Crop Conditions in the US and Oklahoma Fall in This Week’s Crop Progress Report- Cotton Down 15 Percent

U.S. corn, soybean and cotton conditions fell last week, according to USDA NASS’ weekly Crop Progress report released Monday. In the Southern Plains, overall crop conditions dropped this week compared to last. Wheat harvest is finally coming to a close in the southern plains- with Kansas at 95% complete in this week's report.

OKLAHOMA:

Corn silking reached 83 percent, up 1 point from the previous year and up 5 points from normal. Corn conditions rated 77 percent good to excellent, 16 percent fair and 7 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 80 percent good to excellent, 16 percent fair and 4 percent poor to very poor. 

Soybean blooming reached 55 percent, up 13 points from the previous year and up 15 points from normal. Soybeans setting pods reached 7 percent, down 3 points from the previous year. Soybean conditions rated 64 percent good to excellent, 31 percent fair and 5 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 77 percent good to excellent, 19 percent fair and 4 percent poor to very poor. 

Cotton setting bolls reached 55 percent, up 26 points from the previous year and up 25 points from normal. Cotton conditions rated 57 percent good to excellent, 20 percent fair, and 23 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 72 percent good to excellent, 23 percent fair, and 5 percent poor to very poor. 

Pasture and range conditions rated 58 percent good to excellent, 27 percent fair and 15 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 66 percent good to excellent, 26 percent fair and 8 percent poor to very poor. 



The Oklahoma Agriculture Mediation Program knows this is a hard time for farmers and ranchers. We want you to know we are still open, and we are still here for you. The Ag Mediation program is a free service that provides mediation to agriculture producers who may need help with ag-related disputes.

At Oklahoma Ag Mediation, we have been helping people in agriculture resolve conflicts since 1987. We know firsthand about working together to resolve conflicts, so you don’t have to go through the court systems. Let our professional mediators help you. Mediation is allowed for lease issues, farmer/neighbor disputes, family farm transitions, and more. These services are available at no cost for Oklahoma farmers and ranchers in all 77 counties. For more information, you can go to ok.gov/mediation, or give us a call at 800 248 5465.



Kenneth Corn Provides Info on Grants for Rural Oklahoma Healthcare and More

Farm Director, KC Sheperd, caught up with the Oklahoma State Director of USDA Rural Development, Kenneth Corn, and talked about grants totaling more than $4.6 million to assist 12 communities in expanding access to healthcare as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.

“One of the things the president has talked to us about is making sure people have access to healthcare no matter where they live and no matter where their zip code is,” Corn said.

These investments will help regional partnerships, public bodies, nonprofits, and Tribes solve regional rural healthcare challenges. These solutions will build a stronger, more sustainable rural healthcare system for the nation’s small towns and communities.

This is the second round of grants that will total $4.6 million, Corn said, out of about $11.2 million that Oklahoma received. Corn said these funds are to help improve rural healthcare systems, including hospitals, ambulances, clinics, and more.

Coming Off Record Export Numbers Last Year, Demand for U.S. Beef Remains Relatively Solid

In this episode of Beef Buzz, I am talking with the president and CEO of the United States Meat Export Federation, Dan Halstrom, about global demand for U.S. beef.

While the cutout is higher and supplies are shorter, Halstrom said the global demand for U.S. beef remains strong.

“For the most part, price has not been an issue so far, so I think that is a testament to a lot of the work that has been done over the years, and a confidence in U.S. beef,” Halstrom said.

Those year-over-year numbers are under, Halstrom said, but it is important to keep in mind that a year ago was an all-time high.

“We still are on track where we could be second or third largest year ever on exports, so overall, demand still continues to be, I would say, solid,” Halstrom said.

Looking at major customers such as Japan, Korea, and China, Halstrom said the year started off with pretty high inventories, which slowed things down, but there was an uptick in volume in April and May versus the first quarter.

Halstrom was one of several key players in the beef arena that we talked to at last week's Summer Cattle Industry Business Meetings in San Diego- our coverage powered by Farm Data Services of Stillwater.

Garfield County 4-H’er Madison Nickels believes the most important job as a leader is to inspire others. Through her 4-H project work and leadership roles in fabrics and fashions, breads, community service, and foods and nutrition, she has done just that.

