Across the nation, winter wheat harvested reached 71 percent, up 18 percentage points from last year and 9 points from the average.

Kansas and Texas Winter wheat harvested reached 97 percent.

For our spring planted crops in Oklahoma, our good to excellent ratings are 60 percent or better, except for cotton which is 76 percent.

Pasture and range ratings in Oklahoma are slightly lower from a week ago at 51% good to excellent- Kansas shows a 3 percentage point decrease to 62% good to excellent and Texas shows a 30% good to excellent rating this week- down four percentage points.

The worst places for range and pasture are Maryland (65% poor to very poor), Virginia and New Mexico - both at 56% poor to very poor in this week's report.

The vision of the Oklahoma Beef Council is to be a positive difference for Oklahoma's farming and ranching families and the greater beef community, and its mission is to enhance beef demand by strengthening consumer trust and exceeding consumer expectations. 

To learn more, visit www.oklabeef.org. Also, don't forget to like its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/oklabeef for stories on Oklahoma's ranching families and great beef recipes. 

And Check out this video below that helps you learn more about the Beef Checkoff- .

At the Cattle Industry Summer Business Meeting, California, I talked with the president and CEO of the United States Meat Export Federation, Dan Halstrom, about worldwide export markets.

Coverage from the 2024 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meeting in San Diego is being powered by Farm Data Services of Stillwater.

Halstrom said that despite multiple reasons not to be, May’s export numbers are relatively good. They show robust growth in Latin American countries, and even some rebound in Japan’s food service arena. “We are in a thirty-some year low of the yen against the dollar, which makes our products more expensive in yen terms. However, the positive of that is that tourism is booming, because the dollar is so strong in Japan.”

He said that Korea is down some following 2023’s record-setting numbers for Korean exports. “There are some adjustments going on there, but the real story in past six months has been in Mexico and some of the Latin American countries. Columbia is booming on beef and pork. If you combine what’s going on incrementally in Latin America, and overlay that with some of our traditional markets, it’s a pretty good story in light of lower production.”

Vince Peterson Discusses the Future of U.S. Wheat Production and Export Growth

While attending the U.S. Wheat Summer Business Meeting in Oklahoma City, Farm Director KC Sheperd asked U.S. Wheat Associates President Vince Peterson about what U.S. Wheat has been doing.

Because U.S. Wheat has been representing wheat farmers in the United States since the 1950s, and during that time, the markets have changed widely and will continue to do so long into the future, he said, “We took a look at how we are doing meeting today’s challenges with our resources and the mission that is ahead of us. I think it is a good story for the industry, for U.S. Wheat, and for the farmers that support us.”

About the falling wheat prices, Peterson said, “There are a lot of reasons for that. There is still a lot of competition out there in the marketplace, but overall, I think we are starting to turn the corner a little bit. We are having a much healthier start to the export business, this year, and I think the second half of the year is going to be a better one for us.”

Peterson feels that future opportunities lie in growing the U.S.’s production long term. Acres of wheat has been reduced due to reasons like competition with other crops, but he insisted that the opportunity for growth in foreign markets is tremendous, even close by in Latin America.

Former President Donald Trump arrived in Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention on Monday and announced his choice as running mate for the November General Election- Freshman Senator JD Vance of Ohio. The Oklahoma Farm Report reached out to the Ohio Farm Bureau who have offered a statement from their President on the junior Senator of their state.

Please attribute the following statement to Bill Patterson, President of Ohio Farm Bureau.

“From Day 1 as a Senator, Mr. Vance has been very attentive to Ohio Farm Bureau members, making himself accessible to them to discuss their concerns when it comes to issues that could have an impact on agriculture in Ohio or across the country. As a designated Friend of Agriculture by Ohio Farm Bureau members, Senator Vance grasps the issues facing our members and rural Ohioans and has made it clear, through his actions, that he is listening and that he cares. Above all, his views on agriculture policy align with that of our membership and when faced with an issue critical for farmers of all types, Mr. Vance has ensured our organization and our members have a seat at the table and has helped us deliver our message.”

Agri-Pulse has been reaching out to several key ag players in Milwaukee at the Convention and we have some of the reaction they have gathered in our story linked below.

Even with some of their members out state for the Republican National Convention- Senator Greg Treat called the State Senate to OKC and the Senate Majority Caucus picked Lonnie Paxton as the designee to be the Senate Pro Tem come 2025.

Senator Paxton offered this statement: “First and foremost, I appreciate my Senate Republican colleagues for their confidence in me to assume this role,” Senator Paxton said. “I also thank current Pro Tem Treat for his willingness to guide me and show me how to be effective in this role as he has been. Pro Tem Treat has served Oklahoma nobly as a Senator and as the leader of the Senate. I applaud his service and wish him well after he terms out of office in November.

“I plan to lead from the front and further unify our caucus, while reaching across the aisle, across the rotunda and to the executive branch to enhance our state. I truly believe Oklahoma’s best days are in front of us and we can only reach our full potential by working together.”

Over on the House side- Oklahoma House Speaker-Designate Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, today commented on the selection of Sen. Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, by the Senate Majority Caucus to serve as President Pro Tempore-Designate for the 60th Legislature.

“I want to congratulate my friend Sen. Lonnie Paxton on the selection by his colleagues to serve as President Pro Tempore-Designate. I appreciate his willingness to step up and look forward to working with him and Governor Stitt to continue Oklahoma’s conservative momentum.”

Today, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) and Public Lands Council (PLC) filed a lawsuit against the misguided Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) “Conservation and Landscape Health” rule. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming and seeks to overturn the rule which threatens generations of family ranching operations in the U.S. by undermining the long-held balance of multiple-use management.

“NCBA is suing the BLM to stand up for America’s western ranchers and push back on this harmful rule that only serves as a stepping stone to removing livestock grazing from our nation’s public lands,” said NCBA President Mark Eisele, a Wyoming rancher. “Under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, the BLM is supposed to balance the multiple uses of public lands, including livestock grazing, energy, mining, timber, and recreation. The BLM’s rule upends this multiple use system by creating a brand new use for federal lands without Congressional approval and in conflict with existing federal law. NCBA will continue working to hold the BLM accountable in federal court.”

Since the passage of the Taylor Grazing Act in 1934, livestock grazing has been a federally recognized use of public lands. Grazing provides a way to both manage the federal government’s vast land holdings in the West and ensure a productive use for land that is too steep, arid, or rocky for other uses like row crop agriculture. As a federally recognized use, NCBA and PLC continue to encourage the BLM to protect grazing and view ranchers as partners in conservation efforts.

“This rule upends the relationship between federal grazing permittees and the BLM while also opening the door to ending grazing on federal lands,” said PLC President and Colorado grazing permittee Mark Roeber. “PLC will always defend the important role of grazing on federal lands and oppose efforts that would remove grazing and compromise rural communities for the sake of a bureaucratic exercise. Public lands grazing generates over $3 billion annually in valuable ecosystem services, equating to more than $20 per public acre of land grazed by sheep and cattle. Grazing supports the environmental health of the land, reduces wildfire risk, and strengthens rural economies—all valuable reasons to protect public lands grazing in the West.”

View the lawsuit here.