Seven of Eight Groups Agree on Enhancements to National Beef Checkoff Program 

Seven national organizations, members of the Beef Checkoff Enhancement Working Group (BCEWG), Friday signed a revised Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding agreed-upon enhancements to the national Beef Checkoff Program. These organizations are the American Farm Bureau Federation, the American National CattleWomen, Inc., the Livestock Marketing Association, the Meat Import Council of America, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, the National Livestock Producers Association and the National Milk Producers Federation.

The Beef Checkoff Program is funded through a $1 per head assessment each time cattle are sold. Due to inflation, the $1.00 per head checkoff which was implemented in 1986 has deflated to $.47. These organizations will support legislation to increase the current Beef Checkoff Program of $1.00 per head to $2.00 per head.  Click here to read more about the other changes to beef checkoff.

The United States Cattlemen's Association (USCA) announced an official decision to not sign the Checkoff MOU.   USCA past President Jon Wooster commented on the working group, "Unfortunately, the group could never reach consensus concerning discussions focused on structural changes except for changing the date organizations had to be formed to be an eligible contractor from 1986 to being an established beef industry organization for at least three years."


"The MOU proposed several changes including a refundable increase in the assessment of $1. There is also a proposed change to the nominating process for candidates to the Beef Promotion Operating Committee. While this is an integral component of securing needed Checkoff reform, the proposed change in the MOU addressing this issue would actually serve to intensify the current conflict of interest as national organizations contracting for Checkoff dollars would be allowed a seat on the nominating committee."

Click here to read more from the U.S. Cattlemen's Association and why they couldn't support the structural changes to the national beef checkoff. 

Terry Detrick of AFR Says Beef Checkoff Issue Not Likely to Readdressed at NFU Meeting in Wichita

Terry Detrick, President of the American Farmers & Ranchers/Oklahoma Farmers Union, is leading the Oklahoma delegation in Wichita at the 113th Annual Convention of the National Farmers Union. He told Farm Director Ron Hays that about thirty delegates are representing Oklahoma this year at the NFU meeting, similar to the numbers seen last year in Santa Fe at the 2014 NFU meeting. The proximity of the national convention the last two years have allowed for convenient travel for delegates from the state that has the largest number of NFU members in the US.


Detrick indicated that there are few if any contentious issues expected to be brought up during the resolution process on Monday or Tuesday. Specifically, he does not expect any further action to be taken by delegates this year on the NFU stance regarding the Beef Checkoff. Detrick says that Oklahoma knows where the NFU stands on the Beef Checkoff and that the NFU membership clearly knows where Oklahoma stands- and that "we know that our paths are not going to cross on this issue."  

The National Farmers Union decided to withdraw from the Beef Checkoff Enhancement Working Group in 2014, as their President, Roger Johnson, called the efforts a waste of time. 

You can hear Detrick's comments about the Checkoff and other things he sees happening in Wichita by clicking here.

Here in Wichita, the NFU meeting will be hearing from a pair of Obama Administration officials- USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. It should be an interesting morning ahead.

Nationally Known Livestock Judge Raves About Numbers and Quality of Animals and Kids at OYE

Overall livestock entry numbers are up across all species in 2015 versus 2014 at the 100th Anniversary edition of the Oklahoma Youth Expo. Based on actual purebred and commercial gilt numbers of animals that showed up versus those that were entered, the judges that will be looking at the market hog show this coming week could well see over 3,000 hogs in 2015. There were 1,190 purebred gilts judged this past Friday- and 1,160 commercial crossbred gilts judged on Saturday- and the quality of those animals was tremendous. The high end of those animals have been selected for the Breeding Gilt Sale that will be held Wednesday evening at 7:00 PM.


We talked with Purebred Judge Mark Hoge at a break between judging breeds on Friday. Dr. Hoge is an Associate Professor at Western Illinois University in Macomb, Illinois- and judges livestock shows across the nation. He raved about both the quality of the gilts he was seeing, about the kids showing them and the incredible numbers of hogs that were a part of the 2015 Oklahoma Youth Expo. Dr. Hoge told us "The pigs that are exhibited here at OYE are absolutely incredible- very, very close decisions, but probably more impressive here are the number of young people that are here that have their projects impeccably presented and ready for the show ring."  

Click here for more from Dr Hoge from the hog ring.

As far as the breeding gilt results go- we have two stories you can check out this morning- the Purebred Supreme Champion Breeding Gilt was shown by Taylor Wolff of Stroud FFA with her Champion Berkshire.  Full Purebred results are available here.

The Commercial Supreme Champion Gilt was shown on Saturday by Ashton Keeter of Walters FFA- the full rundown of the top Commercial gilts is available here- and that story includes the sale order of the top 25 breeding gilts that will be sold on Wednesday.

