|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oklahoma's latest
farm and ranch news
Your Update from Ron
Hays of RON for Tuesday August 9, 2011 A
service of Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, Midwest Farm Shows and KIS
Futures!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-- A Dubious Distinction- Two Hottest Months EVER in the United
States Both Happened in Oklahoma
-- Crop Weather Update- Brief and Scattered Rains Provide Little
Relief
-- USDA Extends Emergency CRP Grazing Deadline to October 31
-- OSU's Dr. Derrell Peel says Cattle Markets are Past Worst Days of
Summer
-- Government Action is Essential for Exporting Beef to Japan and
China
-- Senate Leadership Claims a Deal to Go Forward on Free Trade Votes-
But It's VERY Complicated
-- Monsanto Begins Campaign to Donate $2,500 to Rural
Communities
-- Mother Nature Throws a Very Hard Fastball- And USDA Ready to Throw
Us Animal ID
-- Let's Check the Markets!
Howdy Neighbors! Here's your morning farm news headlines from the Director of Farm Programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, Ron Hays. We are proud to have KIS Futures as a regular sponsor of our daily email update. KIS Futures provides Oklahoma Farmers & Ranchers with futures & options hedging services in the livestock and grain markets- Click here for the free market quote page they provide us for our website or call them at 1-800-256-2555- and their IPHONE App, which provides all electronic futures quotes is available at the App Store- click here for the KIS Futures App for your Iphone. We are also excited to have as one of our sponsors for the daily email
Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, with 64 years of progress through
producer ownership. Call Brandon Winters at 405-232-7555 for more
information on the oilseed crops they handle, including sunflowers and
canola- and remember they post closing market prices for canola and
sunflowers on the PCOM
website- go there by clicking here. 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 Ron Hays on RON. | |
A Dubious Distinction- Two Hottest Months EVER in the United States Both Happened in Oklahoma ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Grover
Cleveland was serving his second term as President in 1895. Victoria was
the Queen of England and Will Rogers was still a teenager. It is also the
year that statewide average temperature records begin for the United
States. There have been 1399 months pass by since 1895. Multiply that
number by 48 and you have 67,152 months of temperature records for the
contiguous states. How hot was it in Oklahoma last month? Of those
statewide average temperature records for the 48 states, none has been
hotter than July 2011 in Oklahoma.
According to data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, the statewide average temperature during July came in at 89.1 degrees, more than 7 degrees above normal. High temperatures alone were nearly 9 degrees above normal at 102.9 degrees. The National Climatic Data Center's statewide average for July stands at 88.9 degrees with data still being collected. Both values shattered the country's previous record of 88.1 degrees held by another legendary hot month in Oklahoma, July 1954. The extreme heat is being fueled by one of the worst short-term droughts in state history. The drought's beginnings date back to August 2010 but intensified beginning in the fall under the influence of La Niña. That climate phenomenon, marked by cooler than normal water temperatures in the eastern equatorial pacific, often means drier weather for the southern United States. The statewide average precipitation total of 16.73 inches since October 1, 2010, is the driest on record at nearly 14 inches below normal. Parts of southwestern Oklahoma have seen less than 6 inches of rain over that 10-month period. Click on the LINK below and jump to our website for this story- and a graphic showing how many days above one hundred degrees we have been this year- they continue to pile up with the most of August still in front of us. | |
Crop Weather Update- Brief and Scattered Rains Provide Little Relief ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The latest
Oklahoma Crop Weather Update focuses on the recent rainfall in Oklahoma
saying- "The majority of the Mesonet stations received measurable rainfall
this past week, with multiple locations recording over an inch of rain.
The Panhandle averaged 0.72 of an inch of rain while the Southwest and
South Central districts received next to none and the state average was
only 0.24 of an inch. Temperature records continued to fall in various
locations and the high for the state was 115 degrees in Wilburton on
Wednesday. Highs in the Panhandle averaged 101 degrees while high
temperatures in the rest of the state averaged from 106 to 109 degrees.
Governor Fallin extended the outdoor burn ban to include all 77 counties,
as the drought and heat heightened fire danger. Several fires destroyed
homes and burned acreage across the state last week in the Oklahoma City
and Tulsa metro areas, as well as Pawnee County and Pottawatomie County."
