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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oklahoma's latest farm and ranch news
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON for Tuesday August 11, 2009
A
service of Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, Midwest Farm Shows and KIS
Futures!
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-- Oklahoma Conservation Leaders Sing the Praises of the New and
Improved "Green Payments" Program- the CSP
-- Outside Influences Make the Cattle Business Unpredictable
-- Latest Crop Weather Update- Bring the Heat!
-- Calf preconditioning boosts ranch reputation and improves
industry
-- Wheat Groups Tell Advisory Committee that Carbs are OK
-- Land Grants Come Together for a Five State Beef Conference
-- Dis and Dat- ACRE, Pickens and Vic
-- Let's Check 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 are proud to have KIS Futures as a regular sponsor of our daily email update. KIS Futures provides Oklahoma Farmers & Ranchers with futures & options hedging services in the livestock and grain markets- Click here for the free market quote page they provide us for our website or call them at 1-800-256-2555. We are also excited to have as one of our sponsors for the daily email
Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, with 64 years of progress through
producer ownership. Call Brandon Winters at 405-232-7555 for more
information on the oilseed crops they handle, including sunflowers and
canola- and remember they post closing market prices for canola and
sunflowers on the PCOM
website- go there by clicking here. 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. | |
Oklahoma Conservation Leaders Sing the Praises of the New and Improved "Green Payments" Program- the CSP ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The United
States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) has announced the sign-up period for the new Conservation
Stewardship Program (CSP), heralding a new and exciting opportunity for
farmers, ranchers and other landowners, according to Trey Lam, President
of the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts (OACD). "The new CSP
program represents and real opportunity for those agriculture producers
and other landowners who practice good stewardship on their land," Lam
said. "Unlike traditional conservation programs that cost-share with
producers on improvements, this program will actually give a per acre
direct payment to producers based on how well they are managing their
natural resources. This represents a real opportunity to help the bottom
lines of Oklahoma producers."
"The Conservation Stewardship Program changed dramatically in the last Farm Bill", said Ronald L. Hilliard, NRCS Oklahoma State Conservationist. "NRCS took the time to develop a program that would appeal to our diverse customers and offer them an equal chance to participate. We hope that agricultural and forestry producers in Oklahoma take full advantage of the benefits this newly revised program offers." Matt Gard, Chairman of the Oklahoma Conservation Commission said that this new program will go hand in glove with state efforts to address natural resource concerns. "Along with NRCS, the Conservation Commission and local Conservation Districts work every day to help landowners address issues from soil erosion to water quality concerns, to wildlife habitat," Gard said. "We provide cost-share dollars and technical assistance to help reduce the cost of making these kinds of improvements, but with CSP, there is now a program that will actually put dollars in producers' pockets for good stewardship. This is a huge change that will really help reward those good stewards of the land." Click on our link below for more on what this program is all about- and what it can mean to farmers, ranchers and landowners here in the southern plains. Click here for more on the now available for signup Conservation Security Program | |
Outside Influences Make the Cattle Business Unpredictable ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The beef
cattle industry has changed significantly since the 1990s- and Tommy Beall
says that one major set of influences on the beef cattle industry today
versus 15 years ago are outside factors which we simply have little
control over. Some of those factors include politics, environmental regs,
weather, global markets and more.
