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Milk futures were higher and cash dairy prices were steady to higher  Thursday on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.  Class III milk recovered most of Wednesday’s losses. May Class III milk was up $0.40 at $18.18.  June was up $0.29 at $18.20.  July was up $0.20 at $18.51. August was up $0.25 at $18.77.     September through November contracts ranged from fifteen cents higher in November to seventeen cents higher in September.      Dry whey was up $0.0125 at $0.3825.  Four sales were recorded, ranging from $0.3750 to $0.3825.  Forty-pound cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.74.  One sale was recorded at $1.73.  Cheese barrels were unchanged for a fourth straight session at $1.77.  Two sales were recorded at that price.  Butter was unchanged at $2.9675.  No sales were recorded.  Nonfat dry milk was up $0.0125 at $1.1150.  One sale was recorded at that price.  ...     

Photo: Black cutworm moths, Courtesy-Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection Wisconsin ag officials say black cutworm moths have arrived in the state, and in big numbers. The Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection says it’s the second straight week their pheromone traps have collected a significant numbers of moths.  As of April 25th, the 50 traps have caught 126 moths.  The earliest flight this year was recorded March 31st. ...     

Planting has started in pockets of Ohio based on soil conditions Ohio Department of Agriculture Director Brian Baldrige tells Brownfield drier weather in the southern part of the state has helped farmers. “A lot of guys are kind of putting some crops in,” he says. “Down home this week we only got 1/10 of an inch of rain so there are a lot of planters in the field down South. It’s sporadic, but it’s a normal spring.” Ohio State University’s Carl Zulauf says the north-central region is wet. ...     

A Wisconsin pet food manufacturer is expanding. Nestle Purina has announced a 195-million dollar project in Jefferson, Wisconsin, where Purina will increase production of wet pet food brands by nearly 50 percent, including Pro Plan, Fancy Feast, and Beneful IncrediBites, and add 35,000 square feet to the facility. Nestle says facility will serve the northern United States. The expansion is expected to bring another 100 jobs to the Jefferson plant, where they’ve operated for nearly 115 years. ...