For our spring-planted crops, according to the USDA- "Conditions continued to be rated mostly poor to very poor for all crops except peanuts, which were rated mostly good to fair. Reports of failed crops and corn and soybeans baled for hay were widespread. Progress was reported on the crop still standing. Of the corn still in the fields, 91 percent reached the dough stage, 57 percent reached the dent stage, and 33 percent was mature by week's end. Sorghum heading reached 55 percent complete, while sorghum coloring reached 29 percent complete by Sunday. Soybean blooming was 64 percent complete by Sunday, and 25 percent were setting pods by week's end. Peanut pegging was 93 percent complete and 39 percent of plants were setting pods, 23 points behind normal. Cotton emerged reached 83 percent complete, cotton squaring was 62 percent complete, and 13 percent was setting bolls, all significantly behind the five-year average." Conditions continued to decline and the majority of hay, pasture and range were rated very poor and grasshoppers were being reported in increased numbers. Second cuttings of alfalfa reached 90 percent complete and third cuttings reached 30 percent complete, 59 points behind normal. First cuttings of other hay were 91 percent complete and the second cutting was 13 percent complete by Sunday. Click here for the complete Crop Weather Update as of Monday afternoon, August 8, 2011 | |
USDA Extends Emergency CRP Grazing Deadline to October 31 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Francie Tolle,
executive director of the Oklahoma Farm Service Agency (FSA), announced
that USDA will extend the emergency grazing period to October 31, 2011 for
the thirty-two counties in Oklahoma that have been approved for emergency
grazing of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres due to the extreme
drought conditions. The approved counties are: Alfalfa, Beaver, Beckham, Blaine, Bryan, Caddo, Cimarron, Comanche, Cotton, Custer, Dewey, Ellis, Grady, Grant, Greer, Harmon, Harper, Jackson, Jefferson, Kay, Kiowa, Logan, Major, McCurtain, Osage, Roger Mills, Stephens, Texas, Tillman, Washita, Woods, and Woodward. "Most areas of Oklahoma are experiencing extreme drought conditions that are causing crop failure and the dispersal of livestock herds," said Tolle. "Many ranchers have been or will be forced to sell livestock due to drought and USDA is committed to doing what we can to help our farmers and ranchers during these challenging times." The period normally allowed for emergency grazing lasts through Sept. 30, 2011. FSA is permitting farmers and ranchers in drought stricken states who have been approved for emergency grazing, including those in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, to extend the emergency grazing period to Oct. 31, 2011, without an additional payment reduction. Eligible producers who are interested in grazing CRP need to first contact their local Farm Service Agency (FSA) office to sign appropriate paperwork before any grazing may begin. | |
OSU's Dr. Derrell Peel says Cattle Markets are Past Worst Days of Summer ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ One definition
of the dog days of summer is a hot summer day when a dog is chasing a cat
down the street, and both are walking. As Oklahoma approaches a record
number of 100 plus degree days, the dogs and cats are, for the most part,
nowhere to be found. With several more days of 100 degree temperatures
forecast, there seems to be no indication that summer is close to being
over, according to OSU Extension Livestock Market Economist, Dr. Derrell
Peel.
However, it is possible that fed cattle markets are past the worst of the summer doldrums. Fed prices have increased some $4/cwt from lows in late July. This retest of the seasonal lows was anticipated and it appears that the late May lows will hold as the lowest prices of the season. The market is not completely out of danger yet. Choice boxed beef prices have dropped to roughly $172/cwt, close to the June lows. This means that most of the recent increase in fed prices has come at the expense of packer margins and further increases in fed prices will depend on boxed beef price recovery. On the other hand, additional weakness in boxed beef prices could pressure fed prices lower again. The recent decrease in boxed beef prices has been more severe for
Choice meat compared to Select resulting in an unusually narrow
Choice-Select spread for this time of year, about $3/cwt. This is
indicative of the continued weakness of Choice meat demand and the
struggles to rebuild middle meat demand. Click here for the rest of Dr. Peel's cattle market analysis | |
Government Action is Essential for Exporting Beef to Japan and China ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Prior to the
beef market with Japan closing in 2003, Japan was the U.S. top beef import
customer. While Japan is slowly moving back into a prominent position as a
buyer of US beef, the interaction between U.S. and Japan regarding beef
exports has been limited because the only U.S. beef that can enter the
Japan market must be 20 months of age or younger. Phil Seng, President and CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation, says he is convinced that the Japanese are willing to engage with the U.S. regarding beef negotiations. Seng says it is imperative that we get our government re-engaged on these issues and make it a priority. USMEF has an estimated $1 billion being lost currently by the U.S. beef industry because of restrictions on exports to Japan, as well as China, says Seng. The government to government interaction is really essential right now and the U.S. government has to engage and meet with these people in Japan and China, says Seng. Click on the LINK below to hear more the rest of our conversation with Phil Seng of the USMEF on trade agreements and trade potential with China and Japan for U.S. beef- it's our Beef Buzz for Tuesday- as heard on many of our radio stations across the region- and remember- previous Beef Buzz shows are waiting for you on our website- www.OklahomaFarmReport.Com. | |
Senate Leadership Claims a Deal to Go Forward on Free Trade Votes- But It's VERY Complicated ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ According to
the electronic newsletter that comes from the Oklahoma Grain and Feed
Association- there may be a way to get the three stalled Free Trade
Agreements ratified in September. The newsletter reports "In the wake of
intense lobbying pressure from agriculture, food and business groups, it
now appears the White House and the Senate have agreed to a "path forward"
on ratification of three pending free trade agreements. However, House
Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D, CA) said she's still not convinced U.S.
