South Dakota
South Dakota State University undergraduate researcher looks at improving meat color stability with MagnaWave
BROOKINGS, S.D. — For many consumers, the color of the meat they purchase matters. If there is a way to improve color stability in the meat products, that in turn will create a better market for producers.
That’s what South Dakota State University undergraduate researcher Hailey Mouser is studying right now. Mouser is a junior at the university studying animal science.
Ariana Schumacher / Agweek
Her research project, which is funded in part with the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation, is looking to see if there is a way to improve color stability through utilizing a technology called MagnaWave.
MagnaWave is a pulsed electromagnetic frequency therapy that is currently used on live animals to improve their muscle function and metabolism. It is a rope that has small electromagnetic frequencies that are running through it.
“And the results that you see from that is tissues healing and repair,” Mouser said.
This product is not common in the industry and is used more for rodeo and show cattle type operations. Mouser says there could be potential for MagnaWave to become more common for production agriculture in the meat science realm.
“We can truly add value back on to producers if we can increase shelf life,” Mouser said. “As soon as the product in the case starts to get discolored, either it’s not going to get sold or it’s going to get discounted. So, if we can even add on half a day or one day of shelf life, then we have the potential to capitalize on a bigger market, and that is something producers could see come all the way back to their operation.”
Contributed / Hailey Mouser
However, Mouser says there has not been a lot of research conducted on that therapy when it is used postmortem, which she believes could impact the color stability of the meat. Her study is looking at what happens to the muscle when this technology is used while it’s undergoing rigor.
“We found that it works on calcium within the muscle and live tissue. Well, when we’re looking at tenderness and water holding capacity, a lot of those processes in meat science are based on calcium,” Mouser said.
Contributed / Hailey Mouser
Mouser was able to conduct her research at a meat processing plant in Iowa. She used the MagnaWave on carcasses once they came off the kill floor before they were put in the cooler.
“We applied it for just five minutes. It was just a rope that we laid over the carcass that was safe for us to touch. Once that was done, after five minutes, then it was put in the cooler and it went under standard processes of being aged, graded and then fabricated,” Mouser said.
After the meat was processed, Mouser brought the products of loins and muscles of the round back to the lab, where she ran a 10-day color panel to analyze how the MagnaWave affected those products.
When it came to water holding capacity, there was little to no difference between the control and treatment products observed through purge loss and cook loss, but there was a difference in color.
“We found that specifically the loin steaks — so, similar to a New York Strip is what I was analyzing — they stayed more red and they stayed lighter longer than compared to our controlled steaks,” Mouser said. “Now the difference between how much longer and how much more red is what we’re still working on analyzing. But there are promising results that we’ve seen so far that this technology has potential to be beneficial.”
Contributed / Hailey Mouser
This color change would only be for a short time span in the meat. It would not prolong the color change for a significant amount of time.
“We’re not talking about an extra week. It’s not a food safety concern as in how much longer is it going to be sitting there and still looks fine, because we are talking about short timeframes right now,” Mouser said. “There is potential for that research in the future, but our research is really focusing on even half a day or one day because that could see even that little bit of time could see great returns come back to the producer.”
For the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation, research projects like this one are important to their organization because the findings could directly impact the cattle industry. That’s why they started investing in undergraduate research programs.
“We saw a need to invest in innovation within our industry,” said Tyler Melroe, director of education programs at the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation.
Ariana Schumacher / Agweek
Melroe says the foundation funds a variety of research projects surrounding the cattle industry.
“It’s not that we’re specifically looking for a certain type of project. What we’re interested in is people that are willing to do the work and innovate for our industry as a whole,” Melroe said. “We need to continue to be competitive and I think as you visit with the students doing these projects, you can understand that they’re thinking outside not only how do we make better animals genetically, but also make a more palatable product that the consumer enjoys and is willing to pay a premium for.”
Mouser hopes to have the findings of her research finalized by June and then the research will be presented at the American Meat Science Association conference in Ohio this summer.
See Republican Zach Lahn speak after primary win in governor’s race
GOP gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn speaks to his supporters during an election night watch party on June 2, 2026, in West Des Moines.
The makeup of the Legislature was up in the air as of 1 a.m. after South Dakota’s primary election.
Ten Republican state lawmakers ousted in 2024 are angling to get their seats back in 2026. Results were mixed for the nine who had primaries on Tuesday, with results still coming in for several races and others set for possible recounts.
Shawn Bordeaux of Rosebud won the state’s only Democratic primary, beating Troy “Luke” Lunderman for a chance to return to the state Senate.
Bordeaux will face Chamberlain Republican Rebecca Reimer in November’s general election. Reimer, who was term-limited in the state House of Representatives, beat Lower Brule Sen. Tamara Grove in Tuesday’s primary.
In Watertown’s District 5, Rep. Josephine Garcia fell in a state Senate primary to incumbent Sen. Glen Vilhauer. Garcia beat Byron Callies in the 2024 primary to earn her seat in the House of Representatives, but opted to challenge Vilhauer for his Senate seat instead of seeking reelection to the House.
Callies, Vilhauer and Garcia are all from Watertown.
Vilhauer won with 59% of the vote. His was one of the first state legislative victories of the night reported on the Secretary of State’s website.
Vilhauer won handily, but he said he wasn’t necessarily expecting to as polls opened on Tuesday.
“I knew it was going to be a battle going in,” Vilhauer said. “She worked hard on her side, and I didn’t know what to expect.”
Callies was among the first to call Vilhauer to congratulate him, around 9:30 p.m.
“I’m happy, because Glen’s a solid legislator,” said Callies, who’s angling to win his seat back in the general election.
Garcia did not return a call seeking comment.
