xt7sbc3sz41h https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7sbc3sz41h/data/mets.xml Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station  Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station 2002 journals  English College of Agriculture, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky  Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station  The Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station 115th Annual Report 2002, June 30, 2003 text 2009ua018 The Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station 115th Annual Report 2002, June 30, 2003 2002 2002 2022 true xt7sbc3sz41h section xt7sbc3sz41h AR—115

UKAGRIC‘ULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY—COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE

The Kentucky
Agricultural Experiment Station

115t—h

Annual Report

 

 

2002

UK

LVIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY
College of Agriculture

University of Kentucky 0 Lexington, Kentucky 40546

 

  

  

 

 

To His Excellency,
The Honorable Paul Patton
Governor of Kentucky

I herewith submit the one hundred and fifteenth annual report of the Kentucky Agricultural Experia
merit Station for the period ending December 31, 2002. This is done in accordance with an act of
Congress, approved March 2, 1887, titled, “An act to establish Agricultural Experiment Stations, in
connection with the Agricultural Colleges established in the several states under the provisions of an
act approved July 2, 1862, and under the acts supplementary thereto,” and also the act of Kentucky
State Legislature, approved February 20, 1888, accepting the provisions of the act of Congress.

Very respectfully,

WWW

M. Scott Smith, Director

Lexington, Kentucky
June 30, 2003

 

  Contents

 

Purpose of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station ...................................... 7
Statewide Research .................................................................................................... 7
Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station Projects .............................................. 14
Publications .............................................................................................................. 19
Graduate Degrees ..................................................................................................... 33
Financial Statement ................................................................................................. 35

Staff .......................................................................................................................... 36

 

  

 

 Purpose of the Kentucky
Agricultural Experiment Station

 

As a Land Grant institution, the University of Kentucky
is responsible for serving the people of the Common-
wealth of Kentucky. The College of Agriculture, with its
research, teaching, and extension activities, has developed
a structure and organization to provide the mandated Land
‘ Grant services in agriculture and related areas.

The Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station has been
providing research results to farmers and rural residents for
more than 100 years. The continued advancement of Ken—
tucky agriculture attests to the benefits of applying new
knowledge and technology. Much of the research leading to
increased quantity and improved quality of Kentucky’s agri—
cultural output was performed by the Experiment Station.
College researchers also have successfully addressed prob—
lems of agribusiness, consumers, international trade, food
processing, nutrition, community development, soil and wa
ter resources, and the environment.

Statewide

Although much Experiment Station research has imme—

'diate application to agricultural and natural resource—related

problems, scientists are also involved in basic research, gen—
erating new information to help solve present and potential
problems. The ability of Kentucky producers to be competi-
tive in domestic and world markets requires an expanded
base of knowledge in emerging areas of research applicable
to agriculture, food, and natural resources.

This Annual Report lists Experiment Station research
projects and publications completed during 2002. A faculty
list is also provided.

The research programs of the Kentucky Agricultural Ex—
periment Station have benefited Kentucky’s agriculture over
the past century, and the results of present and future re—
search will continue to serve Kentucky’s primary industry.

Research

 

Research activities of the Kentucky Agricultural Experi—
ment Station were conducted at Lexington, Princeton,
Quicksand, and Owenton and in counties throughout the
state in 2002.

Efforts are constantly made to ensure that the research
studies have application to the problems of all Kentucky
farmers and other clientele groups. Locations of the experi’
mental facilities provide conditions representative of most
sections of the state.

Map position 1

0 Campus—Laboratories and specialized equipment for all
research program areas.

0 Coldstream-Maine Chance—Spindletop Farms—Beef
and dairy cattle, poultry, horses, sheep and swine; forages
and grain crops, tobacco, and turf.

0 South Farm—Fruits and vegetables, ornamentals.

0 UK Animal Research Center (Woodford Gounod—This
farm was purchased in late 1991 as a location for develop'
ment of state—of—theaart food animal research programs. The
farm is in Phase I of development as a research facility.

Map position 2

0 At Princeton (Caldwell County) the Research and Edna
cation Center facilities and the West Kentucky Substa—
tion Farm are devoted to research on grain crops, beef
cattle, swine, fruits and'vegetables, forages, and tobacco.