workers will benefit from the trade pacts, and said congressional action
is still up in the air."
Resolved at least in the Senate is debate over renewal and expansion of
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), programs which provide benefits to U.S.
workers whose hours or jobs are negatively impacted by export agreements.
This is a major demand of the White House before it formally sends the
Colombia, Korea and Panama free trade agreements to the Hill. Senate GOP
and Democrat leadership said this week they've agreed on a process to move
TAA separately. However, it appears this "path" on the trade treaties will
be a complex series of congressional votes and may pull into the debate
other trade pacts which have expired that could delay ratification until
late October. There is still no indication how the Senate and the Administration propose to pay for the TAA- and that could make it a non starter for many Republicans in the House. It was interesting that Colin Woodall of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association told us this past week in Orlando that the NCBA would be willing to see some monies go to the TAA program on a short term basis in order to free the FTAs from being held hostage by the Obama Administration. He says they are urging all involved to take the long view of how much good these trade deals would be for the economy- if we can just get them to Congress for a vote. Clearly the NCBA and others in the meat industry are very worried about getting put at a disadvantage by when it comes to tariffs in the lucrative South Korean market. | |
Monsanto Begins Campaign to Donate $2,500 to Rural Communities ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A $2,500
donation can go a long way to help rural communities. It can fund rescue
equipment for a local fire department, purchase new books to fill a school
library or help stock shelves for the local food pantry. Now, farmers in
more than 1,200 eligible counties across 39 states can do their part to
plant the seed to help grow their community by signing up for the 2nd
annual America's Farmers Grow Communities. This program, sponsored by the
Monsanto Fund, gives farmers the chance to direct $2,500 to their favorite
community nonprofit. "Participation in the first annual Grow Communities program was incredible, with nearly 50,000 farmers signing up for the chance to support their local communities," said Deborah Patterson, Monsanto Fund President. "Farmers across the country made this program a huge success, and we are thrilled to announce that farmers again have the opportunity to help grow their communities." Grow Communities was created to benefit nonprofit community groups such as agriculture youth organizations, schools and other civic groups that are important to America's farmers. For Dianne Stevens, a farmer in Benton County, Mo., the opportunity to help grow her community became a reality when she was selected as a Grow Communities winner in January 2011. "I am honored to be chosen to be a part of America's Farmers Grow Communities. As a farmer, we are in the business of growing crops to feed both America and the world. This donation will be used for the backpack program. The money will help us to feed some less fortunate kids who would otherwise go hungry on days that they are not at school. I am glad to see the Monsanto Fund showing its appreciation to its customers by giving back to the communities where farmers live and work," said Stevens. | |
Mother Nature Throws a Very Hard Fastball- And USDA Ready to Throw Us Animal ID ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Two quick
early notes as we wrap our email up this morning- first of all- it was a
mostly sleepless night at the Hays household as we were without power
during the evening and well into the early morning hours- as the mid
section of Oklahoma got some nice rain- but very nasty microbursts of
winds- Lahoma recorded a wind gust of 96 miles per hour!!! Click
here for the current live Mesonet map of precipitation over the
previous 24 hours- you will notice that southern Oklahoma has missed out-
again. One final note- USDA's Tom Vilsack has a NOON Media Briefing to help roll out the Animal Disease Traceback plans of Uncle Sam- this will be in the form of a proposed rule- so producers will have a chance to offer feedback in the days ahead. We will have coverage of that briefing on Twitter and on our website. Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, PCOM, P & K Equipment/ P & K Wind Energy, Johnston Enterprises, American Farmers & Ranchers 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- FREE! 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. | |
Let's Check the Markets! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We've had
requests to include Canola prices for your convenience here- and we will
be doing so on a regular basis. Current cash price for Canola is $12.29
per bushel, while the 2012 New Crop contracts for Canola are now available
are $12.41 per bushel- delivered to local participating elevators that are
working with PCOM.
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: | |
God Bless! You can reach us at the following: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
email: ron@oklahomafarmreport.com
phone: 405-473-6144
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
