Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
From: Ron Hays <ronphays@cox.net>
Date: 7/27/2018 5:14 AM
To: ron@ronhays.com



 
OK Farm Report banner
 

Follow us on Twitter    Find us on Facebook    View our videos on YouTube

   

     View my photos on flickr

We invite you to listen to us on great radio stations across the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network weekdays- if you missed this morning's Farm News - or you are in an area where you can't hear it- click here for this morning's Farm news from Ron Hays on RON.
 
 
 
Let's Check the Markets!  



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.
 
 
   
Today's First Look:
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
 
 
Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futuresclick or tap here for the report posted yesterday afternoon around 3:30 PM.
 
 
Okla Cash Grain:  
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- as reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture on Thursday, July 26th.
 
  
Futures Wrap:  
Our Daily Market Wrapup from the Radio Oklahoma Network - analyzing the Futures Markets from the previous Day.
 
Feeder Cattle Recap:  
The National Daily Feeder & Stocker Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
 
Slaughter Cattle Recap: 
The National Daily Slaughter Cattle Summary- as prepared by the USDA.
 
TCFA Feedlot Recap:  
Finally, here is the Daily Volume and Price Summary from the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
 


 
Our Oklahoma Farm Report Team!!!!
 
Ron Hays, Senior Farm Director and Editor

Carson Horn, Associate Farm Director and Editor 
 
Pam Arterburn, Calendar and Template Manager
 
Dave Lanning, Markets and Production

Oklahoma's Latest Farm and Ranch News
 
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON
   Friday, July 27, 2018

Howdy Neighbors! 

Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 
Okla4HFeatured Story:
Brandi Moore and Reagan Stephens Inducted into Oklahoma 4-H Hall of Fame

Over a thousand 4-H members, volunteer leaders, parents and other supporters of the organization have been in Stillwater on the campus of Oklahoma State University this week for the 2018 Oklahoma 4-H Roundup. The young people have been involved in workshops and other hands on activities- and ninety of them were on the receiving end of a hundred thousand dollars worth of scholarships that were given out during the Awards Program held Thursday evening. 

Ahead of that evening celebration, I talked with the outgoing President of the Oklahoma 4-H, Brandi Moore of Pittsburg County (click here to take a listen). We talked about her 4-H career, what participating in Roundup means to 4-H members that attend the annual conference and what her future has in store as she finishes her 4-H career. She will pass the gavel of the Presidency on Friday morning.



After we talked- Brandi, along with Reagan Stephens of Custer County, heard their names called as the two 2018 Oklahoma    4-H Hall of Fame Award winners- the Hall of Fame designation has been around for some 60 years and is the highest honor an Oklahoma 4-H member can receive. 

Click here to read more about Brandi Moore -

and

Click here to read more about Reagan Stephens 



Sponsor Spotlight


It's great to have the Livestock Exchange at the Oklahoma National Stockyards as a sponsor for our daily email. The eight Commission firms at the Stockyards make up the exchange- and they are committed to work hard to get you top dollar when you consign your cattle with them. They will present your cattle to the buyers gathered each Monday or Tuesday at one of the largest stocker and feeder cattle auctions in the world.
 
Click here for a complete list of the Commission firms that make up the Livestock Exchange at the Oklahoma National Stockyards- still the best place to sell your cattle- and at the heart of Stockyards City, where you can go around the corner enjoy a great steak and shop for the very best in western wear.

FarmBillLeaders of and Senate Ag Committee Meet to Discuss Farm Bill Ahead of Conference Meeting


Senate Ag Committee Chair Pat Roberts, Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, House Ag Chair Michael Conaway, and Ranking Member Collin Peterson met today about the farm bill conference. The meeting took place even though the Senate hasn't voted to go to conference.


The Hagstrom Report says, "The Big Four," as they're sometimes called, issued a brief joint statement that didn't mention any of the major differences between the two bills. The biggest differences between the two bills are the work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and payment limits.


The statement says, "We look forward to working together to get a farm bill done as quickly as possible and we're committed to finding solutions to resolve the differences. We must keep working to provide American farmers and families with the certainty and predictability they need and deserve."


An aide involved in the talks say the four have agreed to weekly phone calls, have begun discussing when they can meet in August and are committed to having a new farm bill in place by September 30.


Click here to review the joint statement released by the House and Senate leadership, yesterday, on our website.
 
DroughtMassive Changes in this Week's Drought Monitor Illustrate Drought's Rapid Rate of Expansion in Oklahoma





Drought is intensifying quite rapidly across the state, according to 
State Climatologist Gary McManus referencing the latest drought monitor and its change maps this week.


In his Mesonet Ticker newsletter, he writes that the "4-week change is bad enough, but the 1-week change is massive." Not shocking, considering the week of record heat that we just came off of, and the extended period of above normal temperatures that date back to May and beyond.


The most notable changes seen this week include a 15 percent increase in Abnormally Dry areas in the state from 72 percent last week to now 87 percent. Moderate Drought area rose 9 points since last week, now up to 61 percent currently and Severe Drought climbed approximately 5 points from 29 to 34 percent. Extreme Drought increased moderately by just one point, now recorded at 10 percent with Exceptional Drought, the worst category unchanged this week at zero.


Click here for a closer look at this week's Drought Monitor Map or to read this week's edition of the Mesonet Ticker newsletter for more information on the current drought conditions in Oklahoma.


Sponsor Spotlight

 
We are pleased to have American Farmers & Ranchers Mutual Insurance Company as a regular sponsor of our daily update. On both the state and national levels, full-time staff members serve as a "watchdog" for family agriculture producers, mutual insurance company members and life company members.

Click here to go to their AFR website to learn more about their efforts to serve rural America!