Beall is a market analyst, who was a part of the Cattlefax family back in the 1990s, says that this past year has been especially a challenge for cattle producers- mainly feedlot operators. They got caught with high price feeders and high price corn when commodities did a dive in the fall of 2008. Beall believes we are just now getting worked through all of those excessive cost factors that are finally being worked through, with valuations finally getting in line to where money can be made by a cost conscious producer. Click on our link below for a part of our conversation with Tommy Beall that we had this past Saturday during the Southern Plains Beef Symposium- today's Beef Buzz will be the first of two or three days worth of comments with Tommy. Click here for our Tuesday Beef Buzz with Tommy Beall on challenges facing Cattlemen | |
Latest Crop Weather Update- Bring the Heat! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Triple digit
temperatures returned to Oklahoma last week. The highest temperature was
105 degrees recorded in Buffalo, Fairview and Walters. Severe
thunderstorms also rolled through the southern and central parts of State
during the previous week, bringing high winds and large hail. Atoka County
reported damage to several homes, however no injuries were
reported.This latest report- we have it linked below- is based on information as of the end of the weekend- and does not reflect a big rain event for about the northeastern half of the state. Several of the counties that got little rain from week before last have ended up with more than two inches of rain in short order in the last 24 hours. Now back to the Crop Report- "Despite recent triple digit temperatures, nearly all the State's row crop conditions continued to rate in the mostly good to fair range. However additional moisture is needed to ward off heat distress. Mostly light to no insect activity was reported. Corn silking neared completion at 97 percent, a four percent increase from last week. Corn in the dough stage reached 81 percent, two points ahead of the five-year average. Sorghum headed reached 40 percent complete, while sorghum coloring was nine percent complete by week's end. Soybeans in the blooming stage of development increased to 76 percent complete, nine percentage points ahead of normal. Soybeans setting pods increased 13 points from last week to reach 40 percent complete, three points behind the five-year average. Peanuts pegging increased to six points to reach 94 percent complete by week's end, while peanuts setting pods was 49 percent complete. Cotton squaring was at 92 percent complete, on schedule with the five-year average. Forty-one percent of the State's cotton acreage was setting bolls, 19 points behind normal." "Producers continued cutting and baling hay last week. Conditions for
both alfalfa and other hay remained rated mostly in the good to fair
range. Alfalfa third cutting was at 89 percent complete, three points
behind normal. The fourth cutting of Alfalfa increased to 33 percent
complete, a 20 percentage point increase from the previous week but nine
points behind last year. By week's end, other hay first cutting reached 92
percent complete, three points behind normal. Twenty-six percent of other
hay was being cut for the second time, seven points behind the five-year
average." Click here for the latest on the Oklahoma Crop Weather Update | |
Calf preconditioning boosts ranch reputation and improves industry ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mike Vorel of
Luther, Oklahoma sees calf preconditioning as a reputation management tool
for his ranch and the cattle that roll out of it each fall. "No matter
where our cattle go, I want them to do well for people," Vorel says. "I
work hard and take a lot of pride in our cattle and I want to get as much
value as I can out of them. But I also want them to be as healthy as
possible and I think that's something we all need to work on to improve
beef quality."
After several years of following his own protocols - and even fellow producers' recommendations - to manage his herd health, the Luther, Okla., producer decided to use the veterinarian-certified MERIAL SUREHEALTH Calf Preconditioning Program on his commercial and registered Brangus cattle. "Early on, I felt like I had just used bits and pieces of different people's ideas," Vorel says. "Then I decided to go with SUREHEALTH because I felt like it was a complete program." Vorel thinks the third-party certification that is part of SUREHEALTH is a key aspect to increasing the value of his calves. "I think the veterinarian certification helps tremendously," Vorel says. "When you go to the marketing facility today, it seems like every other pen of calves is announced as weaned and vaccinated, and it has gotten to the point where that just doesn't have much validity anymore. With SUREHEALTH, buyers know that calves have been vaccinated, treated for parasites and weaned." | |
Wheat Groups Tell Advisory Committee that Carbs are OK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Leaders of a
cross-section of wheat industry organizations wrote USDA's 2010 Dietary
Guidelines Advisory Committee last week emphasizing the importance of
carbohydrates to a healthy diet. The letter is one of a variety of
activities meant to provide industry comment to the dietary guidelines
revision process.
