Howdy Neighbors!

National Corn Statistics: Corn Mature reached 41 percent, down two points from the previous year and equal to the five-year average. Corn dented reached 85 points, up two points from the previous year and down one point from the five-year average. Corn Conditions are rated 67 percent good to excellent, down one point from the previous week. Corn Harvested Reached 7 percent, down one point from a year ago and equal to the five-year average.

National Cotton Statistics: Cotton bolls opening reached 50 percent, down three points from a year ago and up one point from the five-year average. Cotton Conditions reached 52 percent good to excellent, down two points from the previous week. Cotton Harvested reached 9 percent, down one point from the previous year and up one point from the five-year average.

As for our Summer Crops in Oklahoma: Corn crop conditions are now at 66% good to excellent versus 66% a week ago. Corn for grain harvested reached 7 percent. The Oklahoma soybean crop conditions are at 37% good to excellent versus 37% a week ago. Cotton conditions in Oklahoma are rated 67% good to excellent, versus 70% last week. Grain Sorghum is at 70% good to excellent, equal to the previous week. Grain Sorghum harvested reached 7 percent, down ten points from the previous year and down one point from the five-year average. Pasture and Range conditions are at 59% good to excellent this week, versus 65% a week ago.

Oklahoma Farm Reports’ Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays caught up with Congressman Frank Lucas at Express Ranches during an event featuring Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. The discussion touched on the New World screw worm issue, but Hays and Lucas also talked about the 2025 Farm Bill, especially what has been done thus far in the “Big Beautiful Bill.” Lucas tells Hays it was good to get a lot of the work done in that vehicle- but what some are calling Farm Bill 2.0 still needs to be done.

Progress So Far on the Farm Bill: Lucas explained that the major funding portion has been secured. “Probably 80% of the funding that’s necessary to fund farm programs for the next six years was included in the Big Beautiful Bill at the tax relief package,” he told Hays. That funding took care of the big-ticket items, but he stressed that, “now we’ve got to go back and do things like address language and funding for agricultural research, rural development, fleshing out the conservation rules, Farm Credit, those sort of things.”

He added that farmers are facing serious international pressures: “Our producers, especially the row crop and field crop people, are under tremendous pressure because of the trade wars going on in this world.” Lucas pointed back to Trump’s negotiations with China, noting, “The President supported that in his first term, and even wound up with a $50 billion deal with the Chinese for U.S. agricultural goods. I can’t tell you that the Biden people made the Chinese complete it, but his record is he understands why we are a part of the team, and he has to protect the whole team.”

In August, the Secretary of agriculture Brooke Rollins joined with Texas Governor Greg Abbott to meet with cattle and wildlife officials in Austin and announced updated details on the five point plan to aggressively push back on the New world screwworm. Secretary Rollins came to Yukon, Oklahoma this past week to provide an update to the plan unveiled in Austin just a few weeks earlier. Oklahoma Farm Report’s KC Sheperd and Ron Hays were in attendance for that industry and media update. In today's Beef Buzz, Rollins emphasized that she believes the situation is improving. She noted that while detections once crept as close as 370 miles from the U.S.–Mexico border, “since then, we’ve had no detections, and everything seems to be moving back.” Rollins credited aggressive efforts on both sides of the border for slowing the pest’s advance.

A key part of the U.S. response involves expanding the sterile fly program. Rollins explained that Mexico is reworking an existing facility to produce sterile flies “in the next couple of months,” while a larger U.S. facility in South Texas will take 12 to 18 months to complete. She stressed that producing the flies requires radiation, meaning safety considerations prevent quick fixes. “You can’t just throw up a tent and start producing more flies,” Rollins said, underscoring the complexity of the effort.

Rollins pointed to additional U.S. measures, including working with HHS and FDA to issue emergency authorizations for animal drugs like Ivermectin, ensuring tools are ready if needed. She also offered an update on the August announcement regarding sterile fly production: the U.S. will build its own sterile fly facility in Edinburg, Texas. Backed by $750 million in White House funding, the facility will produce “up to 300 million sterile fly per week,” a move Rollins called a reflection of the administration’s commitment to protecting American livestock.

