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We have details of what the Reserve Champion animals brought as well- click or tap here to review that- plus we have an audio overview of the 2014 sale you can hear and a link to all of our pictures that can be found on FLICKR.

Oklahoma Wheat Growers Urge USDA to Follow the Law and Implement APH in 2015 

Oklahoma Wheat Growers President Curtis Vap is calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to implement a key provision of the Farm Bill for Oklahoma producers who have faced multiple years of severe drought.


"Chairman Lucas succeeded in including a key provision for producers," said Vap. "The provision would allow producers to maintain adequate crop insurance to cover their expected production in exchange for paying a higher premium to cover any additional liability."


Although the provision of the Farm Bill became effective on February 7 when the Farm Bill was signed into law, USDA "has refused to implement it," ultimately concluding it would be delayed until 2016. Though Tuesday was the sales closing for wheat insurance, USDA could and should implement the provision before acreage certification.


The provision provides immediate relief to Oklahoma producers and other producers around the country who farm in counties hit by extreme natural disasters, including the recent record-breaking drought. Under rules in place prior to the enactment of the 2014 Farm Bill, the yield a producer may insure in a given year hinges on what the producer yielded for that crop in the previous 10 years in which the crop was planted. Depending on the number of crops in rotation, the 10 year yield history can go back 20 and even 30 years. This creates a lag on actual yields because technology in farming has resulted in substantially increased yields in more recent years. The lag is made even worse when extreme weather events that do not reflect a producer's production capability further reduce county-wide yields. The provision crafted by Chairman Lucas addresses the problem associated with extreme natural disasters by allowing producers to exclude from their history those yields where the yield for the entire county was 50 percent or more below the county's 10-year average. However, the producer electing to exclude a yield under the provision would be required to pay for the increased liability.  

Click Here to read more about why this change is vital to all wheat farmers who have been impacted by drought.  

Glenn Selk Offers Cull Cow Marketing Tips

It's the time of year when a lot of cow-calf operators are looking at their mama cowherd, seeing some open animals and deciding those animals need to move on down the road. They need to be culled out of their herds. Oklahoma State University Emeritus Extension Beef Cattle Specialist Dr. Glenn Selk said you need to be pay attention to the condition of those animals because they are worth quite a bit of money these days.


"We're at the time of the year where spring-calving operations will be bringing the cows and calves in to wean the calves and preg-check the cows, then determine which of those cows are going to be marketed as culls this year," Selk said. "We want to remember that cull cows and bulls represent at least 20 percent of the gross income of any cow-calf operation, so getting the most out of the cull cows is very important to our bottomline." 


As you're marketing cull cows, Selk said its important that you understand the pricing structure that cull cows will bring. The US Department of Agriculture Market News Service has four different grades for cull cows He said the grades are based primarily on a cow's body condition.


"As you look at the pricing structure of these four grades of cattle you'll understand the fleshier cows, those that are in the boner to breaker category bring more in terms of price per hundred weight and in the case of about ten days ago they are bringing $126.50 per hundred weight for those two groups of cattle," Selk said. "Then as you get to the leans, even though they are a little bit lighter in terms of their weight, they actually bringing less in terms of dollars per hundredweight at $114."

Selk is our guest on the Beef Buzz- you can hear his comments by clicking here and you can also read more in understanding why prices are higher for heavier cattle right now.  

Cotton Case Agreement Ends Threat of Retaliation of US Wheat Exports

Following is a joint statement from U.S. Wheat Associates and the National Association of Wheat Growers.

The announcement this week that Brazil and the United States have negotiated a settlement in a long-running trade dispute will help U.S. wheat growers remain competitive in one of the world's largest wheat importing nations.


In 2005, and again in 2008, Brazil won a case against U.S. cotton support programs and export credit guarantees in the World Trade Organization (WTO), giving it the right to impose retaliatory measures on U.S. products if a settlement could not be reached. Brazil's government published a long list of U.S. goods, including U.S. wheat, against which it might retaliate. After many years of negotiation, the agreement ends the threat of retaliatory tariffs to U.S. wheat exports to Brazil.


"Brazil has been a major U.S. wheat importer since 2013," said Shannon Schlecht, vice president of policy with U.S. Wheat Associates (USW). "U.S. wheat growers support the settlement because it protects our competitive position in Brazil, preserves the GSM-102 Export Credit Guarantee Program and provides certainty for trade with Brazil."


