No-till on the Plains, Inc. is a 501c3 non-profit educational organization providing information for producers to adopt high-quality continuous no-till systems, and to further develop those systems. One of the annual highlights for the group is their annual conference- with their 29th annual winter conference headed back to Wichita in January.

Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays had the chance to catch up with Western Oklahoma Farmer and Vice President of No-till on the Plains, Jimmy Emmons, about that winter conference coming up on January 21-23, 2025 in Wichita, Kansas.

“This is the 29th annual conference so we’ve been around for quite a while. I’m honored to be on the officer team of this great organization,” Emmons said.

The goal of the conference is to promote good conservation practices, from no-till to grazing management to cover crops for farmers and ranchers no matter their level of expertise in the regenerative ag arena. “We understand that not everyone is on the same playing field – some are new, some have been doing it for a while, and then there are some veterans that have been at it for multiple years,” Emmons commented. “That is why the first two days of the conference are focused on getting started and where you are at, then the third day is where we zero in on the advanced side and take them to the next level.”

Dating back to 1891, Stillwater Milling Company has been supplying ranchers with the highest quality feeds made from the highest quality ingredients. Their full line of A & M Feeds can be delivered direct to your farm, found at their Agri-Center stores in Stillwater, Davis, Claremore and Perry or at more than 125 dealers in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas and Texas. We appreciate Stillwater Milling Company’s long time support of the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network and we encourage you to click here to learn more about their products and services.

In a DC Spotlight feature with the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, Oklahoma Senator James Lankford had the opportunity to share his insights into the recent election, as well as expectations on the policy focus in Washington D.C., at a consequential time for our nation. Farm Director KC Sheperd had the chance to talk with Senator Lankford to get the details.

Senator Lankford is excited about the development of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to hopefully streamline and reduce the imprint of the federal government. “We haven’t done this in decades,” he said. “To be able to have a serious look at how we structure what we do, the tax policy changes, and the opportunity to be in the majority in the Senate.”

Lankford attended a DOGE meeting this past week and enjoyed visiting with the department heads, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. “I have worked on this issue for ten years, but we’ve never had a White House that has really been focused on this,” Lankford said. “Everybody sees the inefficiency in government. It isn’t a partisan thing. We are wasting money. We are spending it on things we shouldn’t. Our employment is off as far as how we are investing in different agencies and entities. We haven’t settled how we are going to do telework. It has just morphed and happened and no one has asked the hard questions of, ‘Is it the right way to do it? Is it the right position to be able to do it?’ It is a good moment to look at solving these issues so we can be made more efficient.”

October Red Meat Exports Above Year-Ago Levels; Pork on Record Pace

Exports of U.S. beef and pork posted year-over-year increases in October, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), with pork exports well-positioned to set annual volume and value records in 2024.

October beef exports totaled 105,269 metric tons (mt), up 1% from a year ago, while value increased 3% to $860.4 million. Shipments to Mexico maintained their impressive 2024 performance in October, while exports rebounded to South Korea and China/Hong Kong. For January through October, beef export value was 4% above last year at $8.68 billion, despite a 2% decline in volume (1.066 million mt).

“It’s encouraging to see an uptick in demand for U.S. beef in China and Korea, where the economic headwinds have been formidable this year,” said USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom. “Our Western Hemisphere markets have been outstanding, and exports have also expanded to the ASEAN region. So if U.S. beef can regain momentum in these larger Asian destinations, this bodes well for 2025.”

U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) will host his next live telephone town hall event for all Oklahomans on Tuesday, December 10th at 6:00 pm CT. During the call, Mullin will provide a quick legislative update before opening the phones to take questions from constituents.

“Next week’s telephone town hall event will be a great way for thousands of Oklahomans across the state to receive a timely update on our work in Washington and speak with me directly about the issues that matter most to them,” said Senator Mullin. “We’ll be discussing President Trump’s cabinet nominees and first 100-day agenda, national security, the economy, and more. It’s vital for Oklahomans to have a voice as we craft legislative priorities for the second Trump administration, and I look forward to hearing from those who join our important conversation.”

