2012 Farm Bill Set to Move Forward on Senate Floor, Stabenow Says 

Senator Debbie Stabenow, chairwoman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, told reporters that the Senate's version of the 2012 farm bill is inching closing to debate on the Senate floor. She told reporters in a conference call that Senate President Harry Reed has agreed to move the bill forward this week. We have audio highlights of that media teleconference- which you can jump over to by clicking  on the link below.  

Stabenow said she is pleased with the bill in its current form and that it does contain major reforms.

"In our judgment this represents the most significant reform in agricultural policy in decades. It reduces the deficit by $23 billion as my good friend the chairman of the budget committee would say that's real cuts, not smoke and mirrors. It's real cuts. It's real reform. Bottom line in the reforms is that the era of direct payments is over. We're not going to be paying for crops they don't grow and we're not going to be paying farmers when they are already doing very well."

Stabenow said the bill will not just impact farmers and ranchers, but that some of its major provisions will go much further.

"In it we also are protecting families from sudden spikes in food prices. When we look at the fact that we have the safest food supply, the most dependable and affordable food supply in the world, this is a very important part of the construct when we are looking at reform in food and farm policy." 

You can read more about the farm bill's progress in the Senate as well has hear more from Senator Stabenow by clicking here. 

Canola Harvest Complete, Wheat Condition Still Good Despite Late Rains 

The month of May topped the charts as the fifth warmest and fourth driest on record according to Oklahoma Mesonet data. Rains last week brought an average of one inch of moisture across the state.

Wheat harvest made significant progress despite wet fields. Hail and wind damaged some of the remaining crop, but 73 percent was reported harvested by Sunday. The canola harvest is virtually complete- at 97% now harvested. 

Fifty-two percent of the Oklahoma wheat crop is listed in good condition, 21 percent is fair, 20 percent is in excellent shape and only seven percent is listed as poor or very poor.

Click here for the complete Oklahoma Crop Weather Update issued on Monday afternoon by Will Hundl and the folks at NASS.  

Kansas is reporting harvest activity all across the state with 36 percent of their crop in fair condition, 32 percent good, 24 percent poor or very poor and eight percent in excellent shape.

Texas also received rains last week, but 42 percent of their remaining wheat crop was listed in poor or very poor condition, 32 percent was fair, 19 percent was reported in good condition and only seven percent was rated as excellent.

It's interesting to note that the Kansas and Texas numbers are not as advanced as the harvest estimates provided by Plains Grains last Thursday- Plains Grains estimated 41% complete in Texas- and Kansas as being 25% done last Thursday.   

Click here for the National Crop Progress report- where you can see the rest of the harvest figures to date- as well as spring crop plantings and development along with pasture and range conditions.    

Wheatwatch 2012: Spotty Rains Slow Harvest, But Combines Out and Running

Spotty rains around the state have slowed some combines over the weekend, but most areas are out and running this afternoon, reports Debbie Wedel of the Oklahoma Wheat Commission.

Southwest Oklahoma has a few producers that cut their own wheat still in the field, but most in this area should be thru by mid week.

Pond Creek, Farmers Grain Company, is reporting over 6M bushels taken in at their 14 locations. They predict to be 65% complete today and will be close to 100% complete by this weekend. Test weights are ranging from 58 - 64 and yield are in the mid 40's.

Alva estimates to be 80% complete and are reporting a great crop with very few test weights below 60 and yields averaging 40 - 45 bushels per acre. 

Wheat harvest is just getting underway in the Panhandle.  Click here to read more.

OGFA President Urges Rejection of Changes to Shrunken and Broken Standards

The president of the Oklahoma Grain and Feed Association has filed comments urging rejection of new GIPSA standards for shrunken and broken grains. Joe Hampton asked Oklahoma's Secretary of Agriculture, Jim Reese, and other farm organizations to join him in opposing the implementation of the new rules.

Hampton has completed a study of grain shipments from Oklahoma over the past three years which shows a majority of the state's wheat crop could potentially be downgraded from U.S. No. 1 to U.S. No. 2 grade. Hampton said there is no good reason for changing the designation and doing so would unduly harm Oklahoma and Texas farmers.

In a letter to the Grain Inspection, Packes and Stockyards administration, Hampton said, "It appears to us that this proposed change will have an adverse effect on Oklahoma wheat producers and shippers. The "one comment from a wheat market development organization" contained in the Federal Register recommending this change apparently does not represent or does not care about the interests of Oklahoma and North Texas wheat producers and grain elevators." 

Click here to read the full text of the letter from Joe Hampton.

Culinary Institute Beef Event Focuses on Value Cuts for Satisfied Customers

At a recent beef immersion and educational event at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, Calif., foodservice operators learned about the power and versatility of beef. One such attendee was Mark Rieth. He is the corporate Chef at Sysco Corporation and their senior manager of culinary development. In this edition of the Beef Buzz, Rieth says he'll take this information to the more than 70 chefs throughout the Sysco Corporate world and outposts around the country.

"What I like about working with beef is the different ways we can serve it and present it to our customer. Beef is probably the number one protein that Americans like to eat most, so therefore if we come up with different ways of presenting it to them, different styles, different textures, people want that umami effect now in their flavors, so beef handles that. Beef can handle many different flavors from different cuts of meat and it also takes on many different flavors by adding different seasonings, dry rubs, or marinades."

Rieth says opportunities like the Greystone event funded with beef checkoff dollars don't come around very often for people in his profession, so learning how to affect taste and dining experience for his customers was invaluable. 

You can hear more of the Beef Buzz and what Mark Rieth learned by clicking here.

Derrell Peel Sorts Out Conflicted Beef Production Data

Cattle producers and market analysts alike are trying to sort out seemingly conflicted data on beef production to understand what to expect in the coming weeks. Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialst Derrell Peel sorts through the numbers in these week's Cow-Calf Newsletter:

Year to date cattle slaughter is down 4.8 percent but feedlot marketings this year are down only slightly. Carcass weights are well above year ago levels despite near record feed costs that should minimize the incentives to hold cattle. Moreover, high proportions of current feedlot marketings are feeders placed at light weights which should also imply lighter finishing weights.

There are several factors affecting these apparent inconsistencies. The first thing to keep in mind is that we usually compare things to last year and things have been anything but normal for many months. For the coming months especially, the year ago values that we will be comparing to were greatly impacted by the drought so that the comparisons will be harder to interpret. Moreover, there are a variety of short term, medium term and long term factors that are influencing slaughter rand carcass weight data in a variety of ways. 

Click here to read more of Derrell's analysis.

This N That- Mike Thralls Update and Oklahoma CRP Signup Data

We got an email yesterday afternoon from our friend Mark Harrison of the Oklahoma Conservation Commission- with excellent news from Mike Thralls- the Director of the agency- Mark writes "

We are very pleased to report that Mike Thralls made an appearance at the June 2012 Commission meeting this morning accompanied by his daughter Angie. He did not participate in his usual capacity but let Ben Pollard, OCC assistant director, present OCC's administration report. Mike did make a statement, addressing participants. He said he is feeling good, though he still tires easily, and that the medical reports he is receiving are good. If all continues to go well, he anticipates returning to work, at least part time, in about three weeks and hopes to return full time in about six weeks.

Again, he extends many thanks for all the prayers and kind wishes!"