Oklahoma's Latest Farm
And Ranch News
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Thursday, September 22, 2022
Welcome to Fall 2022!!!!
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Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update.
- First Emergency Drought Commission Meeting Has Lots of Ideas Chasing Limited Dollars
- Oklahoma Supreme Court Says SQ 820 on Recreational Marijuana Will Get a Vote- But Not in 2022
- Iowa Cattleman Tells Lawmakers About Improvements Needed in EQIP and CRP
- Cole Statement on 5th Federal Reserve Interest Rate Hike
- OSU's Seth Byrd Talks Harvest Aid Application for 2022 Cotton Crop
- $31 Million Headed to Oklahoma for Rural Broadband Buildout in Latest ReConnect Funding from USDA
- Congressman Frank Lucas Talks 2023 Farm Bill and Educational Priorities for Oklahoma at NFU Fly-In
- FAPC Announces Homemade Food Freedom Act Workshop Series
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First Emergency Drought Commission Meeting Has Lots of Ideas Chasing Limited Dollars |
Recently, Governor Kevin Stitt issued a drought declaration that activated the Emergency Drought Commission, which has been in place since the last major drought in Oklahoma. There has never been money available for the Commission to allocate, but that changed in the most recent State Legislative Session when $3 million was earmarked for this Commission if drought conditions warranted it.
The Commission consists of State Secretary of Ag Blayne Arthur, Oklahoma Conservation Commission Exec Trey Lam, and the Executive Director of the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, Julie Cunningham.
Farm Director, KC Sheperd, got the chance to catch up with Blayne Arthur, at the first meeting of the Emergency Drought Commission, which allowed ag groups and producers from around the state of Oklahoma to come and voice their needs and concerns.
Janet Stewart filled in for Trey Lam at the meeting and shared a proposed plan for the 84 districts which was met with a little pushback, but included $30,000 per conservation district, 90/10 cost share and more, including additional funds for the worst areas that had more applications and need a 60-day application process. This proposed plan will be looked at during the next meeting.
“We had some great public comment today and we are really appreciative of that,” Arthur said. “We heard from our ag groups who represent all of the folks impacted here in the state as well as some legislators who joined us here today. I think water was at the top of everyone’s list but also acknowledging the need that exists for livestock producers short on hay and pasture and also the point of, there is three million dollars, but that is not going to be enough, so how can we look at ways to stretch that money as far as possible.”
Arthur said the people who have been impacted the most this year need to be a top priority.
“My opinion is to prioritize the areas that have been impacted the most by the drought because they are suffering different challenges than some folks that have caught this moisture that we had over the summertime,” Arthur said. “It seems like a long time ago now, but certainly some areas of the state are greener than other areas and those really dry spots I think need to be prioritized.”
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Oklahoma Farm Bureau is a grassroots organization working to improve the lives of all Oklahomans by supporting our state’s agriculture community. As Oklahoma’s largest general farm organization, OKFB advocates for farmers and ranchers at the state Capitol and in Washington, D.C., to ensure our way of life continues for generations to come. With leadership events, supporting our state’s agricultural youth and connecting consumers with agriculture, Farm Bureau promotes and sustains Oklahoma agriculture in numerous ways. Join with OKFB today by becoming a member at okfarmbureau.org/join. Together, we are rural Oklahoma.
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Oklahoma Supreme Court Says State Question 820 on Recreational Marijuana Will Get a Vote- But Not in 2022 |
State Question 820 will NOT be on the November General Election Ballot
Oklahoma voters will have to wait for their chance to vote yes or no on State Question 820 until some time after the November 2022 General Election. The Oklahoma Supreme Court issued a ruling on Wednesday indicating that a vote will happen on State Question 820- but that the hard deadline (September 23, 2022) of needing to mail ballots to military made that an impossible task on September 21st when the Court ruled on the challenge to the Ballot Title and declared the State Question is ready for a vote.
While the secretary of state had certified that activists turned in enough valid signatures to qualify, officials said that the campaign missed procedural deadlines for the 2022 election, prompting the lawsuit that’s been under review by the state Supreme Court for the past several weeks until this ruling.
The President of the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Rodd Moesel, told yours truly that the general farm organization is pleased with the ruling which he contends protects the structure of how a initiative petition is handled in the state- and protects the rights of citizens to protest what can appear on a ballot. Listen to Moesel and Hays discuss the process and the decision that has come down from the Oklahoma Supreme Court- listen by clicking on the Blue Button below.