In his regular weekly analysis, OSU's Dr. Derrell Peel says the USDA Choice boxed beef cutout was $404.77/cwt. last week, down from the year-to-date peak of $413.60/cwt. in the first week of September. The current boxed beef value is 31.7 percent higher than one year ago, with all primal values higher year over year. Rib primals are up 31.5 percent; loin primals, up 31.4 percent; round primals are 31.5 percent higher; and chuck primals are up 34.6 percent from last year. Brisket, short plate, and flank primals are also up 21 to 35 percent year over year. Across forty wholesale cuts reported by USDA, twenty products are up more than 20 percent year over year and the average increase across all forty is 32.8 percent over last year. 

The only product down from one year ago is short ribs, which are almost exclusively an export product and weak due to decreased beef exports. Prices for 90 percent lean trimmings were $434.05/cwt. last week, down slightly from the previous weekly high of $435.31/cwt. and up 17.1 percent year over year. Fifty percent lean trimmings are priced at $159.89/cwt., up 30.9 percent from last year. A 7:1 ratio of 90s to 50s makes an 85 percent lean mix with a price of $399.78/cwt. for wholesale ground beef value, up 17.7 percent from one year ago.  

USDA recently released the August retail meat prices showing that the all-fresh beef price was another record high at $9.18/lb., up from last month and up 12.6 percent year over year – over $1/lb. higher than one year ago. Retail pork prices dropped slightly from last month and are up 2.2 percent from last year, while retail broiler prices were fractionally higher this month and up 1.9 percent year over year.

Associate farm reporter Carli Davenport spoke with Micaela Halverson, agritourism coordinator for the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, who explained what agritourism is and why it matters. She noted, “Agritourism can be a new word for most people, and we like to say agritourism is anywhere you can experience agriculture.” Across Oklahoma, “we have hundreds of farms… opening up their doors, their gates, and inviting the public out to experience agriculture in some sort of way,” whether that’s fruit-picking, horseback riding, or visiting a winery or brewery.

As fall approaches, Halverson highlighted the wide variety of seasonal activities. She said, “It feels like fall, which I feel like is not normal for our state, and it is the perfect time to be thinking about where you’re going to go, what farm you’re going to visit for this fall experience.” The most popular options, she explained, are “pumpkin patches, mazes and petting farms.” Visitors can “pick your own pumpkin, ride on the hay ride, and wander through the pasture, through corn mazes or hay mazes,” as well as “get up close and personal” with animals.

Halverson emphasized that these aren’t just for kids. “The pumpkin patches, mazes, petting farms do not have to be kid only experiences,” she said. Instead, they can be “date night for adults to go out and experience them,” offering fun for all ages.

Fall is a time to Fall in Love with Beef! Seasons are changing and it’s the perfect time to highlight beef, especially in hearty soups, stews and slow cooker fall favorites. Share your favorites from these recipe collections:

• Treat yourself to an easy dinner tonight with these Slow Cooker Recipes. A few ingredients and a little patience are all you need for a delicious comforting meal.
• Busy parents need to get meals on the table quickly. But something that makes it even better is if the quick meal is nutritious, simple and can be made using only one pot, pan or skillet.

Mississippi Pot Roastsi

1 beef Cross Rib Roast, Chuck Arm Roast or Chuck Shoulder Roast (about 2-1/2 pounds)

1 packet ranch dressing mix

1 packet dry onion soup mix

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoon granulated garlic

4 to 6 pickled pepperoncinis

1 Cup Water

Cooking:

1. Place beef Cross Rib Roast in a 4-1/2 to 5-1/2-quart slow cooker. Add ranch dressing mix, onion soup mix, black pepper, garlic, pepperoncinis and water. Cover and cook on HIGH 6 to 7 hours or on LOW 7 to 8 hours or until beef is fork-tender. (No stirring is necessary during cooking.)
2. Turn off slow cooker and remove roast. Shred roast and return to slow cooker; combine. Serve warm over couscous, mashed potatoes or noodles.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency has announced the second phase of its Emergency Livestock Relief Program (ELRP), aimed at providing disaster assistance to livestock producers. The program is designed to assist individuals who have suffered losses due to recent disasters.