Our coverage of the 2015 Oklahoma Youth Expo is a service of ITC Great Plains- your Energy Superhighway. And, of course the title sponsor of the 2015 OYE is McDonalds.

We already have over 400 pictures up on FLICKR- that album of photos can be enjoyed by clicking here.

U.S. Wheat Organizations Join Renewed Call for End to Cuban Embargo

After participating in a "learning journey" to Cuba March 1 to 4, U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) and the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) have joined members of the U.S. Agriculture Coalition for Cuba (USACC) to renew a call for Congress to end the U.S. trade embargo.


USW Assistant Director of Policy Ben Conner and Kansas wheat farmer Doug Keesling represented the U.S. wheat industry on the trip.


"Our visit was an important first step toward a stronger relationship with Cuba," Conner said. "We appreciated the opportunity to sit down and personally discuss these issues with representatives of the Cuban government and its people. We left with the distinct impression that lifting the embargo represents a unique chance to benefit people in both countries."


"We have exported wheat to Cuba in the past and there should be no reason why we can't do it now or in the future," Keesling said. "It is the biggest wheat importer in the Caribbean - just a couple days away from our Gulf ports - and our own policies are keeping us from working together again. That's not good for farmers or for the Cuban people." 
 

While ongoing travel and financing restrictions negatively affect the export potential for U.S. wheat farmers, competitors in the European Union and Canada freely sell wheat to Cuba.  Click here to read more about the potential to sell wheat to Cuba.

Eastern Red Cedar Removal Bill- HB1075 Heads to Senate

With Oklahoma ranchers under attack facing "drought extinction," preserving ponds and streams for livestock is critical and cedar removal is the first line of offense in surviving this battle.  Eastern red cedars are spreading at a rate of 700 acres per day and drinking up Oklahoma water at a staggering rate, to be clipped by House Bill 1075. 

"I am pleased to know that we are finally moving in the right direction on drought and fire relief, with passage of HB1075," Oklahoma City Democrat Rep. Richard Morrissette, District 92, said.
 

"Many diverse partners ranging from county officials, state agency heads and associations such as the Oklahoma Farm Bureau assisted me with advice on water loss and property rights and how to better notify those absentee land owners who have unwittingly become infested with eastern red cedar. I was also able to improve this year's version of HB1075, the Oklahoma Resource Reclamation Act, in the area of respecting personal property rights by way of last session's bill by Rep. Steve Martin, Property Rights Act HB2620. So, the current version of the bill is a real bipartisan compilation," Morrissette said.


"We want to create something that is fair for everyone. If a rancher has lost his ponds to a neighbor's cedar infestation, that is not an example of neighbors working together to respect each other's GOD given rights. That is one land owner with an unfair advantage over the other and we can work out these issues without trampling on personal property rights. The bill DOES NOT require the creation of any list of offenders, it just allows local officials to have the tax commission send a notice of information, along with other regular tax commission communications, to inform an absentee land owner of an existing infestation." 
 

To read more about HB1075, click here.  

Award winning broadcast journalist Jerry Bohnen has spent years learning and understanding how to cover the energy business here in the southern plains-  Click here to subscribe to his daily update of top Energy News.

Center for Food Integrity Aims to Build Consumer Trust and Confidence

Charlie Arnot has been involved with the meat industry much of his life. He is the currently the Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Food Integrity. It's a non-profit organization devoted to putting the food industry's best foot forward in the eyes of the consumer. The Center represents multiple stakeholders from a wide and diverse range of agricultural interests. Arnot said that is some of the strength of his particular organization.


"One of the strengthens of the Center is, we have no natural constituents," Arnot said. "We don't defend or protect or speak on behalf of any particular sector or brand. That enables us to bring a very diverse group of stakeholders together. So our members include Aurora Organic Dairy, DuPont and Monsanto, Cargill and ConAgra, as well as Nestle and Kroger and McDonald's and everybody kind of in between. State farm organizations, national farm organizations, individual farm groups are all part of that conversation are all part of the Center for Food Integrity, so one of the advantages of that is that we have higher level of credibility in some circles, because of the diversity of our membership."


Credibility can lead to trust, according to Arnot. That's really important when you are dealing with consumers about food.   He said agriculture has always relied on science as the primary mechanism upon which decisions are made. In working with Iowa State University in trying to uncover what it takes to build trust, Arnot said they began with a meta-analysis of 21 different pieces of research on the question of trust and food.


"In each of those pieces of research, we identified three common drivers," Arnot said. "The first is influential others, that's family and friends and credentialed individuals whose opinion you respect. The second element is competency, believing its competency or technical data that builds trust. The third element is confidence or the perception of shared values and ethics, can I count on you do what's right?"

To read more about building trust with consumers or to listen to my Beef Buzz feature with Arnot, click here.