In District 21, Sen. Mykala Voita of Bonesteel beat former Sen. Erin Tobin of Winner in a rematch of their 2024 contest, which Voita won by a few dozen votes that year. This time around, Voita bested Tobin by 1,002 votes.
In response to a request for comment, Voita sent a text reading “Glory to God!”
Tobin did not return a call from South Dakota Searchlight about her race after it was called, but said earlier in the evening she would be “at peace” with the results regardless of what they might be.
Another rematch saw Yanktonites Lauren Nelson and Jean Hunhoff battling for District 18’s state Senate seat. Nelson was a newcomer in 2024 when she beat Hunhoff, who’d spent decades in the Capitol between stints in the House and Senate. On Tuesday, Nelson held off Hunhoff, winning by 243 votes.
Other notable races
- District 4 Rep. Dylan Jordan of Clear Lake, first elected in 2024, finished fourth in a five-way race. As of 1 a.m. Wednesday, he trailed Ryan Kohl of Milbank and former Rep. Fred Deutsch of Florence, in first and second place, respectively. A recount is possible in that race, with 59 votes separating the top two vote-getters while Rep. Kent Roe, of Hayti, came in third place, with 72 fewer votes than Deutsch.
- District 4 has two possible recounts. In the other, Bryant’s Stephanie Sauder beat Clear Lake’s Tim Begalka by 105 votes in the unofficial tally from the Secretary of State.
- District 1 Rep. Logan Manhart of Aberdeen, elected in the 2024 primary, fell to Rep. Nick Fosness, a hospital administrator appointed by Gov. Larry Rhoden in 2025, and newcomer Daniel Kjos.
- Another recount was possible as of Wednesday at 1 a.m., in the District 16 race for House of Representatives. Rep. John Shubeck of Beresford trailed Lisa Bogue of Beresford by 245 votes in unofficial results. Jason VanDenTop of Canton was in third place, trailing Shubeck by 68 votes.
Vote totals incomplete
- Sen. John Carley of Piedmont, who won his first term in 2024, trailed William Meirose of Sturgis by 166 votes as of 1 a.m. Wednesday.
- Former Rep. Tyler Tordsen led Rep. Tony Kayser by two votes in the District 14 primary, with results still coming in. The Sioux Falls men are vying for second place and a spot on the November general election ballot alongside Rep. Taylor Rehfeldt of Sioux Falls, who led by more than 600 votes early Wednesday.
- District 28 Sen. Sam Marty of Prairie City was in a close race with former legislator Ryan Maher of Isabel.
- Former Rep. Gary Cammack of Union Center, who lost his seat in 2024, and Gary Deering of Hereford, led Reps. Terri Jorgenson of Piedmont and Kathy Rice of Blackhawk in the District 29 race.
- In District 30, Hot Springs Sen. Amber Hulse led former Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller of Rapid City by more than 1,300 votes.
- Former Sen. David Johnson of Rapid City led Sen. Curt Voight of Rapid City in a rematch of their 2024 race for District 33 Senate in early results.
- Rep. Heather Baxter of Rapid City has signaled her intention to challenge sitting Secretary of State Monae Johnson for the Republican nomination to that constitutional office at the state’s Republican Party convention this summer. In early results, Baxter trailed former Rapid City Rep. Becky Drury and Rep. Mike Derby in the District 34 primary.
- Early results in the District 35 primary put Sen. Greg Blanc, elected in 2024, in a close race with fellow Rapid City resident Nicole Mitzel.
South Dakota Searchlight is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
South Dakota
Republican businessman Toby Doeden advances to primary runoff in South Dakota governor’s race
Republican businessman Toby Doeden has advanced to a runoff in South Dakota governor’s race, NBC News projects.
Gov. Larry Rhoden, who replaced Kristi Noem last year when President Donald Trump nominated her to lead the Department of Homeland Security, was battling with Rep. Dusty Johnson and former state House Speaker Jon Hansen for a second spot in the July 28 runoff. The primary will go to a runoff because no candidate eclipsed 35% of the vote.
Trump did not issue an endorsement in the race. Doeden branded himself on his campaign website as “a total political outsider who’s tired of the government’s failure to deliver on its promises” and one of Trump’s “fiercest supporters.”
Rhoden, a former lieutenant governor, agriculture secretary and lawmaker, campaigned on property tax cuts and lowering crime in his bid for a four-year term.
Johnson is the state’s lone representative in the House, where he previously was chair of the Republican Main Street Caucus. Hansen, who was elected to the South Dakota House in 2010, held several leadership positions before he became speaker.
The Republican nominee will be the favorite to win the general election in the solidly red state this fall. A Democrat has not served as governor in South Dakota since the 1970s, and Trump carried the state by 29 points in 2024.
News
Agronomist: eastern South Dakota crops hit and miss
An agronomist in eastern South Dakota says corn and soybeans are hit and miss as the growing season begins.
Steven Zemlicka with AgTegra Cooperative tells Brownfield, “We’ve got corn anywhere from V1 all the way up to V4. Biggest stuff’s maybe touching V5. Corn’s coming right along, looks pretty good. A little bit of hail here too, but I don’t think it’s going to be much of an issue. Stands for the most part are pretty good, pretty solid.”
Zemlicka says soybean emergence has been slow due to the wet, cool conditions, and there are a few fields that still need planted.
“People were still working on planting soybeans when we got the recent rain.”
He says recent rain totals ranged from a half inch to as much as four inches in the northeast part of South Dakota; the southern part of the state has been drier.
South Dakota’s corn is rated 61 percent good to excellent, with soybean conditions rated 57 percent good to excellent, according to USDA’s first condition ratings of the season.
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