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Iowa Cattleman Tells Lawmakers About Improvements Needed in EQIP and CRP |
Several agricultural leaders testified before a house ag subcommittee on conservation this week, including Shayne Wiese, who is a cattle producer from the state of Iowa.
“I am the fifth generation of my family’s cattle ranch in west central Iowa, and we specialize in the production of high-quality Hereford bulls to sell to commercial cow-calf producers,” Wiese said.
Wiese represented the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association at the subcommittee hearing, offering comments for CRP (Conservation Reserve Program) and for the EQIP (Environmental Quality Incentives Program). Regarding the EQIP program, he said NCBA is grateful for that 50 percent cost-share that was part of the 2018 farm law.
“One important feature of EQIP has been its focus on livestock operations and we appreciate the 50 percent funding designation for livestock-related practices in the 2018 farm bill,” Wiese said.
While the intent of EQIP is to make conservation funding and technical assistance accessible to all providers, Wiese said barriers to entry often disincentivize producers from using NRCS programs.
“Recently, my family’s cattle ranch applied to receive EQIP cost-share funding, but after months of waiting, we gave up and completed a water infrastructure project without the assistance of the USDA,” Wiese said. “I see many other opportunities for our ranch to improve the land and environment with EQIP funding.
By creating additional hurdles for producers that want to use these programs, Wiese said the committee and USDA limit access while also limiting the government’s ability to record rancher’s environmental improvements.
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For our farmers who have either- always have had cotton on their farms- or those who have more recently have added the fiber crop to their operations- we have a daily report heard on several of our Radio Stations- It's Called Cotton Talk!
Click on the Button below to listen to our most recent report
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Cole Statement on 5th Federal Reserve Interest Rate Hike |
Congressman Tom Cole (OK-04) released the following statement after the Federal Reserve increased interest rates by 0.75 percent, which marks the fifth rate increase made this year in response to raging inflation.
“The Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates for the fifth time this year is yet another indication that Democrats’ self-created economic crisis is out of control and continuing to worsen,” said Cole. “While this repetitive action should serve as a sign to change course with their irresponsible spending and misguided economic policies, the Biden Administration and the Democratic majorities in Congress continue to ignore reality. Instead, they are wrongly celebrating their misnamed ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ and falsely claiming inflation is under control. The American people deserve better from their elected leaders.”
Lots of coverage in the media over the Wednesday rate hike- click here for one read that is available as of early this Thursday morning.
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We invite you to listen to us on great radio stations across the region on the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network weekdays-
if you missed this morning's Farm News - or you are in an area where you can't hear it- click below for this morning's Farm news from Ron Hays and KC Sheperd on RON.
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Sponsor Spotlight
Dating back to 1891, Stillwater Milling Company has been supplying ranchers with the highest quality feeds made from the highest quality ingredients. Their full line of A & M Feeds can be delivered direct to your farm, found at their Agri-Center stores in Stillwater, Davis, Claremore and Perry or at more than 125 dealers in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas and Texas. We appreciate Stillwater Milling Company’s long time support of the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network and we encourage you to click here to learn more about their products and services.
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OSU's Seth Byrd Talks Harvest Aid Application for 2022 Cotton Crop |
Farm Director, KC Sheperd, is visiting with Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension Cotton Agronomist, Dr. Seth Byrd, talking about the latest on the cotton crop.
“There are some harvest aids going out,” Byrd said. “We are going to have a potentially earlier window for harvest aids than normal, although last year the fall we had really accelerated maturity in the progress of the crop.”
Harvest aid application, Byrd said, will ramp up over the next couple of weeks. Byrd said he has seen some good patches of cotton this year along with the bad.
“There have probably been more spots that look visually good, then once you get out in them, they are not as good as you’ve hoped,” Byrd said. “There is still some good-looking cotton around. Obviously, some of the irrigated crop has got a little bit better water and had a fairly good year.”
Byrd said there was still some surprisingly good-looking dry-land relative to the year.
“This is the exact type of September you would like to see in a lot of years,” Byrd said. “A hot and dry September really isn’t a bad thing if you’ve got a crop with a big boll load, you’re a little bit behind, and you need some natural senescence from the leaves.”
The conditions this September won’t hurt anything, Byrd said, because at this point, yield potential was made a month ago in a year like this.
“This won’t hurt much, but we are not probably going to see the benefit on leaf senescence that we would maybe hopefully see in a year with a September this warm and dry,” Byrd said.
