Drought-Reduced Incomes Boost Farm Lending, Ag Credit Survey Says 

Drought cut Tenth District farm incomes in the third quarter, especially for livestock producers, boosting demand for farm operating loans, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's quarterly Survey of Agricultural Credit Conditions. The drought had little impact, however, on District farmland markets.

Farm incomes fell sharply during the quarter as escalating feed and fuel prices pushed production costs higher. Shrinking incomes spurred demand for farm operating loans as corn and soybean farmers and cow/calf operators searched for funds to pay for rising input costs.

Livestock enterprises faced the biggest shifts in income and financing needs. As drought conditions intensified during the summer, pastures dried up, feed costs soared with grain prices and income at livestock operations slumped. Bankers surveyed expected high crop prices and crop insurance payments to support crop incomes; still, they reported that corn and soybean incomes fell below last year's highs due to elevated fuel costs and reduced yields.

Click here to read more and to find a link to the full KC Fed Quarterly Survey.  

Drought Likely to Continue Through Winter, Climatologist Says 

Associate State Climatologist Gary McManus looks at the latest Mesonet numbers and says all indications are the drought will continue across the state throughout the winter.

Drought advanced in parts of the state and retreated in others, but all in all, the drought in Oklahoma is just about the same this week as last week. This week's U.S. Drought Monitor map for the state tells the story of the changes in impacts following the rain over last weekend.

Severe drought (D2) extend farther to the southwest into Grady County and also up through Tulsa County in the northeast. There is still a very small area of moderate (D1) drought up in the far northeastern corner of the state as well. We also saw that exceptional (D4) drought expand in the Panhandle to cover all of Beaver County now. So the percentage of remained virtually unchanged at 32%, while the D3 dropped by about 4%. The area of the state covered by severe-exceptional (D2-D4) remained just a tad under 100%.

If things don't change in a hurry, November is on its way to a dismal finish. Through the 15th, the state has had an average of 0.54 inches of rain, nearly an inch below normal. It's normally one of our drier months anyway, regardless of deficits.

You can check out the latest drought maps and read more of Gary's analysis by clicking here.

 

Volatility, Economic Uncertainty, Sideways Pattern Still Dominate Wheat Market

In a preview to these Saturday's SUNUP program, OSU Grain Marketing Specialist Kim Anderson says that though we may be stuck in a sideways pattern in the wheat market, it's important to remember that there's a 92-cent spread in that pattern.   "That shows the volatility and uncertainty of our market today."

"As you look back over, say, the last five years going back to June 1 of '07 you can look at February 27 of 2008, the Oklahoma cash prices were $12.58 a bushel. You get up to June 9, 2010, less than two years later, we're down to $3.08. That's a $9.50 range in a two-year period. Right now we've got prices up. We've been talking about this sideways pattern running from $8 to around $8.60."

He says there is economic uncertainty centered on the European Union and the "fiscal cliff" that could be facing the U.S. after the first of the year. The farm bill is still languishing in the House of Representatives and that results in "uncertainty relative to ethanol and relative to the fuels and the corn and how that's going to spin off on the wheat."

You can hear more of Kim Anderson's analysis as well as see the lineup for this week's SUNUP by clicking here.

Pioneer Optimum AQUAMax Hybrids Perform Well Under Actual Drought Conditions

The drought which stretched throughout much of the Midwest this past year allowed researchers at DuPont Pioneer to observe firsthand how well their new Optimum AQUAMax corn hybrids would fare in real world conditions.

Pioneer Hi-Bred International Marketing Communications Manager Janelle Buxton visited with me earlier this month at our annual National Farm Broadcasters Convention and said their drought-resistant hybrids are brand new to the marketplace and the company has high hopes for their performance.

"Optimum AQUAMax hybrids are Pioneer's Elite class of drought-tolerant corn hybrids. They're developed to help deliver yield advantage in water-limited environments, much like what we saw this year. And to deliver top-end yield potential in more normal, favorable growing conditions."

She said Optimum AQUAMax hybrids were launched in January of 2011. They were grown on about two million acres this year and they did very well.

"In over 11,200 on-farm competitive comparison trials, we saw Optimum AQUAMax hybrids perform about 8.9 percent bushel yield advantage in those top water-limited environments and then a 1.9 percent yield advantage in those more favorable growing conditions."

Click here to read more and listen to my conversation with Janelle Buxton.

National Pork Board Approves Additional Funding for Promotional Efforts

As pork producers struggle with record-high feed prices caused by the worst U.S. drought since the 1950s, the National Pork Board has approved domestic and international marketing budgets that will help drive pork demand at a critical time.

The Board is committing $27,735,000 in FY2013 for domestic marketing efforts and $7,102,000 for international marketing efforts that will help stem producer losses that are forecast for this next year. The Board added almost $2 million in additional dollars to the marketing effort from its September preliminary budget.

The action came as the board approved a 2013 program budget of $69.8 million, slightly higher than the 2012 budget of $69.3 million. The budget now goes to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for final approval. USDA oversees the National Pork Board's spending of the Pork Checkoff. 

You can read more by clicking here.

 

USFRA Announces Nine Finalists in 'Faces of Farming and Ranching' Program

The U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) announced the finalists of its Faces of Farming and Ranching program, a nationwide search launched earlier this summer to help put real faces on agriculture. Chris Chinn (Missouri), Will Gilmer (Ala.), Daphne Holterman (Wis.), Brenda Kirsch (Ore.), Tim Nilsen (Calif.), Eric McClam (S.C.), Katie Pratt (Ill.), Bo Stone (N.C.), Janice Wolfinger (Ohio) were all named program finalists.

More than 100 applications were received from passionate, dedicated farmers and ranchers from across the nation, nine of whom were selected as finalists. The winners will become the face of agriculture, and will be tapped to share stories and experiences on a national stage to help shift conversations about food production and set the record straight about the way we feed our nation.

"The nine candidates selected reflect the extent of diversity in agriculture across the nation," says Bob Stallman, chairman of USFRA and president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. "These exceptional farmers and ranchers can bring the reality of farming and ranching to the forefront for consumers, mainstream media and influences to develop a relationship and learn more about how food gets from the farm or ranch to their plates." 

You can read more of this story on our web page by clicking here.

 

House Republicans Place the Blame for the MF Global Debacle Squarely on the Shoulders of Jon Corzine

According to a congressional report - Jon Corzine is to blame for the collapse of MF Global. The report details the findings of a year-long investigation by Republican staffers on the House Financial Services Oversight Subcommittee. While there is no mention of criminal wrongdoing in the report - Texas Representative Randy Neugebauer - Chairman of the House panel - says farmers, ranchers and other customers may never get back over a billion dollars of their money as a result of Corzine's decisions. Corzine's spokesman says 80-percent of that money has been returned. Corzine's team also denies nearly every claim made by the subcommittee. The leading Democrat on the subcommittee - Michael Capuano of Massachusetts - agrees with some of the report's observations. He says others need more commentary - which is why he and other Democrats will provide an addendum to the report.

Specifically when it comes to Corzine, the report concludes that Corzine attempted to remake the company into a global investment bank- and destroyed it in the process- saying "The responsibility for failing to maintain the systems and controls necessary to protect customer funds rested with Corzine"

Click here to read more about the study released on Thursday and a link on over to the full report.