Cooking a Thanksgiving feast for your friends and family will cost less than last year but will still be more expensive than before the pandemic. The American Farm Bureau Federation’s 39th annual Thanksgiving dinner survey provides a snapshot of the average cost of this year’s classic holiday feast for 10, which is $58.08 or about $5.80 per person.

This is a 5% decrease from 2023, which was 4.5% lower than 2022. Two years of declines don’t erase dramatic increases that led to a record high cost of $64.06 in 2022. Despite the encouraging momentum, a Thanksgiving meal is still 19% higher than it was in 2019, which highlights the impact inflation has had on food prices – and farmers’ costs – since the pandemic.

The centerpiece on most Thanksgiving tables – the turkey – helped bring down the overall cost of dinner. The average price for a 16-pound turkey is $25.67. That is $1.68 per pound, down 6% from last year.

Farm Bureau volunteer shoppers checked prices Nov. 1-7, before most grocery store chains began featuring whole frozen turkeys at sharply lower prices. According to USDA Agricultural Marketing Service data, the average per-pound feature price for whole frozen turkeys declined further during the second week of November. Consumers who have not yet purchased a turkey may find additional savings in the days leading up to Thanksgiving.

“We should all be thankful that we live in a country with such an abundant food supply,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “We are seeing modest improvements in the cost of a Thanksgiving dinner for a second year, but America’s families, including farm families, are still being hurt by high inflation.”

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At the National Association of Farm Broadcasters Convention, Oklahoma Farm Report’s Maci Carter caught up with Neil Caskey, CEO of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) to cover many topics including the 2024 corn harvest, the farm bill, tax cuts, and more.

“We are going to have another really big crop,” Caskey said. “Now, the job at hand is to find markets for all of that corn. That is what we are committed to at the National Corn Growers Association.”

He said that the recent story for corn growers has been high inputs and low prices on their outputs. He hopes for an economic crisis relief fund from Congress for the time being, but the completion of an adequate farm bill would give growers the ongoing stability they need.

After that, he said the corn industry has to get into growth mode. “For us, that starts with passage of a year-round E-15 that will begin to grind more corn as we are producing more, and we need other legislative initiatives that will allow us to sell higher blends as well. That is how we are going to be dealing with the tough markets of today.”

LMA’s Chelsea Good Says Producers Must Speak with Unified Voice for Ag Policies

Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays caught up with the government and industry affairs vice president at the Livestock Marketing Association (LMA), Chelsea Good to talk about the republican trifecta, the farm bill, EID mandates, and more.

Good recounted the resounding victory for President-elect Trump and the Republican takeover of the House and Senate. “It was a trifecta for the republican party, and now there will be expectations that they are able to get things done,” Good said.

The completion of the farm bill and tax policies are priorities for the LMA. The farm bill contains provisions that may be impactful in reducing outdated regulations on livestock auctions, and the expiration of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act is at the forefront of many minds in agriculture and beyond.



Good and Hays believe that the Republican trifecta creates a little more assurance that these things will get done. Good said, “We are in a different fiscal situation than we were in in 2017, as it relates to our national debt, so I think it is going to take all of agriculture pushing together as it relates to things like full bonus depreciation and keeping a high exemption level for estate tax, and some of those pieces that are set to expire. I think we have to speak with a unified message and continue to push on those items.”

According to Politico- the choice for USDA Secretary may come down to a coastal selection- either from California or North Carolina.

They are reporting "President-elect Donald Trump is considering a former GOP lieutenant governor of California and a former USDA official from his first term to serve as his next Agriculture secretary, according to four people familiar with the transition conversations.

"Abel Maldonado served as former California Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s lieutenant governor before stepping down to mount an unsuccessful run for Congress. Maldonado is the son of immigrant farmworkers, a winery owner, one-time mayor and former California state lawmaker.

"Former Trump White House and USDA official Ray Starling’s name has been in the mix for some time, but his stock is rising among some Trump officials. They argue Starling is more of a mainstream pick and could reassure conservative-leaning agriculture groups that have been rattled by Trump’s decision to tap Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for HHS secretary, which gives him direct oversight of the Food and Drug Administration."

House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, released the following statement expressing his gratitude and reflecting on legislative accomplishments during his eight years as Speaker of the House, and twelve years in the House of Representatives:

“First and foremost, I would like to thank my wife and children for their support these last twelve years. Without them, I would never have been able to effectively serve the citizens of our state. Next, I want to thank the citizens of District 22 for electing me twelve years ago and allowing me to serve them for over a decade. It has been the honor of a lifetime. I would also be remiss if I did not extend a sincere thank you to my fellow House members, and the citizens they represent throughout our great state, for putting their trust in me to lead as Speaker of the House. Finally, I would like to thank the staff of the Oklahoma House of Representatives for their hard work and dedication. Together, we have accomplished meaningful changes for the people of Oklahoma.

We right-sized Oklahoma’s budget, moving from deficits to billions in surplus. This allowed us to cut taxes, protect core services and invest in the future of our state. We invested more in education over the past eight years than in the previous 27 years combined. We lowered taxes on citizens and businesses, creating an economic environment that attracts new investment and encourages growth. We protected constitutional rights, defended the lives of the unborn and fought back against the Leftist agenda that has swept across our nation over the past four years, which led to Oklahoma being ranked as the second most conservative Legislature in the country. Last, but not least, we created more parental choice in education, allowing parents, and students, to determine their own educational pathway.

Of course, there are countless other accomplishments that could be included in this list, and I truly feel that as my time as Speaker comes to a close, Oklahoma is in a better place than it was twelve years ago. I would like to congratulate my successor in House District 22, Ryan Eaves, and wish him well as he embarks on his own legislative journey. I hope that he feels the joy of service as deeply as I have these past twelve years. 

I want to leave you with a quote from President Ronald Reagan who said, ‘The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.’ I hope I have been a leader worthy of my station, and I am forever grateful for your faith in me. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this journey. God bless the Great State of Oklahoma.”

Brian Freking, SE District Extension Livestock Specialist, offers vaccine handling advice as part of the weekly series known as the “Cow Calf Corner” published electronically by Paul Beck. Today Freking is talking about a product that can reduce the stress of weaning calves.

Have you considered using a product such as maternal bovine appeasing substance (mBAS) aka FerAppease® during weaning. The management key points listed in the bullet list below for fence line weaning have been fairly broadly accepted as a stress-minimizing management technique. Could cows on the opposite side of the fence still be providing enough appeasing substance (pheromone) to keep calves calmer?

Scientists have been investigating reducing stress in cattle for decades. Current published information shows promise for the use of mBAS. Journal of Animal Science, 2020, Vol. 98, No. 9, 1-10 provides results from Reinaldo Cooke Texas A&M University providing a detailed project report from this product. Growth rate from day 0 to 28 was greater (P=0.05) in mBAS versus control calves (2.21 lb/d vs 1.87 lb/d, respectively; SEM = 0.125 ) and did not differ (P=0.23) from day 28 to 42 between treatments. The key consideration is calves tend to adjust quicker to eating during the stressful first week after weaning. Calves eating routinely coincides with better immunity therefore less of a need for treatment for respiratory complexes. Cortisol concentrations, a biomarker of chronic stress, has been shown to be reduced in calves treated with mBAS.