 

 

Map position 3

0 At Quicksand (Breathitt County) the Robinson Station
is the location of research on fruits and vegetables, oma—
mentals, forages, grain crops, tobacco, and wood utiliza—
tion. Quicksand is also the headquarters of Robinson
Forest, which spreads over parts of Breathitt, Perry, and
Knott counties and is the site of forestry and watershed
management research.

Map position 4

0 At the Eden Shale Farm, located in Owen County near
Owenton, experimental and demonstration studies are
conducted on forage crops, tobacco, fruits and vegetables,
and beef management.

 

  

LivestOck Disease Diagnostic Center

 

The Livestock Disease Diagnostic Center is charged with
the diagnoses of animal diseases and performance of tests
that safeguard the health of the animal population in Ken—
tucky. The Center helps identify infectious diseases, identi‘
fies chemical and toxic contaminants that may harm aniv
mals or humans, diagnoses nutritional diseases, identifies
regulatory diseases, provides the means to meet export sales
requirements, and provides an early warning system for im—
pending epidemics.

The objective of the program is to provide veterinary
diagnostic laboratory—based assistance to veterinary prac—
titioners, farmers and agribusinesses, companion animal
owners, wildlife conservationists, and public programs.
Also, laboratory support is provided to the animal disease
control and eradication programs of the Animal Health
Programs, Kentucky Department of Agriculture. An out—
come of handling complex and difficult cases is consulta—
tion and continuing education for veterinarians in veteri—
nary diagnostic medicine.

The program provides surveillance for emerging diseases
such as West Nile virus (WNV) infection and for possible
threats to Kentucky agribusiness such as Foot and Mouth
Disease. Also, for more than 15 years, stringent surveil—
lance for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) has
been in place. Results of the surveillance are reported quar-
terly to federal authorities. No suspicious cases have even
been identified.

Animal owners use the Livestock Disease Diagnostic
Center’s services through their veterinarians, who have ex'
pertise in selecting, preparing, shipping, and submitting the
proper specimens for testing when necessary. When report—
ing its findings, the laboratory will involve the submitter’s
veterinarian since this professional often is in the best posi—
tion to recommend and administer treatment and preven—
tative measures.

Professional and technical staff are specialists in essen—
tial scientific disciplines directly related to animal health.
Disease diagnostic efforts are coordinated and handled by
specialists in the appropriate disciplines. The Livestock Dis—5
ease Diagnostic Center is organized into sections so that spea
cialized workload/activities can be handled efficiently.

HighIights:

All faculty and staff participated in the Mare Reproduc—
tive Loss Syndrome (MRLS) diagnostic and investigational
efforts.

0 Posted the number of equine abortion accessions of all
breeds on a weekly basis for the winter and spring of 2002
on the College of Agriculture, Department of Veterinary
Science website. This weekly posting of abortion
accessions was done to help the equine industry manage
concerns about the perceived longvterrn impact of MRLS.

0 In cooperation with the Kentucky Department of Public
Health and the Kentucky Department of Agriculture,
conducted the assays for statewide surveillance and diag—
nosis of West Nile Virus (WNV) in birds, horses, and
mosquito pools.

0 Provided laboratory support for the Kentucky Department
of Agriculture and the Kentucky Department of Fish and
Wildlife Resources for surveillance of chronic wasting dis-
ease in the wild and farmed cervid population.

Pathology

 

L.R. Harrison

This section provides service in necropsy, histopathology,
and surgical biopsy. Pathologists evaluate changes found at
necropsy and correlate them with other laboratory test re
sults, including light microscopic examination of tissues.

Necropsy: A postmortem examination is conducted to iden'
tify any injury or change in an organ that has resulted in ima
pairment or loss of function.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Total Necropsy Cases 5,299
Avian 103
Canine and feline 454
Caprine and ovine 359
Bovine 1,369
Equine 2,862
Porcine 37
Other species (exotic—zoo, wildlife) ..................................................... 115

Histopathology: Tissues are prepared for light microscopic
examination to reveal changes in body tissues due to diSv
ease. Tissues of 5,527 cases were processed and examined.
A report has been generated for each case.

