Howdy Neighbors!

On the sidelines of this past Saturday’s 580 Cattle Conference in Woodward, Oklahoma Farm Report’s Ron Hays talked with Oklahoma Third District Congressman Frank Lucas, who shared his enthusiasm about recent legislative wins that lay the groundwork for the 2025 Farm Bill. “It’s been a struggle, as everyone knows, to pass a comprehensive Farm Bill,” he admitted, citing ideological divisions in Congress. He praised Chairman Thompson for taking advantage of a legislative window, saying, “Let’s come up with enough savings that we can fund the fundamental parts of the farm bill process, let’s do it for six years.”

Lucas said the ag provisions were largely left untouched during debate, which allowed for the critical funding mechanism to be locked in. “The Ag provisions were ignored by our usual antagonist because they were too busy squabbling about other stuff.”

Lucas emphasized the importance of Title One of the Farm Bill, which was updated from the 2018 Farm Law in the Big Beautiful Bill. “Yes, it is the fundamental money that funds crop insurance and the price protection programs, the things that are the producers’ safety net,” he said. He pointed out that these updates reflect real changes in the ag economy: “Think about COVID, think about the trade wars, think about inflation, think about the European wars — all of those things that have raised producer input costs.” While cattle producers might be doing well now, “everybody else is having tough times,” which justifies the need for those safety net adjustments.

In the latest Crop Progress, National Corn statistics show Corn development continues steadily, with silking at 88%, slightly above last year but just below the five-year average. Corn condition remains strong, with 73% rated good to excellent. Soybeans are progressing similarly—blooming reached 85%. Soybean condition slipped slightly, with 69% rated good to excellent, down one point from the previous week.

National Cotton Statistics: Cotton squaring reached 87 percent, down three points from a year ago, and down two points from the 5-year average. Cotton Setting Bolls reached 55 percent, down four points from a year ago, down three points from the five-year average. Cotton bolls opening reached 5 percent, down two points from a year ago and down one point from the five-year average. Cotton Conditions reached 55 percent good to excellent equal to the previous week.

As for our Summer crops in Oklahoma: Corn crop conditions are now at 67% good to excellent this week equal to last week. The Oklahoma soybean crop is at 43% good to excellent versus 46% a week ago. Cotton in Oklahoma is at 62% good to excellent, versus 53% last week. Grain Sorghum is at 79% good to excellent up two points from a week ago at 77% Pasture and Range conditions are at 68% good to excellent this week versus 65% a week ago.

Farm Director KC Sheperd spoke with Jeff Wright, Director of Operations at OFSS, and reflected on the dramatic changes he’s seen over the years during the 75th anniversary celebration. “When I came, we still had a couple of old Gleaner F combines, no semis of our own. We did everything in bushel bags, one bag at a time.” As farmers began requesting treated seed and bulk bags, Wright responded, “ I don’t know, but let’s try.” Those early adjustments led to major efficiency improvements—“We actually do probably 85% of what we bag nowadays in 35-bushel bulk bags,” he explained.

Wright also shared how OFSS evolved into an industry leader by embracing innovation. “We got our first new combine that’s actually made for foundation seed production in 2013… we’ve had several other foundation seed organizations that came by and looked at our combine, and now they have one. So we were trendsetters, and I didn’t realize it.” With donated and acquired semis, he noted, “We can just do so much more, more efficiently than we used to.”

When asked about the seed certification process, Wright broke it down: “Dr. Brett Carver used to give us a cup, maybe 10 bushels of seed, and we would take that 10 bushels… then we go out and walk that field in the spring. Make sure there’s no off types. Make sure it’s to the genetic purity.” Attention to cleanliness and accuracy is crucial: “Every truck that goes in, make sure it’s clean. Every conveyor it goes through, it’s got to be cleaned. And I always tell my crew: no seed left behind.”

On Friday, 175 groups sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and the U.S. House and Senate in support of building a sterile fly facility in the U.S.

Three Oklahoma-based groups are signatories of the letter- the  Two groups that have Oklahoma members as a part of their makeup that signed include the Texas Cattle Feeders and the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers.

 “We are grateful for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) recent announcement at Moore Air Base regarding USDA’s five-pronged plan for NWS Domestic Readiness and Response Initiative. The establishment of a sterile fly dispersal facility in partnership with the Panama-United States Commission for the Eradication and Prevention of Screwworm (COPEG) is a critical step forward in rebuilding our domestic defense against this devastating pest. However, much work remains. The U.S. still lacks a domestic sterile fly production facility, the foundation of any long-term eradication and response strategy,” stated the letter.

