Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
From: Ron Hays <ronphays@cox.net>
Date: 7/19/2018 6:02 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 Carson Horn on RON.
 

 
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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.
 
 
   

FedCattleExchange.com - offered 428 head Wednesday with 142 cattle actually selling with a weighted average price of $112.00. Click here to see their complete market results.
 


OKC West sold feeder steers and heifers 3.00 - 6.00 higher compared to last week's sale - click or tap here for the complete report from the USDA found on our website.



Today's First Look:
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
 
 
Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futuresclick or tap 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 on Wednesday, July 18th.
 
  
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

Carson Horn, Associate Farm Director and 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
   Thursday, July 19, 2018
 
Howdy Neighbors! 

Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 

FarmBillFeatured Story:

The House of Representatives, yesterday, placed the farm bill back in the court of the Senate, voting to move towards conference. The voice vote approval paves the way for the Senate to consider similar action so the two chambers can appoint conferees to mend differences between the House and Senate versions of the farm bill. 


"Today, we move one step closer to delivering a strong, new farm bill to the president's desk on time as he has called on Congress to do," stated House Ag Chairman Mike Conaway. "America's farmers and ranchers and rural America are struggling right now and they deserve the certainty of a strong farm bill to see them through to better times.


The House also passed a Democratic motion to instruct conferees to insist on 10-year permanent funding for an animal vaccine program. That motion passed the House 392 - 20. The House bill has permanent funding, but the Senate bill has only an authorization for appropriations. 


The motion to proceed also makes it possible for the House to appoint conferees. The Senate must also vote to proceed to conference and appoint conferees, something Senate Ag leaders Chairman Pat Roberts and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow stated in a joint release they were prepared to do.


"We are pleased to see the House move ahead on the Farm Bill," they said. "In order to be successful in passing a final bill, the conference committee must put politics aside and focus on the needs of our farmers, families, and rural communities. We are eager to go to conference, so we can move quickly to provide certainty for American farmers and families. Rural America is counting on us to get this right."


However, when the conference committee will convene remains uncertain, before or after the August recess. The current farm bill expires September 30th.


Following the vote, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi named democrats to serve on the conference committee, including 10 Agriculture Committee members, featuring House Ag Ranking Member Collin Peterson. Click here for the complete list of Democrat conferees. The list of Republican conferees, can be found here.


Peterson remarked on the House's action to enter into conference negotiations with the Senate, upholding his intention to improve the economic situation for all rural Americans and to add certainty in the lives of all those involved in the ag industry which has been peppered with one challenge after another.


"The mood in farm country is bad. It's bad because of the Administration's trade war; it's bad because of declines in farm income; and it's bad because of volatile weather like the floods in the southern part of my district," he stated. "Farmers and ranchers are staring a historically bad year in the face, and another hit would mean devastation for many of them."


Also tapped to serve on the House Conference Committee, was Oklahoma's own Frank Lucas, the state's 3rd District Congressman and immediate past chairman of the House Ag Committee.


"I am grateful for the opportunity to once again serve on the Farm Bill conference committee," stated Congressman Lucas. "The 2018 Farm Bill builds upon the success of the 2014 Farm Bill, and I am excited to play a role in producing a bill that protects the farm safety net and ensures our fellow citizens have access to safe and affordable food and fiber."


Sponsor Spotlight
 

Oklahoma AgCredit supports rural Oklahomans with reliable, consistent credit. Part of the 100 year old Farm Credit System, Oklahoma AgCredit offers variable and fixed interest rates to help you manage your budget.
 
Oklahoma AgCredit loan terms fit your cash flow for land, livestock, equipment and operating costs. Click or tap here for their website to find an office near you.
 
Talk to a local team who understands agriculture. Talk to Oklahoma AgCredit. Financing rural Oklahoma. Equal housing lender.
CryptoHouse Agriculture Committee Evaluates the Promise and Peril of Cryptocurrencies in the Digital Age

 
Yesterday, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing to shed light on the promise of digital assets and the regulatory challenges facing this new asset class to ensure the promotion of strong markets for commodities of all types. Following the hearing, Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) issued a statement remarking on the "immense promise" cryptocurrencies hold as an emerging area of commerce.

 
However, if nothing else, the hearing highlighted the difficulty in identifying whether these assets should be considered ether a security or a commodity. To that end, Conaway states that the committee will spend the time necessary to make that call in order to establish and promote "a safe, efficient and transparent digital asset market for consumers, developers and investors."

