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I want to warn you- I am going to climb up on my soapbox this morning for a moment.  As you know, the Democratic National Convention is underway in Charlotte, North Carolina, with the mission to nominate President Barack Obama for a second term as President of the US.  You and I would expect enthusiasm for the candidate- and Tom Vilsack showed that as he took his slightly less than four minutes to talk up his boss from his perspective as the Obama Secretary of Agriculture.  

The Secretary gave the President full credit for robust US Ag Exports and strong farm income levels- spoke about the President's commitment to an "All of the Above" energy plan that includes wind and biofuels and told the audience that the President has a "detailed plan for a new rural America" that apparently includes more spending on the next generation of biofuels and for rural infrastructure. While some might dispute some of those statements- especially about the President's work in promoting US farm goods overseas- I would consider all of those comments appropriate given the context of the DNC convention.  

However, to cast Barack Obama as a midwest rooted guy who totally buys into rural values is a bit much.   The Secretary talked of the President's Mom being from Kansas and his ties to Illinois- and you almost wondered which 4-H club he belonged to and if he gave any biofuel speeches for his local FFA Chapter.  The President never had those valuable experiences- growing up instead in Hawaii and Indonesia.  He never learned any life lessons in Kansas- and his life in Illinois has been mostly about Chicago.  As a Senator from Illinois, he had to interact with rural leaders from that state- and I have heard he handled himself well with farm leaders in the brief time he spent as a Senator. 

Of course in his first term as President, this was the man who Tom Vilsack says understands rural values and at the same time had a Secretary of  Labor who wanted to fundamentally change labor rules for young people down on the farm- and you know how that turned out.  

It's okay that he's not a country boy- a lot of us that grew up in rural America might hope for a leader that shares our experiences and values- but that's not always going to happen.  Farmers and ranchers and those who hold rural values dear do want someone who respects their values and their contribution.  I guess when I heard Secretary Vilsack (who I have tremendous respect for) channeling John Denver last night when it came to the President- it sounded a little less than genuine.       

My suggestion- making claims that he's "one of us" makes the other claims of exceptional achievement harder to accept. Please- No More Country Boy Claims.

Okay- I am now climbing down off of the soapbox. Rest in Peace John Denver.   

Click here for our story on the web about Secretary Vilsack speaking to the DNC on Wednesday. 

New Stanford Study Reports Organic Food is NOT Healthier and More Nutritious Than Conventionally Produced Foods

Many consumers believe they are buying more nutrition for their dollar when they purchase higher-priced organic products, but the most comprehensive meta-analysis to date, conducted at Stanford University, suggests that less expensive conventional foods may be just as healthy.

"There isn't much difference between organic and conventional foods, if you're an adult and making a decision based solely on your health," said Dena Bravata, MD, MS, the senior author of a paper comparing the nutrition of organic and non-organic foods, published in the Sept. 4 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.

A team led by Bravata, a senior affiliate with Stanford's Center for Health Policy and Crystal Smith- Spangler, MD, MS, an instructor in the school's Division of General Medical Disciplines and a physician-investigator att the VA Palo Alto Health System did the most comprehensive meta-analysis to date of existing studies comparing organic and conventional foods. They did not find strong evidence that organic foods are more nutritious or carry fewer health risks than conventional alternatives, though consumption of organic foods can reduce the risk of pesticide exposure. 

There is a lot more to this story and you can read it all by clicking here.

NCBA Remains Vigilant on EPA Dust Standard, Says Election Year Politics Could Play a Part

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) clearly spelled out its opposition to any attempt by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lower the coarse particulate matter (PM) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) in its official comments submitted to the agency last week.

PM, which includes both urban and rural dust, is regulated under the Clean Air Act. Cattle ranches in arid states can have a difficult time meeting the PM standard due to windblown dust and dust kicked up by cattle movements. Because of arid climates and natural phenomenon, it is difficult for some cattle operations to ensure compliance with the current standard despite the use of best management practices.

We spoke with Colin Woodall, vice president of government affairs with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, about this issue earlier this summer. Woodall says EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson has said in the past that the EPA was not seeking to regulate ag dust, but he says the NCBA has remained vigilant.

"This could have some definite election-year politics tied to it. There's no doubt about it. You know, we've been fighting it for a couple of years now and all the iterations of this proposal, a lot of the studies that have gone on behind this. You know, she has told us all along that she doesn't want to regulate farm dust. The original proposal that we saw does not include farm dust, but until we see the final regs, she has every opportunity possible to change that. And a key date is going to be November 6th. Whatever happens on November 6th will have a huge impact on what she potentially does to make that decision that finalizes that rule which could include ag dust. And that's why we're staying on top of it." 

Click here to read more and listen to our Beef Buzz with Colin Woodall.

Heat Units Past Cutout, Irrigation and Crop Termination Issues Point to Early Cotton Harvest

In the latest issue of Oklahoma State University's Cotton Comments, Extension specialists advise cotton producers to prepare for an early harvest due this year's extreme temperatures.

