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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oklahoma's latest farm and ranch news
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON for Wednesday May 28, 2008!
A
service of The Oklahoma Bioenergy Center, Farm Credit of East Central
Oklahoma and American Farmers & Ranchers.
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-- Wheat Harvest- Trying to Gain a Foothold in Southwest
Oklahoma!
-- CRP Land Freed to Graze and Hay This Summer!
-- BAD Move Mr. Secretary- So Says the National Cattlemen.
-- A Check of the Latest Crop Weather Update.
-- Livestock Assistance Programs Open For Signup For Just a Few More
Weeks.
-- US Beef to South Korea "soon" According to Ag Secretary Ed
Schafer.
-- As you Harvest- drop us an Email!!!
-- Checking the Markets...
Howdy Neighbors! Here's your morning farm news headlines from the Director of Farm Programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, Ron Hays. We say thanks to Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma for being a regular sponsor of our daily email update. Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma has ten branch offices to serve your farm financing needs and is dedicated to being your first choice for farm credit. Check out their website for more information by clicking here! We are also proud to have American Farmers & Ranchers Mutual
Insurance Company as a regular sponsor of our daily update- click
here to go to their NEW AFR web site to learn more about their efforts
to serve rural America! If you have received this by someone forwarding it to you, you are welcome to subscribe and get this weekday update sent to you directly by clicking here. | |
Wheat Harvest- Trying to Gain a Foothold in Southwest Oklahoma! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We now have
two pockets where about ten percent of the wheat has been cut out in far
southwestern Oklahoma- so says Mark Hodges, Executive Director of the
Oklahoma Wheat Commission. Meanwhile, the latest Texas crop update tells
us that 6% of the Texas wheat crop has now been harvested.
In Oklahoma, the first area is from Walters in Cotton County westward
over to Grandfield and Hollister in Tillman County- this area received
some good moisture last fall and allowed for the wheat to get established
ahead of other fields in that southwestern area of the state. Mark tells us that test weights continue to be very encouraging- from 61 to 65 pounds per bushel- most of the early wheat has been Jagger. We do have Mark's complete audio update linked below on our Wheat Harvest Webpage- click and take a listen!!! | |
CRP Land Freed to Graze and Hay This Summer! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Agriculture
Secretary Ed Schafer says USDA has authorized certain acreage enrolled
under the Conservation Reserve Program to be available for hay and forage
after the primary nesting season ends for grass-nesting birds. This action
means that more than 24 million acres of land enrolled in CRP will be
eligible for this critical feed use program. USDA estimates this will make
available up to 18 million tons of forage worth 1.2 billion dollars.
Secretary Schafer says - this action will provide much needed feed and forage while maintaining the conservation benefits from the nation's premier conservation program. According to Schafer strong measures are being taken - to preserve CRP's environmental benefits. The most environmentally- sensitive land enrolled in CRP will not be eligible. The land will be subject to a site inspection. But, no rental payment reduction will be assessed. However, a $75 fee will be charged to process the required contract modification. Signup for interested CRP participants will begin June 2, 2008, at local Farm Service Agency offices. This modification for critical feed use is only for 2008. All forage use must be completed no later than November 10, 2008. Click here for the news release with more details from USDA on the CRP Release. | |
BAD Move Mr. Secretary- So Says the National Cattlemen. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ According to
the National Cattlemen's Beef Association - the plan to open certain CRP
acres to haying and grazing is well-intentioned - but doesn't provide the
right solution for cattle producers. NCBA does support managed haying and
grazing of CRP acres during times of shortage - but only with a
corresponding reduction in CRP payments. USDA's plan does not include a
payment reduction - and without it - NCBA says producers raising or
obtaining their hay and forage from non-CRP land are placed at an unfair
disadvantage.
NCBA Director of Legislative Affairs Colin Woodall says the plan also fails to provide any significant, long- term relief for the dwindling supply of ag land and feed sources in the U.S. The window of opportunity - he says - is very limited - as livestock producers can't use the land for haying and grazing until the primary nesting season ends and must finish with any forage use by November 10. As a result - he says USDA's action doesn't result in much more than a nice gesture. | |
A Check of the Latest Crop Weather Update. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A day later
than normal due to Memorial Day- the latest Oklahoma Weekly Crop Weather
Update is out and shows that the winter wheat crop remains in good to fair
condition- with 73% of the crop rated in one of those two categories. 17%
of the wheat crop is in poor to very poor shape- while 10% is in excellent
shape as we just begin harvest.