 
This hearing featured the testimony of several experts from the digital field, whose initial insights into this innovation offered some of the foundational building blocks on which future discussions related to this matter will based on as the topic is developed into law and regulation.

 
Read more about this hearing and see the written testimony provided by these witnesses, by
clicking here.

BUZZAnimal Rights Activists Join the Feminist Movement, Evoking Livestock's "Reproductive Rights"

One of the objectives of the Animal Agriculture Alliance is to monitor animal rights extremists who are fundamentally opposed to animal agriculture. Each year, the Alliance publishes a report that highlights the activities of extremist groups at their annual meetings. We spoke recently with Hannah Thompson-Weeman of the Alliance about the organization's latest report for 2018, detailing the events of this year's Animal Rights National Conference held at the end of last month in Los Angeles. Since the publication of this last report, she has been working to bring attention to some of the new themes that have cropped up this year that activists are touting in an attempt to rally people around their cause.


"One big subject of conversation that was really new this year was this discussion on reproduction," she said. "Numerous speakers at the conference talked about the 'reproductive rights of animals.' They really try to assign human emotions to animals and that's really the name of the game for these activists. They know they don't have facts on their side so they want to use emotion to manipulate people into feeling guilty about supporting animal agriculture."


Thompson-Weeman says an appeal was made during the conference that tried to link this whole concept to feminism and other popular issues that have permeated the culture over the past year, arguing that animals were being robbed of their 'motherhood,' again leaning on that emotional crutch to generate greater attention and supporter buy-in. She says this type of messaging is probably something we will continue to see for some time. In addition to this, several other radical ideas were brought up in discussion, the use of "fake meat" or lab-grown protein as possible solution to replace traditionally raised animal meat. But, what concerns Thompson-Weeman and the Alliance the most, is the growing culture of violence in this community and the inflammatory rhetoric that encourages such behavior from its followers.


"The Alliance is extremely concerned of what we've seen over the past several years of groups that are breaking into farms," she said. "That's obviously a privacy concern. It's a security concern... but, it also puts in danger the health and safety of the animals that they claim to be concerned about. There are people out there that are very aggressive and willing to cross a lot of lines in order to focus on animal liberation. So, that is certainly something we all need to have in the back of our mind and keep our eyes and ears out for any potential threats."


Listen to Hannah Thompson-Weeman highlight some of the newer strategies animal rights activists are employing to end animal agriculture, on yesterday's Beef Buzz - click here.

By the way- this was the second of two days with Hannah talking about that meeting out on the west coast- you can jump back and review day one of our conversation by clicking here. 


NCGACorn Growers Keep Pressure on EPA to Account for the RFS Volume Losses From Waivers Issued to Refineries

 
In an effort to keep the pressure on EPA's new administration to fix an issue that has been a point of contention now for some time, Russell Braun provided testimony on behalf of the National Corn Growers Association during an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hearing on the agency's proposed biofuel targets for 2019.
 

On Wednesday, the Michigan farmer called for EPA to maintain a strong, equitable Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) that follows Congressional intent and levels the playing field for America's farmers by using the annual volume rule to repair the damage from extensive refinery exemptions.


"With corn prices low, EPA's decisions have a greater impact on my livelihood and other farmers' as well," he said. "We believe EPA should use the Renewable Fuel Standard volume rule to remedy the harm caused by the extensive retroactive exemptions given to refineries over the past year and ensure future exemptions are accounted for."
 

Braun argued that these refinery exemptions have decreased ethanol blending and have reduced demand as well as profits. A release from the NCGA points out that while EPA's proposal supports some growth in the RFS volumes and continues to propose an implied 15-billion-gallon volume for conventional ethanol, it also allows for retroactive refinery exemptions. Without reallocating those waived gallons, this proposed rule essentially undercuts the volume targets and renders the proposed blending levels meaningless, according to NCGA.
 

NCGA President Kevin Skunes testified that the EPA should make good on the promises of President Trump, by ending the practice of granting unjustified RFS waivers and upholding biofuel targets.


"America's corn growers are ready and able to do our part to increase American energy use and production, and hold down prices at the fuel pump," he said. "EPA needs to listen to farmers comments, account for the waivers and make the RFS whole."


Read the full written accounts of their testimony before the EPA, by 
clicking over to our website.

Sponsor Spotlight

 
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.
 
