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We have finally reached the week for the 2014 Oklahoma City Farm Show- to be held this Thursday, Friday and Saturday at State Fair Park in Oklahoma City.

We are pleased that we were able to secure an hour of House Ag Committee Chair Frank Lucas' time for this coming Saturday morning for a conversation with him in the Carriage House adjacent to the Travel and Transportation Building.  

This Ag Townhall will include a review of how we got our 2014 Farm Law, a look at the USDA efforts to implement, Crop Insurance, Livestock Disaster Assistance and more.  We have invited leaders of the key farm and commodity groups to be there this Saturday and will give them time to interact with the Chairman- and then following that- we intend to open it up to questions from the audience.   

We hope you can join us this Saturday for this special feature at the Oklahoma City Farm Show- 10 AM Saturday morning.

Our team at the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network are also going to be busy at our booth in the Cox Pavilion registering one and all for the Prefiert Round Pen that Scott Daily will be utilizing for his horse training sessions. That will be given away on Saturday afternoon  after the final horse training session.

By the way- we could use ONE MORE HORSE for Scott Daily- so if you have a horse that needs some attention- call me at 405-841-3675 or email me by clicking here.  Give your name, a telephone contact number and a brief description of your horse and what it needs from a trainer.  

Hog Numbers Off Three Percent Nationally, Down 13% in Oklahoma Because of PEDv  

The Agriculture Department's National Agricultural Statistics Service has released its Hogs and Pigs Report. The report shows 62.9-million head of hogs and pigs on U.S. farms as of March 1st - the lowest inventory since 2007. The report also shows between December 2013 and February 2014 - 27.3-million pigs were born on U.S. farms. That's a three-percent decline from the same period last year. From nearly 78-hundred producers surveyed - they intend to have 2.88-million sows farrow between March and May of this year. That number increases to 2.96-million between June and August.

For Oklahoma- the decline is even steeper in the market hogs, while the breeding herd is actually five percent larger than March one of a year ago. The market hog numbers in Oklahoma are at 1.56 million head- off 17% from last March, while the total hog numbers in Oklahoma are 13% under that of March first of 2013.   

Oklahoma remains fifth in the nation in sow numbers, while the overall all hog and pig number for the state has dipped below two million head- just barely- and is now ninth in total hog numbers as Ohio has slipped ahead of us as the eighth largest hog state.  

Most telling regarding the damage that PEDV has done in our state- market hogs under 50 pounds are off 26% from a year ago in the state

Click here for more details of the hog numbers as released by Uncle Sam on Friday afternoon.

Bob Hunger, Extension Wheat Pathologist in the Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology at Oklahoma State University released the following Wheat Disease Report on Sunday afternoon, March 30th.


"Oklahoma: No reports of significant diseases in Oklahoma. Around Stillwater, wheat soilborne/spindle streak mosaic are still showing strong in my screening nursery, but these virus diseases should not be much of a problem around the state due to resistance in nearly all planted varieties. Looking in the same places as 10 days ago, I did find a slight increase in the number of powdery mildew pustules on low leaves, but these pustules still are small and did not appear to be actively sporulating. Wheat is mostly at the Feekes stage 6 but likely approaching stage 7.

Dr. Hunger tells us that there are disease issues in Texas- click here to read his complete report which includes the latest from south of the Red River.

Monsanto Executive Says We Must Build on Work Done by Norman Borlaug to Feed the World  

Norman Borlaug, the father of the Green Revolution, is widely credited with advancing agriculture to save 1 billion lives. While celebrating Borlaug's legacy this past week, Monsanto Chief Technology Officer and 2013 World Food Prize Laureate Robb Fraley outlined the need for continued innovation to feed a population that is expected to grow by more than 2 billion people by 2050. 

Fraley addressed members of the global agriculture community today at the Borlaug Summit on Wheat for Food Security, capping a weeklong celebration of what would have been Borlaug's 100th birthday. Borlaug was instrumental in the development and introduction of new types of wheat crops in Mexico, India, Pakistan and other countries, resulting in dramatic increases in food production that helped to avoid mass famines in the 1960s and 1970s. 

While the world still benefits from Borlaug's work, Fraley noted that demand for staple crops, including wheat, rice and corn, will double between today and 2050, creating a similar global challenge for today's farmers and researchers.