The hard work and dedication Nickels devoted to her nine-year 4-H career culminated in a lifetime achievement recently when she was recognized as one of two Oklahoma 4-H Hall of Fame inductees. The honor is Oklahoma’s most prestigious 4-H award and was announced at the Masonic Charity Foundation of Oklahoma Honor Night Assembly during the 102nd State 4-H Roundup at Oklahoma State University. Nickels received a $5,000 scholarship sponsored by Farm Credit Associations of Oklahoma.

In addition, Nickels was awarded the $1,200 Rule of Law Graduating Senior Scholarship sponsored by the Rule of Law Endowment; the $3,000 NoBro Farms LLC Endowment; and the $2,000 Harold and Edith Shaw Memorial Ambassador Scholarship sponsored by the Shaw Family Endowment. She was also named a member of the Blue Award Group.

“4-H has helped me figure out my career plan,” Madison Nickels said. “It helped me recognize my passion for helping others, so I’ve decided to become a speech pathologist and help kids with their confidence.”

Producers Can Help Reduce Trimming at the Packer by Taking Certain Precautions

At the 2023 Annual Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association’s Convention and Trade Show, Associate Farm Editor, Reagan Calk had the chance to visit with the Vice President of Quality Assurance at Greater Omaha Packing, Dr. Kirby Childs.

“We are U.S. inspected, and 2450 head that we will process daily needs to be inspected by the United States Department of Ag Food Safety and Inspection Service,” Childs said.

While it is critical to meet USDA inspection criteria, Childs said it is also incredibly important to meet consumer expectations.

“We want to guarantee that no pathogenic bacteria or foreign objects would be available to get into that product,” Childs said.

As the value of the animal is driven by the quality of the carcass, Childs talked about how producers can help expand on that quality.

“The amount of red meat that we can get to that scale is paramount in how much profitability that animal is worth for the producer, feedlot guy, and the packer,” Childs said. “The less we have to trim off, the more that is available to be sold as a safe and wholesome product.”

2023 Oklahoma Fumigation Workshop Coming up in Stillwater

The 2023 Oklahoma Fumigation Workshop will be held on August 17 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the OSU Greenhouse Learning Center in Stillwater. If you need CEUs for Fumigation, Category 7C, several will be offered during this workshop. To keep your 7C certification active, you need 10 CEUs by Dec. 31, 2025 if you were certified for this entire cycle (2021-2025). 

You need at least 1 CEU by Dec. 31 of this year, 2023, for the possibility of re-certifying using CEU credits, otherwise you will have to re-test at the end of the cycle.  Registration is only available online using a credit card and the deadline is August 4. You can register online by visiting this link https://secure.touchnet.com/C20271_ustores/web/store_cat.jsp?STOREID=15&CATID=402. 

Please contact Edmond Bonjour at 405-744-8134 or edmond.bonjour@okstate.edu for more information or to receive a brochure.

July Cattle Update: Inventory Still Falling, Drought Conditions Improve

Cattle prices have come a long way in the first half of 2023. In fact, the weighted average market price for a steer this July is 27% higher than it was in July 2022. Drought and high input costs have driven many producers to market animals that would have been held back to grow their herds, and the resulting tighter cattle supplies are pushing retail beef prices to new highs. This Market Intel dives into the current supply and demand situation and provides an outlook on the second half of the year.

Supply – July 1 Cattle Inventory

The semiannual cattle inventory report is a record of all cattle and calves, number of operations, and size group estimates categorized by class, state and the country as a whole. The report is released in January and July. The July inventory uses information from the responses of 10,000 surveyed cattle operations. The more robust January survey is based on the responses of 50,000 operations.

In the July report, USDA estimated all cattle and calves in the United States on July 1, 2023, were 95.9 million head, down 3% compared to last year’s report. This is a bigger decrease than average analyst expectations of -2.3% or 96.3 million head. This is only 200,000 greater than the 2014 inventory of 95.7 million. U.S. beef cattle were estimated at 29.4 million head, marking a 52-year low for beef cattle supplies. When inventory levels were this low in 2014, average 5-market area (Texas/Oklahoma/New Mexico; Kansas; Nebraska; Iowa/Minnesota) fed steer prices rose about 30% from July 2013 to July 2014. The July 2023 5-market average is currently $184.21/cwt, which is about 27% greater than 2022. This seems high but if we adjust for 28.88% inflation over the last decade, to be equivalent to the average price received in July 2014, the average cash price for fed steers would need to reach $203.51 per hundredweight.