Biopsy: Small tissue specimens prepared for light micro’
scopic examination for evidence of neoplasia or other dis—
eases. TiSSue samples representing 4,565 cases were prOv
cessed and examined. A report was generated for each case.

Cytology: Preparations of cells denuded from tumors or
other type lesions, recovered from secretions and exudates
for microscopic examination. Cytopathologic examinations
were done and a report generated for 545 cases.

Bacteriology/Mycology

 

J.M. Donahue

The primary mission of the Bacteriology/Mycology Sec—
tion is to detect or isolate and identify pathogenic bacteria or
fungi present in animals. The section also determines the
antibiotics that might be used for the treatment of specific
bacterial infections. The section is also responsible for cul—
ture of bacteria for two federal/state regulatory programs;
CEM in equine and brucellosis in bovine.

 Highlights: >

0 20,583 aerobic cultures were performed on samples sub
mitted to the Livestock Disease Diagnostic Center; sig—
nificant bacterial pathogens were found in over 50% of
the samples.

0 2,469 milk samples from dairy cows were tested for mi—
croorganisms that cause mastitis; over 50% were positive
for pathogenic microorganisms.

0 4,587 different bacterial isolates were tested to determine
the antibiotics that could be used for their treatment in
exposed animals. ‘

0 6,815 samples from horses were cultured for CEMO. One
mare imported from Germany was found to be carrying
the bacterium before she exposed the equine population
of Kentucky.

0 249 late; to full-term equine fetuses that died due to
MRLS were tested for bacterial infections. Significant
bacteria were recovered from approximately 75% of the
fetuses. This information together with 2001 MRLS cul—
ture results were presented to researchers at the Work—
shop on MRLS, to veterinarians at the 29th Mid’America
Veterinary Conference, and to bacteriologists at the 45th
Annual Meeting of the American Association of Veteri—
nary Laboratory Diagnosticians.

Serology
BJ. Smith

 

The Serology Section provides accurate and timely re—
sults for both diagnostic and regulatory testing. This pro—
vides veterinarians and regulatory personnel with data upon
which to base their decisions. These tests also enable Ken—
tucky to export animals internationally. Testing for 30 ani’
mal diseases was available utilizing various testing tech-
niques. A total of 157,926 tests were performed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Highlights:

Anaplasmosis 14,732
Avian influenza 3,320
Bovine leukemia virus 1,278
Brucellosis 18,685
Contagious equine metritis .................................................................... 1,547
Equine infectious anemia 54,380
Johne’s disease 3,714
Leptospirosis 3,867
Mycoplasma gallisepticum ................................................................... 18,636
Mycoplasma synoviae 18,637
Salmonella pullorum—typhoid ......................................... 6,861
Molecular Diagnostics

5. Sells

The Molecular Diagnostics Section uses assay to extract,
detect, and identify the specific nucleic acids of pathogenic
bacteria and viruses. This application takes advantage of
technologies in molecular science that have been developed
during the last decade. Nucleic acid based tests are now used
so that unknown organisms can be identified, closely related

organisms can be differentiated, and small numbers of patho—
gens can be detected in complex samples.

Highlights:

One of the new responsibilities of this section during FY
2002 was screening for WNV in Kentucky's wild birds, mosr
quitoes, and animals. Working with the Kentucky Depart—
ment for Public Health, the Kentucky Department of Agri'
culture, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Re—
sources, and other sections of the LDDC, this section
screened:

' 537 birds from 88 of the 120 Kentucky counties. In Ken—
tucky the first positive bird was collected on September
5, 2001, and the last positive on October 10, 2001. There
were 43 birds positive for WNV from nine counties.

0 5,242 mosquitoes from nine counties. WNV is carried by
mosquitoes. Mosquito trapping was carried out once a
week and continued through the first week in October.
Pools of no more than 50 mosquitoes were tested for the
virus. Positive pools were identified in two counties.

0 146 equines. Between April and December eight posi—
tive equines were identified in Kentucky, six of which
either died or were euthanized because of the severity of
their illness.

