The Department of Conservation has confirmed invasive Zebra Mussels have been found at Smithville lake.

The conservation released the findings Friday.

Officials say three zebra mussel shells were found at metal gates that control water flow at the damn operated by the Corps of Engineers.

The mussels found vary in age, indicating a reproducing population. It’s still uncertain what impact the mussels may have on the lake.

Mussels sharp shells can be hazardous to swimmers, they can clog pipes and cut fishing line. They have caused billions in dollars in damage in the Great Lakes and Mississippi River system.

They stress cleaning your boat after leaving the lake to prevent the spread to other areas.

 

Two grocery chains in St Joseph are responding to the national furor over “pink slime,” or Light Finely Textured Beef (LFTB), and will no longer carry ground beef that contains the product.

Both HyVee and Apple Market are refusing to accept any more ground beef, ground beef patties, or other beef products that contain LFTB, despite assurances from industry leaders and the USDA that the product is safe.

Both companies insist they are responding to the concerns expressed by their customers.  The changeover at large grocery chains and smaller operations across the U.S. will increase the price of burgers everywhere, from 20 to 30 cents per pound, within a couple of weeks.

Brad McAnnally, store operator at the St Joseph HyVee store, says the change will turn the entire ground beef industry, from packers to retailers, upside down within weeks.

“We are going to stop purchasing that kind of beef from our suppliers,” McAnnally said.  “This is a trend going on with all supermarket chains across the country.”

“It just shows you the power of social media, because “pink slime,” the finely textured beef, is not a health risk, but it caught on and all of a sudden the industry needs to change what they are doing.”

Mike Decker, owner/operator of three Apple Market Stores in St Joseph, agrees. His company will also cease offering the products.

“We realize this is not a food safety question,” Decker said. “The reason we’re moving this direction is because of our customers, and their concerns and their wishes.”

Both store operators said the move will raise the price of ground beef from 20 to 30 cents per pound within a couple of weeks.

Both will continue to sell products containing LFTB that are already in the stores, but will no longer purchase new product containing LFTB.

Kroger, the nation’s largest retail grocery chain, announced on Thursday that it would no longer sell the product.  That announcement sent a ripple through the entire grocery industry, which in turn is changing the way meatpackers do business.

After having quietly infiltrated pre-made beef patties in the United States starting in the early 1990s, LFTB hit the public’s radar via the 2008 documentary Food, Inc. The product is in 70% of America’s burger patties.

According to a release on the web site of the American Meat Institute, LFTB is nutritionally equivalent to lean ground beef.  “It is important to recognize that, while some reports have called LFTB an additive or a filler, these terms are absolutely inaccurate,” according to AMI.

“LFTB is simply a beef product that starts with wholesome, inspected trimmings that result when large carcasses are cut into smaller portions. These trimmings can look much like bacon, where fat and lean meat are intertwined. The process used to make LFTB removes the intertwined fat from the lean and the result is a 95 percent lean beef product.”

Officials at Cargill estimate that replacing the Finely Textured Beef produced today would require the raising, feeding and harvesting of 1,500,000 additional head of cattle each year.

In a video posted on the Cargill web site, a company official likens the process to the spinning devices used on his dairy farm to separate milk from cream.

Some people have been hoping to see Rhythm of the Dance for years. Last night they got their chance.

More than 1,100 people turned out to the Missouri Theater Thursday to see classic Irish music and dance. The touring company is in the final weeks of a 45-city tour.

These photographs come to us courtesy of Will Corlett.

The following was submitted by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon and Missouri Farm Bureau President Blake Hurst.

Here in Missouri, we’re working together to find commonsense solutions to move our state forward.

Our state’s unemployment rate has been improving, in large part because Missouri’s exports of agricultural and other products to international markets set an all-time record in 2011. Our hard-hit farm communities from northwest Missouri to the Bootheel are rebuilding and recovering after last year’s floods as well.

For example, in recent months, the State of Missouri has provided $4.5 million to local levee, road and drainage districts to help them repair and rebuild after last year’s historic floods. These funds will help local jurisdictions meet their share of the costs associated with rebuilding efforts, and ensure that our farms and communities have the protection they need to move forward.

