Oklahoma's Latest Farm
And Ranch News
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Your Update from Ron Hays of RON
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
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Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update.
- Extended Winter Storm Impacts Cattle, Cowboys and Markets
- KSU Veterinarian Offers Advice on Keeping Newborn Calves Alive During Brutal Cold
- Okla Lawmakers and Governor Open Their Mail and Find an Extra $1.2 Billion to Spend!
- NCBA’s Winter Reboot Features Unique Educational Sessions
- The Oklahoma Master Irrigator Program is Underway with more Sessions Planned
- Biden Administration Announces Another Foreclosure Moratorium and Mortgage Forbearance Deadline Extension
- Take steps to Maximize Available Hay in Cattle Operations
- More Snow- But 20 Degrees Warmer and Little Wind- All Good
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Extended Winter Storm Impacts Cattle, Cowboys and Markets
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Dr. Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist, offers his economic analysis of the beef cattle industry. This analysis is a part of the weekly series known as the "Cow Calf Corner" published electronically by Dr. Peel and Dr. Glenn Selk. Today, Dr. Peel talks about the extended Winter Storm.
A massive and extended winter blast has engulfed the southern plains before spreading across much of the Delta and mid-south then ultimately affecting most of the eastern half of the country. The extended cold temperatures began a week ago with most of Oklahoma already enduring continuous sub-freezing temperatures for 150 to over 200 hours as of Monday morning (February 15). Temperatures in early week are reaching record sub-zero levels with wind chill values of -25 to -30 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures are expected to remain below freezing for at least another 100 hours. Snow totals of four to ten inches have accumulated with more snow expected mid-week. This storm is unprecedented in Oklahoma due to both the record cold temperatures and the duration of cold. I’m having flashbacks to my formative years caring for cattle in Montana winters.
The brunt of the storm impacts are directly borne by cattle producers who are struggling to provide water and feed access for cattle. These conditions require near continuous efforts to chop ice and provide feed. Cattle nutritional requirements are sharply boosted in this weather and producers must consider both the quantity and quality of feed. Cattle will not be physically able to consume enough medium to low quality hay to provide sufficient energy in these conditions and must receive additional supplement or high quality hay. In some cases, deep snow may prevent cattle from accessing standing forage, especially since Oklahoma cattle are not used to foraging through snow.
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Midwest Farm Shows is proud to produce the two best Farm Shows in the State of Oklahoma annually- the Tulsa Farm Show each December and the Oklahoma City Farm Show each April. (held in June in 2020 – due to COVID-19)
It’s almost here! The Tulsa Farm Show is Oklahoma’s premier agricultural and ranching event which returns to the River Spirit Expo (Expo Square) February, 25-26-27, 2021. (Next week!)
As Oklahoma’s largest indoor farm show with over 400,000 square feet of exhibits, The Tulsa Farm Show, being presented by the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, is a great opportunity to view all the latest in agricultural and ranching equipment. Over 350 companies will be featuring a full line of displays, including tractor, sprayer, tillage, harvest equipment. Cattle management products, and more.
To learn more about the Tulsa Farm Show, click here.
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KSU Veterinarian Offers Advice on Keeping Newborn Calves Alive During Brutal Cold
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When a baby calf is born during severe cold conditions, beef producers should try to get that calf dry and warm immediately said Dr. A.J. Tarpoff, Kansas State University Extension and Research beef veterinarian.
We’re seeing a lot of photos on social media this week as producers struggle to keep the babies alive during this brutal cold. On our latest Beef Buzz, we check in with an expert on the best ways to accomplish that task.
Adult cattle are pretty robust as they have that huge functioning rumen that acts as their heater core in the winter, Tarpoff said, however calves are a different story.
Once baby calves are dry, they have a pretty thermal hair coat.
But when we have some wind when they first hit the ground, we have some issues, he said.
When a calf hits the ground, the normal internal temperatures should be between 101 and 102 degrees, Tarpoff said.
We start getting into signs of hypothermia below 100 degrees, he noted.
The KSU scientist advises cattle producers to get a rectal thermometer and that is the best indicator of how extreme the cold stress is for the animal.
When the calf is born, the internal temperature is 101.
Below 95 degrees we could see cooling of the internal organs and hypothermia, and that's where the rancher must act quickly to save that calf.
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Okla Lawmakers and Governor Open Their Mail and Find an Extra $1.2 Billion to Spend!
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Senate Appropriations Chair Roger Thompson, R-Okemah, issued the following statement after the Oklahoma State Board of Equalization (BOE) met on Tuesday to certify revenues available for appropriation for the Fiscal Year 2022 budget. The amount initially certified by the board in December was $8.46 billion. The amount certified Tuesday was $9.64 billion.
“I am encouraged by the new numbers certified today during the Board of Equalization meeting. This speaks well of the economy in Oklahoma. Small business owners have been innovative, diligent, and persistent despite all of the challenges during this pandemic.