Specifically, the letter pointed out the results of a study published in the July 2009 Journal of the American Dietetic Association (JADA) comparing food intakes and body mass index (BMI) of non-dieting adults, based off information from a cross-sectional survey of 4,451 Canadians conducted in 2004-2005. In the study, the researchers looked at individual food intake as well as total caloric intake, leisure time energy expenditure, gender, smoking, education and income. They found participants who consumed 47 percent to 64 percent of their diet in the form of carbohydrates had the lowest risk of being overweight or obese. These individuals also ate more fruits, vegetables and fiber and less saturated fat, and a higher percentage reported being more physically active than those who ate fewer carbohydrates. The letter was signed by NAWG CEO Daren Coppock as well as the heads of the American Bakers Association; Biscuit and Crackers Manufacturers Association; Grain Foods Foundation; National Pasta Association; North American Millers' Association; and Wheat Foods Council. Click here for our webstory on this letter to USDA's Advisory Committee on Carbs Being Just Fine | |
Land Grants Come Together for a Five State Beef Conference ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The 5 State
Beef Conference was organized by cooperative extension and university beef
specialists in the 5 state area (Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico,
and Texas), with Land Grants in the five states all playing a part in
putting this educational effort together for cattle producers.
This program is primarily geared to cow/calf producers but the material will be of interest to stocker/feeder operations and feedlots as well. This conference will be an annual event rotated among locations (three locations each year) in the 5 state region. This year the events will be held in Dumas, Texas, Boise City, Oklahoma and La Junta, Colorado. We have details of the Conference on our website- including links to some previous Beef Buzz shows with Doug McKinney, one of the presenters that will be at the Five State Beef Conference later this month and early in September. | |
Dis and Dat- ACRE, Pickens and Vic ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The most
"clicked on" story from Monday was easily our
webstory and audio conversation with Francie Tolle, State Director of
the Farm Service Agency, about the final days of the ACRE signup. We got a
couple of responses from the Panhandle, the one part of the state where
ACRE is likely harder to pencil out and make work this year. Bob writes
"Unless I have missed something, the ACRE program is a farce out here in
the panhandle. If you are an above average grower of wheat or other crops,
your chances of collecting are about those of a snowball in Hell!! If you
are a mediocre to below grower, go for it." We also got an email from a producer in the Panhandle that has a bone to pick with the School Land Commission- that they are, for all practical purposes, blocking the opportunity for farmers on their lands with a wheat base to participate in ACRE. "The School Land Commission is refusing to sign off on any ACRE contracts on leases that expire before 2012. With this decision they are costing Oklahoma wheat farmers, who have been doing business with them for years, thousands of dollars. I can't see that the harm in having a farm enrolled in ACRE at lease time is as great as the harm they are doing their customers now!! Can anything be done about this in 5 days?" Any lawmakers out there that care to go to bat for these folks? The Pickens match at OSU found quite a few takers last summer, especially within the Division of Agriculture. This is where you could put in $250,000 and have that money turn into a million dollars through a rare matching program that combined money from the State Legislature and T Boone Pickens. That money could establish a Professorship or Chair at our Land Grant. I mention that this morning as we point you to a story on our website about Dr. Bill Raun, now officially the "Nutrients for Life" Professor, one of the endowments that became reality with the Pickens match of Fertilizer industry contributions. Click here to read about this position, which has a unique mission to consider the relationship of fertilizer use to the nutrients found in our food. Finally, sometimes the brain cells get rebellious- and take over my computer's keyboard. Our brain said the name is Vic Schoonover- our friend from southwest Oklahoma, who provides us with lots of good info on the cotton industry. Unfortunately, our fingers did no follow the direction from our braint- they came up a few letters short. Our apologies. | |
Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, PCOM, P & K Equipment/ P & K Wind Energy, Johnston Enterprises, AFR and KIS Futures for their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked here- just click on their name to jump to their website- check their sites 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. | |
Let's Check the Markets! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The total run
at the Oklahoma National Stockyards came in at 6,700 head of cattle on
Monday, with prices unevenly steady on the yearling weights, while calves
were called steady to firm by market reporters Jerry Alexander and John
Stacy. Five to six hundred pound calves ended up $105 to $107, while seven
to eight hundred pound steer yearlings brought $100 to $104. For the
complete rundown of prices from the Monday run at the
Oklahoma National Stockyards in Oklahoma City, Click here.
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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