While Missouri’s agriculture industry continues to lead, we’re also keeping an eye on some misguided attempts in Washington to disrupt our rural way of life. One area of concern is a new set of proposed rules by the U.S. Department of Labor that would dramatically limit the ability of young people to help on farms.

Baling hay and doing chores are rites of passage for young people in the heartland. Helping on the farm is how young people learn responsibility, dependability and the value of hard work. It’s how we make sure the next generation is ready to take the reins of family farms.

These proposed rules in Washington would limit the types of chores young people could perform on farms, such as prohibiting them from using lawnmowers and power tools, from baling hay, and from performing basic animal husbandry practices. The proposed rules also change the existing parental exemption, which could make it harder for young people to help on farms owned by grandparents and other relatives.

By the language of the rules themselves, these are not isolated examples or exaggerations. Take, for instance, how the proposed rules dealing with the operation of farm equipment would apply to a 15-year-old who runs a weed eater around grain bins on his relative’s or neighbor’s farm.

In the proposed rules, which apply to youths under the age of 16, the U.S. Department of Labor defines “operating” to include “starting, stopping or any other activity, including physical contact” with equipment. The definition of “power-driven equipment,” in turn, includes “all machines, equipment, implements, vehicles and/or devices operated by any power source other than human hand or foot power, except for office machines and agriculture tractors. …” Under a plain reading of the proposed rules, therefore, the U.S. Department of Labor would prohibit a 15-year-old from running a weed eater on his neighbor’s farm. That defies common sense.

This misguided proposal out of Washington would hurt farm families across Missouri. And it just doesn’t make any sense.

That’s why we join together to continue to call on the U.S. Department of Labor to listen to the concerns of heartland families and withdraw these ill-advised rules.

While Washington is mired down in gridlock, here in Missouri we’re moving forward. We’re working together – to balance our budget, to hold the line on taxes, to protect our perfect Triple-A credit rating, and to rebuild farms and communities affected by floods and other disasters.

Missouri’s commonsense approach is paying off. Washington could sure learn a thing or two from the Show-Me State.

 

It tells area residents things they probably never knew about real-life police work. It’s the Citizens Law Enforcement Academy, and Saint Joseph Police Chief Chris Connally says it’s usually full. But there are still a few openings for the class that begins April 4.

Attendance is free. Sessions will start at 6 pm and will continue every Wednesday evening for eight weeks. Officers from the Police Department and the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office lead the classes which include ride-alongs with patrols, tours of the jail and communications center, and firing police weapons at the law enforcement shooting range. For more information call Police Sergeant Greg Gilpin at 816.236.1473.

 

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Missouri Department of Agriculture has been encouraging people who haven’t received payment from a failed Missouri livestock auction to contact the department.

The Gallatin Livestock Auction’s bond funds were transferred to the department recently after claims were made on unpaid receipts.

The department says the deadline for filing a claim is April 27.

The 66-year-old owner of the company has been sentenced to six years in federal prison for a fraud that cost more than 100 northwest Missouri farmers about $3 million. Daniel Froman also was ordered pay more than $2.8 million in restitution.

Prosecutors said Froman admitted he sold grain from 100 farmers in order to pay his debts. He was charged with wire fraud because he mailed a fraudulent financial statement to the Missouri Department of Agriculture.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri judge is preparing to hear arguments on a proposed ballot measure that would replace the state’s income tax with a broader sales tax.

The case focuses on the summary that would appear on the ballot and the cost estimate. Cole County Circuit Judge Pat Joyce scheduled a hearing on those issues Thursday morning.

The group Let Voters Decide is working to put a state constitutional amendment on taxes before voters later this year. Supporters have until early May to gather enough signatures to get the measure on the ballot.

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) – Joplin education leaders are seeking public support for a $62 million bond issue to rebuild or repair the 10 public school buildings damaged or destroyed by the deadly May 2011 tornado.

City voters will consider the proposal – dubbed Operation Rising Eagle – on April 3.

The bond issue would add $65 to the annual school district tax on a $100,000 home.

The school district wants to build a combined Joplin High School and Franklin Technology Center near the former site of both schools. A new elementary school would be built on donated land near the former site of the destroyed St. John’s Regional Medical Center.

The district also wants to build 20 to 25 community storm shelters that would also serve other school functions.