The Senate voted by a strong majority to confirm Luke J. Lindberg as under secretary for trade and foreign agricultural affairs on Aug. 2, 2025

NCBA Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane, “Trade has been front and center in this administration, and with the sheer volume of deals in progress, it’s critical to have a Senate-confirmed official leading trade and foreign agricultural affairs for USDA. NCBA is thrilled to see Luke Lindberg confirmed to this post. Lindberg has spent his career expanding trade opportunities for American businesses and fixing unfair trade deals. We look forward to working with him to secure even more trade wins for America’s cattle farmers and ranchers.”

NASDA applauds Lindberg’s confirmation. CEO Ted McKinney said, “NASDA welcomes Under Secretary Lindberg’s enthusiasm in addressing agricultural trade challenges and opportunities for U.S. farmers. The agricultural industry needs a steadfast advocate in this role to stand with our farmers and exporters as they continue to provide safe and nutritious food to people worldwide. NASDA remains ready to collaborate closely with Under Secretary Lindberg and Secretary Rollins on these critical priorities.”

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented, “Farm Bureau welcomes Luke Lindberg to his new role at USDA, guiding decisions that impact agricultural trade. Rarely has there been such an active time when it comes to trade discussions and impacts to American farmers, so Luke certainly has his work cut out for him. “Luke’s experience working to expand international markets and ensure U.S. farmers get a fair shake will serve USDA and our country well. We look forward to working with him in this new capacity.”

Dr. Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist, offers his economic analysis of the beef cattle industry as part of the weekly series known as the “Cow Calf Corner,” published electronically by Dr. Peel, Mark Johnson, and Paul Beck. Today, Dr. Peel discusses Winter Stocker Grazing Prospects.

Why worry about winter grazing in early August? In just a few weeks, producers interested in grazing winter wheat (or other cool season cereals) for dual-purpose or forage-only grazing will be thinking about planting for fall/winter grazing. It’s not too early to begin evaluating the economic and agronomic conditions and considerations for possible winter stocker production.

Agronomic conditions will determine the feasibility and potential for early wheat planting.  Factors such as soil moisture and soil temperature will determine just how early wheat can be planted. Additionally, producers must evaluate the early-planting trade-off between earlier grazing potential and the additional risk of limited forage production due to the likelihood of increased pest and weed challenges and uncertainty about fall moisture for continued growth of early-planted wheat.  

There’s a first for everything, and for the first time producers earned premiums on the U.S. Premium Beef, LLC (USPB) Kansas grid based on the genetic merit of their cattle, starting in August 2024. One year later, the Genetic Merit Scorecard℠ (GMS) remains the measuring stick for these National Beef Packing Co., LLC (NBP) premiums on the USPB grid. 

“It’s predictable, consistent quality,” said Chad Barker, vice president of cattle procurement with NBP. He adds that the GMS allows them to forecast and sell that quality with some confidence, because of the predictive power of the tool.  

“For us, this year’s been more about validating what we expected from a performance perspective, and does it line up with our value-added business; and it does,” Barker said. “To me, those things are both really positive. That makes it sustainable, and this program will probably continue to evolve as we learn and know more moving forward.”  

The GMS is one of the AngusLink℠ value-added programs administered by the American Angus Association® in partnership with IMI Global and Where Food Comes From, and it objectively describes performance potential across four areas using a range from 0 to 200, with the industry average being 100.  

Without key pesticides corn growers could see a significant reduction in production and ability to continue conservation tillage and cover cropping practices, which are critical for reducing soil erosion, improving water quality and enhancing soil health, according to one of the nation’s top farmer advocates.

The comment, made by Illinois farmer and National Corn Growers Association President Kenneth Hartman Jr. in a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., comes as the Make America Healthy Again Commission prepares to release policy recommendations to address childhood chronic disease this month.

“Pesticides are a vital component of all types of agricultural production systems (conventional and organic), and without these tools, yields would be compromised,” Hartman said. “For instance, corn yields could be reduced by up to 70% without pesticides to ward off weeds, above and below ground pests, and humidity-loving fungi. Losses of this magnitude would impact food availability and grocery prices, ultimately harming the health of Americans.”

Checking the Markets...

August Live Cattle futures settled at $230.90 on Monday, up $0.775 from Friday’s close of $230.125. The contract has now posted gains in six of the last seven sessions, climbing a total of $5.10 since July 24, when it closed at $225.80. 

Choice boxed beef closed at $364.32/cwt, up $1.10 from Friday and up $3.00 over the past two sessions.

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