Feedlot placements and fed cattle marketings took a nosedive last month versus one year ago according to the latest USDA Cattle on Feed report.

Placements in feedlots during September totaled 2 million, 19 percent below 2011. This is the lowest cattle placements for the month of September since the series began in 1996. Net placements were 1.94 million head. OSU Cattle Market Economist Dr. Derrell Peel calls this report evidence that we beginning to run out of tricks when it comes to keeping cattle numbers up.  He believes it's the start of an extended time into 2013 and probably 2014 where cattle numbers will be historically tight. We talked extensively with Dr. Peel about this report and other factors out there impacting the cattle marketplace- he will be our Beef Buzz guest all this week- and you can click here to catch the Monday edition and hear his full take on the COF Report.  

Marketings of fed cattle during September totaled 1.60 million, 12 percent below 2011. This is the second lowest cattle marketings for the month of September since the series began in 1996.

The report released Friday showed cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in U.S. feedlots with a capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11 million head on October 1, 2012. The inventory was 3 percent below October 1, 2011. The inventory included 6.96 million steers and steer calves, up slightly from the previous year. This group accounted for 63 percent of the total inventory. Heifers and heifer calves accounted for 3.97 million head, down 8 percent from 2011. 

You can read more of this story on our website which includes audio with Tom Leffler and access a link to the full Cattle on Feed report by clicking here.

Ron Sholar Named 2012 OSU Distinguished Ag Alumnus 

For 2012 Oklahoma State University Distinguished Agriculture Alumnus Award recipient Ron Sholar, his commitment to security has never been less than a 100 percent all-in endeavor, be it the nation's food supply or America's military responsibilities.

"As both an alumnus of and longtime faculty member with the OSU Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Ron Sholar has always embodied the land-grant mission of making the world a better place in which to live," said Mike D. Woods, DASNR interim vice president, dean and director. "He is truly deserving of this award, our highest honor for alumni."

Sholar, who currently serves as the Executive Director of the Oklahoma Oilseed Commission, earned his Master of Science degree in agronomy and doctoral degree in crop science at OSU in 1973 and 1984, respectively. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in agricultural science at the University of Tennessee at Martin in 1971. 

"Growing up, I had a real passion for agriculture and knew I wanted to make that part of my career," Sholar said. "During my three decades as an OSU Cooperative Extension crop specialist, I was fortunate to have the opportunities to provide practical ways by which producers could use the latest scientific advances to solve issues and concerns of importance to them and their operations, and by extension, enhance the quality of life for their families and communities."

Click here to read more about Ron Sholar and to listen to our audio interview with him.  

We also have some pictures from the reception in honor of Dr. Sholar- click here for our Flickr set to check them out. We also stayed around for some of the Walkaround Friday evening- we have a few pictures from there as well. Two sets of Kudos to share- first of all, Congrats to former National FFA President Riley Pagett of Woodward- I think this young man has a lucky month and it's October- he was named as the OSU Homecoming King on Saturday.  And the OSU Collegiate Cattlemen and Cattlewomen won the "Sweepstakes" award among organizations on campus for Homecoming 2012!   

OSU Names Tommy Kramer 2012 Distinguished Ag Alumnus

Improved community prosperity through teamwork and economic diversification has proven to be a successful stance of Durant's Tommy Kramer, who was honored on Oct. 19 as a 2012 recipient of Oklahoma State University's Distinguished Agriculture Alumnus Award.

Kramer - who earned his Master of Science degree in animal science from OSU in 1976 - has served as Durant's first and only economic development director for 14 years. In that time, he has been instrumental in the recruitment, development and retention of more than $600 million in business investments and the creation of approximately 5,000 new jobs to the community.

He has been equally dedicated to strengthening existing businesses, serving as a liaison between the Oklahoma Department of Commerce and the State of Oklahoma Career Tech program to acquire several million dollars in funds for local employee training and development projects. 

You can read more about Tommy Kramer and his accomplishments by clicking here.  

 

Oklahoma Peanut Commission Director Foresees Record Harvest on the Horizon

October is peanut harvest time in Oklahoma and Mike Kubicek, executive director of the Oklahoma Peanut Commission, spoke with Ron Hays about progress so far.  

"It's October and peanut harvest is underway in 17 counties in Oklahoma-at some stage. Diggers are running. We have buying points who have taken peanuts now. Some have even been graded, but next week will be our peak week."

He said growing season terminated a littler earlier this year than some producers had hoped.

