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During our recent travels with Class XV of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program, participants got an up close and personal look at the current animal ID program in place in European Union countries. OALP saw the system at work in both Scotland and Ireland- and talked to both beef and dairy producers about its impact on their operations.


In Scotland, the group stopped at the Lochurd Farm. It's a family farm operated by the Noble family- and consists of about 1100 acres, mostly grassland. Their farming operation includes Suffolk and Cheviot sheep and British Blue Cattle. They are primarily in the business of producing animals for meat production, although they also get a large wool crop off of their sheep annually, too. We talked primarily with Gordon Noble and got into quite a discussion on the amount of paperwork an individual farmer faces with the animal traceability program. Gordon explained the system to the Class- and showed the group an animal passport, which must stay with the animal each step of his life- either for years as a breeding animal- or until he or she reaches the processing plant.


Gordon Noble says that if you haul the animals off of your farm without the papers right there in the truck with you- you can face big fines from the federal government. And if you should lose the passport for your animal- you face a replacement cost of over a hundred dollars US to replace it with a new one. Noble says the tracking will remain just as tight as 2012 unfolds, but that the system is finally shifting away from a paper passport for every single beef animal on your farm over to an electronic based system.

Click here to hear today's Beef Buzz- we visit with two of the Class members to get their reaction to the very rigorous animal ID scheme in Europe as opposed to the disorganized efforts of the USDA for animal disease traceability. 

You can also read more about the European animal ID system by clicking here. 

New CRP Program Draws Accolades From Sportsmen, Conservation Groups 

Conservation advocates, sportsmen and agriculture groups have issued statements of support for the new 1-million-acre Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) initiative to preserve grasslands and wetlands announced on Friday by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Vilsack highlighted the new CRP initiative at Cabela's sporting goods store in La Vista, Neb., surrounded by boaters, hunters, anglers, farmers, ranchers, land conservationists, small business owners and others.

USDA's CRP has a 25-year legacy of successfully protecting the nation's natural resources through voluntary participation, while providing significant economic and environmental benefits to rural communities across the United States. USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA), which administers CRP, will set aside acres within the program for specific enrollments that benefit duck nesting habitat, upland birds, wetlands, pollinators and wildlife.

Roger Wolf, Director of Environmental Programs and Services, Iowa Soybean Association said, "Iowa farmers support USDA's using continuous sign-up of CRP to achieve greater environmental benefits. With increasing global demand for food putting pressure on our land and water resources, this approach will give us the best opportunity for productivity, cleaner water and wildlife habitat."

Click here to read more responses to the new CRP program or to access USDA's CRP Fact Sheet.

National Bio and Agro Defense Center Still Supported by Obama Administration- But Costs Skyrocket and Timeline Slows

The controversial Ag Disease Center planned for the campus of Kanaas State University has yet to be built- and in fact, a reporter from National Public Radio who went to Manhattan in recent days says it remains mostly just a large hole in the ground, surrounded by "Keep Out" signs of the federal government. The building is adjacent to some of the College of Agriculture buildings- and within sight of the K-State football stadium.


At one time, before Kansas won the right to house the NBAF- Ft. Reno, Oklahoma was on a short list of sites in the middle of the country that was being considered by the Department of Homeland Security. There were a lot of fears raised by the Oklahoma livestock industry about how large a catastrophe it would be if the Center was built west of Oklahoma City and a disease like Foot and Mouth Disease might escape. Oklahoma's zeal for the center diminished- and Ft. Reno fell out of the running.


While the livestock industry waits on this new center to be built in Kansas- USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack says the Obama Administration remains committed to the project- but that as we wait for the NBAF to be built, that remedial repairs will have to be made to the Plum Island Disease Center. In a news conference this past Friday in Nashville at Commodity Classic, Vilsack adds that Plum Island can be useful for a while longer, but is not an acceptable choice for this kind of work long term. 

You can read more about the status of NBAF as well as find links to a risk assessment and an NPR story on the facility by clicking here.

Oklahoma Supreme Court Reverses Decision Against Tyson 

The Oklahoma Supreme Court Tuesday reversed a $10 million jury verdict against the Tyson Foods in April 2010 and ruled the company is entitled to a new trial in a case brought by contract chicken producers in McCurtain County.

The case involves 54 individuals and business entities that sued Tyson Foods in association with contracts under which they were to raise chickens owned by Tyson on feed supplied by the company.

The plaintiffs did not allege any contractual breach, but asserted they had been targeted with poor quality birds and feed because they refused to upgrade their chicken houses.

In reversing the decision- The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that: "1) under the facts presented, where attorneys were advised that voir dire ( refers to an oath to tell the truth) would be limited to questions not covered in the juror questionnaire and jurors gave incomplete, untruthful and/or misleading answers in those documents, the appellants are entitled to a new trial; and 2) a poultry grower having no title to the chickens or feed placed with the grower for fattening and future marketing of the birds by the flock's wonder is not an 'aggrieved consumer' for the purposes of the Consumer Protection Act."   