In the final settlement, Brazil also agreed not to launch future disputes over U.S. farm programs for the life of current U.S. farm legislation. In return, the United States will make a reparation payment to Brazil's Cotton Institute and place new disciplines on the GSM-102 program.  Click here to learn more about the WTO settlement.
 

Stewardship of New Technologies Embraced by U.S. Meat Industry

For the past several months, a diverse group of representatives from technology companies and the U.S. beef, pork and lamb industries has tackled a critical question related to global access for U.S. meat: What steps can the meat industry take to ensure that the introduction of new production and processing technologies does not interrupt trade?


"The U.S. meat industry is a global leader when it comes to advancements in quality, safety, efficiency and productivity, which is why our products are in such great demand around the world," said Forrest Roberts, chief executive officer of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA). "Our goal as an industry is to adopt new technologies in a manner that is consistent with continuing to grow exports. To meet this objective it is imperative that we continue to work together as an industry in a proactive manner."


Roberts was recently elected chairman of the Meat Industry International Stewardship Advisory Council (MIISAC), which was formed with exactly this goal in mind. Its primary focus is to foster better communication, coordination, and collaboration at all levels of red meat production, processing and marketing so that new technologies are introduced in a manner that minimizes disruptions in exports without stifling the development of next-generation technologies. Norman Bessac, vice president for international pork sales at Cargill Fresh Meats, was elected MIISAC vice chairman.

Click here to learn more how MIISAC will work with companies launching new technology into the market and how they can adopted by the read meat industry. 

Anderson Says Wheat Prices Near Bottom

Wheat prices continue to decline. How much lower will these prices go? That's the question posed this week to Oklahoma State University Grain Marketing Specialist Dr. Kim Anderson on this weekend's edition of OSU's SUNUP TV program. Anderson said the market is relatively near the bottom for wheat prices.


"There are indications we will probably hold $5.50, we've touched it a couple times," Anderson said. "...If we can continue to hold this as we get into the fall maybe as get some export demand I think wheat prices may come up 30 - 40 cents, but the next two weeks is going to tell the story. If we break $5.50, we're going on down to $5."


In having lower prices that should increase demand, but the shortage of transportation is keeping that from happening. The demand for rail and barge transportation has been very expensive and hard to come by. Anderson said he has heard some grain handlers can make money by selling their rail or barge, then from selling the crop.   


If there was adequate truck, rail and barge availability, transportation rates would be lower. Anderson said the US would have higher exports and stronger prices for wheat and corn.  
 

Click Here to read or to listen to more on Anderson's outlook on soybeans and how the stronger US dollar is impact exports.  You can also find the full lineup for this weekend's edition of SUNUP.
 

This N That- Jeff Edwards to Talk Wheat Planting on In the Field, Express Ranches Ready for Their Monday Sale and USDA Has Farm Bill Timeline

Tomorrow- Saturday, October 4th- our guest on our In the Field Segment will be Dr. Jeff Edwards of Oklahoma State University as we plan on talking about the status of wheat planting across the state.

Rains have been spotty this week in our major wheat producing counties- and we will talk with Jeff about how that has impacted getting the crop into the ground.

Our In the Field segment is seen on Saturday morning at 6:40 AM on KWTV News9 in Oklahoma City- for those of you outside of the News9 viewing area- or you are not up yet on Saturdays at that time- we will be posting the video of the conversation with Jeff over the weekend.

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The Fall Bull Sale of Express Ranches is set for high Noon this coming Monday, October 6th at the ranch on the north side of Yukon.   

The Express team will be offering over 1,600 head on Monday- including 275 bulls.

To learn more, click here for our auction listing of the Express Fall Bull Sale coming Monday- or you can call Express at 1-800-664-3977 for more information.

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USDA has released a time line of when the windows will be open for making and executing some of the decisions ahead if you plan to sign up and participate in the farm safety net of the 2014 Farm Bill.  

Dates associated with ARC (Ag Risk Coverage) and PLC (Price Loss Coverage) that farm owners and producers need to know:

Sept. 29, 2014 to Feb. 27, 2015: Land owners may visit their local Farm Service Agency office to update yield history and/or reallocate base acres. Nov. 17, 2014 to March 31, 2015: Producers make a one-time election of either ARC or PLC for the 2014 through 2018 crop years. Mid-April 2015 through summer 2015: Producers sign contracts for 2014 and 2015 crop years. October 2015: Payments for 2014 crop year, if needed.

There are numerous Farm Bill Policy Informational Meetings planned across Oklahoma- go to our calendar pages of Oklahoma Farm Report as we have them listed by date and location.