Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
From: Ron Hays <ronphays@cox.net>
Date: 4/3/2019, 6:12 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.
 
 
 
MarketLinksLet's Check the Markets!  



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.
 
 
   
Today's First Look:
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
 

At OKC West Livestock Auction in El Reno Tuesday, steer and heifer calves sold sharply higher than last week, few comparable sales were 3.00-5.00 higher
with instances of up to 8.00 higher. Click here to jump to yesterday's complete sale report.


FedCattleExchange.com 
had a total of 513 cattle on their showlist for the Wednesday, February 
27th sale of finished cattle- details will be available after noon today by clicking here.

 
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 April 2.
 
  
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
   Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Howdy Neighbors! 

Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 


One Featured Story:  Jimmy Harrel of Western Oklahoma Becomes Newest Member of the Oklahoma Ag Hall of Fame

Jimmy Harrel was awarded the Governor's Distingusihed Service Award for Agriculture by Oklahoma State Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur on Tuesday afternoon  during the 2019 OKlahoma Ag Day celebrationGovernor Kevin Stitt stopped by during the presentation and saluted Harrel as a great ambassador for Oklahoma agriculture and the thousands of 4-H and FFA members he has impacted through the years.


Just before the special ceremonies I sat down and talked with Harrel about his life in western Oklahoma and how agriculture and ranching had been central to who he is ever since he was born. You can hear ourr conversation by clicking or tapping here.


"I feel fortunate. I did not know my name was being considered," Harrel said in reaction to recieving the award. "I'm so appreciative of it and the people that have come and gone and been involved in that - it's amazing and kind of overwhelming to think you've reached the potential someone thought you could be."


Governor Stitt's Outstanding Achievement in Agriculture Award is the highest award given by the Governor to honor distinguished Oklahoma agriculture producers. This prestigious award honors leaders in the agriculture industry who exemplify personal values, performance, and achievement.


Harrel grew up on a farm outside of Leedy. As he grew up, he had a love for showing livestock- and that continued into his adult life and he has dedicated time and a lot of resources into supporting young people at local, district and state livestock shows. That included stepping in as a key player when the Oklahoma City Spring Livestock Show was struggling and helping form the Oklahoma Youth Expo. 




Sponsor Spotlight


Oklahoma AgCredit supports agriculture and rural Oklahomans with reliable, consistent credit today and tomorrow.
 
A proud member of the Farm Credit System, Oklahoma AgCredit offers loans and financial services to farmers, ranchers and country home owners. Whether you're looking for land, a country home, livestock, or equipment, Oklahoma AgCredit can help with long-term fixed rates or short-term loans for running your agricultural operation.
 
With 17 locations serving 60 counties, we're locals, too. Find an office near you to talk to a lender who understands agriculture. Financing rural Oklahoma. Equal housing lender, NMLSR ID# 809962. Call us today at 866-245-3633 or go to www.okagcredit.com.


Two Inhofe Touts Farm Bill, Denounces Green New Deal, Praises Trump in One-on-One with Ron Hays

This week, Farm Bureau members will be in Washington, DC to speak with some of our nation's policy leaders about agricultural issues, including Oklahoma's Senior Senator Jim Inhofe. I had the chance to speak with him on the phone before his meetings.


One thing that Inhofe said Farm Bureau members and all those in the ag community should be excited about is the process that is moving forward to implement the policies and programs of the 2018 Farm Bill. One provision in the bill that he is especially proud of stems from his own amendment in the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, which will grant livestock producers grazing access to CRP lands in times of an emergency.


"We had that disastrous fire out in western Oklahoma... there is nothing sadder than seeing cows and horses that are burning to death," Inhofe said, recounting his tour of the damage. "Some of the things we learned out there was that people need to be able graze CRP land after a wildfire like that. Otherwise, there's no place they can use for grazing. We have corrected that."


The Senator also took a hard stance on the Green New Deal, proposed by Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez from New York. Inhofe denounced the legislation as being "completely socialist" and remarked on his inability to believe such a proposal was introduced by a United States Senator. 


What farmers and ranchers should be paying attention to however, Inhofe says, is the process to revise the 2015 Waters of the US rule, currently in the public comment period. He says this process continues to move forward and "help is on the way."


Regarding the President's efforts to appropriate funding for border security, the Senator expressed his support and emphasized the necessity of the measures proposed by President Trump.


"That's a big issue and it's one we're going to win on," he said.
Listen to my full conversation with Inhofe to hear the Senator's full remarks on these issues and others, by clicking or tapping here.


