Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 

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Multi Million Dollar Rain Arrives- Continues This Morning Across Oklahoma 

It was predicted that this rain making system would push significant rainfall into all 77 counties- and for the northwestern half of the state- it has proven to be a really wet system.

Southeastern Oklahoma has yet to get much if any rainfall this go round- they did get some nice amounts of rainfall four or five days ago- and that moisture should help in the Drought Monitor to be released tomorrow morning- the rains of this week won't be calculated into the tracking of the current drought until next week- but it's enough to make a serious dent in the moderate to severe drought reported over 80% of the state.

Here's a snapshot of the rainfall as of early this morning across the state:



Heaviest amounts shown are the four to five inches that have fallen from Norman back to the south and west- Acme claiming just over five inches of rain falling in just a few hours.

The southeastern half or so of the state will likely get decent amounts of rainfall before this system lifts out of the state.

If you want to watch the realtime rainfall totals pile up later in the day- click here for the continously updating rainfall graphic.
 

AG Day Celebration is Today at the Oklahoma State Capitol

House Agriculture Subcommittee Examines Farm Policy in Advance of the Next Farm Bill 

Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management, Rep. Rick Crawford of Arkansas, held a hearing to evaluate the effectiveness of farm policy in advance of crafting the next farm bill. Members heard from producers who discussed the importance of both commodity policy and crop insurance. This hearing continues the committee's hearing series to set the stage for the next farm bill.


"A farm bill is written to be an aid for producers during bad times and help their operations survive to farm another year. When we wrote the last farm bill, times were good in farm country. Now, that is not the case. Today, we heard of the hardships farming families are experiencing day in and day out to get financing, pay back debts, and simply try to break even. It is important we look at the current environment our farmers and ranchers are facing and adjust policies to reflect that in the next farm bill," said Subcommittee Chairman Crawford.

Chairman of the House Ag Committee Mike Conaway remarked as well on the importance of collecting testimony for a firm grasp on the situations that have affected America's farm and ranch families.

"It is important that we craft strong and effective policies in the next farm bill that meet the risk management needs of our farmers and ranchers and ultimately benefit consumers," said Conaway.

For the Chairman's complete comments, or to review the testimony of the subcommittee's witnesses at yesterday's hearing, click here.

Corn, Wheat and Soybean Associations Offer Testimony on Title I Programs to House Agriculture Committee

Leaders of the nation's major commodity groups bared witness to the House Agriculture Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management yesterday, offering testimony on the impacts the current Farm Bill has made on their respective industries.

National Corn Growers Association President Wesley Spurlock testified the risk management and crop insurance programs have been critical to helping corn farmers during a weak farm economy and should be maintained in the next farm bill.

"Together, crop insurance and the ARC-County program have helped many farmers weather the storm of a weak farm economy and avoid bankruptcy," said Spurlock. Click or tap here to read his testimony to the subcommittee in full.

President of the NAWG, David Schemm, also testified before the Subcommittee, who insisted that this year's low wheat prices illustrate the importance of safety net programs now more than ever and calls the Title I programs, "the most important risk management tool they have available to them."

As the House Agriculture Committee begins the reauthorization process, it's critically important that Congress understand the stress that wheat farmers across the country are feeling as a result of low prices the past few years." For Schemm's complete testimony, click here.

American Soybean Association President and Illinois soybean farmer Ron Moore, too, spoke on the need for robust risk management programs to be included in the next farm bill, but also defended nutrition assistance measures in the current bill that some critics have opposed.

"The only groups pushing for them to be split into two bills are critics from outside the agriculture community whose common goal is to defeat rather than to pass a new farm bill," Moore said. "... An affirmation that the next farm bill must include programs that support both producers and consumers of food would send a strong message to farm bill critics, as well as to farm and anti-hunger organizations that support this goal."

Click here for a chance to review Moore's testimony before the House Subcommittee in its entirety.

Robust Market Demand Keeping Beef Prices on the Rise Despite Growing Production and Supply

No doubt that improving beef demand is staring us right in the face, so says Extension Beef Cattle Specialist Dr. Glynn Tonsor. He told me prices have continued to rise in the wholesale boxed beef market since February 1st of this year, while increased beef production has stayed the course feeding a growing supply.


Tonsor reports that cut-out prices are up from $1.94 on February 1st at $2.22 and the select side has landed at $2.16 versus the $1.91 price from February.