This section provides specific assays for more than 30
pathogens. More than 9,000 samples were tested. Highlights
include:

0 635 Streptococcus equi (31 positive)

0 441 equine herpesvirus type 1 versus type 4 (four type 4,
five type 1)

132 equine herpesvirus type 2 (58 positive)

7 canine distemper (1 positive)

38 Lawsonia intracellularis (12 positive)

10 Mycoplasma bouis (11 positive)

1 Taylorella equigenitalis (positive)

60 Closmldium perfn'ngens Toxin typing (4O genotype A,
3 enterotoxigenic A, 13 Beta 2 toxigenic A, 1 beta 2 toxi—
genic B

DNA sequencing was used to identify 60 bacterial iso—
lates that were cultured in the Bacteriology Section of the
LDDC. These included microbacteria, Bacillus cereus,
Oerskovia xanthineolytica, Crossiella equi, Nocardia
otitidiscaviarum, Breuibacte'rium otitidis, Cellulomonas sp.,
Helcococcus sp., Pasteurella sp., as well as 22 streptococci and
nine actinobacilli isolated from MRLS cases.

Virology
M.L. Vickers

 

The Diagnostic Virology Section of the Livestock Dis-
ease Diagnostic Center provides diagnostic virology support
to laboratory pathologists, veterinarians, regulatory officials,
and State and Federal Veterinarians.

 

  

This section provides 65 different tests, including 35 flan
rescent antibody tests to detect antigens of viruses in tissues,
13 serology tests to detect antibodies of viruses, virus isola—
tion for cattle, horses, sheep, pigs, goats, cats, dogs, birds, rep—
tiles, etc., as well as electron microscopy and various test kits
for the detection of viral antigens. In addition, the section
maintains 12 tissue culture cell lines that are used routinely.

The section performed 32,672 tests during this year. Of
this total, 12,500 were virus neutralization serology tests done
to meet regulatory requirements.

This year the Diagnostic Virology section obtained a grant
from the Kentucky Department of Public Health funded by
the Centers for Disease Control. This grant was to initiate
surveillance for WNV in wild birds, horses, and mosquitoes.
WNV is transmitted by mosquitoes. Mosquito trapping was
carried out, and the pools of these insects were submitted to
the laboratory for identification and testing for this virus.
Birds are the most important sentinel species to provide inv
formation on the earliest activity of the virus in a given 10—
cality. The public was encouraged to report dead birds and
to submit them to the local health department for shipment
to the laboratory. Testing of birds and mosquitoes for WNV
was done as a cooperative effort of this section and Molecua
lar Diagnostics. WNV was first detected in the Common—
wealth of Kentucky in the fall of 2001.

Toxicology
RA. Smith

 

A variety of assays are done routinely that identify poi—
sonous substances in tissues taken at necropsy, such as met—
als, certain elements, pesticides, plant toxins, and a variety
of other toxins. Also, blood; serum, and urine from live ani‘
mals are assayed for mineral/element deficiencies and tox—
ins. These assays are done when a potential toxicological
problem exists and when a pathologist identifies changes in
tissues/organs that are consistent with specific toxic agents.

10

Highlights:
The numbers refer to the number of cases, not the number of animals
involved. On some premises numerous animals were involved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Acorn poisoning 10
Aldrin poisoning 3
Antifreeze poisoning , 28
Arsenic poisoning 6
Buckeye poisoning 2
Carbofuran poisoning 6
Elevated copper levels 7
Diazinon poisoning 1
Elevated mercury 1
Elevated molybdenum levels 3
(molybdenum is a copper antagonist)
Endosulfan poisoning 3
Lead poisoning 4
Nicotine poisoning 1
Nitrate at dangerous levels 65
Strychnine poisoning 1
Taxus poisoning 7

Veterinary Extension/Epidemiology

 

P.B. Scharko

A ruminant extension veterinarian located at the Live—
stock Disease Diagnostic Center is available to assist veteri—
narians in the investigation of serious or unusual disease
problems. An example of assistance provided is aldrin poiv
soning that occurred in a herd of cattle. Because aldrin is a
banned chemical1 regulatory officials placed the exposed herd
under quarantine. All cattle had to be tested for residue of
this substance. Only those cattle that were negative for ald—
rin could be marketed for human consumption. In addition
to helping to obtain the tissue samples from the live er
posed cattle, we were instrumental in coordinating the ac—
tions of regulatory officials, veterinarians, farmer, and rep‘
resentatives of the program certified to do the aldrin assays
so that the economic and emotional impact on the farmer
was kept to a minimum.