"We had kind of a surprise and a shock and a wake-up call, if you will, in the first week of October when we got a freeze across much of our growing area. It burnt the tops out of our peanuts that needed another two or three weeks to finish out. And so we're kind of still waiting. The verdict is still as to whether those plants will go ahead and mature out like we had hoped they would."

Kubicek says that, so far, producers are finding the early freeze has not affected their crop's quality or yields.

You can hear our audio interview with Mike Kubicek and read more of this story by clicking here.

 

NCGA Releases Presidential Candidate Responses to Questionnaire

The National Corn Growers Association released responses submitted by presidential candidates Pres. Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney to an NCGA questionnaire on important issues facing rural communities and America's farmers. The information provided by both candidates, and published by NCGA without editorial comment, is meant to help interested voters gain information on the issues that impact agriculture and rural America.

Topics included the farm bill, taxes, trade, and renewable energy.

On the issue of the farm bill, Romney focused on a level playing field for all countries involved in global competition.

"Other nations subsidize their farmers, so we must be careful not to unilaterally change our policies in a way that would disadvantage agriculture here in our country. In addition, we want to make sure that we don't ever find ourselves in a circumstance where we depend on foreign nations for our food the way we do with energy," Romney said.

Obama's response to the farm bill centered on increasing access to credit and improving crop insurance.

"My administration has expanded farm credit to help more than 100,000 farmers struggling during the financial crisis to keep their family farms and provide for their families ... as farmers continue to go through hard times because of this drought, we are expanding access to low-interest loans, encouraging insurance companies to extend payment deadlines and opening new lands for livestock farmers to graze their herds," Obama said.

Farm Service Agency Reminds Producers of New Acreage Reporting Deadlines

Francie Tolle, executive director for Oklahoma Farm Service Agency (FSA), reminds producers of new deadlines for submitting their annual report of acreage to local FSA county offices.

Producers of perennial forage crops (grass, hay, alfalfa, and pasture) must submit a 2013 acreage report for those crops by November 15, 2012. Producers of fall seeded grains (including winter wheat) and canola must submit a 2013 acreage report for those crops by December 17, 2012. The normal deadline is December 15, 2012 but since the 15th falls on a Saturday, producers will have until December 17, 2012 to report their acreage.   This is also the same date for these crops to be reported to your crop insurance agent when carrying federal crop insurance.

"In prior years, reports for these crops were not due to FSA until later in the spring and summer. This change is part of an initiative at the national level to align acreage reporting dates between FSA and Risk Management Agency (RMA) and reduce the crop reporting burden on producers," said Tolle.

Click here to read more.  

AND- we talked to Francie in her office in Stillwater on Friday afternoon- she is our featured newsmaker on our Monday morning Radio Oklahoma Ag Network farm news update- click here for that audio and a chance to hear Francie's comments about these Reporting deadlines.  

Open Outcry on the Endangered Species List

The futures exchange known as ICE (Intercontinental Exchange) in New York has ended open outcry on several of its options products as of Friday- and there's lots of conversation floating around the agricultural community that open outcry in Chicago, Kansas City and Minneapolis could be gone in a matter of months.   

Along those lines- an old friend from his time on staff at the National Farmers Union, Bart Chilton, has penned a short commentary on the brave new world on electronic futures trade only.  Chilton has lots of understanding of the subject as a Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.  Here's his commentary that he released on Friday October 19:

"Today is the last day of open outcry trading in the Intercontinental Exchange's cotton, coffee, sugar, and orange juice options pits. It's an example of how markets are constantly evolving.

Computerized trading came on strong more than a decade ago. And, it's certainly not all bad. The machines provide access-you don't even need to be physically close to an exchange to trade. They provide a data record far superior to the little slips of paper that collect on trading room floors. And, they provide speed.

"But, on that last point-speed-we need to keep our eyes open. There have been dozens of mini-flash crashes since the big one in 2010, almost always because a machine or an algorithm ran wild. Isolated instances of run-away machines may be inevitable. But, we can do much to protect markets. High-frequency "cheetah" traders should be registered with regulators. The programs need to be tested before they go live and they need kill switches to stop them if they go feral. And, if somebody causes a market anomaly with a runaway cheetah, they need to be held accountable. In this new algorithmic-driven trading world, we need to re-think how we assess penalties:  fines for bad conduct in millisecond trading should be assessed on a "per second" basis.

"So, yes, markets continue to evolve. Their oversight needs to also."