I realize that many of our regular readers have already gone onto holiday mode- and if you are one of those or not- whenever you do read this- I am hoping you and yours have a wonderful Christmas holiday!  Now let's give you a few things about the  next few days:

It's a short trading day for our Ag Futures: Livestock Futures close today at 12:15 pm central, Grain Futures close at 12:05 pm while cotton trades in New York to its regular closing time of 1:20 pm. Crude and Natural Gas and the rest of the energy complex trade to their normal close of 4:00 PM central.

All markets are closed on Monday, December 25th in observance of Christmas- as banks, government offices and almost every office you normally do business with.

Livestock Auction Barns are universally closed until after the New Year.

We will not be sending an email on Monday, December 25- but will return on Tuesday morning.


THIS MORNING- USDA will be issuing a whole six pack of reports-
Cattle on Feed, Chickens and Eggs, Cold Storage, Cotton Ginnings, Hogs and Pigs and Peanut Prices.

All of these reports will be released at the same time- 11:00 AM Central- which means we will have these reports all being released while the Livestock Futures are open and trading- which happens only once a year and only when the Friday before Christmas lands where holiday hours of trade are in place.

 

Environmental Counsel for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association Scott Yager recently spoke with cattle producers across the country via a year-end webinar to discuss some of the regulatory issues concerning cattlemen that have unfolded in Washington, DC during 2017. One of the highlights of Yager's report was the fact that the Obama-era Waters of the United States rule is on its way out the door.


"The 2015 WOTUS rule was terrible because it went way beyond federal jurisdiction and tried to really claim more waters and land features than had ever been jurisdictional before by the federal government," he said. "So, we have an opportunity now with Scott Pruitt's EPA to redefine those terms and put proper limitations on the Clean Water Act and the federal government's reach on that issue."


Yager notes that NCBA, in cooperation with its Environmental Working Group, has drafted its own language to replace the existing rule. They have also been involved in the litigation to suspend the current form of WOTUS. The Supreme Court has already heard the oral arguments from both sides of this issue and Yager believes an answer to their question - which at the moment is about which court has jurisdiction over the case, district or appellate - will be delivered in the coming weeks. In summary, Yager says WOTUS is on a good path now and producers have a lot to be happy about. As that process continues to unfurl, though, another has arisen. It seems a regulation known as CERCLA and EPCRA, or Superfund, has resurfaced again this year, which if enforced by the EPA, would mandate nearly 100,000 producers to begin reporting the air emissions of their cattle. Yager says the initial mandate deadline has been pushed back from May 2017 to late January 2018, giving just a few precious days left for NCBA to come up with a legislative solution to permanently block this action.


"This has been one that's kind of been sitting in the background over the year," Yager said. "It's bubbled back up to the surface this past April due to a DC Circuit Court decision that rendered an EPA exemption rule invalid. If we don't get help from Congress, a lot of people are going to have to start reporting that stuff."


Listen to Scott Yager of NCBA discuss the status of some of the more pressing environmental issues concerning cattlemen this year, with me, on yesterday's Beef Buzz - click here.

We wanted to be among the first to congratulate Rachel Pickens of Stillwater, Okla. for recently being named by American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall, as one of several members to have a seat on two new national committees formed to better serve the organization.

Duvall announced this week, the formation of AFBF's new Young Farmer and Rancher committee and the Promotion and Education committee.

Pickens will serve on the former for a two-year term beginning in 2018.

The YF&R Committee is comprised of 16 positions representing all regions of the U.S., according to a statement by AFBF announcing the appointments. An individual or couple may hold each committee appointment. Committee members are responsible for program planning, which includes the coordination of YF&R competitive events during AFBF's Annual Convention each January and the Harvest for All program.

The P&E Committee is comprised of 10 individuals representing qualifying Farm Bureau Promotion & Education states. The committee strives to develop and centralize resources that inspire and equip Farm Bureau members to convey the significance of agriculture. Committee members support and encourage state Farm Bureau volunteers to participate in projects and activities by providing resources for programs, communicating with state leaders and contributing collaborative ideas.

For a complete list of the members announced to serve on these committees, click over to our website.

Glenn Selk, Oklahoma State University Emeritus Extension Animal Scientist, took a moment this Christmas season to explain, very scientifically, how Santa's Reindeer are able to fly through the sky Christmas Eve night to deliver toys to all the good boys and girls across the world.


"First of all," Selk writes, "historians report that reindeer have been domesticated by humans for over 5000 years. Since Santa himself is no spring chicken, we can assume that they have worked together for quite awhile. They should not have any trouble finding their way around. There is no need to worry about them getting lost.


"We do know that reindeer are ruminants. They are like cattle in this regard. They have four compartments to their stomach. Of course Santa gets them filled up with hay and moss before he leaves the North Pole, so they should have plenty of feed stored in the four compartments to make it all around the globe. Also, cattle nutritionists have known for years that hay digests more slowly than grain, therefore the big meal that the reindeer eat before the journey should last even longer. Or just like your mom says 'It'll stick to their ribs!'


"As for drinking water that should be no problem whatsoever. In their homeland the water is all frozen so they are used to getting the moisture they need by eating snow. So as the sleigh is parked on snowy rooftops in cold weather cities, the reindeer can take on the moisture they need if they get thirsty.


"How do they keep warm while flying around on Christmas Eve? The reindeer coat is made of two layers; an outer layer of bristles and an inner layer of dense fur. The fur that they have is very thick and can hold a lot of air. The 'blanket' of insulation combining fur and air helps keep them warm in even the coldest of climates. Plus flying around Christmas night in many areas of the world that are warmer than they have at home should not be a problem.


"How do they fly? Well that's a tougher question, but let's look at what we do know about them. Reindeer are amazingly fast runners on the ground. University of Alaska researchers report that a newborn baby reindeer at one day of age can out run the fastest graduate student. By the time that they are fully grown it is hard to tell what speeds that they could reach. Next remember those huge antlers. Antlers of adult male reindeer can be as much as 4 feet long! Just think about it. Each reindeer has 2 sets; that's 8 feet of antlers and with eight reindeer, or nine, if we count Rudolph on foggy nights, that is 64 to 72 feet of total antler span. A typical small Cessna airplane only has about 36 feet of wingspan. Certainly it seems feasible those eight reindeer running that fast with all that antler span could get off the ground.


"There are a couple of myths about reindeer that we should clear up. You have probably heard the poem that says that they have tiny reindeer feet. Actually they have a very wide large hoof that they use at home to dig through the snow to find grass and moss to eat. You've got to think that those wide hooves would come in handy for sliding to rather sudden stops on the small landing sites that Santa has to work with on Christmas Eve.


"And you've probably heard the song about 'up on the house top click, click, click.' Well it is true that reindeer do make a clicking sound as they walk. They have a tendon that snaps over a bone joint and makes a clicking sound on every step.


"These are just a few facts about Santa's Reindeer. Maybe this will help us understand that age-old mystery that occurs every Christmas Eve."

So, if you have any Doubting Thomas' in your family this year,
skeptical about Santa and his Reindeer, we'd like to invite you to prove them wrong as we all know they secretly hope to be. Click here to view this story on our website, and share it with all your friends and family to spread a little Christmas cheer.