The first phase of the program, which provided relief to producers with grazing losses due to droughts and wildfires, has already paid out over a billion dollars in relief.

Now, a second part of the program is available to help offset increased supplemental feed costs due to a qualifying flood or wildfire event in calendar years 2023 and 2024. According to Farm Production and Conservation Deputy Undersecretary Brooke Appleton, “sign up begins today for the second part of what is known as ELRP, about $1 billion in disaster recovery assistance to help livestock growers offset increased supplemental feed cost due to a qualifying flood or wildfire event in calendar years 2023 and 2024.”

Under President Trump’s leadership, USDA is standing shoulder to shoulder with America’s farmers and ranchers, delivering the resources they need to stay in business, feed their families, and keep our food supply strong,” said Secretary Brooke Rollins. “This announcement builds on the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP) and the historic levels of assistance we have rolled out over the last few months, once again proving that this administration is working as quickly as possible to get help out the door and into the hands of livestock and dairy producers. USDA will continue to put farmers first and ensure they have the relief they need to weather storms and build for the future.”

One of the most important management tools available to cattle producers is culling. While the decision to remove an animal from the herd is not always easy, objective culling can improve herd productivity, profitability, and long-term sustainability. Strategic data-driven culling helps producers manage resources more efficiently and maintain herd health.

The foundation of any cow-calf operation is a productive, efficient cow herd. Cows that consistently fail to contribute to profitability should be candidates for culling.

Common reasons to remove cows include:

Disposition: Aggressive or unmanageable cows pose safety risks to handlers and other animals. Quiet, docile cows reduce labor stress and improve overall herd handling efficiency. Reproductive Performance: Open cows and late calvers reduce herd efficiency. Because reproduction drives profitability, open cows are typically culled first. Pregnancy checks provide valuable information to make objective culling decisions. Additionally, cows with histories of dystocia or lost calves should be high on the cull sheet. Age and Longevity: Advancing age often brings declining fertility, dental wear, and structural issues. Cows that can no longer maintain body condition or wean a competitive calf should be evaluated for removal.

Checking the Markets...

Choice boxed beef closed at $398.53, down $1.51 from Friday, while Select finished at $378.80, up $0.36. The Choice/Select spread narrowed to $19.73 on 101 loads. This marks the eighth consecutive day of declines in Choice, with values sliding a total of $17.48 over that stretch.

The Oklahoma National Stockyards saw 6,250 head come to town on Monday. Compared to last week: Feeder steers generally steady in a light test. Feeder heifers 2.00-6.00 lower. Demand moderate to good for feeder cattle as cattle futures have gained back and more from last Friday's losses. On the other hand, steer and heifer calves 10.00-20.00 lower with un-weaned calves sharply lower and some up to 40.00 lower, conservatively. Several un-weaned calves included in supply. Calves not finding friends today as many farmers are busy in the fields planting wheat.

Joplin had 7,339 head for their Monday sale- Compared to last week feeder steers under 750 lbs. sold 2.00-10.00 lower. Heavier weights sold from 3.00 lower to 8.00 higher. Feeder heifers sold from 2.00-15.00 lower with the most loss on weights under 700 lbs

OKC West is our Market Links Sponsor- they sell cattle three days a week- Cows on Mondays, Stockers on Tuesday and Feeders on Wednesday- Call 405-262-8800 to learn more.

Click here for our Markets Page on OklahomaFarmReport.Com- there you will find many of the reports we have linked on the right hand column found on the previous format of our email.

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