State Climatologist Gary McManus reported yesterday 

in his Mesonet Ticket newsletter that there is no change in conditions from last week in the latest Drought Monitor. McManus says this is neither a good or bad thing, in the fact that while things did not get worse, they certainly did not improve either.


The good news is that we can expect to see some rains over the next week or so that will help to alleviate drought, but primarily just in in areas southeast of I-44.


In the meantime, though, he says drought in the state is entering dangerous territory as we approach spring and with it warming temperatures. The danger is especially real for western Oklahoma which will likely continue to see drought persist and even intensify.


Read McManus' Mesonet Ticker report for this week, or view this week's Drought Monitor by clicking here.

This past week, OSU's Kim Anderson reports that the price of wheat rallied nearly $0.80 which for many farmers right now is enough to cover the variable cost of wheat. Currently, Anderson reports that markets are offering a forward contract price for harvested wheat at $4.35 - which is positive considering a recent budget outline by Anderson's colleague, Trent Milacek, putting wheat margins within the parameters of about $2.00 for wheat at 35 bu./acre.


However, many farmers are still expected to invest acres of production into cotton rather than wheat. This week on SUNUP - Anderson joins host Dave Deeken again, with a warning that like wheat or any other crop, cotton comes with its own risks and believes the price of cotton, although attractive right now, could potentially fluctuate down by harvest time.


At the same time, the Black Sea region seems to be dominating the global marketplace. Analysts are saying that Australia has lost its wheat business in East Asia to Russia and the Ukraine with the general consensus that this may be a permanent change. Russia's production increased from 2 billion bushels up to 3.1 billion just this past year.


You can watch their visit tomorrow or Sunday on SUNUP- but you can hear Kim's comments right now and see what else is on the lineup for this week's episode, by clicking here.

The cattle industry has heavily invested in research that highlights the nutritional benefits of beef. According to National Cattlemen's Beef Association Dietary Lead Dr. Shalene McNeill, one such study known as BOLD, has been a powerful tool in educating the scientific community on beef's role in a well-balanced diet.


"The Beef at an Optimal Lean Diet study (BOLD) was one of those great studies that was able to show that when you include beef as part of a heart healthy diet, you will lower your cholesterol and improve your blood pressure," McNeill said, adding that both consumers and physicians still fear beef will negatively impact those areas. "But, the science has shown very convincingly that just is not true."


To combat that negative image of beef in people's minds, McNeill works directly with physicians and scientists to share the research in the BOLD study and others like it, educating them on all that beef can offer nutritionally. This task is very important because coming up, there will be a new set of updated Dietary Guidelines that will be published to replace the current set in 2020. Those that McNeill is working with are the same people who will potentially be making the decisions on the next set of guidelines. She says that if those people are chosen to serve on the committee responsible for delivering those guidelines, it is imperative they are educated and up to date on beef's nutritional value. The current set of guidelines recognizes lean meat's role in a healthy diet but McNeill hopes to improve beef's position in this next set of guidelines.


"We believe information is power. It's very important to us that any study of science that's published on beef is getting out there," she said. "We need to weigh in on what science is available so we make sure they don't miss anything important. We know the science for beef is on our side."


Click or tap here to listen to yesterday's Beef Buzz featuring McNeill and I discuss the nutritional science behind beef.

Commercial rancher Jim Moore of Moore Cattle Company out of Charleston, Ark. was recognized this past year as the 2017 Commercial Commitment to Excellence Award winner by Certified Angus Beef. In a recent video segment released by CAB featuring him and his operation, Moore shared with viewers the most valuable lesson he ever learned about the beef business. That lesson - be a student of the breed.

Always curious, Moore learned all he could about the cattle business and the Angus breed throughout life working on his family's ranch, but it was until later on that he started asking some questions that has transformed his operation and the cattle produces today.

"The one thing that has really changed our operation more than anything is when we started feeding these cattle and we started getting these results back," Moore explained. "And when we got our results back after the first pen of cattle that we had fed and got the individual data back on those, we learned more about our cow herd than we learned probably in the previous five to ten years."

Click or tap here to read the full story on Moore and take moment to watch the video clip featuring his operation.

As we wind down this month - we wanted to highlight a few events happening in and around the metro over the next week or so within the ag community.

First of all, Superior Livestock will be hosting its next LIVE video auction right here in Oklahoma City at the Embassy Suites on Meridian Ave. This event is always a lot of fun to meet and mingle with folks who attend - and of course to buy some quality livestock. This event is happening Thursday, Feb. 22nd and can also be viewed on DISH NETWORK ~ CHANNEL 232; DIRECT TV - CHANNEL 603 or on
www.superiorclicktobid.com. For more information on this event, click here.

The next day, Friday, Feb. 23rd, members of the state's pork industry will gather at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center in Norman for the 2018 Oklahoma Pork Congress meeting. More than 150 pork producers, allied industry members and guests will come together for updates, programs, an awards luncheon, a business meeting, a silent auction and a new Viva Las Bacon Casino Night. You can learn more about this event and how to register here.

And finally, the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts 80th Annual Meeting will be held February 25-27, at the Embassy Suites in Downtown Oklahoma City. A special birthday celebration for Conservation in Oklahoma is planned on Sunday evening- the opening day of the annual meeting, featuring comments from Oklahoma Third District Congressman Frank Lucas, former Chairman of the House Ag Committee and current Chair of the Conservation Subcommittee. Click or tap here for complete information about the 2018 OACD meeting- including links to the full agenda.

Remember! - you can always find full details on these events and others like them, up on the calendar page of our website. We encourage you to take a look from time to time to keep your own schedule up to date on the latest meetings that you might want to attend. We also welcome you to submit your own events so we can help you share it with others and get the word out.