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About 40 ag leaders, legislators and farm organization representatives gathered at the Oklahoma State capitol to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the creation of the United States Department of Agriculture.

Several speakers with decades of experience in working in or with the department addressed everything from the history of the agency to successful agricultural and conservation programs that have impacted the state.

Francie Tolle, the State Executive Director of the USDA Farm Service Agency, read a proclamation by President Barack Obama, commemorating the anniversary. She went on to describe the successes of the department including its contribution to the overall economy. She said agriculture is the only segment of the U.S. export economy that is running a trade surplus. She called agriculture "the unsung hero of the American economy."

Conservation issues are another of the success stories highlighted during the celebration. Clay Pope, the executive director of the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts, said Oklahoma has been a tremendous originator of and beneficiary of conservation programs sponsored by the USDA.

You can read more about the Oklahoma celebration and hear an interview with Francie Tolle by clicking here.

Ag Organizations Congratulate USDA on 150th Anniversary 

On the 150th anniversary of the founding of the United States Department of Agriculture, farm organizations across the country took the opportunity to look back and look ahead.

"The original vision for USDA, the Homestead Act and the Morrill Act was to help America's farmers and ranchers provide a safe, ample food supply for our nation and the world," said Erik Younggren, a wheat farmer from Hallock, MN, and president of the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG). "Agriculture has changed a lot since the 1800s, and yet USDA remains vital to our farms, our nation's lands, our nation's food security and safety and our economy." (You can read more of his comments by clicking here). 

President Chuck Connor of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives said, "Farmer co-ops and USDA share a long, proud history of working to improve the lives of producers and rural communities across the country. We look forward to continuing this partnership as we look to the future and work on ways of answering the challenge facing agriculture, or perhaps all of humanity-producing enough food to feed a world population estimated to be 9 billion by mid-century."  (More of Connor's comments are available by clicking here.) 

National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson said he expects the USDA to play a leading role in challenges yet to come. "USDA will continue to lead us into the future as we deal with issues such as climate change and lead us into a 21st century Green Revolution. Renewable energy is critical to creating and keeping jobs in rural America and has the potential to help America become more energy independent." (Click here to read more of Johnson's thoughts.)

You can also read comments from the National Corn Growers Association and the American Farm Bureau

Agriculture Community Calls for Transparency, Shares Ways to Strengthen Relationships With Consumers

Attendees were urged to open the barn doors and showcase the importance of modern food production at the Animal Agriculture Alliance's 2012 Stakeholders Summit, held May recently in Arlington, Virginia. The eleventh annual event brought together nearly 200 leaders across the food and farm sector to examine the theme: "Real Farmers Real Food: Celebrating Tradition and Technology".

Sixteen speakers helped attendees learn how to ensure authenticity while telling their unique agriculture story. Other recurring themes included the need to protect consumer choice and embrace ongoing consumer education efforts. Now in its eleventh year, the Summit is a unique learning and networking opportunity for leaders from across the food chain.

Author, film maker, and science advocate Shawn Lawrence Otto led a strategic discussion of tactics to better communicate science to decision makers, consumers, and the media. His core message? Food producers must get involved in the dialogue, demonstrate shared values with the public, and continue to make science-based business decisions. After his presentation, Otto signed copies of his book Fool Me Twice: Fighting the Assault on Science in America.

"We need ethical reflection, not extremism," Otto said, encouraging the agriculture community to adopt his tips to confront and debunk misinformation about food production. 

Click here to read more about this story.

Apache Farmers Co-op Prepares Launch of Comprehensive Risk Management Service

Davey Jones, the finance manager for the Apache Farmers Co-op has been watching agriculture change. It's easy to see how technology has changed over the years, but it's not always easy to see how the finances of production agriculture have changed.

"In a lot of ways co-ops and other farm supply institutions have changed with the times, but I think in the financial area we've probably not adapted nearly so quickly. I think there's a pretty big gap in the information and services that are needed and the information and services that are provided to the average ag producer out there."

It is in providing the right information and financial services that, Jones says, his co-op will be able to provide additional benefits to its members.

"Our goal is to come alongside our members in a partnership to say 'We know you're good at what you do. You can produce your crops. You can take care of getting the end product ready to go, but there's multiple risks out there and we all know that those risks exist but we don't do enough to identify them and prepare for them and to manage them.'"

Click here to read more or hear an interview with Davey Jones about this innovative service the Apache Co-op hopes to launch this year.

