Tri-Star, and have a classification score.
Herd of Excellence Award
Many of the Association’s members have bred and developed herds made up of cows with superior type and production. This new award is designed to honor those who have built a great herd with home bred animals, as the herd must be at least 70 percent home bred.
To qualify for a Herd of Excellence Award, the herd’s milk production, protein production, and butterfat production must exceed the year’s mature equivalent breed average by 25 percent. Also, the average actual classification score of the herd must be 83 points or more during the award year.
Distinguished Leadership Award
Over the 121-year history of the Holstein Association USA, many individuals have given of themselves to improve the Registered Holstein cow and/or her Association. To honor some of those, the Distinguished Leadership Award will be bestowed annually to an individual who has provided outstanding and unselfish leadership and thereby has made a notable contribution to the Holstein Association and/or the dairy industry.
The Distinguished Leadership Award will be unique as the recipient does not necessarily have to be a member of the Holstein Association; as they could be a member of the milk marketing industry, food industry, academia, government, former Association staff or board member, or indeed an active producer-member. A special presentation will be made to the Distinguished Leadership Award winner annually at the National Holstein Convention.
Applications for the Elite Breeder Award and Distinguished Leadership Award can be found at www.holsteinusa.com.
Leuenberger Named Holstein Association Communications Manager
BRATTLEBORO, Vt., December 11, 2006—Jim Leuenberger, Shawano, Wis., has been named communications manager for Holstein Association USA, headquartered in Brattleboro, Vt.
In his position, Leuenberger will be responsible for overseeing all Association communications efforts. They include editing the Association’s quarterly member magazine the Holstein Pulse, writing news releases, working with graphic designers to produce advertising, trade show materials, informational brochures, the Association’s annual report, and publicity for the Association’s annual convention. He will also serve as the Association’s primary photographer.
“Jim’s vast knowledge of the dairy industry and exceptional communications skills make him one of the Association’s key assets,” according to John Meyer, Chief Executive Officer of Holstein Association USA.
Leuenberger’s entire career has been in the communications and public relations field. After graduation from Iowa State University, with Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Dairy Science and Ag Journalism, he worked for the Holstein Association in Vermont for five years as Director of Information, then headed up the Public Relations Department for nearly 30 years for Cooperative Resources International and its predecessors in Shawano, Wis. Leuenberger left CRI in 2004 and accepted a position with the Holstein Association USA as communications specialist.
As a professional communicator and photographer, Leuenberger was awarded the H.E. Klinefelter award in 2000, given annually to the nation’s top cooperative communicator by the Cooperative Communicators Association.
During his career, Leuenberger served for 28 years on the board of directors of World Dairy Expo, served as Secretary-Treasurer of National Dairy Shrine for 14 years, and also served on numerous other boards and committees.
Leuenberger will continue to work out of his home in Shawano, Wis., where he resides with his wife, Irene.Holstein Association USA, Inc., www.holsteinusa.com, provides products and services to dairy producers to enhance genetics and improve profitability–ranging from registry processing to identification programs to consulting services. The Association, headquartered in Brattleboro, Vt., maintains the records for Registered Holsteins and represents approximately 30,000 dairy farmers from across the United States. The Association is also leading the initiative for national animal identification through the National FAIR program.