“Oklahoma has benefitted from federal dollars, which helped these numbers. I am very optimistic for FY 2022, but cautiously optimistic about FY 2023. This is not the year to spend every dollar. We need to have funds easily accessible if we have another surge in COVID cases-money that can be used to pay for more testing, vaccines, and other critical needs.”
Governor Kevin Stitt was also pleased with the increased dollars that can be used for both the coming fiscal year budget as well as for savings for future challenges- his comments and a link to the full OMES report is available here.
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For our farmers who have either- always have had cotton on their farms- or those who have more recently have added the fiber crop to their operations- we have a new daily report starting to be heard on several of our Radio Stations- It's Called Cotton Talk- and we appreciate the Oklahoma Cotton Council for their support in making this a reality.
Click on the Button below to listen to our most recent report
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NCBA’s Winter Reboot Features Unique Educational Sessions
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The 2021 Cattle Industry Convention Winter Reboot is a two-day virtual event and will be held Feb. 23-24, featuring 15 unique educational sessions. The title sponsor of the event is Corteva Agriscience.
The Winter Reboot will kick off each day with general sessions followed by a series of educational sessions. Day one includes a two-part General Session, sponsored by Central Life Sciences, featuring National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) CEO Colin Woodall and NCBA Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane to discuss the state of the cattle industry and expectations in Washington, D.C., over the next four years. Part two will include a D.C. issues update with NCBA’s Washington D.C., staff to share their work and the conversations they are having on both sides of the aisle to fight for the interests of U.S. cattle producers. The General Session on day two will feature a market update presented by CattleFax and sponsored by Zoetis and Purina Animal Nutrition.
“During the Winter Reboot, producers not only have an opportunity to hear from some of the leading experts in topics that impact their cattle operations every day, but they also have the chance to interact with those experts and ask questions,” said NCBA Executive Director of Producer Education & Sustainability Josh White. “The wide variety of sessions offers something for every producer and this virtual experience will provide vital industry updates and education. We encourage cattlemen and women to take advantage of this informative and educational program.
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We invite you to listen to us on great radio stations across the region on the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network weekdays-
if you missed this morning's Farm News - or you are in an area where you can't hear it- click below for this morning's Farm news from Ron Hays and KC Sheperd on RON.
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Sponsor Spotlight
Established in 1905 as Oklahoma Farmers Union, AFR/OFU has been a champion for rural Oklahoma for more than 100 years. Today, the AFR/OFU Cooperative provides educational, legislative and cooperative programs across the state and AFR Insurance provides auto, home, farm and life insurance to both rural and urban Oklahomans.
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The Oklahoma Master Irrigator Program is Underway with more Sessions Planned
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The Oklahoma Master Irrigator Program is not centered on math, however, what is learned through it can certainly add up to financial and conservation benefits for agricultural producers.
The Oklahoma Master Irrigator Program’s goal is to generate improved water use efficiency and farm income through increased farmer adoption of advanced water management strategies and technologies.
Producers, crop consultants, farm managers, conservation professionals (e.g., Natural Resources Conservation Service and Conservation Districts), and county extension agents can attend the program. This session of the program is offered in the Oklahoma Panhandle. The program is also offered to adjacent areas of neighboring states. However, only participants from Oklahoma will be eligible for benefits and incentives. The first group of producers recently completed the training at the Oklahoma Panhandle Research and Extension Center in Goodwell.
The program is truly a team effort comprised of Oklahoma State University Extension, the Oklahoma Water Resources Center, Oklahoma Panhandle Ag Irrigators Association, Oklahoma Water Resources Board, Oklahoma Conservation Commission, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Dr. Kevin Wagner at the Oklahoma Water Resources Center, along with the Panhandle Ag Irrigators, have facilitated the formation of the program, but Wagner stressed, “This has truly been a team effort.”
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Biden Administration Announces Another Foreclosure Moratorium and Mortgage Forbearance Deadline Extension That Will Bring Relief to Rural Residents
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced an extension of eviction and foreclosure moratoriums on USDA Single Family Housing Direct and Guaranteed loans through June 30, 2021. The actions announced today will bring relief to residents in rural America who have housing loans through USDA.
“USDA recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered an almost unprecedented housing affordability crisis in the United States. That’s why USDA is taking this important action today to extend relief to the hundreds-of-thousands of individuals and families holding USDA Single Family Housing loans,” USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Justin Maxson said. “While today’s actions are an important step for them, we need to do more. The Biden Administration is working closely with Congress to pass the American Rescue Plan to take more robust and aggressive actions to bring additional relief to American families and individuals impacted by the pandemic.”
A recent Census Bureau survey /showed that 8.2 million homeowners are currently behind on mortgage payments, and of that 8.2 million, 3 million homeowners behind on payments were Black or Hispanic.
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Take steps to Maximize Available Hay in Cattle Operations
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Cattle producers are only halfway through the hay feeding season, so it’s a good time to double-check they’re not wasting that precious resource, said experts with Oklahoma State University’s Department of Animal and Food Sciences
“Management of input costs can mean the difference between operational profit or loss,” said David Lalman, OSU Extension beef cattle specialist and holder of the university’s Harrington Endowed Chair in Animal Science. “Costs associated with nutrition have been shown to contribute 40% to 60% of the annual budget of a typical cow-calf operation. When it comes to hay waste, using the right type of bale feeder can make a significant cost-savings difference.”