Harvest Rolling Again- Expected to Pick Up Speed and Spread Balance of the Week

Several harvest reports to pass along to you this morning- our own Jim Apel contacted a couple of elevators in southwest Oklahoma- Grandfield restarted on Monday and was taking wheat in again on Tuesday afternoon as Manager Chico Perez talked with Jim- he said test weights were good from 58 to 61 pounds per bushel- yields all over the place- and he tells us that it's mostly local combine machines running right now- the custom cutters have not shown up as of yet. Apel also talked to Mike Cassidy who indicated they were really just restarting on Tuesday after the weekend rains- and lack of custom cutters has been a concern for many of his customers.  

Debbie Wedel at the Oklahoma Wheat Commission also was working the phones on Tuesday afternoon- and she has updated their harvest report found on their website- and we have here full Tuesday report on our website- along with a link to a Nebraska based custom cutter now in Burkburnett, Texas- they started cutting wheat yesterday.  Click here for our latest wheat harvest report as found on OklahomaFarmReport.Com.

One of the locations that Debbie reported on that was of special interest was the Coop elevator in Frederick- "Tillman Producers Coop in Frederick took in 60,000 bushels on Monday...Test weights are averaging 62 or better and yields are anywhere from the upper 30's to the 50's. Tillman has taken in around 550,000 bushels total, to date, and expect to take in right at 1M bushels thru the weekend. If conditions hold, Tillman expects to be thru with the harvest in their area by Sunday."   

A Long Time Coming- U.S. Wheat Industry Hails U.S.-Colombia FTA Implementation

In a huge victory for U.S. wheat farmers, the United States and Colombia officially implemented a free trade agreement (FTA) first signed in 2006.

The pact immediately eliminates all tariffs on U.S. wheat imports to Colombia and ends a significant tariff disadvantage U.S. farmers have faced compared to Canadian and Argentine wheat imports there.

"This is a very good day for wheat farmers," said Randy Suess, a wheat farmer from Colfax, WA, and chairman of U.S. Wheat Associates (USW). "The tariff situation has basically forced our largest customer, historically, in South America to buy more wheat from Canada and Argentina. Now our customers in Colombia will not have to pay the tariff and we can compete equally on the basis of quality, supply and service." 

To read more about the FTA finally being implemented between the U.S. and Colombia, click here. 

Farm Bill Focus Today- As We Said Goodbye to a Friend on Tuesday 

We will be checking on harvest today- for both wheat and canola- but we will also be monitoring multiple venues today as the farm policy debate in Washington heats up.  

The Senate Ag Committee Leadership plan a media teleconference this morning- no fresh revelations likely to be coming out of that as Senator Debbie Stabenow continues to work on Senator Reid for floor time for a 2012 Farm Bill debate in the full Senate.  

The House Ag Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management will hold two hearings- one this morning and the second on Thursday morning- in both cases at 9 AM central time- the Subcommittee, chaired by Texas lawmaker Mike Conaway- will hear from several economists in panel one this morning, followed by several producers- leading off the hearing this morning will be Dr. Joe Outlaw of Texas A&M.  Click here for the full lineup of who will be delivering testimony this morning as the House Ag Committee creeps closer to marking up their version of the 2012 farm bill- their hearings both days will be up on the House Ag Committee website where you can listen and watch live.  

On Tuesday, we spent the day traveling to Little Rock and then joining with several other farm broadcasters from around the US, along with a variety of farm leaders from southern agriculture in celebrating the life of Stewart Doan. Doan was most recently the Senior Editor for Agri-Pulse, a Washington newsletter- web based service of agricultural news and policy information owned and operated by Sarah Wyant.  Many of the farm policy stories and more that we have reported to you over the years were worked on by yours truly in concert with Stewart- we traded a lot of information and ideas over the years and the quality of what we were able to report to you was better because of him.  As I have thought about what I heard at that service in the church that Stewart and his family worshiped at regularly- I was reminded by a still small voice that at the end of your life- and you NEVER know when that may be- things we think matter may not. Indeed- the service yesterday was a reminder that you can be a rockstar in your profession (he was)- you can be a great daddy and/or husband(he was)- but at the end of the day- it's what have you done about lining yourself up with the Lord and have done for Him that will offer the most comfort to those that have loved that person- saying that- I am a better person because God allowed me to have Stewart in my life professionally and personally.