 Regulatory Services

 

The Division of Regulatory Services is charged with ad—
ministering state laws pertaining to manufacturing, process—
ing, labeling, and marketing of commercial feed, fertilizer,
seed, and raw milk. The Division’s primary objectives are to
protect farmers and other consumers from. poor quality,
mislabeled, or misrepresented products and to protect agri—
cultural and other businesses from unfair competition.

Feed, fertilizer, and seed are monitored through manu—
facturing and retail channels for compliance with state laws.
Label review, product, and facility inspections as well as
product sampling and analysis are important parts of this
process. Raw milk is monitored during marketing to en—
sure an accurate and equitable exchange between produo
ers and processors and to ensure the integrity of milk from
farm to processor.

Ten regulatory inspectors and one auditor cover the state
collecting samples, inspecting facilities, and auditing records.
Two specialty product inspectors are dedicated to monitor
ing and sampling small—package and specialty pet food, fer—
tilizer, and seed products throughout the state. This reflects
the Division’s commitment to provide consumer protection
to the purchaser of nonagricultural products such as lawn
seed, fertilizer, and dog and cat food. Another inspector is
dedicated to the milk regulatory program, auditing records
and monitoring activities of samplerrweighers, haulers,
testers, and lab facilities.

In addition to regulatory programs of the Division, ser—
vice testing is available through the seed, soil, and milk labo—
ratories. These and other activities in the Division are per
formed by a dedicated and professional staff who perform
laboratory analyses, provide computer support, and process
and compile reports in addition to performing various du—
ties required to administer effective programs.

Auditing Program

 

H.$. Spencer

Audits of sales and fee payments were made on 288 of
422 feed, fertilizer, seed, and milk firms in Kentucky to verify
inspection fees. Fees are assessed to help defray costs of in—
specting, sampling, and analyzing commodities in accordance
with state laws. Fees are indicated below. Cash receivables
were substantiated on 2,310 fertilizer reports, 2,936 feed re—
ports, 816 seed reports, and 72 milk reports. Reports were
checked for accuracy and compared to field audits of the
submitting firms. Additional fees of $6,700 were found as a
result of the audits.

11

2002 fee schedule for industries regulated by the Division of Regula-
tory Services.

 

 

Industry Fee Assessed per Unit
Feed 35 cents/ton
Fertilizer 50 cents/ton

 

Milk (handlers and producers) ....................................... 0.5 cents/100 lb.
Seed tags 4-24 cents/unit

 

Division of Regulatory Services 2002 income from fees, licenses, and
testing services.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Industry 2002 Income
Feed $821,279
Fertilizer 556,370
Milk 206,235
Seed tags, licenses, and service testing ....................................... 385,683
Soil service testing 158,236
Total $2,127,803
Feed Regulatory Program

5. Tray/or

The feed regulatory program provides consumer protec-
tion for purchasers of livestock feed and pet food products as
well as monitoring a marketplace environment that promotes
fair and equitable competition. The Kentucky Commercial
Feed Law outlines standards of quality, safety, and efficacy of
commercial livestock feed and pet food industries through
specific labeling requirements. Labels should identify the pur—
pose, a guaranteed composition, ingredient list, and direc—
tions as well as warning or caution statements required for
proper use. A statewide inspection, sampling, and testing pro-
gram monitors feed products for accurate labeling.

The feed program is also involved in ensuring safety and
suitability of animal products used for human consumption
and participates in a nationwide effort by state and federal
agencies to ensure food safety and to promote consumer con—
fidence in our food supply. The feed program and the FDA
are cooperatively working together to inspect facilities for
compliance with the ruminant—to—ruminant feeding ban,
which was promulgated to prevent establishment and am-
plification of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE or
“Mad Cow Disease”).

