Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
From: Ron Hays <ronphays@cox.net>
Date: 5/13/2020, 6:05 AM
To: ron@ronhays.com



 
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We invite you to listen to us on great radio stations across the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network weekdays- if you missed this morning's Farm News - or you are in an area where you can't hear it- click here for this morning's Farm news from Ron Hays on RON.
 

  
 
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Today's First Look:
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
 

Choice Wholesale Boxed Beef was higher on Tuesday by $6.81 to $475.39 while Select Beef dropped $2 to $450.97.  Click here for more details.
 

Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futures- click here  for the report posted yesterday afternoon around 3:30 PM.
 
 
Okla Cash Grain:  
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- as reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture.
 
  
Futures Wrap:  
Our Daily Market Wrapup from the Radio Oklahoma Network - analyzing the Futures Markets from the previous Day.
 
Feeder Cattle Recap:  
The National Daily Feeder & Stocker Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
 
Slaughter Cattle Recap: 
The National Daily Slaughter Cattle Summary- as prepared by the USDA.
 
TCFA Feedlot Recap:  
Finally, here is the Daily Volume and Price Summary from the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
 


 
Our Oklahoma Farm Report Team!!!!
 
Ron Hays, Senior Farm Director and Editor

KC Sheperd, Associate Farm Director and Editor

Sam Knipp, Farm Editor

Pam Arterburn, Calendar and Template Manager
 
Dave Lanning, Markets and Production

Oklahoma's Latest Farm and Ranch News

 
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON
    Wednesday. May 13, 2020

Howdy Neighbors! 

Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 













The Oklahoma hard red winter wheat crop is called seven percent smaller than the 2019 crop at 102.6 million bushels, based on 38 bushels per acre on 2.7 million harvested acres. The USDA May first estimate is six million bushels higher than what crop scouts predicted a week ago via a Zoom Conference Call. 

The 102.6 million bushels of production in Oklahoma would be just slightly over the ten year average for production in the state of 101 million bushels.

The estimates from the crop scouts predicted a smaller yield than the USDA estimate- at 33.1 bushels per acre and the expectation that we would harvest 2.9 million acres for grain in 2020.

The nation's largest wheat producing state, Kansas, is currently expecting a ten percent smaller crop than a year ago, based on May first information, with the Sunflower state to potentially see a 304.5 million bushel
wheat crop, based on 6.5 million acres and 47 bushels per acre.


Oklahoma's neighbor to the south, Texas is on track for a larger crop than was harvested a year ago- 84 million bushels as called by USDA would be 21% larger than the 69 million bushels of 2019. 


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For many FFA members, the academic year is coming to an unforeseen end as schools have moved online across the nation to mitigate COVID-19's spread in the U.S. This means that in-person events like chapter banquets and state FFA conventions are not happening as planned this spring. However, state FFA associations are adapting to the issue by moving convention sessions and activities online.


Oklahoma held it's virtual event on last night, May 12th, calling it the Oklahoma FFA 2020 Virtual Awards Ceremony, holding it on the Oklahoma FFA YouTube Channel.

We have three stories that we want to point you to this morning about the Ceremony-

The first is the list of Proficiency Awards announced last night- 38 categories were spotlighted- and you can check the entire list by clicking here.

The Second is the announcement of the Area Stars in Ag Production, Agribusiness, Ag Placement and Agriscience- learn more about these outstanding young people by clicking or tapping here.

FINALLY- the State Officer Team for 2020-2021 found out who they were at the end of the video event- and Tanner Taylor of the Adair FFA Chapter will lead the team elected by Oklahoma FFA members(Delegates from each Chapter) this past couple of weeks.

Click here and you can learn who will join Tanner as a State Officer in the coming year.



The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and Farm Service Agency (FSA) will host a webinar on Thursday, May 14, 2020, at 1 p.m. ET, for farmers, ranchers and other producers interested in applying for direct payments through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP).

