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The 2015 Oklahoma State Legislative Session is moving quickly right now, as bills passed by House are being heard in the Senate- and vice versa- and the Vice President for Public Policy of the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, John Collison, has one bill at the top of his list as another week of legislative work gets underway- and that is the so called "Right to Farm" proposal that has already cleared the House.


HJR 1012 passed the House a couple of weeks ago by a strong 90 to 6 vote- and Collison says the Senate Rules Committee is set to take the measure this week. If passed by both bodies, the proposed constitutional Amendment will be voted on in the fall of 2016 in the general election.

Reintroduced in 2015, Collison says of the 2015 version of the bill "we've made this a protection for people in the state of Oklahoma- it has to be a state interest to ban a crop or an animal Husbandry practice." He goes on to add "you can pass laws in the future banning castor beans or whatever- that's fine" but he adds that adding this language to the constitution will mean that proponents of a bill that wants to restrict a farming practice must show a "compelling state interest" for it to be constitutional if passed by the legislature and signed into law. The language of HJR 1012 does not specifically say that the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture would determine the "compelling state interest," but that would be the likely body within the state government that would be the gatekeeper for this proposal if the voters approve it in the fall of 2016.

Beyond RIght to Farm- we also talked extensively with John about moving water from east to west- his comments on both Right to Farm as well as moving water can be seen and heard by clicking or tapping here. 

We have the audio of the conversation with John there- as well as the video that you can see from our visit with him on KWTV News9 Saturday morning.  

USMEF- February Meat Exports Lower Year-over-Year, but Show Improvement 

While still impacted by severe congestion in the West Coast ports, February exports of U.S. beef, pork and lamb bounced back to some degree from the totals posted in January, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).

Conditions are steadily improving on the West Coast, where congestion related to a labor dispute slowed container traffic over the past four months. But the tentative contract agreement that eased tensions on the West Coast was not reached until Feb. 20, so this issue still had a significant impact on February meat exports.

"We didn't see much relief from the shipping backlog until March, and container traffic in some ports still has not returned to normal," said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. "However, the new labor contract agreement definitely sent positive signals to our Asian buyers and allowed the U.S. meat industry to begin the process of putting this crisis behind us. The momentum exports regained in February is encouraging, and we're looking forward to further improvement when March results are published."

In addition to port congestion, February exports also continued to face significant challenges such as the strong U.S. dollar, large supplies from key competitors and market access barriers.

February beef exports totaled 82,991 metric tons (mt) - down 3 percent year-over-year but a 4 percent improvement over January.

February pork exports were 173,771 mt - down 5 percent year-over-year but 8 percent higher than in January.

Full details of the volume and value stats- but some color commentary on the beef and pork markets in February are available here.  

Rural Economic Development Program Seeking Applications

Communities interested in boosting their regional economic development prospects should apply now for the Stronger Economies Together (SET) program.


A national initiative designed to potentially have a big impact on the state, SET helps rural communities partner together to enhance regional economic development opportunities. The program is offered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development and Regional Rural Development Centers.


"SET helps communities think beyond their city and county borders to build important relationships and identify key resources that can successfully drive regional projects," said Dave Shideler, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension community development specialist.


This is the third time Oklahoma has participated in the SET program. Currently, 18 counties in the state are actively involved in the initiative.  Click here to read more about the 7-month program.  

Combining Classes of Cattle Dewormers Can Help Reduce Parasite Pressure in Your Herd

The annual springtime battle of reducing internal parasites in your beef cattle herd is underway- and Dr. Harold Newcomb, Technical Services Manager of Merck Animal Health says that the best piece of advice that he can give any cattle producer at this time of year is "that whatever dewormer program you are using- you need to check and make sure it is working."

We talked with Dr. Newcomb about a proactive approach to parasite control in your beef cattle herd- and we feature his comments in our latest beef Buzz.

Dr. Newcomb says that several studies by the livestock industry has provided some direction in cattle dewormer resistance. All cattle populations have a few parasites that carry genes of resistance to one or more of the three classes of anthelmintics- or dewormers. Dr. Newcomb told us "Basically, what we've found is by using two or more different classes of dewormers- say you use Safeguard and Ivomec (Those would be two classes)- by using those classes of dewormers together we are actually able to cut down the amount of resistant parasites in a population."  

You can read more- and listen to Dr. Newcomb's ideas on reducing parasite problems in your herd- by clicking or tapping here.