They would like to thank all of you who participated in their 2018 Oklahoma City Farm Show
 
 
Up next will be the Tulsa Farm Show in December 2018- the dates are December 6th, 7th and 8th.  Now is the ideal time to contact the Midwest Farm Show Office at 507-437-7969 and book space at the 2018 Tulsa Farm Show.  To learn more about the Tulsa Farm Show, click here

CheckoffChecking In on the Beef Checkoff - 100 Million Consumers Targeted in Five State Digital Media Campaign

If you've kept up with us the last few weeks, you'll remember we have partnered recently with the Oklahoma Beef Council to bring you a new segment, Checking In on the Beef Checkoff, which highlights each week some of the efforts being undertaken by the Beef Checkoff to promote beef on behalf of producers. This week, Heather Buckmaster, executive director of the Oklahoma Beef Council, visits with us about the Beef Checkoff funded Five State Digital Marketing Campaign, now in its third year. Essentially, states with lots of cattle and not so many consumers contribute funds to states with higher consumer populations and less checkoff resources to use in promoting beef. 


"The goal of the campaign is to maximize visits to the Beef. It's What's for Dinner website," Buckmaster said. "When you look at Oklahoma, it represents less than 1.2 percent of the population. It's really important we reach consumers in high population areas such California and New York."


This campaign will run through September 30th, targeting 100 million consumers in five high-population states. Last year, the campaign drove 1.78 million video views of the Checkoff's 101 cooking videos and 85,000 consumers to the website.


For more stories about what your Beef Checkoff is doing orto listen to Buckmaster and I speak about the success of this campaign, click here.

ElectricRural Households Spend Nearly 40% More on Their Energy Bills Than Their Urban Counterparts


Rural households across the United States spend a disproportionately high share of their income on energy bills - about 40% more than their metropolitan counterparts, according to a new report released today by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) and the Energy Efficiency for All (EEFA) coalition. The problem is most glaring in the East and Southeast, and among low-income households across all regions.


Overall, rural households have a median energy burden - the percentage of a household's income spent on home energy bills for needs such as air conditioning, heating, lighting, appliances, and cooking - of 4.4%, which is one-third higher than the national burden. Those with low incomes have a median energy burden of 9%, which is almost three times that of higher-income counterparts. In several rural regions, this burden exceeds 15% for one of every four low-income households. In addition to income level, other factors may increase energy burdens, including a home's physical condition, a household's ability to invest in energy-efficient equipment and upgrades, and the availability of efficiency programs and incentives that put energy-saving technologies within reach.


Other rural residents hit particularly hard include elderly, nonwhite, and renting households, as well as those living in multifamily and manufactured homes. The East South Central, New England, and Mid-Atlantic regions have the highest median rural energy burdens, at 5.1%. 


But with the right policies and initiatives, those with high energy burdens could see some relief. Energy efficiency upgrades can lessen these energy burdens by as much as 25%, resulting in more than $400 in annual energy bill savings for some households. 


"By embracing energy-efficient construction and rehabilitation, and properly valuing it as part of mortgage underwriting, we could expand homeownership and reduce homeownership costs, enhance home appreciation and improve financial outcomes for rural families," said Doug Ryan, senior director for affordable homeownership at Prosperity Now.


Continue reading about how you can reduce the economic burden of your energy consumption or watch an informative video on the subject, by clicking here.

MullinMullin Bill Reauthorizing Animal Drug User Fee Agreements Passes House


In addition to its action to move progress on the Farm Bill forward, yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives also passed by voice vote, H.R. 5554, Animal Drug and Animal Generic Drug User Fee Amendments of 2018, first introduced by Oklahoma Congressman Markwayne Mullin earlier this year in April.


First authorized in 2004, this legislation gives the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to collect user fees from sponsors to help speed the approval process for new drugs for pets and animals.


Mullin says not only do ag industry stakeholders rely on these drug user fee agreements to drive the cost of medications down and keep their animals healthy - consumers rely on them too.
 

"Today's reauthorization of ADUFA and AGDUFA will promote innovation and keep food costs down for millions of Americans," he stated. "I am proud to sponsor H.R. 5554 in order to maintain these agreements that are vitally important to our country's food supply."


Click here to learn more about this legislation.

Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K EquipmentAmerican Farmers & RanchersLivestock Exchange at the Oklahoma National Stockyards, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Stillwater Milling Company, 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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