Oklahoma Decides SQ 820 Today- I'll Share With You My Vote

The day for the special election for the vote yea or nay for recreational marijuana has arrived. Voters across Oklahoma will decide on State Question 820- and everyone is expecting the level of turn out will decide whether Oklahoma becomes a bigger player in the marijuana world or voters say enough is enough.

Polls will be open from 7 am til 7 pm statewide.

The following thoughts about the State Question are mine- and mine alone.

I am honestly surprised that the question as written was allowed to go to a state vote- it sure seems like the concept of a state question only being about one thing was thrown out the window. This complex measure that voters are considering has multiple layers to it as the writers are dictating way more than just making recreational marijuana legal. It changes how our courts may rule on marijuana and changes how the courts may deal with the welfare of children in homes that have marijuana users as parents. It is a multifaceted bill that I hope lawmakers will have the moral courage to amend if a yes vote happens today.

I promised you that I would share my vote with you. My wife and I believe there is a lack of truthfulness of those pushing for a yes vote and how much worse the condition of our state will be if marijuana becomes any more prevalent than it already is- and our votes(early this past Thursday) was no.

Our major state ag organizations have called for a NO vote- and I agree with them. Study the issue more if need be but before the polls close this evening- I trust you will exercise your right to vote.

According to the Oklahoma Crop Progress and Condition report released on March 6, 2023, winter wheat was rated 39 percent good to excellent (one percent rated excellent), 21 percent fair and 40 percent poor to very poor. This time last year, winter wheat was rated 15 percent good to excellent, 28 percent fair and 57 percent poor to very poor. Winter wheat grazed reached 63 percent, down 3 points from the previous year, but up 9 points from normal.

On the negative side of things- Pasture and range conditions rated 7 percent good to excellent (one percent was rated excellent), 34 percent fair and 59 percent poor to very poor. This time last year, pasture and range conditions rated 31 percent good to excellent, 23 percent fair and 37 percent poor to very poor.

Likewise- the Kansas Wheat Crop is looking less favorable compared to the 2022 crop at this point last year- the 2023 crop is rated at 17% good to excellent- it was 24% good to excellent last March.



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I got to visit with the President of the Oklahoma Youth Expo and Onward Foundation, Tyler Norvell, about the 108th year at OYE as it kicks off this week.

“This year, we awarded over 350,000 dollars in scholarships, so what is great about that, the young people can only use the money here in Oklahoma,” Norvell said. “So, we keep our most precious resource here in our state, and then I fully expect the premium sale to hit that 1.3 to 1.4, maybe 1.5 million dollars, just depending on how things finish up and what young people get into the sale.”

It is the fourth year for the ag mechanics show at OYE, Norvell said and there will be 240 entrees this year. To put it into perspective, Norvell said the first year of the ag mechanics show, there were 50 entrees.

“It just continues to grow,” Norvell said. “It is cool to see the young men and women that are part of that, that may not have livestock, but they are able to show their skills and their potential careers and jobs that they can do. Our sponsors continue to grow there.”

Sponsorship of the Oklahoma Youth Expo is tremendous this year, Norvell said, and he is excited about some new sponsors this year as well. Many sponsors enjoy being part of the event, Norvell said, to make impressions on the youth of the show who will make great future hires.

“There will be plenty job opportunities for these young people and probably jobs offered Wednesday at the (ag mechanics) show, because of the issues with our workforce,” Norvell said.

Our coverage of the 2023 OYE is sponsored by Hilliary Communications, who deliver the latest cutting-edge communications services supporting tens of thousands of customers across 22 counties throughout Oklahoma, Texas and Iowa. The company offers internet, voice and HilliaryTV.

ESG Gaining Notoriety as Sustainability Conversations Become More Frequent

In this episode of Beef Buzz, I am back talking about the conversation on ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) with Colorado State University Feedlot Systems Specialist, Dr. Sara Place.

“ESG stands for Environmental, Social, Governance, and it is really this catch-all for sustainability that a lot of companies are using to report their progress on to investors, to big banks, to hedge funds, and there is this increasing expectation that companies will,” Place said. “So, why it matters for beef is there is companies that are selling beef, that are processing beef, that are reporting on these ESG metrics that have implications back down the supply chain in terms of things like greenhouse gas emissions that are in that framework.”

Place also talked about individuals who have taken an anti-agriculture view, specifically focusing on farm production.

“There are different groups out there, different ESG rating agencies, or folks that will put out white papers and reports to try to inform the investment community- people like pension fund managers, folks like that- that maybe have an unfriendly view to modern intensive animal production,” Place said. “That really comes from a standpoint of saying, ‘well this industry is causing risk, whether it is to water supplies or to the climate.’ So, that is one of those key places where we need to have good information, need to make sure science is driving these discussions, rather than perception in these different risk discussions.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a proposed rule on March 6, 2023 with new regulatory requirements aimed at aligning the voluntary “Product of USA” label claim with consumer understanding of what the claim means. The proposed rule allows the voluntary “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” label claim to be used on meat, poultry and egg products only when they are derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the United States. 

