September 2011 Highlights « Back

Fuel  Up to Play 60 in Nebraska

Our Nebraska Governor, Dave Heineman, was the first Governor in the nation to pledge his support to Fuel Up to Play 60.  On Sept. 12, The Governor joined Nebraska dairy industry representatives, Nebraska’s chief medical officer, Dr. Joann Schaefer, and other state representatives in Lincoln to point out the importance of the program in helping children eat right and be physically active every day.  “This program encourages a well-balanced diet that Nebraska farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses produce, including diverse healthy food choices from low-fat dairy products to lean meats, fruits and vegetables, and whole grains,” Heineman said. 

As of that date, 981 Nebraska schools had signed up for the program, and $57,700 had been awarded for programming.

Gov. Heineman was joined by David Crook, a dairy farmer from Humboldt, and representatives of St. John’s in Weston, a school participating in Fuel Up to Play 60.

Other Nebraska Updates

The 11-day run of the Nebraska State Fair is over, everything is put away and “Annabelle” (the name I gave the fiberglass cow) went on to her next gig, the UNMC Family Picnic in Omaha. She was certainly the big draw in the fair’s commercial building. Due to the timing of my arrival at Midwest Dairy this spring, we had a “less than desirable” location for our booth and information, in relation to where the Dept. of Ag. wanted to have Annabelle, but I have a commitment for next year which should greatly improve dairy’s presence.

We originally shipped about nine boxes of various materials to the fair, and brought back a little more than one box of combined materials, so we did distribute a lot of information. The milking parlor demonstrations were quite popular, and the lunch and refreshments for the dairy show and judging contest were greatly appreciated. We even got a picture of Miss America with a winner in the open class dairy competition!

Midwest Dairy Association is cooperating closely with the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoffs, and other groups in support of agriculture in Nebraska on an effort known as AFAN, or the Alliance for the Future of Agriculture in Nebraska. Its objective is to help explain modern food production and answer questions about the way animals are cared for on Nebraska farms. AFAN’s initial efforts include television commercials, a website and a tour for dietitians and bloggers. Through the working relationship with AFAN, Midwest Dairy will assure dairy’s information will be consistent and help inspire consumer confidence in dairy products and practices. Learn more at www.a-fan.org .