A 2011 study by Lalman and other scientists with OSU's Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources examined four bale feeder designs: a conventional open-bottom steel ring, a sheeted-bottom steel ring, a polyethylene pipe ring and a modified cone feeder with a sheeted bottom. Hay waste was the lowest for the cone feeder, while the polyethylene feeder and the open-bottom steel ring feeder had the highest percentage of waste - 5.3% compared with 21% and 20.5%, respectively. The sheeted-bottom feeder had an intermediate waste level of 13%.
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More Snow- But 20 Degrees Warmer and Little Wind- The Trend is Our Friend
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It's all relative- temperatures this morning in both Oklahoma and Texas are much better than yesterday's record breaking brutal cold. Altus is 15 degrees warmer this morning- Lake Carl Blackwell's Mesonet station is 30 degrees warmer. And if we had a wind chill map to show- we are easily twenty degrees warmer in the "feels like" readings as well.
We do have another blanket of snow across much of Oklahoma- News9's Jed Castles just showed a map of snow fall over the last 24 hours as being from one to six inches across the state, added to the piles of snow we already have- but with minimal wind- no major additional snow drifts to cause extra misery.
As for the forecast- daytime highs each day will be inching up- and overnight lows will still be in the single digits for another night or two- but rising as well by the weekend- the clickable graphic below is from the Norman National Weather Service Office and gives you a feel for things into the weekend- still plenty of winter stress on our cattle herds but the trend finally seems to be our friend.
That's a good thing.
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OKC West is our Market Links Sponsor- they sell cattle three days a week- Cows on Mondays, Stockers on Tuesday and Feeders on Wednesday- Call 405-262-8800 to learn more.
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Today's First Look:
Ron on RON Markets as heard on K101
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
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Wholesale Boxed Beef Prices continue to go higher- Choice Beef was up $2.33 and Select Beef was up 62 cents on Tuesday, February 16th.
Click on the Button below for the latest report from USDA Market News
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Weekly Cattle Auction Reports
The buttons below allow you to check out the weekly Cattle Auctions in the region that we post on our website and here in our daily email update- Woodward and other "end of week" auctions cancelled last week due to extreme cold and the markets that operate the first half of this week have already shut down for this coming week- see our top story for more details on that .
Expect few if any of our weekly auctions to have sales this week.
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Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futures - click below for the latest update on the Livestock and Grain Futures Trade..
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Okla Cash Grain:
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- as reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture- The report available after the close of the Futures Trade for that day.
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Our Oklahoma Farm Report Team!!!!
Ron Hays, Senior Farm Director and Editor
KC Sheperd, Associate Farm Director and Editor
Dave Lanning, Markets and Production
Sam Knipp, Farm News Editor
Pam Arterburn, Calendar and Template Manager
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Rural Oklahoma is full of some of the greatest success stories throughout the entire state and is the main reason Oklahoma is on track to become a top 10 state.
The Road to Rural Prosperity will dive into these stories each week, bringing you insight into the great things happening in and to rural Oklahoma. We will bring you stories covering rural life, agriculture, energy, healthcare, tourism, and politics affecting rural America.
The Road to Rural Prosperity is here to tell stories about rural America, for rural America.
At the recent Oklahoma Genetics, Inc Annual Conference, Dr. Tom Coon, Dean and Vice President of the Division of Ag and Natural Resources provided an update on 2020-2021 Enrollment at OSU in the midst of the Pandemic, new personnel for the Division and all the latest in the New Frontiers Project to fund and construct the new Ag Hall for the Division and the Ferguson College of Ag. Host Ron Hays was moderating the Conference and asked Dr. Coon about the timeline for the construction- with plans announced to have a groundbreaking celebration April 23rd.
Today's podcast featuring Tom Coon's address is powered by the Oklahoma Rural Water Association.
To find out more about our full series of Podcasts on The Road to Rural Prosperity- click or tap here.
To hear this podcast, you can click here or tap below:
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Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, AFR/OFU, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Oklahoma Ag Mediation Program, Great Plains Kubota, Stillwater Milling Company, Oklahoma Cotton Council, National Livestock Credit Corporation, Oklahoma Beef Council, Oklahoma AgCredit, the Oklahoma Cattlemens Association, and KIS Futures for their support of our daily Farm News Update.
We also welcome Express Ranches as our Presenting Sponsor- check out their March 5th Spring Bull Sale- including links to the Sale Book, Sale Video and Sale Data by clicking here for their website.
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 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.
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God Bless!
Reach Out To Us:
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Tim West
President/General Manager
Radio Oklahoma Ag Network
2401 Exchange Avenue,
Suite F
Oklahoma City, OK 73108
405.317.6361
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Ron Hays
Director of Farm Programming
Radio Oklahoma Ag Network
405.473.6144
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