Regarding acreage that will need a harvest aid application, Byrd said it is not ideal to have to apply a little more product this year due to the drought, especially with low yield and low prices.
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Thirty One Million Dollars Headed to Oklahoma for Rural Broadband Buildout in Latest ReConnect Funding from USDA |
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that the Department is awarding $502 million in loans and grants to provide high-speed internet access for rural residents and businesses in 20 states. The funding is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to investing in rural infrastructure and providing reliable, affordable, high-speed internet for all. USDA is making the investments through the third funding round of the ReConnect Program. The Department will make additional investments for rural high-speed internet in the coming months, including funding from the Infrastructure Law, which provides $65 billion investment to expand affordable, high-speed internet to all communities across the U.S.
As part of today’s announcement:
Oklahoma’s Southern Plains Cable LLC is receiving an $8.1 million loan and an $8.1 million grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network that will connect 7,093 people, 230 businesses, six farms and 29 schools to high-speed internet in Caddo, Comanche, Cotton and Grady counties. Southern Plains will make high-speed internet affordable by participating in the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity and Lifeline programs. This project will serve the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache-Fort Sill Apache tribal statistical area as well as socially vulnerable communities in Cotton County. (Editor's Note- Southern Plains Cable LLC is owned by Hilliary of Medicine Park, Oklahoma- the parent company of OklahomaFarmReport.Com.)
The Osage Nation in Oklahoma is receiving over $13 million to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network. This network will connect 831 people, 18 businesses, and 128 farms to high-speed internet in Osage County in Oklahoma. The Osage Nation will make high-speed internet affordable by participating in the FCC's Affordable Connectivity Program.
In southeast Oklahoma- Valliant Telephone Company Inc. is receiving $883,000 in grant money to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network. This network will connect 200 people, 16 businesses and one educational facility to high-speed internet in Choctaw and McCurtain counties in Oklahoma.
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Congressman Frank Lucas Talks 2023 Farm Bill and Educational Priorities for Oklahoma at NFU Fly-In |
At the National Farmers Union Legislative Fly-In this past week in Washington, DC, Radio Oklahoma Ag Network intern, Cheyenne Leach, had the chance to visit with Congressman Frank Lucas about his work with G.T. Thompson on the 2023 Farm Bill and educational priorities for Oklahoma.
“G.T. and I visit regularly,” Lucas said. “When I did the 2014 Farm Bill, G.T. was one of my subcommittee chairmen, and when we did the 2018 Farm Bill, he was Chairman Conaway’s right-hand man. We have always worked closely together. I think the world of G.T. and I expect him to be chairman of the committee and I expect to be sitting right next to him on the ag committee when we do it.”
Title I as written in 2014 and 2018, Lucas said will still be effective in the upcoming Farm Bill.
The farm safety net, Lucas said, is what the farm bill is all about. While there is a large amount of nutrition money in the farm bill as well as a variety of other things such as conservation, rural development and ag research, the programs that make sure producers can deal with weather and price are of importance.
“The overall Farm Bill- and I think we will reauthorize the ’18 Farm Bill in 2023- is hard work,” Lucas said. “There is a whole bunch of my colleagues in congress who don’t have a clue where their dinner comes from, they don’t appreciate the effort it takes to get it on the plate and educating them is something we all have to work on.”
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FAPC Announces Homemade Food Freedom Act Workshop Series |
Oklahoma State University’s Robert M. Kerr Food and Agricultural Products Center is set to host three workshops designed to teach participants about the Homemade Food Freedom Act.
“Producing food for others is a big responsibility,” said workshop instructor Ravi Jadeja, FAPC quality and food safety specialist. “This workshop will help those interested understand the requirements of safely producing food and drink products for sale under this new law.”
The first of the three Homemade Food Freedom Act Workshop will take place on Sept. 28 at FAPC in collaboration with the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry on the OSU Stillwater campus. The next workshop is slated for Oct. 19 at the Red River Technology Center, 3300 W. Bois D’Arc Ave., in Duncan. The final workshop will take place on Nov. 30 at the Edmond Conference Center, 2833 Conference Dr., in Edmond.
The Homemade Food Freedom Act allows a broad range of homemade food products to be sold out of the home without health department licensing. Under the law, the annual sale of products cannot exceed $75,000 in gross sales and requires a food safety training to sell certain types of food. This workshop fulfills the requirement and provides additional tools to help producers provide a safe product to consumers while staying within the law guidelines.
