In this episode of Beef Buzz, I am visiting with the Vice President of Governmental Affairs at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Ethan Lane, about the election of the new Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson.

“This has been a true test of relationships on Capitol Hill and some of the fashions in the House Republican conference,” Lane said. “Those have been on full display in the last 22 days. I believe they have taken more Speaker votes since the first of October than all the way back to 1989 in the House of Representatives.”

Lane said Mike Johnson has been heavily considered by many since the beginning of the process.

“The reason for that is the level of respect his colleagues in the House Republican Conference have for him,” Lane said. “He a principled conservative, he is a man who definitely is low on acrimony and high on what we call ‘comity’ in the House of Representatives, goodwill, he engages with a smile, he is a gentleman…,” Lane said.

By all accounts, Lane said Mike Johnson is someone who sees the world the same way as cattle producers and members of NCBA.



Oklahoma Farm Bureau works to improve the lives of all Oklahomans by supporting our state’s agriculture community. As Oklahoma’s largest general farm organization led by Oklahoma farmers and ranchers, OKFB takes grassroots values and advocates for agriculture at the state Capitol and in Washington, D.C., to ensure our way of life continues for generations to come.

Farm Bureau hosts leadership events, supports our state’s agricultural youth and connects consumers with agriculture in order to build a brighter future for our state. Become an OKFB member today online at okfarmbureau.org/join. Together, we are rural Oklahoma.



Not Many Changes Seen in this Week’s Oklahoma Drought Monitor

According to the latest Oklahoma drought monitor report, exceptional drought remains at zero percent, unchanged from the past three months.

Extreme drought or worse is at 13.47 percent, unchanged from last week.

Severe drought or worse is at 33.91 percent, unchanged from last week.

Moderate drought or worse is at 49.29 percent, up slightly from last week’s 48.24 percent.

Abnormally dry or worse conditions are at 72.12 percent, improved slightly from last week’s 73.02 percent.

To see this week's drought numbers for Oklahoma click the Oklahoma drought map above the story.

Across the region- Kansas is virtually the same this week versus last- Severe drought edges up from 50.2% to 50.6% this week- Missouri is worse than last week with severe drought now at 33.5% versus 31.8% last week while there is a slight improvement in Texas numbers- severe drought now stands at 52.7% versus 53.45% a week ago. Finally, Louisiana  is at 98.5% in extreme drought- up slightly from last week but when you compare that to zero extreme drought at this point in 2022- WHOA!

Oklahoma’s National FFA Officer Candidate Braden Heisler Prepares for 2023 National FFA Convention in Indianapolis

Ahead of the 2023 National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, I had the chance to visit with Braden Heisler of Waukomis, Oklahoma. A current Oklahoma State University student and former FFA state officer for 2021-2022, Heisler is Oklahoma’s national FFA officer candidate for 2023.

“In order to serve as a national officer, you take a year off of college, you move away, you travel the country for a year, and so it is a really big decision,” Heisler said.

After plenty of thought, Heisler said his calling to run for a national office was impossible to ignore.

“It was very much rooted in my experience in the blue and gold jacket,” Heisler said. “When I started FFA, I didn’t really have a lot of understanding of what it meant to really be passionate about something and what it meant to really care about something. That is what I found in this jacket. This jacket provides an opportunity for every person from every background to find a place where they belong.”

I am pleased to announce that we will be back in Indy this coming week for several days covering our Oklahoma FFA members- like Braden- who will be competing on behalf of Oklahoma FFA. Our coverage is being powered by Oklahoma Farm Bureau- proud to help spotlight the Blue and Gold. Oklahoma Farm Bureau- We ARE Rural Oklahoma.

This Week on SUNUP is Oklahoma State University Extension grain market economist Kim Anderson. During this week’s edition, Anderson talks about the latest news in the crop markets.

Starting with China, Anderson said the U.S. and China signed a trade agreement, and time will tell how the markets will react. In Ukraine, Anderson said grain and other products are being shipped out of the export corridor without Russian interference.

Argentina has had some wheat production issues, Anderson said, and the production is slightly below average.

“For the full month of October and back to September, we have been trading (wheat) at $6.00 to $6.30,” Anderson said. “This week, we did see some weakness in wheat prices and got below six dollars…”

Looking at corn, Anderson said the ending stocks for the world are projected well above average. World soybean stocks are also above average, Anderson said, and the price is good.

Electric Fence Training: Best Ways to Teach Cattle, Sheep and Goats How to Respect a Hot Wire

Managers of Noble Research Institute’s regenerative ranches share lessons they’ve learned while training multiple species for adaptive grazing.

Whether you’re new to using temporary electric polywire fencing in adaptive grazing or you are introducing new livestock to your regenerative ranch, you’ll likely find yourself in hot-wire training mode at some point.

The ranch managers at Noble Research Institute can relate. As Noble transitioned its seven research ranch operations to regenerative management, the ranch teams needed to train their cattle to respect the electric fences used to make temporary grazing paddocks. On top of that, when Noble increased livestock diversity by adding sheep and goats to their grazing rotations, the former “cowboys” learned how different small ruminants can be when it comes to hot wires.

Kevin Sheehan With the National Pork Board Talks About Spreading the News of Nutritous Pork

Recently, Farm Director, KC Sheperd, had the chance to visit with the Senior Director of Processing and Engagement for the National Pork Board, Kevin Sheehan.

As the holiday season is near, Sheehan talks about pork options for families.

“Pork is of tremendous value to families to help them stretch their dollar whether they are buying a fully cooked ham or maybe some ground pork that you can put in some wonderful meals,” Sheehan said. “Pork is of great value and is also quite nutritious.”

Sheehan talked about the various ways pork can be served, as pork is extremely healthy and nutritious.

“It is important for us at the (Pork) Checkoff to be showing recipes and cooking recipes for air fryers, for instapots, and how to properly grow and cook pork,” Sheehan said.

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