Three 
Analyst Randy Blach Says Margins a Little Tight This Year, But Cow/Calf Sector Remains Profitable


According to Randy Blach of CattleFax, the US cattle herd has advanced tremendously in terms of genetic quality just in the last decade and contends the growing success and rising demand for US beef is evidence of the positive impact that genetic enhancement has had on the industry. Blach argues that if the beef industry had not come together nearly 30 years ago to concentrate on improving beef quality, the industry would be nowhere near the success it is today and could still be slogging along at the levels it was in the 1980s when beef demand was cut in half.


Here in 2019, Blach says the industry is performing about as the analysts at CattleFax expected with the packing segment the most lucrative at this time. However, he says despite the rising cost of gain, lower carcass weights and a difficult winter, the stocker and cow/calf segment still surprisingly remains profitable on the whole.


"The stocker and cow/calf guys have been pretty seasonal in those markets year to date. Not big margins but consistent margins. So, we've had about two years in a row now where cow/calf and feeder prices have been pretty flat," Blach reported. "But, in general, our cow/calf producers are profitable. You've got producers today that got breakevens at a $1.65 and the low end of producers that have breakevens that are closer to a $1.00. So, a pretty big difference there."


Listen to Blach's full summary of the cow/calf segment's current level of operational success, on yesterday's Beef Buzz - click here.



In this week's market analysis that comes out as a part of the regular Cow Calf Corner, OSU's Derrell Peel dives into the total protein marketplace as he sees it here in 2019.

"Total 2019 meat production in the U.S. is currently projected to reach another record level of 103.3 billion pounds, up 1.3 percent year over year. However, per capita meat consumption may decrease slightly to 217.3 pounds from the 2018 level of 218.6 pounds. The decrease in per capita meat consumption reflects improved meat trade with projected decreases in meat imports and increased meat exports along with normal population growth. Total 2019 meat imports are projected to decrease to 4.3 billion pounds, the lowest since 2013, with record meat exports of 17.4 billion pounds. Total meat includes beef, pork, broiler, turkey, other chicken, veal and lamb.

"Beef production in 2019 is projected to increase to another record at 27.2 billion pounds, up about 1.1 percent over last year. Weather impacts are holding carcass weights well below year ago levels so far this year and annual average carcass weights are projected to only increase slightly year over year. Cattle slaughter is projected to increase about one percent year over year. With beef imports projected to decrease and beef exports expected to increase again in 2019, per capita beef consumption is expected to decrease to 56.8 pounds (retail basis), down from 57.1 pounds one year ago.

Click or tap here for Peel's complete look at these numbers and what they may mean for cattle producers.



Sponsor Spotlight

 
The vision of the Oklahoma Beef Council is to be a positive difference for Oklahoma's farming and ranching families and the greater beef community and its mission is to enhance beef demand by strengthening consumer trust and exceeding consumer expectations.  

To learn more, visit www.oklabeef.org.  Also, don't forget to like its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/oklabeef for stories on Oklahoma's ranching families and great beef recipes.  


Make Plans for the 
Native Pecan Field Day April 25, at Bailey's 5 Star Pecan and Cattle Ranch
Five


OSU's Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture and the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology are partnering with OSU Cooperative Extension professionals in Okfuskee County, the Noble Research Institute and the Oklahoma Pecan Growers' Association to provide this field day free of charge to anyone wanting to gain more knowledge about Oklahoma's native pecan industry.


Becky Carroll, OSU Cooperative Extension associate specialist, fruit and pecans, said "topics will be directed toward native grove management, but many items discussed during the afternoon will benefit both native and improved cultivar growers. Industry professionals and university specialists will be on hand to talk about pest management, tree thinning, pruning, grafting select natives, logging/sawmills and cattle/grazing." 


There will of course be plenty of time for questions and discussion at the end of the workshop. For more information, contact Stephanie Larimer at 405-744-5404 or email at stephanie.larimer@okstate.edu


If you are interested in learning more about native pecans, mark your calendar for April 25 and attend the Native Pecan Field Day. Click or tap here to read the full article, which includes directions to this event. 




Six FFAR Announces $4M Animal Welfare Technology Research Initiative, in Partnership with McDonald's


The Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR) announces the launch of the SMART Broiler, a research initiative offering $4 million for research supporting the development and commercialization of automated monitoring tools that quantitatively assess key animal welfare indicators in broiler chickens. FFAR is excited to partner with McDonald's Corporation as a cofounder on this initiative. The SMART Broiler program is now accepting applications to improve animal welfare. 