This webinar is an opportunity for producers to learn about the general application process and required documentation prior to the official beginning of signup. Producers interested in participating may register in advance for webinar at https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_SPWI7yOFSqaGG1JKzhEbjA.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. We encourage participants to submit questions through the Q&A box or by emailing CFAP.webinars@usda.gov.





Farmers have been growing wheat in Oklahoma for more than 100 years and yet there are still lessons to be learned about this vitally important crop. During the recent OSU wheat field day at Lahoma Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Associate Farm Director and Editor KC Sheperd talked with Brian Arnall, OSU Extension precision nutrient management specialist, about this year's winter wheat crop.

Arnall said the long-term fertility study established at Lahoma in 1971 started as a continuous cultivated wheat field and was converted to no-till 10 years ago. Results from this test plot emphasizes the need for nutrient management, especially timely nitrogen application.

Investing in nitrogen helps crops produce more organic carbon in the soil, Arnall said.

The challenge this year, and last year, is pre-plant application of nitrogen did not benefit the crop as much as later topdressing applications.

We've had too much fall and spring rain, Arnall said. The pre pant nitrogen just didn't stick around, so we had a lot of nitrogen deficiencies.


Sponsor Spotlight
 
 
As Oklahoma's largest John Deere dealer, P&K Equipment is proud to be your local expert source for equipment, parts, and service. As an Oklahoma-based, family-run company, the P&K network consists of 16 locations in Oklahoma, 2 locations in Arkansas, and 9 locations in Iowa. Our Oklahoma and agricultural roots run deep and our history spans over 30 years.
 
At P&K, we make it our mission to provide you with top-notch solutions and unbeatable customer service at a price you CAN afford. Visit pkequipment.com and you'll have it all at your fingertips: request a quote, schedule service, get a value for your trade, find current promotions, and shop for parts online. Stop by one of our locations today to meet the P&K team. You'll see why around here, John Deere starts with P&K.



Packing plants around the country are scrambling to work through the backlog of animals while processing their normal daily numbers. The impact on consumers and farmers is being felt across the board and Dr. Lee Schulz, Iowa State University Extension livestock marketing economist, recently said the biggest challenge is getting the plants' labor force back online.

Schulz, who's state has been significantly hit by the COVID-19 shutdown, noted getting back close to normal production will take some time.

A lot of estimates are we have already backed up at least one week of slaughter for cattle and hogs, Schulz said. The plants need to work through that one week of slaughter while they are still doing the routine daily slaughter.

Schulz said it ultimately comes down to how quickly the plants can get their labor force back to near capacity.

The biggest concern now is how do we get the absenteeism situation resolved, Schulz said.

He noted the plants have made changes to protect workers and to simply meat fabrication to keep the production line moving.



Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, many businesses and schools have closed down to practice social distancing. Many parents are at home with their kiddos, wondering, "What do we do now?" Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom has come up with some excellent daily activities you can do with your kids and family.

Today we are featuring Ag Tech Tuesday and how drones are becoming critical tools for farmers. How do drones help farmers, you ask? Here are just a few ways. They save farmers time, and imaging data from a drone gives a farmer good indicators of crop vigor.

Multi-spectral sensors allow a farmer to precisely apply needed water, fertilizers, or pesticides only where they are needed instead of applying the same amounts across the entire field.

Ag in the classroom also features new, fun ways to cook with your kiddos while learning about the agriculture industry. You can even learn how to make bread! in the Chop Chop Kids Club Newsletter, and they show you how to make bread for delicious summer sandwiches, bread stories, how to store bread, and more fun activities for the whole time. Check out all the Chop Chop Kids Club Newsletter Here. 


Superior Livestock would like to commend all our hard-working consignors, committed buyers, devoted Representatives and faithful industry partners as they have continued to persevere through these unprecedented times. With their dedication and commitment to our industry, we have been able to maintain our full auction schedule throughout the COVID-19 situation. We are continuing to monitor and adapt to local, state and national restrictions and we will continue to take precautionary measures to ensure that we are making the best decisions possible for our "Superior Family".