 

The Court concluded that "We realize the amount of effort put into this litigation by the bench, the bar, and the litigants. However, it goes without saying that any party to an action is entitled to have the case heard by fair, impartial, and disinterested jurors. Furthermore, a juror's concealment, whether intentional or accidental, of information pertinent to prejudice or bias, coupled with the parties' inability to question the jurors on relevant issues is sufficient to warrant a new trial."

As you might expect- the Tyson folks are delighted. They have issued a statement that says in part  "This decision affirms our position that the trial in this case was so improperly conducted that the verdict could not stand. The family farmers who raise our chickens are vital to our business and we want them to be successful. Contrary to the claims made in the case, we abide by the terms of the contracts we have with poultry farmers and we strive to ensure all of them are treated fairly."

Click here for the Supreme Court Ruling issued this week out of Oklahoma City-


 

Reducing Food Waste Tops Agenda of Businesses for Social Responsibility

At the recent Bayer Crop Science Ag Issues Forum, one of the attendees was Kai Robertson, director of food, beverage and agricultural practices for Businesses for Social Responsibility. Robertson's organization advises about 300 companies on how to adopt more sustainable business practices.

One of the issues that tops the organization's agenda is food waste. Robertson says there is a tremendous amount of food that could be recovered in the United States alone.

"According to the EPA more than 67 billion pounds of food were put into landfills in 2010. That, by many estimates, is a low number because we're missing some key data points. .... Sixty-seven billion pounds, how many people could that feed? We've got 47 million Americans who are living below the poverty line who are struggling to make ends meet.   And if you took that 67 billion pounds of food and did the simple math, you'd be able to serve all those 47 million people four meals a day for the entire year."

Robertson says there are numerous reasons for 67 billion pounds of loss all the way from farm to fork.

You can read more from Kai Robertson or hear an interview with her by clicking here. 

 NFU Calls on Congress to Include Voluntary Grain Reserve Plan in 2012 Farm Bill- and on Obama Administration to Defend COOL

Delegates to the 110th Annual Convention of the National Farmers Union passed three special orders of business today, setting priorities for farm bill negotiations and maintaining its support for Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL).

NFU delegates adopted a special order of business calling for the inclusion of the Market-Driven Inventory System (MDIS) in the 2012 Farm Bill. A study of MDIS, commissioned by NFU, found that over the next ten years, farmers and ranchers would receive a slightly higher income under MDIS compared to current policies.

"NFU calls on Congress to enact a new federal farm bill that uses MDIS as its central component to maintain a return on the cost of production plus an opportunity for reasonable profit for farmers and ranchers," the statement says.

Delegates also voted for a "special order" that demands the Administration attempt to negotiate with Canada and Mexico to settle their beef with the US over our mandatory Country of Origin Labeling Law.  Should that fail, the USTR must appeal the WTO decision because it is a frontal assault on U.S. sovereignty, the transparency and integrity of our domestic markets."

Click here for more on all three special orders that were voted on and passed by the delegates to the 2012 National Farmers Union convention in Omaha.  

 

This & That- 2012WheatWatch Pics, Rain Cometh and So Does Hall- Coyote Hills Bull Sale 

WheatWatch 2012 traveled into northeastern Canadian County on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 and grabbed some pictures of both wheat fields that we have taken previously- as well as some new wheat fields as well. The wheat has broken dormancy- is generally past first hollow stem- and is sitting in ground that looks to be on the dry side.  We have several pictures up on our webpage- click here for those photos as well as the link to get on to our FLICKR page where we have a complete set of pictures of the 2012 wheat crop from the time it was emerging from the ground last fall till now. The following of the 2012 wheat crop as it develops is a service of the Oklahoma Wheat Commission, working hard for the Oklahoma Wheat Producer.  

Gary McManus, our Associate State Climatologist, says that we seem to have a full fledged gullywasher coming for a good portion of the state.  "Looks like we have our first really slow-moving upper-level storm of the spring on tap for the next few days. With any luck, it will sit out over the Four Corners area spinning and pumping moisture up over Oklahoma from the Gulf of Mexico. And apologies in advance for any folks affected by possible flooding, but that pretty much comes with the territory to get springtime rains in Oklahoma. At least there is not an indication of widespread severe weather with this episode."  Unfortunately, the heavier rains will be in Eastern Oklahoma- and the amounts of rainfall are more modest in the western counties of the state- compared to eastern Oklahoma.  Click here for Gary's latest Oklahoma OCS Mesonet Ticker for graphs and more when it comes to rain that could be arriving later today.   

Arriving Saturday is the 2012 edition of Hall- Coyote Hills Spring Bull sale. The Hall-Coyote Hills Ranch, All Black - All Polled Bull Sale is scheduled for the ranch, one mile west, two miles south and one mile west of Chattanooga, Oklahoma on Highway 5.

The sale will begin Saturday afternoon, March 10 at 1pm selling: 

90 Black Polled Limousin and Lim-Flex Bulls 

60 Fall Yearlings, 10 Purebred and 50 Lim-Flex (Angus hybrid) 

30 Spring Yearlings, all Lim-Flex 

80 Homozygous Black, 70 homozygous Polled 

Click here for more details and a link that will take you to our auction calendar- where you can jump on to the sale catalog for this weekend's sale.