"Those being up at a time when we're moving a lot more beef through the wholesale level is very, very encouraging," Tonsor said, citing specific numbers from the Livestock Marketing Information Center that project total beef supplies will rise almost 5 percent in the 1Q of 2017 relative to last year. "If you have that value of increase in beef production - that all guarantees beef demand is pretty robust at the moment."


You can listen to Dr. Tonsor explain to me the current status and contributing factors of the beef market's unexpected demand strength, on yesterday's Beef Buzz - click here.

Wheat Industry Leaders Meet and Greet with Oklahoma Lawmakers During Wheat Day at the Capitol

As part of the organization's renewed efforts to strengthen their position and amplify their collective voice, the Oklahoma Wheat Growers Association organized Wheat Day at the Capitol, which took place yesterday, attracting leaders of the state's wheat industry to Oklahoma City to meet with lawmakers and express their concerns about current issues producers are faced with. Our Associate Farm Director Carson Horn was on there and had the chance to speak with wheat farmer and OWGA board member, Jimmie Musick of Sentinel.

"We're trying to visit with some legislators and get some things in place to protect our wheat producers across the state," he said. "We hope that maybe by being here and showing them our interest and concern in some issue - that we'll have some influence - maybe head some things off that could be going in the wrong direction."

One such issue, which generated much discussion in a meeting with Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese and House Ag Committee Chairman Scooter Park, was HB1374, which if passed, could allow a simple majority to increase ad valorem taxes to fund public services.

"As landowners and farmers and ranchers, we certainly do have some concerns about the ad valorem tax issue," Musick confided. "I know the State of Oklahoma has some tremendous budget challenges, but they're not the only ones. Some Oklahoma farmers have some budget challenges, too."

You can read the full story on Wheat Day at the Capitol, or listen to Horn's interview with Musick, by clicking or tapping here.

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Federal Judge Approves Settlement Securing Private Information of Thousands of Rural Americans

The American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Pork Producers Council, on Monday, closed the final chapter of their lawsuit challenging EPA's release of farmer and rancher personal information, when a federal judge approved a settlement that secures the private information of thousands of livestock and poultry farmers in 36 states.



"This lawsuit has won a major victory for personal privacy," said American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. "Months ago, we won a court decision that vindicates the rights of farmers and all Americans to protect their personal information from dissemination by the government. This settlement is the final step, requiring that EPA scrub all personal information from the records involved and train its staff on the proper handling of personal information."



AFBF and NPPC filed the lawsuit in 2013 after EPA released a vast compilation of spreadsheets containing personal information about farmers and ranchers in 29 states who raise livestock and poultry, in some cases including the names of farmers, ranchers and sometimes other family members, home addresses, email addresses, GPS coordinates and telephone numbers. EPA was poised at that time to release more spreadsheets containing similar information on farmers in an additional six states.

Continue reading this story for more insights on the judge's decision to restrict the data the EPA can release on farm and ranch families, by clicking here.

Superior Livestock Auction Releases Early Sales-to-Date 2017 Average Premium Values, Returns Cash to Producers

Superior's Value Added Program was introduced in 1994 and quickly became a nationally recognized standard. With value added premium programs Superior has proven the ability and consistency to reward consigners with deserved premiums. Load lots of cattle that are backed by established health protocols, buyer friendly trends and known genetics are creating premiums for Superior's sellers and continues to deliver value for both the buyer and seller.

Industry partner, IMI Global recently released the Superior Livestock's sales-to-date 2017 average premium value per hundred-weight. Superior Verified Source and Age Verification heifers have seen an average premium of $.19/CWT while steers have an impressive $2.19/CWT premium. NHTC heifers average premium has been $.30/CWT and steers have a substantial $4.69/CWT premium. The Verified Natural Beef program average premium for heifers has been considerable at $5.48/CWT and steers have seen a premium of $4.61/CWT. GAP premiums for both steers and heifers in early 2017 has been significant with heifers at $10.40/CWT and steers at $10.03/CWT. Certified Natural programs has seen a $.97/CWT premium for heifers and $1.42/CWT premium for steers.


"The cattle that top the market in Superior Livestock's video auctions are always the cattle with a program behind them. Superior Livestock recognizes and promotes the value added programs to a national buyer base. When we then include the competitive bidding of the auction, it creates value for the sellers that use these programs. There is demand for program cattle and it pays to utilize the value added programs," explained Joe Lichtie Vice President of Superior Livestock Auction.

To read the original article, click here. To check out the showlist for today's regular sale on Superior's FedCattleExchange.com, click here.

Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, American Farmers & Ranchers, Livestock Exchange at the Oklahoma National Stockyards, Alltech, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Stillwater Milling Company, 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!

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