Howdy Neighbors!

Here's your morning farm news headlines from the Director of Farm Programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, Ron Hays. We are pleased to have American Farmers & Ranchers Mutual Insurance Company as a regular sponsor of our daily update- click here to go to their AFR web site to learn more about their efforts to serve rural America!

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Additionally, for those vehicles transporting hay to livestock, the executive order temporarily suspends the requirement for an oversized vehicle permit within these limits.

"The historical drought we are now facing is having a serious impact on our entire state, and farmers are among the hardest hit," Fallin said. "Many farmers are experiencing shortages of hay, leaving their livestock severely underfed. To try and alleviate that problem and expedite access to food, I have decided to loosen the restrictions on trucks hauling hay, so we can get as much food to market as quickly as possible."

Fallin said she encourages drivers to be patient and careful when on the road with these trucks.

"There are going to be some big trucks on the road and they need to travel at safe speeds, which are slower than most commercial vehicles," Fallin said. "I'm urging all our drivers to be safe and to be patient, and to remember that these trucks are out there for a reason and performing an important service to the state."

Both the American Farmers & Ranchers as well as the Oklahoma Farm Bureau were quick to praise the move by the Governor. Terry Detrick, President of AFR told us "This is a terrific example of Oklahomans efficiently working together to form a common sense solution." Terry adds AFR thanks the many state officials who took part in this timely effort."

Oklahoma Farm Bureau's Mike Spradling added his kudos for the announcement- "We applaud the governor for recognizing this need and for showing compassion during a stressful time for livestock producers."

Click here to read more on the executive order from Gov. Fallin- as well as hear comments from Oklahoma Ag Secretary Jim Reese.

Placements in feedlots during June totaled 1.70 million, 4 percent above 2010. Net placements were 1.63 million head. During June, placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 460,000, 600-699 pounds were 380,000, 700-799 pounds were 420,000, and 800 pounds and greater were 435,000.

Marketings of fed cattle during June totaled 2.10 million, 5 percent above 2010.

Other disappearance totaled 70,000 during June, 27 percent above 2010.

Click on the LINK below for more from Ed Richards and Tom Leffler, who break down the COF and Inventory numbers. Also, you can see all of the data from the Cattle on Feed report and Cattle Inventory report.

Click here to listen to Tom Leffler's analysis of the Cattle on Feed and Cattle Inventory reports.

Porter primarily sells his calves to Premium Natural Beef in Hobart but recently has sent some of his core herd to the sale barn because of lack of forage and little hay supplies. AFR President Terry Detrick was also interviewed on the Porter farm.

"This was an opportunity for us to tell the world how agriculture in Oklahoma is coping with changing weather, economics and politics," said Detrick. "Our members were able to tell that story on a very personal basis and how all of the issues are impacting them. The crew was particularly interested in the political environment in Washington, D.C. and how future policies may impact state producers."

Click here for more information on the BBC program on Oklahoma drought

Bessinger said the Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom is also preparing for their upcoming summer conference on July 29 in Oklahoma City. There are over 500 teachers registered for the summer conference, which is titled "Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots." The theme for the conference came from a children's gardening book written by Sharon Lovejoy, who will be a speaker at the conference.

Click on the LINK below to listen to the rest of our interview with Dana Bessinger on Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom and their many summer activities this year.

Click here for more information on Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom

"At the U.S. Department of Agriculture, we are looking for new ways to help America's producers succeed every single day. We want farmers and growers with operations of all sizes to be profitable and to make the decisions that are best for their land and their families.

We know that when agriculture is healthy and rural America is healthy, it helps support our nation as a whole.

That is why we have worked to help strengthen American agriculture by expanding markets for our goods and supporting innovation."

Click on the LINK below to listen to the rest of Secretary Vilsack's comments on the USDA's work to break down trade barriers.

Click here for additional comments from Secretary Vilsack.

"The real reason for this record goes beyond sales to the dedication of our licensed partners," says John Stika, company president. "They have committed to putting product in front of consumers even with high-priced beef, which further drives home the importance of quality in the price/value relationship. With strong cattle prices at the same time, pull-through demand is creating success at all levels."

The share of Angus-influenced cattle qualifying for the brand in June was 24.8%, nearly 4 percentage points higher than summer 2009. Sales gains came from foodservice, which has experienced significant recovery the past 12 to 18 months despite higher cattle and beef prices. Retail continues to carry the bulk of brand sales, with seasonally strong summer demand in full swing.

Click here for more information from Certified Angus Beef

The first meeting will take place from noon to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 4, at the High Plains Area Vo-Tech, located at 3921 34th St. in Woodward. Lunch is free to participants who pre-register. To register, contact the Woodward County Extension Office by email at dana.bay@okstate.edu or by phone at 580-254-3391.

The second meeting will take place from 9:30 a.m. to noon on Friday, Aug. 5, at the Northwest Stockyards, located at 11802 W Owen K Garriott, seven miles west of Enid. Lunch is free to participants who pre-register. To register, contact the Garfield County Extension Office by email at jeff.bedwell@okstate.edu or by phone at 580-237-1228.

Click here for additional information about program sessions for these drought meetings

We also invite you to check out our website at the link below to check out an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.

Click here to check out WWW.OklahomaFarmReport.Com

Here are some links we will leave in place on an ongoing basis- Click on the name of the report to go to that link:
Our Daily Market Wrapup from the Radio Oklahoma Network with Ed Richards and Tom Leffler- analyzing the Futures Markets from the previous Day-
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.
Previous Day's Wheat Market Recap- Two Pager From The Kansas City Board of Trade looks at all three US Wheat Futures Exchanges with extra info on Hard Red Winter Wheat and the why of that day's market.
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices: As Reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture. <
The National Daily Feeder & Stocker Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
The National Daily Slaughter Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
Finally, Here is the Daily Volume and Price Summary from the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.