KC Sheperd, Farm Director, had the chance to visit with the President of American Farmers and Ranchers, Scott Blubaugh about these new requirements and more.

Blubaugh is currently attending the National Farmers Union National Convention in San Francisco, where he had the opportunity to listen to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack talking about the USDA proposing new requirements for the “Product of USA” label claim.

“I was really excited to hear that the Department of Agriculture there, USDA, filed in the federal registry new rules regulating the use of the product of USA label,” Vilsack said. “We have argued for many years now that there is a lot of fraud and deception that has gone on in that program, where they are labeling beef that comes from outside of the United States as a product of the USA label.”

In the past, products packaged in the U.S. could receive the label, Blubaugh said, which is not acceptable for consumers in the U.S. or AFR.

On Monday, NCBA Executive Director of Government Affairs Kent Bacus released the following statement on the USDA’s new proposed rulemaking regarding the “Product of USA” label:

“There is no question that the current “Product of USA” label for beef is flawed, and it undercuts the ability of U.S. cattle producers to differentiate U.S. beef in the marketplace. For the past few years, NCBA’s grassroots-driven efforts have focused on addressing problems with the existing label, and we will continue working to find a voluntary, trade-compliant solution that promotes product differentiation and delivers profitable solutions and for U.S. cattle producers. Simply adding born, raised, and harvested requirements to an already broken label will fail to deliver additional value to cattle producers and it will undercut true voluntary, market-driven labels that benefit cattle producers. We cannot afford to replace one flawed government label with another flawed government label.”

USCA President Justin Tupper issued the following statement: 

“In our 2019 petition for rulemaking to FSIS, USCA called out the practice of applying ‘Product of the USA’ and ‘Made in the USA’ labeling claims on beef products that the food safety agency itself admitted could have come from other countries. 

“USCA is pleased to see that the proposed rule finally closes this loophole by accurately defining what these voluntary origin claims mean, something we have been working to clarify since the repeal of mandatory country-of-origin labeling in 2015. If it says ‘Made in the USA,’ then it should be from cattle that have only known USA soil. Consumers have the right to know where their food comes from, full stop..."

Dr. Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist, offers his economic analysis of the beef cattle industry as part of the weekly series known as the “Cow Calf Corner” published electronically by Dr. Peel and Mark Johnson. Today, Dr. Peel talks about the cattle markets.

For the first time in several years it appears that all segments of cattle and beef markets are on the same page and responding to tightening supply fundamentals. The complex linkages across cattle and beef markets mean that the dynamics of market adjustments are relatively slow under the best of circumstances. Delays due to the pandemic in 2020 stretched into 2021 and drought impacts since late 2020 contributed to a delayed transition of fundamentals from feeder cattle markets, through fed cattle markets into beef markets.

Cattle numbers have declined for several years since the peak beef cow herd in 2019. Declining calf crop numbers (from the 2018 peak) should have led to peak cyclical beef production by 2020. Pandemic delays pushed beef production from 2020 into 2021. Drought liquidation in 2021 and 2022 led to further short-term increases in beef production. Record beef production in 2022 occurred four years after the peak calf crop. Drought the past two years resulted in additional heifer placements and caused early marketing of calves in 2022 that maintained feedlot inventories above year earlier levels until late in the year. Feedlot inventories have declined year over year for five consecutive months and will continue decreasing. Feedlot marketings and beef production were higher year over year in January but that appears to be changing.  

Biden-Harris Administration Announces Investments to Create Fairer Markets, Lower Prices in Oklahoma

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Oklahoma State Director Kenneth Corn announced today that the Biden-Harris Administration is investing $14 million to finance the startup and expansion of independent meat processors across Oklahoma. These funds will be used to capatilize a revolving loan fund that will provide low-interest rates to multiple beef and and poultry plants across Oklahoma to strengthen their capacity, be more resilient, and ultimately secure the nation’s food supply chain.

The $14 million of investments announced today in Oklahoma support the Biden-Harris Administration’s Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain, which dedicates resources to expand independent processing capacity. As President Biden has highlighted, creating fairer markets and more opportunities for family farmers helps bring down prices at the grocery store.

“President Biden recognizes the need to expand processing capacity by creating a market that is fair for all Oklahomans and develop more revenue streams for our agriculture producers,” Corn said. “Under the President and USDA’s leadership, these investments will allow Oklahoma families to afford putting quality food on the dinner table by reducing inflation at our supermarkets and keep our Oklahoma ranchers and farmers from getting unfairly squeezed by large corporate meat processers by creating more competition in the marketplace for their product.”