The latest report tells us in regards to spring planted crops "Corn planted was at 97 percent, one percentage point behind the five-year average. Corn emerged increased five points from the previous week to 88 percent, one point ahead of normal. Sorghum seedbed prepared was at 85 percent, 11 points ahead of the five-year average. Sorghum planted was at 26 percent, 10 points behind normal, while sorghum emerged was at 17 percent, four points behind normal. Soybean seedbed preparations were at 78 percent, one point behind normal. Soybeans planted was at 40 percent, eight points behind normal, and soybeans emerged was at 17 percent, 14 points behind normal. Peanuts planted increased 28 points to reach 80 percent, six points ahead of normal, and peanuts emerged increased 22 points to reach 48 percent, five points behind normal. Cotton planted reached 65 percent, four points ahead of the five-year average, while cotton emerged increased to 35 percent, four points behind the five-year average." Two thirds of our pastures are rated in the good to excellent category
in this latest update- and one of our most popular specialty crops-
watermelon is behind normal planting progress and development- with 76% of
the expected acreage for watermelons now planted- behind the five year
average of 92%. | |
Livestock Assistance Programs Open For Signup For Just a Few More Weeks. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jim Reese,
State Executive Director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm
Service Agency (FSA) in Oklahoma, reminds Oklahoma livestock producers
they have until July 18, 2008, to enroll in the 2005 - 2007 Livestock
Compensation Program (LCP) and Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP).
Signup began on Sept. 10, 2007, for the two programs that provide aid to livestock producers who suffered eligible livestock or livestock feed losses between Jan. 1, 2005, and Dec. 31, 2007, because of a natural disaster. "The deadline to enroll in the 2005 - 2007 Livestock Compensation Program and Livestock Indemnity Program is rapidly approaching," said Jim Reese. "I encourage all eligible producers to enroll soon because sign-up ends on July 18, 2008." LIP provides payments to eligible livestock owners and contract growers who incurred the death of livestock because of a natural disaster. LCP provides payments to eligible livestock owners and cash lessees who suffered feed losses or increased feed costs because of a natural disaster. More information about LCP and LIP is available online at the link we have provided for you below. You can also touch base with your local FSA office for details as well. Click here for details on the Disaster Assistance Programs Administered by FSA. | |
US Beef to South Korea "soon" According to Ag Secretary Ed Schafer. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Despite the
new delays for U.S. beef to have full access to the South Korean market
and continuing protests against U.S. beef by some Korean groups, Secretary
of Agriculture Ed Schafer expects beef to be flowing to South Korea soon.
The delay involves after the site visits by the Korean officials, which
all turned out well," Schafer says. "They had some concerns about in the
pipeline beef versus beef after this point in time. We are working that
out, but I am positive after several conversations this (Tuesday) morning,
that we will see beef flowing to Korea very shortly."
A Korean News Report confirms what Secretary Schafer seems to be saying- "The imports will recommence when the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries announces its new safety inspection guidelines on Tuesday or Wednesday, following the return of a team of inspectors from U.S. meat-packing factories this past weekend. The announcement has been delayed since May 15 because of public concern over the safety of American beef." We have Secretary Schafer and the latest from South Korea on this subject in our latest Beef Buzz, as heard on great radio stations around the state on the Radio Oklahoma Network. Of course, we archive many of our Beef Buzz shows on our website, WWW.OklahomaFarmReport.Com and you can listen to them at your convenience 24/7. We have today's Beef Buzz with Ed Schafer and more on the Korean Beef situation linked below- click and take a listen! | |
As you Harvest- drop us an Email!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As your wheat
ripens, keep us in mind and let us hear from you. Once again in 2008- we
will be sharing harvest reports as they begin to come in. And- if you have
pictures- attach those to the email that you send in and share those with
us as well. The best email is simply ron@oklahomafarmreport.com.
We will be updating folks through this email on a daily basis as well as keeping a running commentary going on our website on the "Official Webpage of the 2008 Oklahoma Wheat Harvest!" We appreciate your help in making the information at this site the most useful found anywhere! I know folks would also be interested in getting a feel for how widespread hail damage is this year- if you have had some wheat "hailed out" in recent days- drop us a note on that as well- we will be keeping tabs on that for folks as well. | |
Our thanks to American Farmers & Ranchers, Farm Credit of East Central Oklahoma and the Oklahoma Bioenergy Center for their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked at the top of the email- check them out and let these folks know you appreciate the support of this daily email, as their sponsorship helps us keep this arriving in your inbox on a regular basis! We also invite you to check out our website at the link below to check out an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe. | |
Checking the Markets... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Cash Cattle
trade is quiet as we get to the middle already of this holiday shortened
week- feedlot operators hope to see $96 for their slaughter cattle this
week- up from the $94 sales in Kansas and $95 sales in Texas/Oklahoma
feelots last week before the Memorial Day holiday.
Here are some links we will leave in place on an ongoing basis- Click
on the name of the report to go to that link: | |
God Bless! You can reach us at the following: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
email: ron@oklahomafarmreport.com
phone: 405-473-6144
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