Many irrigated fields this year cutout early due to extreme crop evapotranspiration (ET) demand and diminishing irrigation capacity during July. A large number of fields hit the five nodes above white flower physiological stage in late July or early August. We have been anticipating an early harvest this year based on these conditions. According to Mesonet data, since August 1, and through September 2, the Altus area has obtained about 760 heat units, Tipton had about 765, Hollis about 740, and Fort Cobb about 680. This is past the 500-600 heat units past NAWF=5 trigger for irrigation termination judgment calls. Even for fields that reached 5 NAWF by the end of the first week of August, unless an extremely large boll load is present, it is likely time to seriously consider irrigation termination. Fields which were still producing productive blooms by the middle of August (few based on my observations) may need continued irrigation support. Because of drought and associated high temperatures, fields will likely wilt fairly soon after irrigation termination. Based on the Mesonet Irrigation Planner tool, for the last several days and for a May 10 planting date at Hollis, cotton ET has averaged about 0.3 inches/day. Fort Cobb data indicate about 0.25 inches/day, whereas Tipton has averaged about 0.32. The crop coefficients change once open bolls begin to appear, and the cotton ET rates will diminish somewhat.

Click here for the full story on our website and a link to more articles in the Cotton Comments newsletter.

R-CALF USA Joins Lawsuit to Preserve Country Of Origin Labeling

R-CALF USA joined as a co-plaintiff with the Made in the USA Foundation to protect the right of all Americans to know the origins of their food. The groups filed a lawsuit that asks the federal district court in Denver, Colorado, to declare the World Trade Organization's (WTO's) recent ruling against the U.S. country of origin labeling law (COOL) to be contrary to U.S. law and, therefore, null and void.
                      
The group's lawsuit names U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk as defendants and alleges that they failed their respective duties to protect and preserve U.S. sovereignty by allowing the WTO to second-guess the U.S. COOL law that was passed under the U.S. Constitution.

Mike Schulltz, R-CALF USA region VI director and COOL committee chair said, "R-CALF USA is proud to join as a co-plaintiff with the Made in the USA Foundation in our lawsuit to protect and preserve the right of all Americans to know the origins of their food. This was a right given to U.S. citizens when Congress passed into law and the president signed the Country of Origin Labeling Act in 2002.

"For nearly eight years, the multinational meatpackers, the governments of Canada and Mexico, and even the U.S. Department of Agriculture fought to prevent U.S. citizens from knowing the origins of their food by vigorously opposing the implementation of the 2002 COOL law."

Click here for more on this story.

No Margin for Error: Lowering Expenses and Increasing Profits by Culling Open Cows

Dave Sparks, DVM, Oklahoma State University Area Extension Veterinarian and J.J. Jones, Oklahoma State University Area Extension Agriculture Economist report on lowering expenses on carrying over open cows in the latest Cow-Calf newsletter.

Beef producers today are again looking at the old good news/bad news situation.   The good news is, calf prices are higher than most of us ever thought we would live to see. Unfortunately this is offset by record high grain and feed prices, expensive fuel and fertilizer, increasing rental rates of pasture lands, and labor that is not only expensive but hard to find. To top off high input prices, add in the effects of extremely limited forage and hay due to the ongoing drought. The bottom line is that profits are within reach, but only for those that take control of their herd management.

Perhaps the biggest waste of expensive inputs is the open, or non-pregnant, cow. Although costs vary widely between producers the average cost of maintaining a cow in Oklahoma is in excess of $450.00/yr. This is for all costs including feed, supplies, equipment depreciation, grazing forage, interest, and opportunity costs. Approximately 80% of this cost is incurred in the months between October and April. You can do the math for your herd but it is easy to see that each open cow is robbing the profits earned by several cows that wean calves. Cull cow prices are high and many of these cows are in better condition now than they will be in the late winter or spring. By pregnancy checking your cows in the fall you can eliminate these wasted inputs and use the current high salvage value to replace open cows with bred cows or heifers. 

You can read more from Dave Sparks and J.J. Jones by clicking here.

One Step Closer- Japan Moving to Reduce Barriers to US Beef  

After starting and stopping the process multiple times over the last seven years- Japan is moving toward relaxing restrictions on American beef imports, which had been limited because of fears about BSE- or mad-cow disease.

A panel of Japanese experts recommended Wednesday that imports of beef from cows up to 30 months old be allowed, up from the current 20-month age limit.

The proposed change applies to beef imports from the U.S., Canada, France and the Netherlands- which means that it removes the argument by some anti- American groups in Japan  that the government is bowing to pressure from the United States.  

The panel's finding will go to the Health Ministry, which will invite comments from the Japanese public before a change is implemented. Officials in Japan predict that could be later this year or early next year. 

Japan banned U.S. beef imports in 2003, after the "Cow that Stole Christmas" was found up in Washington state- a Canadian Dairy Cow that tested positive for BSE. . In 2005, Japan allowed imports of beef from animals 20 months or younger. Animal Disease experts questioned the science that the Japanese used to justify the 20 month rule, but it has stayed in place for seven years.