Click here for more from Robb Fraley and how he sees the world feeding the billions to be alive by 2050.

Fewer Cattle May Mean Fewer Beef Board Seats for Texas and New Mexico 

USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is proposing to reapportion membership on the Cattlemen's Beef Promotion and Research Board from 103 to 99 members. The law authorizing the board requires the board's size to change with shifts in cattle inventory levels.


This decrease is due to changes in cattle inventories since the last board reapportionment in 2011. Under the proposal, domestic cattle producer representation on the board would decrease from 96 to 93, with Texas losing two members and New Mexico losing one. Importer representation would decrease from seven to six. The decrease is based on requirements of the Beef Promotion and Research Order, authorized by the Beef Promotion and Research Act of 1985.

Click here for more- The Texas Cattle Feeders has indicated in their newsletter from this past Friday that they would urge AMS to postpone the cut in members to the Beef Board to see if numbers bounce back assuming drought eases later in the year.

MILC Program Remains Available to Dairy Farmers Until Margin Protection Program Kicks In 

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Administrator Juan M. Garcia today announced the extension of the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program.

The extended MILC protects dairy farmers enrolled in the program against income loss through Sept. 1, 2014, or until a new Margin Protection Program for dairy producers (MPP), established by the 2014 Farm Bill, is operational.

Contracts for eligible producers enrolled in MILC on or before Sept. 30, 2013, are automatically extended until the termination date of the MILC program. Dairy operations with approved MILC contracts will continue to receive monthly payments if a payment rate is in effect. 

The trigger for MILC payments was not hit for the final quarter of 2013- and with milk prices staying high here in the early part of 2014- it is unlikely that the dairy safety net will be activated before the revamped dairy program is put into place the latter part of 2014.

Click here for more on this story- and you can always contract your local FSA office if you have questions.

This N That- COOL Court Ruling Out, Farmland the Movie Hitting the Big Screen May First and  137th Annual Meeting of TSCRA Coming Friday in San Antonio 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a lower court ruling denying a preliminary injunction request on the Agricultural Marketing Service's enforcement of the rule implementing the labeling program on Friday. The American Meat Institute and other groups - including the National Cattlemen's Beef Association and National Pork Producers Council - challenged the rule as a violation of the COOL statute and First Amendment - but the appeals court thought the groups unlikely to succeed on the merits of their claims. The court stated in its ruling the rule enables consumers to apply patriotic or protectionist criteria in the choice of meat - but also enables those who believe U.S. practices and regulations are better at ensuring food than other countries to act on that premise.   

National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson says the decision notes that COOL advances legitimate values - including consumer information and consumer choice. Johnson says NFU's family farmer and rancher members certainly take pride in the products they produce - and he is glad consumers will be able to identify their products at retail as a result of the court's decision.   

American Meat Institute Interim President and CEO James Hodges says AMI strongly disagrees with the court's decision and believes the rule will continue to harm livestock producers and the industry with little benefit to consumers. 

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The farm-focused, feature length documentary Farmland will be released across 60 major national markets in the U.S. on May 1st. Allentown Productions says Farmland offers viewers an intimate and firsthand glimpse into the lives of six young farmers and ranchers across the country - chronicling their high-risk, high-reward jobs and their passion for a way of life that has been passed down from generation to generation. Award-winning filmmaker James Moll says audiences will hear thoughts and opinions about agriculture from the mouths of farmers and ranchers themselves.  

Based on the movie's website, theaters in Tulsa, Claremore and El Reno will be showing the film as of May first. For more information about the film - click here for the movie website.

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This coming Friday through Sunday will see San Antonio host the 2014 Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Annual Convention- and it's an even that is jam packed with great information for cattle producers.  With it being in San Antonio- it's not quite as easy for Oklahoma cattle producers to join in on the fun compared to most years when it is held in Ft. Worth- but you can still take a look at the web page set up by the TSCRA and see if you want to make a last minute decision to head down I-35 for the 2014 gathering.

Among some of the headliner sessions planned for 2014- The Future of Rural Affairs in Texas and Oklahoma will be examined as experts will point out trends to watch to prosper in a complex landscape of increasing population and finite natural resources.

To learn more about the 2014 TSCRA Convention, click here.