"FFAR is pleased to partner with McDonald's to develop tools that improve animal welfare. Testing these tools with one of the largest food companies has the potential to make considerable impact industry wide," noted FFAR Scientific Program Director, Tim Kurt


Existing methods for assessing animal welfare rely on human observation and subjective scoring. This initiative aims to identify technology solutions to provide objective and comprehensive information about broiler welfare across the supply chain. 


"This work builds on our decades-long commitment and progress on animal welfare. We are excited to partner with FFAR to identify innovative, scalable technology solutions that will allow our supply chain to monitor animals' behavior and welfare across diverse, global supply chains at commercial scale and ultimately help drive improved welfare outcomes," Keith Kenny, Vice President of Global Sustainability, McDonald's.


Read the full article by clicking or tapping here.





In the weeks ahead leading up to the 2019 Oklahoma State FFA Convention, we're spotlighting the twenty Area Stars of Oklahoma FFA that are among the highest achievers in the organization. The stars come from the five areas in four categories- Star in Ag Placement, Star in Agriscience, Star in Agribusiness and Star in Production Agriculture. One Star Finalist featured in the coming days from each of the categories, will be named the State Star Award Winner during the Oklahoma State FFA Convention coming up April 30 - May 1, 2019 in Oklahoma City. We began our coverage of these impressive young people yesterday, starting things off this week featuring the contenders competing for the Star Award in the Agricultural Placement category. 


Our first contestant to feature is the Southeast Area Star in Agriculture Placement, Tyler Grigg of the Latta FFA Chapter. Grigg has been recognized in this year's Star competition for his employment with Sullivan Supply, travelling the state selling and repairing show supplies for livestock exhibitors.


During his time working with Sullivan Supply, Grigg says he has had to learn the fine art of customer service in order to be successful at his job. He says he has enjoyed that aspect of it which has allowed him to build relationships in a community that spans the entire state. He credits his involvement with the FFA with giving him the foundation and tools he needed to be successful in this role. You can read more about his credentials or listen to our complete conversation with Grigg, by clicking here.


In addition, we also introduced Hunter Graumann, your Southwest Star in Ag Placement from the Weatherford FFA Chapter. For the last several years, Graumann has been following in the footsteps of his father constructing barns and outbuildings for his family's business, Gmann Custom Barns.


Beyond such practical skills, Graumann says he has developed some broader competencies as well like responsibility and respect for his elders and supervisors. The skills he has picked up on the job and as a member of the FFA have complemented one another. Graumann has been an active member of FFA serving three years as a chapter officer and a livestock judge and enjoys his ag mechanics class and mentoring younger members. You can read more about Graumann's experience working with his father or hear him describe it himself, by clicking here.


Be sure to follow along over the next few weeks as we highlight these young men and women for their hard work and dedication by checking in each day to the Blue-Green Gazette on our website for more feature stories on this year's full lineup of competitors.

 
OKCFarmSHowIt's Move In Day for the 2019 Oklahoma City Farm Show!

Opening day for the 2019 Oklahoma City Farm Show is tomorrow- and this year's event is shaping up as a dandy.  It will be the second time that the Farm Show will all fit under one roof (Plus the outside exhibits out front) as the Bennett Event Center is open for business- the 2018 Show was one of the first events that took advantage of what was then a brand new facility.



The 2019 Oklahoma City Farm Show will feature 
350 exhibitors featuring over 1,000 product lines for three big days.

Exhibits include all of the latest in agriculture with a full line of displays, including tractor, sprayer, tillage, harvest equipment, cattle management products, and more.  In addition to indoor and outdoor exhibits, daily horse training seminars, cattle chute demonstrations  and prize drawings make the Oklahoma City Farm Show a don't-miss event.

As it has been every year since the start of the Oklahoma City Farm Show- Admission and parking are free.

Many of our Email Sponsors will have booths at the 2019 event- we will list them with their booth numbers for you tomorrow morning- and we invite you to visit them- and stop by and say howdy to our crew as the Radio Oklahoma Network will once again by on the east wall of the event center- (all the way to the right when you come in the main entrance) 

Click or tap here for the Oklahoma City Farm Show website- that includes their interactive map of both the inside and outside locations of each exhibitor. 


Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, AFR Insurance, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Stillwater Milling Company, National Livestock Credit CorporationOklahoma Beef Council, Oklahoma AgCredit, Herb's Herb Hemp Farm, 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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