2002 highlights:

0 Administered actions on 3,231 official samples of comv
mercial feed involving 19,867 official tests to monitor
about 3 million tons of commercial mixed feed and feed
ingredients distributed in Kentucky.

Administered a cooperative program with the FDA to
inspect 15 feed mills that mix restricted drugs in feed and
to inspect these mills for compliance with the FDA’s na—
tional BSE Rule. An additional 85 BSE inspections were

 

  

contracted with the FDA for mills not required to be li—
censed with the FDA.
' Conducted 7,500 label reviews and maintained product regv
istration for about 15,000 products from 900 companies.
' Participated in the FDA’s BSE inspection training.

Fertilizer Regulatory Program

 

D.L. Terry

The Kentucky Fertilizer Law ensures that fertilizers sold
in the state are clearly and accurately labeled, enabling conv
sumers to make informed purchases of fertilizer and to be
assured of its quality. The law also protects the legitimate
fertilizer industry from unfair competition.

2002 highlights:

' Administered actions on 3,137 official and 68 unofficial
samples of fertilizer involving 9,146 tests of the approxiv
mately 865,000 tons of fertilizer distributed in Kentucky.
Reviewed labels and registered 3,652 products from 535
firms, including 202 who manufactured custom blends of
fertilizers.

Feed and Fertilizer Laboratory
M. Bryant

 

The laboratory provided analytical support for the feed,
fertilizer, and soil programs. Accurate and timely analyses of
these materials were provided for the official fertilizer and
feed regulatory programs and for the support of agriculture
in Kentucky. In 2002, the lab analyzed 3,205 fertilizer samples
and 3,406 feed samples. In addition, 42,922 agriculture—re—
lated samples were analyzed in the laboratory, i.e., soil, ma—
nure, litter, and research samples. The laboratory analyzed
many materials from check sample programs and special
sample requests from the College of Agriculture. Labora’
tory special projects were also conducted for method devel—
opment and evaluation of laboratory method performance.

Check sample materials were analyzed from regional, na—
tional, and international programs: AAFCO, Magruder®,
mycotoxins, UAN, phosphate rock, mineral, and other
sample types. The lab routinely provides program support
using approximately 75 different analytical methods. Samples
are also submitted to and analyzed by commercial and other
regulatory programs to provide additional analytical method
support and to ensure the quality of the Regulatory Services
laboratory results.

The lab also participates in a monthly aflatoxin share
sample program, established by the North Carolina Depart—
ment of Agriculture. Laboratory staff provided one of the
monthly samples for the program. The statistical analysis of
the data for all lab results was performed, and these results
were provided to all participant labs.

12

Inspection Program

 

S. McMurry

The inspection program strives to promote industry com,
pliance with consumer protection laws administered by the
Division. Inspectors strategically located throughout the
state carry out this responsibility in their respective assigned
areas. Their primary duty is to visit manufacturing plants,
processing facilities, storage warehouses, and retail sites to
collect official samples of feed, pet food, fertilizer, milk, and
seed. While visiting these firms, inspectors also review
records and offer assistance in improving operations to
achieve compliance with the laws.

2002 highlights:

0 11 inspectors completed 5,101 feed, fertilizer, and seed
inspections of processing, manufacturing, and marketing
firms in the state.

Emphasis in the feed area included feed mill inspections
for compliance with the FDA’s BSE regulations.

Two inspectors visited and sampled small package we
cialty feed, fertilizer, and seed products in urban markets.
Six inspectors made 302 visits to determine compliance
with Kentucky’s Farm Milk Handler Law.

Inspectors collected the following official samples for
laboratory verification of appropriate constituents and
quality:

 

 

 

 

Feed 3,231
Fertilizer 3,137
Seed 2,492
Milk 6,430
Milk Regulatory Program

 

CD. Thompson

The mission of the milk regulatory program is to ensure
raw farm milk produced and marketed in Kentucky is bought
and sold using accurate weights and tests. The program’s pri‘
mary function is to monitor milk handling systems from the
time a producer’s milk is sampled and weighed, through de'
livery and laboratory testing, until producer payments are
calculated. The program provides support to the producers
and processors of the state’s $264 million per year dairy in—
dustry. Industry participants are trained, licensed, and sub;
sequently monitored to maintain compliance with the law.