Details for participating in the call are below:

Date: Tuesday, December 10th, 2024

Time: 6:00 pm CT

Dial In: (855) 614-0277

Note: Due to the anticipated size of this event, all participating Oklahomans are encouraged to dial into the telephone town hall at least 5-10 minutes early to get connected. The telephone town hall will also stream LIVE and be available for playback on Senator Mullin’s Facebook page. 

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented today on the lack of Congressional action in the lame duck session to address the immediate needs of farmers and rural America.

“Now that Congressional leaders signaled plans for yet another extension of the farm bill instead of modernizing it, it is imperative that they address the well-defined and fully substantiated needs of farmers just trying to hold on for another season.

“The recent hurricanes wreaked havoc on farms across the southeast, leaving some farmers with massive losses. They need disaster aid to recover and rebuild. Additionally, the projected two-year drop in net farm income of more than $40 billion dollars demonstrates the seriousness of the overall agricultural downturn. Without a new farm bill to help farmers manage risk, Congress must act to help bridge the gap through economic relief to help farmers cope with inflation, high supply costs and decreasing commodity prices.

“The frightening financial pinch farm families across the country are experiencing is real. There is clear evidence all around us: land auctions are on the rise; equipment purchases have slumped; and lenders are warning that operating loans are in jeopardy without some assurance farmers are going to be able to repay the loans. Today, the books just aren’t balancing.

“We’ve lost 141,000 farms in five years and no one wants to lose more. Americans overwhelmingly want Congress to act: 78 percent say U.S. lawmakers should prioritize legislation that supports farmers and ranchers. The window is narrowing for Congressional action. The time is now. I urge lawmakers to stand with rural America.”

Oklahoma Farm Report’s Maci Carter caught up with BASF’s technical marketing manager Josh Putman to learn about the company’s accomplishments this year.

In February 2024, BASF’s Surtain herbicide received its EPA registration. Surtain herbicide is the first of its kind and a truly new early-season solution for fighting resistant weeds in Corn. Producers can now apply a group 14 herbicide pre- through early post-emergence and get excellent crop safety and residual weed control.

Then, over the summer, BASF launched the Surtain Demo Experience to get the product into the hands of growers and retailers, so they could become confident in the new technology of the herbicide: solid encapsulation.

“Weed resistance continues to be a problem, especially throughout much of the Midwest,” Putman said. “The goal of Surtain was to bring a new novel mode of action being a PPO inhibiting chemistry, in combination with Zidua SC, a well-known group 15 herbicide, and bring that premix in to really control palmer amaranth, waterhemp, and other problematic weeds throughout much of the United States. It is a good way to start fields off clean early in the season or apply it all the way up through V3 corn, which is really important for many of our growers.”

USDA Announces New Federal Order, Begins National Milk Testing Strategy to Address H5N1 in Dairy Herds

Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is announcing the start of its National Milk Testing Strategy (NMTS), which builds on measures taken by USDA and federal and state partners since the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 in dairy cattle was first detected in March 2024. Today, USDA is issuing a new Federal Order, as well as accompanying guidance, requiring that raw (unpasteurized) milk samples nationwide be collected and shared with USDA for testing. This new guidance from USDA, which was developed with significant input from state, veterinary and public health stakeholders, will facilitate comprehensive H5N1 surveillance of the nation’s milk supply and dairy herds.

“Since the first HPAI detection in livestock, USDA has collaborated with our federal, state and industry partners to swiftly and diligently identify affected herds and respond accordingly. This new milk testing strategy will build on those steps to date and will provide a roadmap for states to protect the health of their dairy herds,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “Among many outcomes, this will give farmers and farmworkers better confidence in the safety of their animals and ability to protect themselves, and it will put us on a path to quickly controlling and stopping the virus’ spread nationwide. USDA is grateful to our partners who have provided input to make this strategy effective and actionable, and we look forward to continued collaboration in seeing this through.”