John Deere Expands 6 Family Tractor Line with More Models & Options

John Deere has expanded its lineup of 6M and 6R Series Tractors for model year 2015 to offer producers a wider range of horsepower, frame sizes, transmissions, hydraulics and other options.


"Our objective is to continually expand our tractor line to meet a wide variety of customer needs, yet be able to offer the same proven performance, reliability and service standards in every 6 Family model," says Kory Ross, mid-tractor product manager for John Deere. "The new models in our 6M and 6R Series continue that tradition, with tractors ranging from 110 to 215 engine horsepower, and build commonality in horsepower and other features within the 6 Family."


Tractors in the mid-specification 6M Series are well-suited for such chores as haying and field work; loader, feeding and material handling; mowing roadsides; and maintaining orchards and vineyards. Operation can vary from creeper speed for working in specialty crops to 25 mph for faster transport. The closed-center pressure and flow-compensating hydraulic system offers advantages such as increased lift capacity and faster loader-cycle times.


Click here to read more about the seven 6M models and the different options available.  

Search Begins for America's Pig Farmer of the Year

America's Pig Farmer of the Year award program, announced by the National Pork Board in early March, is accepting applications from now until May 17 at americaspigfarmer.com. The award honors the U.S. pork producer who best excels at raising pigs using the We Care ethical principles and wants to share how he or she does that with the public.


"This new award brings to life the National Pork Board's new strategic plan by building consumer trust through on-farm transparency and accountability," said Brad Greenway, National Pork Board vice president and pig farmer from Mitchell, S.D. "The ideal candidate will have a focus on environmental sustainability, as well as animal welfare, production efficiency, the adoption of best practices and a commitment to continuous improvement."


"The intent of this new recognition program is two-fold," said Mike King, director of science communications for the Pork Checkoff. "The contest is designed to find the producer who best demonstrates the We Care principles on the farm. Additionally, the ideal candidate will excel at sharing their story in a way that connects with today's consumers."


Objective, third-party judges, including Iowa farmer and celebrity Chris Soules (The Bachelor, Dancing with the Stars), will help determine the final award recipient, with the winner announced during National Pork Month in October.  Click here to read more about America's Pig Farmer of the Year.  

Bob Hunger Has a  Wheat Disease Update- and a Tribute to Russell Pierson to Point You To

Dr. Bob Hunger of OSU reports little problems in the body of the state when it comes to disease problems- with only a limited amount of leaf rust and strip rust in central and northern areas of the state- and added that there are reports of some heavier amounts of both types of rust in southern/south central Oklahoma.  

Dr. Hunger followed up after he had issued his end of the week report with an update from the County Ag Agent for Texas County, Mindy McNair.  She has significant disease problems in her area- "Our wheat in the panhandle has been covered in brown wheat mites and aphids.  There has been some army worms towards the west but the talk is around the mites.  There is some wheat streak mosaic as well.  But unfortunately the high temperatures, insects and lack of water has greatly impacted our yields in the last week.  Those that didn't spray for the bugs in March have had significant loss but those that did spray will not recoup their spray costs if it doesn't rain soon."

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Funeral services for Russell Pierson are set for this afternoon at 2 PM at Quail Springs Baptist Church which is on May Avenue- just west of Quail Springs Mall in Oklahoma City.

Russell was in his sixties when I met him as a young farm broadcaster in Wichita, Kansas.  I asked him for his thoughts on moving to Oklahoma in 1977- and while I don't think he was too thrilled with the idea of a competitor moving into the state- he was still upbeat about the opportunity and promised to introduce me around.  

He was not a big fan of using sound bites of other people on his radio reports- he always told me that he thought a farm broadcaster worth his salt could tell the story better and more concisely without the need for those audio clips.  And tell the story- I always was in awe  in how much information he could squeeze into his time on the air on WKY Radio as he told the story of farming and ranching of that day.

Beyond his career in front of the camera and behind the mic- I respected Russell as a fellow Baptist- we actually have been members at a pair of churches just a short distance from one another- I was always impressed about how he was faithful to his church- and while others would jump churches anytime they got their feelings hurt- not Russell- he stayed loyal when as the church he attended along with his wife Bernice jumped northward from Nichols Hills to Quail Springs and changed names along the way.  I liked that and have used him as a role model in that regard- and in other ways as well. He was, very simply, a very, very good man. 

A complete look at this life has been placed into cyberspace- you can read it by clicking here.