Below is the latest wheat harvest report from the Oklahoma Wheat Commission:

Oklahoma Wheat harvest continues to move along in different areas depending on rain amounts and when producers can get into fields. Harvest is taking place from the Oklahoma/Texas line to the Oklahoma/ Kansas line. More progress has been made along the I-35 corridor up into Kansas on early cuttings, with producers just getting started in the Goltry/Helena areas, and Burlington/Alva regions of North Central and Northwest Oklahoma.  No harvest has been reported at elevator locations taking place from Shattuck up into the Panhandle regions of Balko and Hooker. It is thought some dryland harvest might begin in those Panhandle regions over the weekend or the beginning of next week. (A large amount of the dryland wheat in the Panhandle has been terminated and will not be harvested due to the severe drought.) In Southern, Oklahoma test weights at most locations are still falling in the ranges of 60-62 lbs. per bushel. In Central and West Central regions, test weights are ranging from 58-60 lbs. per bushel. Early reports from Northern, Oklahoma across the state have test weights ranging from 60-62 lbs. per bushel.

Yields on wheat being taken in as harvest progresses in Southern Oklahoma still favorable at this point. Most are reporting 30 to 40 bushel per acre yields in Southern Oklahoma. In Central Oklahoma the yields are ranging from the low 20’s to mid 30’s with better wheat being reported in the Greenfield and Hinton areas. No yields have been reported in the Northern Oklahoma locations from elevator managers as most locations are just getting good starts. Some producers are mentioning yields to be ranging in the low 20’s to low 40’s depending on location. Early reports show the wheat to be faring better along the Northern I-35 corridor than the wheat in Northwest Oklahoma, west of 81 Hwy. (Initial reports indicated the wheat was estimated to be doing better in South Central and Southwest Oklahoma and it appears those estimates are following what has been predicted.) Protein has been ranging from 10.5% to 13.5% in most all locations with stronger proteins overall. State average as of today for protein is being figured at 12.1%. 

The Oklahoma Wheat Commission is calling harvest 35% complete.



KIS FUTURES specializes in Futures and Options for Institutions, Commercials, Hedgers, and Individual Traders and executes trades for its clients in the following markets: Livestock, Grains, Energy, Metals, Softs, Financials, Currencies, and Stock Index Futures. For more information, please give them a call Toll Free at (800) 256-2555. Click here for their website to learn more.

And- their iPhone App, which provides all electronic futures quotes is available at the App Store- click here for the KIS Futures App for your iPhone.  

At the American Simmental Association STYLE (SimGenetics Training for Young Leaders and Entrepreneurs) Conference, Farm Director KC Sheperd talked with Ag Secretary Blayne Arthur about the recent legislative session and promoting agriculture in the state of Oklahoma.

“I think something that, from the ag world, that we get pretty comfortable with is talking to each other and not having those conversations with our consumers or just the rest of the population about why we do what we do, especially on the animal protein side of things,” Arthur said. “We are so excited that they are having this event and really growing some additional leaders in their association. We are looking forward to good things to come from them.”

Regarding the ranching conditions for producers in Oklahoma, Arthur said many producers are grateful for recent moisture, but pond levels are still lower than many would prefer.

“We are just in June, so we need that moisture to hopefully keep coming,” Arthur said. “It gets hot here in the summers.”

There is no question, Arthur said, that because of the severity of the drought, it will take a significant amount of rainfall for conditions to return to normal.

As the recent Oklahoma legislative session has now been wrapped-up, Arthur said there were plenty of positive discussions involving agriculture in the state.

New Technologies Help Beef Checkoff to Hit the Bullseye on Target Audiences

In this episode of Beef Buzz, I am back talking with the current Chief Executive Officer of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, Greg Hanes, about promoting beef to today’s consumer.

Marketing and promotion of the beef product has changed dramatically over the years, Hanes said, as social media now plays a large role in helping to see insight into which consumers are being reached.

“It makes it much easier to leverage those messages and target very specific groups and change their behavior,” Hanes said. “That is where I think we have seen really good results where these targeted groups are buying more beef and consuming more and expanding their knowledge of it.”

On the flip side, Hanes said, because much of the advertising such as Beef Checkoff promotions, are not seen by producers, many producers have questioned the effectiveness of these promotions. These efforts are still successful and reaching the correct audience, Hanes said, but producers are not that audience.

“That is because we assume they are eating the beef, so they are not seeing it,” Hanes said. “I can assure you that it is going to those consumers who are buying it."

