As we fire out this email on this Friday morning, Senate Democrats are decrying the selection of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to be the next Administrator of the EPA- replacing Gina McCarthy who critics contend orchestrated a huge amount federal government overreach into the lives of farmers and ranchers and other land owners across the US.

Both Oklahoma Senators have spoken on the floor of the Senate in favor of General Pruitt. Oklahoma's Junior Senator James Lankford told colleagues "It is an absolute honor today to be able to rise and speak in support of Attorney General Scott Pruitt. For the last six years, Scott has been a leader in the state of Oklahoma and he has been strongly committed to enforcing the law in Oklahoma, as it's written and as is consistent with the Constitution. He's a statesman. He's a dedicated public servant. As the Administrator of the EPA, I fully expect Scott to lead the agency to follow every environmental law, and to partner with states, local authorities, and tribes to do what's best for the present, and for the future.

You can watch James Lankford here


 
One of the major issues that farmers and ranchers are hoping EPA Administrator Pruitt will quickly tackle is WOTUS. Scott Yager, environmental counsel for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association is keeping his fingers crossed that once confirmed, Pruitt will act quickly to put the Waters of the US rule out to pasture, once and for all. Yager and I spoke recently about what other avenues NCBA is taking in the meantime, covering all their bases, to take down WOTUS.

"We want Pruitt to get confirmed as quickly as possible," Yager said, echoing that wish for the vacant leadership positions in the agency as well," so they can reexamine the WOTUS rule. Then ultimately, they could decide to withdraw it through a federal rule making process."

Yager was our featured guest for yesterday's Beef Buzz- take a listen and read more by  clicking or tapping here.

The results of the February 2017 edition of the Food Demand Survey (FooDS) were released this week and highlighted the fact that compared to one month ago, consumers' willingness-to-pay (WTP) decreased for all food products.

Also, each month, the survey's administrator Dr. Jayson Lusk usually adds several ad hoc questions posed to respondents. This month, he asked consumers their thoughts on the herbicide glyphosate as well as their WTP for organic vs. non-organic apples and granola bars, before and after receiving information on glyphosate. In summary, Lusk found that the negative information provided had a much larger impact on the opinions of the responders.


"We were interested, in particular, about forms of confirmation bias - where people seek out information that may confirm their prior beliefs, and by the research in cultural cognition," Lusk wrote in his blog over the survey, "which suggests we choose information to believe based on our 'tribe'."

For more details and to take a look at this month's survey report for yourself, click here.

Members of the House Agriculture Committee heard from a panel of witnesses who, yesterday, discussed several challenges associated with the potential restriction of what food products that can be purchased through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

The House Ag Committee also found time yesterday to pass two bills highly regarded to users of pesticides and their ability to operate in a highly regulated, yet predictable environment. The Committee passed in a voice vote H.R. 1029, The Pesticide Registration Improvement Act, addressing funding of the Environmental Protection Agency, and H.R. 953, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act.

H.R. 1029, or PRIA, adjusts fee amounts, increases transparency, encourages Good Laboratory Practices, and adds flexibility to the use of collected fees.

H.R. 953 clarifies that federal law does not require this redundant permit for pesticide applications already authorized under federal pesticide law and would amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act and CWA to clarify Congressional intent regarding the regulation of the use of pesticides in or near navigable waters - specifically that no permit is required for the lawful application of a registered pesticide.

Beau Greenwood, executive vice president of government relations and public affairs at CropLife America came out applauding the leadership of Chairman Conaway, Chairman Davis, Ranking Member Peterson and Ranking Member Lujan Grisham for "their swift action in reauthorizing the pesticide industry's fee-for-service program."

Click here to get the full story as well as Greenwood's full reaction to the House Ag Committee's passage of these two important bills.

How should farmers decide on whether or not to spend the resources to harvest their crop this year, when the prospect of turning a profit remains uncertain for so many. This is the question posed to OSU's Grain Market Specialist Dr. Kim Anderson this week on SUNUP. He advises producers simply to start by looking at what the markets are offering.

According to Anderson, using the Kansas City July contract, wheat producers could stand to make $4.10 for their wheat. Citing the CBT December contract, corn farmers can expect to receive about $3.40 at harvest. Using that same contract basis, sorghum producers may claim $3.15 a bushel. Soybean farmers could potentially secure about $9.50 based on figures from the Chicago November contract. Not leaving out canola - Anderson says producers can count on $7.10 at the elevator.


Cotton was also discussed as Anderson says reports indicate there may be a significant increase in the number of planted acres this next year. He says though that prices should land around $0.71. However, if it turns out to be a very large crop, he suggests that prices may hover somewhere in the $0.60 range, based off the December contract from the Cotton Exchange.


You can watch their visit tomorrow or Sunday on SUNUP - but you can hear Kim's comments right now by clicking here.

There is still time for agricultural producers interested in exploring how no-till practices may benefit their operations to register for the next Oklahoma No-Till Conference. However! Today is the LAST DAY to save money with an early bird registration.

The conference will take place March 7 and 8 at the Grand Casino Hotel and Resort in Shawnee. The cost is $125 per participant if registering before Feb. 17 and $150 thereafter.

Conference sessions will be led by experienced no-till producers and agricultural specialists from industry, academia and applicable government agencies.


Session topics will include the latest science-based practices and information relative to new herbicide technologies; alternative crop management; weed and pest management; cover crops and soil health.

For more conference details or to register for this event, click or tap here.

 

The 112th Annual Meeting of the American Farmers & Ranchers/Oklahoma Farmers Union gets underway today at the Embassy Suites in Norman- a great lineup of speakers has been assembled, several Board Seats are up for grabs and the group will be working on a variety of issues as they set policy for the coming year.

Click here for the schedule and program that gives you all the details of when everything is happening- we will be around later today and much of tomorrow at the convention- if you are there and see me- please say howdy- you are the best part of meetings like this one!

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If you live in the Oklahoma City TV marketplace- be sure and roll out of bed tomorrow morning and join Susan Allen and I In the Field on KWTV News9- Susan is with DairyMAX and we will be talking about some of the latest promotion efforts that DairyMAX has going on behalf of the dairy industry here in Oklahoma- our segment is a part of the Morning News Show on News9- and airs around 6:40 AM- later in the morning- we will get it posted on our website- OklahomaFarmReport.Com in case you miss it!


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More rain in the mix???  Yep- with southern Oklahoma once again hogging the larger expected amounts- here is the latest 7 day Precipitation Map- posted on Twitter by our friend Bryce Anderson of DTN:



You might also want to look at the nine day forecast for central and western Oklahoma- courtesy of Jed Castles of News9:



For eastern Oklahoma folks- you may want to read the words and wisdom of Alan Crone from the News on 6- his latest weather blog is available here.

Spoiler alert- he warns if could be quite chilly next weekend!