OSU’s Derrell Peel Says Feedlots Find a Way- Latest Cattle on Feed Shows Numbers Even With Year Ago

The USDA’s #Cattle on Feed report came in within expectations on Friday. The Aug. 1 feedlot inventory totaled 11.1 million head, up 0.1% year-over-year. July placements were 5.8% higher at 1.7 million head. Marketings rose 7.7% to 1.86 million head. Click here for the full report as released by USDA’s National Ag Statistics Service on August 23, 2024.

Oklahoma Farm Report’s Ron Hays talked with Oklahoma State University’s Dr. Derrell Peel after the report and he says that the placement number was at the high end of the average trade guess- which may cause the trade to view the report as slightly bearish.

Despite the fact that the calf crop continues to shrink- feedlots have been aggressive in filling pens with animals once finished steers and heifers are bought by the packers and shipped- so that on feed number is for all practical purposes- dead even with July of 2023.



Peel tells Hays “the calf crop has been getting smaller for six years and the actual feedlot inventory is not down as much as you might expect based on those numbers so feedlots have done a remarkable job of continuing to find cattle and get those feedlots full.” He adds “they are actually are placing less cattle in the feedlots- you look at placements over time and what they are doing is feeding cattle longer- continue to feed heifers and all of those things have helped them maintain feedlot inventories at a higher level longer than you might expect.”

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.

Farm Director KC Sheperd features comments from USDA Meteorologist Brad Rippey and USDA’s Rod Bane about the latest topsoil moisture report.

While there were no changes week over week in USDA’s Topsoil Moisture Condition Ratings with a period ending August 18th coming in at short to very short ratings at 37 % and surplus topsoil moisture at 6%; however, according to Rippey, there are varying points by region.

“As we move to the dryer side of the equation, we did see hit-or-miss showers in various areas of the country, but the general trend across the south and central United States has been towards drying in recent weeks,” he stated.

In the southern Atlantic and Northeast regions, there is still lingering, yet diminishing topsoil moisture as the impacts of Hurricane Debbie begin to subside.

Stillwater FFA is the Key to Oklahoma FFA Success Atop the National Agriscience Fair

Oklahoma has tied Texas with the most National Finalists for the 2024 Agriscience Fair at the 2024 National FFA Convention in Indianapolis in October. Both states have 30 National finalists heading to Indy with Ohio the third state in Agriscience numbers with 28 finalists, California with 26 and Georgia with 25.

The Stillwater FFA Chapter has more National Finalists(23) than any other chapter in the United States- and more than many states.

The National FFA Agriscience Fair recognizes student researchers studying the application of agricultural scientific principles and emerging technologies in agricultural enterprises. The agriscience fair is for middle and high school students. Participation begins at the local level and progresses to state and national levels.

The National Finalists are competing for top honors in their respective divisions with those national champions to be announced on the convention stage in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

The following op-ed is authored by the CEO of Plains Cotton Growers, Kody Bessent.

There’s something about summer break that prepares students to go back to school. It’s the recharge and reset everyone needs from nine and a half months of rigorous learning. I think the same can be true for the August recess that Congress experiences every year. They come back from their one month out of session reinvigorated for the work that needs to be done to wrap up legislation for both the fiscal and calendar year. 

While they’re back in their hometowns and off Capitol Hill, Americans are inundated with headlines and video clips of how inept Congress is at its job. 

So many of these narratives have made people question the possibility of a Farm Bill.

First off, I believe we will get a Farm Bill done. Will it be before the current bill expires at the end of September? Honestly, that’s unlikely. Can it be done before the end of the calendar year? I believe so and it should be.

At the Women In Agriculture Conference, Stevie White spoke with American Exchange Bank Market President Julie Stovall about understanding tax strategies and deductions for agricultural enterprises.

Stovall said that understanding your goals is the first step in choosing the best form in which to operate your business, whether that be as a Sole proprietorship, Partnership, Corporation, S corporation, or Limited liability company (LLC). “Are you wanting to leave a family legacy and build your business for generations to come, or are you building a business to sell to enhance your retirement income and maybe build another business after it sells?”



When choosing an accounting method, Stovall said that most farmers use the cash method because it is easier to track income and expenses. Other accounting methods are various types of depreciation to reduce their tax liability.

Section 179 of the IRC allows businesses to take an immediate deduction for a product at the time it is purchased. “It helps in a year when you have had a lot of income and will have a huge tax liability but be warned that you don’t want to completely deplete your income to where you wouldn’t be able to borrow money from creditors. Also, know that if you use that, you won’t be able to depreciate that item anymore in the future like you would if you had depreciated it out over five years.”

The American Angus Association® and Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI®) released two new research expected progeny differences (rEPDs) on Aug. 22. The rEPDs characterize teat size and udder suspension traits and are based on phenotypic data collected by Association members, pedigrees and genotypes in a single-step genetic evaluation model.

Good udder structure plays an important role in beef production; contributing to calf survival, calf growth and cow longevity. Teat size (TEAT) and udder suspension (UDDR) rEPDs expand the suite of selection tools available to Angus breeders to improve maternal function and the productivity of their herds.  

“We know these are two traits of interest to the membership and are excited to be releasing the research EPDs after a multi-year research project that would not be possible without member data,” said Esther Tarpoff, director of performance programs for the Association. “Members have quickly embraced collecting these phenotypes, as evidenced by the number of records for each trait used to build the research EPDs.”

More than 148,000 phenotypic records for each trait were collected from 87,000 cows to contribute to the dataset for the rEPDs, with more to be added each calving season. The records are collected by members within 24 hours of a calving event. Females are given an individual score for both teat size and udder suspension using scales from 1 to 9. Detailed scoring guides can be found on angus.org.