The Beef Checkoff focuses on many different targets when marketing, Hanes said, including those metropolitan areas with a lot of people and not many cattle producers. Urban areas provide many protein options, Hanes said, so it is important to remind people that beef is a great choice.

On today’s Cow-Calf Corner is Bob LeValley, Oklahoma Beef Quality Assurance Coordinator, talking about total quality management.

One aspect of “quality” is providing products that meet or exceed expectations and established requirements. Established product requirements in the beef industry may differ somewhat from one segment of the industry to the next, but there are some common expectations fundamental to each.

The commercial cow/calf operator sells weaned calves, cull cows and bulls. Weaned calves should possess performance, health and potential carcass characteristics that satisfy stocker operators and cattle feeders, while meeting food safety requirements. Culled breeding stock must meet the food safety and carcass characteristic requirement of market cow and market bull processors.

As products of stocker operations, feeder cattle should meet the requirements of cattle feeders for performance, health, potential carcass characteristics and food safety. Fed cattle must meet the expectations of beef processors for health, carcass attributes and food safety. Commodity beef products must meet requirements of beef purveyors for fat cover, marbling, carcass size, safety, and lack of defects such as injection site blemishes, dark cutters, etc. Beef sold to the consumer, must meet expectations for both food safety and eating satisfaction.

NPPC Vice President Duane Stateler Gives His Take on Issues in the Pork Industry

At this year’s World Pork Expo, Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Intern Maci Carter had the chance to visit with the Vice President of the National Pork Producers Council, Duane Stateler. Stateler and Carter discussed Proposition 12, WOTUS, the pork market, and more.

“Of course, the Farm Bill is coming up,” Stateler said. “We’re trying to get that last of the three-legged stool passed for the Beagle Brigade. We asked for funding to get more FMD, you know, vaccines available for us, you know, to build that bank up.”

Stateler said there is a lot happening in the industry right now, from the Farm Bill to Beagle Brigade, and vaccines.

“Prop 12 is going to take effect in California July 1st, and I don’t know whether we’re going to really know exactly how it’s going to look until 11:59 on June 30th,” Stateler said. “We are working hand in hand with California because we don’t want disruption. As everybody knows, our markets are in a bad place right now, so we’re looking for a smooth transition.”

As pork producers did not receive the verdict they hoped for in terms of Proposition 12, Stateler said that NPPC is doing all it can to make this transition as smooth as possible. While it is still largely up in the air, Stateler said NPPC understands how tough of a position the industry is in and is hoping to make the best of this.

CAB Insider: Marbling Resilient, Premiums Tempered

In the past two weeks, fed cattle values have inflated at a rapid pace as packers continue to discover bullish feedyards and fewer market-ready cattle that will hit the higher percentages of Certified Angus Beef and Prime. As the feeding sector marked another record-high market average price, with steers in the six-state region averaging $188.56/cwt., competition in that area was very stout last week.

The price spread from north to south has narrowed a bit in the past couple of weeks as southern feedyards caught up to the packing sector’s position, demanding values a few dollars closer to prices attained in Nebraska and Iowa. Kansas negotiated steer prices averaged $185.52/cwt. while Nebraska and Iowa averages were each $190/cwt. and change. Texas feedyards sold just 5,092 steers at an average $184.56/cwt.

Besides record-high prices, the notable news in fed cattle last week was the large amount (95,200 head) that packers collectively purchased last week in negotiated cash and grid formats. Over 30% of these cattle were purchased for forward delivery in 2-4 weeks. Packers consequently increased their purchased inventory; and given their smaller head count, needs will likely be harder to trade with this week. A steady to lower market is the most obvious prediction for this week, with all other factors remaining equal.

TallGrass Video Auction Happens Today at 9 AM on Superior Livestock

It's the best of the Flint Hills and the Osage on display on Thursday as Superior Livestock presents the Tallgrass Video Auction on SLA-TV (Dish Channel 997) and on SuperiorClickToBid.Com- starting at 9 AM.

The sale is on location at the Lyon County Fairgrounds in the Anderson Building in Emporia, Kansas- the heart of the Flint Hills.

21,400 head will be offered- including 14,000 feeder steers and 4,800 feeder heifers.

To learn more- click here for the Superior Video Livestock website.

To View the Video Catalog Click Here

To View the Estimated Time Schedule Click Here

For more information please call Superior at 800-422-2117