While attending the National Farm Broadcasting Association's Washington Watch, KC Sheperd had the opportunity to sit down with Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin in his D.C. office to discuss the plethora of legislative issues impacting agriculture today.

“The biggest thing that we work with here in D.C. is building relationships,” he said. “Our unofficial, but official job is being the liaison between the House and the White House and the Senate.”

He explained that his relationship with Speaker Johnson, President Trump, and Senate Majority Leader Thune allows him a unique opportunity to make sure legislation that needs to get through gets through, and to make sure legislation that doesn’t gets stopped.

“When you start talking about reconciliation and delivering the president’s promises, there are unique differences between how the House operates and how the Senate operates,” he detailed. “We have to work together because we want to deliver for the president, and then the president has his priorities too. He had eight priorities listed, now he has thirteen."

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U.S. winter wheat condition was rated 51 percent good to excellent as of Sunday, April 20, up from 49 percent last week, according to USDA NASS’ latest Crop Progress report of the year released on Monday.

Oklahoma's Winter wheat conditions rated 48 percent good to excellent, 35 percent fair, and 17 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 44 percent good to excellent, 37 percent fair, and 19 percent poor to very poor.

Our neighbors either saw improvements in wheat conditions or are holding steady - Kansas winter wheat conditions were unchanged at 47% good to excellent. Meanwhile, Texas wheat conditions rated 33 percent good to excellent, up slightly from 31 percent last week.

Oklahoma's pasture and range conditions rated 45 percent good to excellent, 38 percent fair, and 17 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 41 percent good to excellent, 37 percent fair, and 22 percent poor to very poor.

Texas range and pasture conditions rated 32 percent good to excellent, 39 percent fair, and 25 percent poor to very poor. Last week’s conditions rated 24 percent good to excellent, 34 percent fair, and 42 percent poor to very poor.

Trade Challenges and Farm Bill: Insights from Colin Woodall

At the Hemphill County Beef Conference in Canadian, Texas, Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays had the chance to talk with National Cattlemen’s Beef Association CEO Colin Woodall, who was speaking at the conference. Last week, the two men discussed the critical leadership of Secretary Rollins in the battle against the New World Screwworm. In today’s BeefBuzz, they are discussing the impacts of tariffs on the beef industry.

Woodall explained that the trade war caused a halt to trade with China, previously a top market for U.S. beef, among other things. “We believe in trade, but we also believe in fair trade,” Woodall said. “That’s what the president is trying to do with these tariffs.”

“We are very supportive of the way the president is using tariffs as a tool to try to fix all of this,” Woodall stated. “We believe that we need to give the president some time to continue his efforts.”

Later this morning- wheat scouts will report on the 2025 Hard Red Winter Wheat Crop at the 127th Annual Oklahoma Grain and Feed Association meeting in downtown OKC.

In 2024- scouts predicted a 89 million bushel crop based on a 33 bushel per acre average while the grain elevator managers and others in the room last May were more optimistic- as they called the 2024 crop a 102 million bushel crop as they expected 37.3 bushels per acre.

The crop continued to get better in the final weeks before harvest- and the final 2024 harvest called by USDA was 108 million bushels with a 38 bushels per acre.

The crop here in 2025 is looking good out in the country- and has been improving in recent weeks- based on the crop progress numbers- the scouts will give us a breakdown on a district by district basis- and we will be talking with OSU's Josh Bushong and have the 2025 numbers for you later today on our website- and in our Wednesday email.

By the way- next Monday- we will get the first USDA guess on the 2025 crop based on the May first data pulled together.

ALSO Happening today and tomorrow is the 99th Oklahoma FFA Convention- we will have stories from Tulsa over the next couple of days as thousands of FFA members in their Blue and Gold jackets gather.

A new study commissioned by Clean Fuels Alliance America shows the U.S. biomass-based diesel industry generated $42.4 billion in economic activity in 2024, supported 107,400 jobs and paid $6 billion in annual wages.

The study, “Economic Impact of Biodiesel on the U.S. Economy 2024,” was conducted by GlobalData using actual 2024 data, including 5 billion gallons of domestic production. It evaluates direct, indirect and induced economic impacts and jobs across the entire value chain, from raw-material production, collection and processing to fuel production and distribution.

According to the report, nearly half of the total economic impact—$19.9 billion and 41,500 jobs—came from fuel production, while oilseed production supported 30,600 jobs and generated $15.3 billion in economic activity, delivering major benefits to soybean-growing states. Significant employment was also reported in oilseed processing (8,600 jobs) and rendering (12,700 jobs).

 Oklahoma State University Agriculture will host its annual Lahoma Wheat Field Day in May for producers to learn about wheat varieties, breeding, fertility, disease, and pest and weed management.

OSU Agriculture Field Days are educational events presented by OSU Ag Research and OSU Extension to share research-based information and resources with Oklahomans. Field days showcase current agricultural research and relevant best practices through presentations, tours, hands-on workshops and discussions. Research at OSU locations across the state is often designed for specific applications based on region.

Who: Wheat producers in north-central Oklahoma

What: Lahoma Wheat Field Day

When: 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on May 16

Where: North Central Research Station, 1 mile west of Lahoma on Highway 60.

More Rain on the Way for Oklahoma, Flood Watch Issued for Much of the State

Oklahoma is bracing for another week of wet weather. According to State Climatologist Gary McManus, while there’s a chance for some strong-to-severe storms, Oklahomans shouldn’t expect the kind of widespread, intense severe weather typically seen in May.

“We’ll see chances for some strong-to-severe storms, but not big-time May severe weather like we’ve seen in the past,” McManus stated. He also offered a seasonal outlook, suggesting a potential shift in weather patterns. “That’s more like June than May, which probably means July will be more like June, and that’s fine until September is like August, and even worse when October is like September.”

The already saturated ground across the state has prompted concerns about flooding. “Given our saturated soils, we see yet another big flash flood watch across the SW two-thirds of the state, but really anywhere could see flooding,” McManus cautioned.

Interestingly, despite the recent record-breaking rainfall in April for Oklahoma, some parts of the state are still experiencing a deficit. “We really need those rains to hit up in the Panhandle and far NW OK, though, because believe it or not, and listen to me now but believe me later, they’re still in deficit even after the wettest April on record for Oklahoma,” McManus explained.