In addition to regulatory functions, the milk program we
operates with other agencies in educational projects to pro—
vide a variety of services to Kentucky dairy producers and
processors. The milk program also operates a laboratory that
is available for Kentucky producer, processor, and handler
service testing.

2002 highlights:

0 Reviewed and issued licenses to six transfer stations, 23
milk handlers, 23 laboratories, 71 testers, and 359 samr
plerrweighers.

 Analyzed and administered action on 6,430 official
samples.

Distributed 3,168 samples to licensed laboratories for
comparison purposes.

Conducted 16 pay-record and 28 raw milk receiving manir
fest audits. '
Conducted 29 inspections at 21 milk laboratories.
Collaborated with the Kentucky Cabinet for Health Sere
vices Milk Safety Branch to train sampler—weighers.
Trained and examined 52 new sampler—weighers and eight
new testers.

Conducted 24 inspections of raw milk transfer stations.
Conducted 667 sampler—weigher inspections.

Seed Regulatory Program
D.T. Buckingham

 

The seed regulatory program ensures Kentucky farmers
and urban consumers of quality seed while promoting fair
and equitable competition among seed dealers and seedsmen
through inspection and analysis of products found in the
marketplace. The Division, which administers and imple—
ments the Kentucky Seed Law, promotes compliance through
facility inspections, sampling, and analysis of seed offered
for sale. The law requires proper labeling of seed, which inr
cludes kind, variety, and lot designation, purity percentages,
noxious weeds, origin, test date, and a germination guaran—
tee. The Division is also responsible for maintaining regis—
tration of seed labelers and dealers in the state.

2002 highlights:

O Performed 1,977 inspections and sampled agricultural,
lawn, turf, and garden seeds at more than 600 wholesale
and retail locations.

' Collected and tested 2,492 official seed samples.

Issued stop—sale orders on 384 official seed samples and

841 violative seed lots at seed dealer and seed processor

locations.

Cooperated with the USDA—Seed Branch regarding ship—

ments of seed into the state that were in violation of the

Federal Seed Act.

Reviewed and issued 202 agricultural permits and 48 veg—

etable and flower permits to label seed.

Registered 413 seed dealers and 29 non‘certified custom

conditioners.

Provided training to firms on labeling requirements, mix;

ing procedures, and batching records.

13

Seed Lab

C. Finneseth

 

The Division maintains the only seed testing facility in
Kentucky. This seed laboratory conducts all official testing
in the state and provides service testing for producers, deal'
ers, retailers, researchers, and homeowners. Lab capabilities
include purity testing, weed and crop seed identification, seed
counts, accelerated aging, test weight, fluorescence testing
for ryegrass, moisture content, tetrazolium, herbicide tolera
ance, endophyte, and germination as well as many other tests.
More than 15,000 different tests were performed in 2002, a
9% increase from the previous year.

2002 highlights:

 

 

 

 

 

Sample Type 2002 Completed Samples
Official samples ' 2,492
Service samples 6,958
Tobacco 2,063
Other certified crops 394
Total samples 9,450

 

Soil Testing Laboratory

 

FJ. Sikora and D. Reid (Lexington)
P. Howe (UK Research and Education Center, Princeton)

Soil testing provides farmers, homeowners, greenhouse
operators, and others with scientific information about the
fertility status of their soils. In partnership with the Coop—
erative Extension Service, it also provides them with lime
and fertilizer recommendations based on soil test results. We
also offer analyses of animal wastes, water, and research soil
tests.

The soil test website has been updated with an order form
for supplies, sample forms, and calculators for determining
fertilizer, lime, and manure application rates. The site is at
.

The number of samples analyzed in 2002 were:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Type Number % Increase from 2001
Agriculture 37,719 15
Home lawn and garden 6,745 3
Strip—mine reclamation