Moving forward, we will continue with our complete auction schedule with the goal of getting back to normal operations as soon as it is possible. At this time, we feel it is in the best interest of all parties and in compliance with local governmental agencies to move our June auctions (Corn Belt Classic, Tallgrass and Big Sky Roundup) to our studio in the historic Fort Worth Stockyards. This decision was not taken lightly, and we did seek guidance from local agencies and input from industry professionals.

Although our auction room might look a little different from the Ameristar Hotel, Pioneer Woman's Mercantile or the Northern Hotel, we vow to keep our level of service to our customers to the same "Superior standards".   We are very thankful for our technology, which allows us to continue to operate and offer true price discovery, while abiding by current CDC guidelines. We look forward to still being able to highlight and celebrate our hard-working producers, while still providing the same nationwide buyer participation that our Superior consignors are accustomed to.

GrassleySenator Chuck Grassley Offers Bill to Mandate 50% of Cattle to Be Sourced on Open or Spot Market- R-Calf Cheers
 
Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa along with his colleagues Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) and Steve Daines (R-Mont.) introduced legislation on Tuesday to foster efficient markets while increasing competition and transparency among meat packers who purchase livestock directly from independent producers. This bill will require that a minimum of 50 percent of a meat packer's weekly volume of beef slaughter be purchased on the open or spot market.

Several cattle groups have been floating this or similar proposals for a while- the measures have been referred to as 30-14 or in this case 50-14 bills as it would mean that a packer would have to buy on the open market 30 or 50 percent of their cattle and process them within 14 days.

 
"The lack of transparency in cattle pricing isn't a new problem, but the negative effects of the fire in Holcomb, Kansas, and COVID-19 have highlighted the need for additional price transparency measures to ensure producers are getting a fair price for the hard work of raising cattle. Food doesn't come from the grocery store, it comes from tens of thousands of farmers and independent producers who work day and night to ensure families across the country have an abundant supply of food. Independent producers deserve to be paid what their beef is worth," Grassley said.

Read more from the Grassley news release by clicking here.

Meanwhile the R-Calf organization is smiling. Their CEO, Bill Bullard, offered the following comments:

"Our industry is grateful for the swift action by Senators Grassley, Tester and others to halt the ongoing erosion of our cattle industry's most critical market - the competitive cash market where beef packers purchase cattle for beef production and where price discovery occurs for the entire cattle industry.

Read more from Bullard by clicking here.



SenateOklahoma State Senate Busy Passing Beef Related Bills on Tuesday- Including One to Establish an Oklahoma Certified Beef Program


The Oklahoma Senate passed three beef-related bills back-to-back with unanimous votes yesterday. The Legislature has resumed activity following the Covid-19 recess, but only to pass the SFY2021 budget and hear a select number of bills. All three beef bills were selected for the limited docket.


One of the three, The Oklahoma Certified Beef bill (HB 3963), sponsored by State Rep Ty Burns and Sen. Casey Murdock was passed unanimously. The legislation defines Oklahoma certified beef as any bovine product "bred, born, raised and slaughtered" within the state of Oklahoma. The legislation could pave the way for an Oklahoma Certified Beef Program in the near future. Governor Stitt is expected to promptly sign the bill into law.


AFR President Scott Blubaugh praised the Senate for passage of this bill and other two as well- and you can read more about all three measures and the AFR reaction to them by clicking or tapping here.
 
 
Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, AFR InsuranceOklahoma Farm Bureau, Great Plains Kubota, Stillwater Milling CompanyOklahoma Cotton Council, National Livestock Credit CorporationOklahoma Beef Council, Oklahoma AgCredit, the Oklahoma Cattlemens Association and  KIS Futures for their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked here- just click on their name to jump to their website- check their sites out and let these folks know you appreciate the support of this daily email, as their sponsorship helps us keep this arriving in your inbox on a regular basis- at NO Charge!


We also appreciate our Market Links Sponsor - OKC West Livestock! 
 
 
We invite you to check out our website at the link below too that includes an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.   
 

 
God Bless! You can reach us at the following:  
 
phone: 405-473-6144
 

 




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