FiveFood Fight - NCBA President Kevin Kester Calls Out FDA's Regulatory Power Grab Over 'Fake Meat'

Awareness of what the beef industry is calling "fake meat" is on the rise. Kevin Kester, president of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, touched on that topic with us during the 66th Annual Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association Convention & Trade Show recently. According to him, everywhere he goes these days, the issue of fake meat is on everyone's minds, wanting to know the latest developments on the process being undertaken to appropriately regulate the new product.


"There's two components... plant-based fake meat, the Beyond Burger, Impossible Burger - those products are already on the market," Kester explained, noting that the Food & Drug Administration currently has jurisdiction over this product's regulation, but contends FDA's track record of performance has been poor over the past 20 years. He says this is something the NCBA has been working on to get the FDA more actively engaged. "What's new are the cell-based, or what I call a petri-dish fake meat. Those products will be coming out probably in the not too distant future."


Come to find out, though, Kester says there is no agency in government with jurisdiction over cell-based food products, since there has never been such a thing before. Based on the inefficiency of FDA's past performance, Kester says NCBA is advocating that the USDA, specifically its Food Safety Inspection Service be granted oversight of this new product. He claims the USDA will be much more stringent in their marketing and inspection requirements. This is something he insists consumers want and have asked for. With the association's annual Denver business meeting coming up, he believes it will be a major topic of discussion in addition to other concerns such as traceability, vaccine bank development, etc.


"We want to make sure whatever products come out of the lab have the same protocols and requirements for food safety inspection systems that we go through," Kester said. 


On Thursday, Kester sent a letter to President Trump, urging that he intervene in this dispute and support USDA's claim of having rightful jurisdiction over fake meat products. Click here to read more on that story.


Listen to Kester and Hays discuss the latest on the fake meat front, on today's Beef Buzz - click here.

SixGeneSeek's John Paterson Swears by Genomic Testing as New Cornerstone of Herd Selection Tools

Dr. John Paterson's career in the beef industry spans several decades. These days though, Paterson finds himself post-retirement, yet still working - currently for Neogen's Geneseek company. He sat down with our own Carson Horn recently to offer some of his advice on what genetic selection tools are out there and how they can be used to essentially breed better cattle.
 

"Now, I've got to tell you the technology is going fast," Paterson remarked. "We are now predicting performance for a 9-day-old embryo... versus waiting four years to see if I made the right decision on a heifer or a bull. And, we're doing that by taking a peak under the hood so to speak, by saying what's this animal look like in terms of average daily gain, calving ease, maternal calving ease direct, heifer pregnancy rate... We're trying to help that rancher predict some of those things."


When coupled with the more familiar EPD data - Paterson says the accuracy of the information collected is improved exponentially and should give the producer increased confidence in their decisions.


This technology has actually been so successful that several major breed associations are, in fact, adopting the technology to collect whole herd reporting on everything - heifers, cows and bulls. Now, while he believes whole-heartedly in genomic testing, Paterson adds - you can't solely rely just on it when making your selection decisions.


"I tell guys, when you're making a selection, you've still got to use your eyes out there," he said. "Genomics is going to give you the genetics, but your eye is still important out there."
 

Click here to read the original article or listen to Paterson's complete conversation with Carson, for more of his expert advice.

SevenPlains Grains Reports Wheat Harvest in the Southern Plains 100 Percent Complete for OK, KS, TX

 
On a weekly basis, Plains Grains continues to follow the Hard Red Winter Wheat Crop Harvest northward- collecting samples from the grain sheds of the HRW belt- and producing updates on the quality of the crop. Plains Grains and Director Mark Hodges also offer a weekly harvest progress report- and the following is from the latest report released Thursday, July 26:


"The 2018 HRW wheat harvest continues to wind down in Colorado (95 percent complete) and Nebraska (89 percent complete). However, in northwest Nebraska, continuing showers slowed harvest progress again this week while in the far west central portion of the state harvest ranged from 80 to 100 percent complete depending on planting dates and varieties."
 

According to the state-by-state breakdown of this week report, practically all of the Southern Plains states including Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas has all reached 100 percent completion in their respective harvests for 2018 (although Kansas is technically rated this week at 99 percent complete by PGI). Limited information available this week on the quality of grain coming in, but based on 378 of an expected 500 samples, PGI is reporting that overall test weights have increased while protein levels have decreased - reflecting some of the areas that were impacted less by drought conditions during the growing season.


To see more details about the harvest progress- and to review the latest quality information in graph form- 
click or tap here for the Plains Grains Website.

BLANKGrowth Energy Applauds President's Reaffirmation of Support for Year-Round E15 Sales at the Pump

Thursday in Iowa, President Donald Trump announced he was "very close" on delivering E15 year-round. Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor issued the following statement in response to the President's comments:


"We are pleased to hear President Trump say he is 'very close' to making E15 available year round, fulfilling his promise to America's farmers. Increased access to US markets will provide America's farmers with some financial confidence, and we hope that President Trump will direct the EPA to act quickly to provide year-round RVP relief."


Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, American Farmers & RanchersLivestock Exchange at the Oklahoma National StockyardsOklahoma Farm Bureau, Stillwater Milling Company, National Livestock Credit CorporationOklahoma Beef Council, Oklahoma AgCredit,  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 also appreciate our Market Links Sponsor - OKC West Livestock!
 
 
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.   
 

 
God Bless! You can reach us at the following:  
 
phone: 405-473-6144
 

 



© 2008-2014 Oklahoma Farm Report
Email Ron   |   Newsletter Signup

Oklahoma Farm Report, 2401 Exchange Ave., Suite F, Oklahoma City, OK 73108
Sent by ronphays@cox.net in collaboration with
Constant Contact