Open to the public, each training will focus on explaining the law, what foods are and are not allowed, labeling, allergen management, good manufacturing practices, liabilities and legalities, food safety, and pH and water activity.
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OKC West is our Market Links Sponsor- they sell cattle three days a week- Cows on Mondays, Stockers on Tuesday and Feeders on Wednesday- Call 405-262-8800 to learn more.
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Today's First Look:
Ron on RON Markets as heard on K101
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
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Wholesale Boxed Beef Prices were higher- Choice Beef was down $2.51 and Select Beef was down $1.09 on Wednesday 09/21/2022.
Click on the Button below for the latest report from USDA Market News
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OKC West in El Reno had 4,911 head this week on Tuesday and Wednesday.
USDA Market News reports "Compared to last week: Feeder steers sold 2.00-4.00 higher. Feeder heifers traded steady to 4.00 higher. Demand moderate to good for feeder cattle. Steer calves traded steady to mostly 3.00 higher, heifer calves sold steady to 2.00 lower. Demand moderate for long weaned calves with multiple rounds of shots- BUT un-weaned or short weaned calves remain in light demand. Hot and dry conditions continue across the trade area."
Manager of OKC West, Bill Barnhart, adds these thoughts on their Facebook page Wednesday night-" No relief in sight for the current drought we’re in. Cows and calves are coming to market and will likely continue until it rains. Stockers were quoted as steady this week helped by lofty feeder futures and our current cash feeder market which continues to be very good. This week feeders sold steady to 4.00 higher on a light run.
Some producers have wheat in the ground. Most however are waiting for moisture as October approaches.
Click below for the complete closing report.
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Superior Livestock Video Auction
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Thursday, September 22, 2022
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OFFERING 35,300 HEAD
6,865 FEEDER STEERS 4,305 FEEDER HEIFERS
13,130 WEANED CALVES -
5,540 CALVES ON COWS
5,270 BEEF DAIRY CROSSES
200 BRED STOCK
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Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futures - click below for the latest update on the Livestock and Grain Futures Trade..
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Okla Cash Grain:
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- as reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture- The report available after the close of the Futures Trade for that day.
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Our Oklahoma Farm Report Team!!!!
Ron Hays, Senior Farm/Ranch Broadcaster and Editor
KC Sheperd, Farm Director and Editor
Dave Lanning, Markets and Production
Reagan Calk, Farm News and Email Editor
Pam Arterburn, Calendar and Template Manager
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Rural Oklahoma is full of some of the greatest success stories throughout the entire state and is a big reason why Oklahoma is on track to become a top 10 state.
The Road to Rural Prosperity dives into these stories, bringing you stories covering rural life, agriculture, energy, healthcare, tourism, and politics affecting rural America.
The Road to Rural Prosperity is here to tell stories about rural America, for rural America.
KC Sheperd shares the story of Joey Carter, a hard-working farmer who was widely regarded as a model citizen in a rural North Carolina town. Carter is the focus of a movie coming out in October called Hog Farmer- the Trials of Joey Carter.
He was not the type of person who ever expected to find himself caught up in the middle of a federal lawsuit involving some of the nation’s most ruthless trial lawyers and one of the world’s largest food companies.
But that’s exactly what happened when Joey’s family farm became the focal point in a series of nuisance trials that attracted national and international media attention. While his neighbors leveled charges of environmental racism in hopes of winning multi-million-dollar verdicts, Joey was left wondering how this could happen to a man who has always taken pride in playing by the rules.
Search for Road to Rural Prosperity and subscribe on your favorite Podcast platform.
To hear this podcast, you can click here or tap below:
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Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Oklahoma Ag Mediation Program, Great Plains Kubota, Stillwater Milling Company, National Livestock Credit Corporation, Oklahoma Beef Council, Oklahoma AgCredit, Union Mutual Insurance, the Oklahoma Cattlemens Association, 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- at NO Charge!
We invite you to check out our website at the link below too that includes an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.
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God Bless!
Reach Out To Us:
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Tim West
President/General Manager
Rural Oklahoma Networks
405-317-6361
***************
Mike Henderson
Director of Sales
405-615-4922
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KC Sheperd
Farm Director
Radio Oklahoma Ag Network
405-443-5717
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Ron Hays
Senior Farm/Ranch Broadcaster
Radio Oklahoma Ag Network
405.473.6144
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