Howdy Neighbors!

Farm director KC Sheperd spoke with Kelli Payne with the Stockyards City Main Street Program who says this year’s Stockyards Stampede promises a full day of western fun for the whole family. “This event is well over two decades old, and it just exceeds our expectations each and every year,” Payne said. “The Stockyards Stampede is truly a staple of what Oklahoma City Stockyards represents for the agricultural community and for our western heritage.”



The day kicks off with a Longhorn cattle drive at 10 a.m. “Everybody loves the Longhorns,” Payne said. “They will leave the Oklahoma National Stockyards gate make their way east down Exchange Avenue and then they will be herded into the National Saddlery Arena, where they will stand throughout the day on display until about two o’clock.”

Payne encouraged everyone to take in the full Stockyards experience, adding, “We never know what’s going to happen in Stockyards, but we certainly invite everybody out for a great day.” She also highlighted the district’s deep roots: “Stockyard City, founded 1910 — it’s its own community within Oklahoma City. We’re so proud to represent our western heritage and our agricultural way of life right in the heart of Oklahoma City.”

Senior Farm And Ranch Director Ron Hays speaks with Randy Blach of CattleFax and featured speaker at the 2025 Texas Cattle Feeders Convention in Ft Worth. Blach emphasized that 2025 has brought “profitability we’ve not seen anything like in every class of cattle.” He credited several contributing factors, including favorable market conditions and trade dynamics. “There’s a lot of things that have gone on that have benefited the market,” he said, pointing to tariff environments that limited imports and the “screwworm situation,” which closed off “a million head” of Mexican cattle from entering the U.S.

These disruptions have tightened supply and boosted prices — a welcome shift for producers. Blach said “I love it for our producers, they needed a payday and really our cow calf producers needed a good payday and they are finally getting one.”

Blach noted that cow-calf producers, in particular, are “in the driver’s seat” in this current cycle. However, he observed that herd expansion remains modest.

“We’re still not seeing very aggressive expansion,” he said. While moisture conditions improved more than expected early in the year, long-term weather variability has kept producers cautious. “This has been a nip and tuck deal now for several years,” Blach explained, citing the persistent La Niña pattern that has made ranchers hesitant to rebuild aggressively. Despite better rainfall and improved confidence, he said, “it’s still not a situation that we’ve got a major increase in supplies coming at us anytime soon.”

As the harvest season ramps up, the focus for agricultural industry leaders is split between ensuring a safe end to the current year and anticipating innovative tools for the future. In a discussion with Farm Director KC Sheperd, BASF Technical Service Rep Adam Hixon highlighted both a forthcoming product and an immediate, crucial safety message for cotton producers.

Hixon offered producers a glimpse into BASF’s product pipeline, announcing a new development aimed at enhancing weed management. “2026 so that’s going to be a new residual herbicide, new mode of action for your cotton crop, specifically designed for, you know, Accent Flex cotton from the ASF.” This upcoming product represents an expansion of weed control options, promising a fresh approach to managing resistant weeds within the specific framework of BASF’s cotton portfolio.

Despite the excitement for future products, Hixon stressed that the most important topic this time of year is safety on and off the farm. “I just, you know, this time of the year is just so important to have safety top of mind.” With heavy equipment being moved frequently, Hixon urged heightened caution, particularly on public roads, where non-farming drivers may not be aware of slow-moving machinery.

Hale says the cattle market is doing very well right now. When asked if the market was higher, he stated, “Yes, it is." "The Weather is nicer, and we had about 5,500 head compared to 6,800 a year ago.” Despite typical seasonal trends that might suggest a fall dip, he noted the market continues to surprise producers. “You think, well, here it goes. And then you have a week like this week—it just comes rallying back.”

Hale emphasized how unpredictable the current cattle market has been, calling it “uncharted territories” and noting, “I try to make notes every week. I know at some point in time, in the future, I’m going to want to come back and look at this.” Noting that this is an unprecedented time.

Hale described the recent volatility that’s keeping producers on edge. “We’re setting these new highs on this board, but yet you may be down three or four dollars in the morning and back up two or three and back down,” he said. “It’s yo-yoing a lot. And I think it’s just making people second-guess a lot.” He reflected on decades of watching the markets and said he couldn’t recall “week after week seeing these type of swings.” He noted, “Ten to twenty higher steers, steer and heifer calves twenty to thirty higher.”

National Farmers Union (NFU) today sent letters to President Trump and Congressional leaders urging immediate action to provide economic relief for family farmers and ranchers facing worsening financial conditions. NFU emphasized that aid should reach family farm operations that need it most, and for parallel efforts to rebuild fair markets and curb corporate consolidation in agriculture.

“Family farmers and ranchers face severe economic challenges and a deepening crisis if they do not receive immediate assistance. Recently enacted trade policies and the resulting actions by other countries have wreaked havoc on our markets, driving commodity prices far below the cost of production,” said NFU President Rob Larew. “Input costs are projected to reach record levels in 2025. Stress levels are high among farmers, reflected in the rising number of farm bankruptcy filings across the country.”

In his letter, President Larew outlined three key principles to ensure aid provides meaningful and lasting relief:

· Aid payments must be directed to family agricultural operations and balanced among regions and crops.

· Aid must be paired with efforts to investigate monopolies in the agriculture industry and their resulting impacts on the farm economy.

· Resources must be dedicated to developing new and enhanced domestic markets for American crops and enhancing existing markets, including local and regional markets.

Mark Johnson, Oklahoma State University Extension Beef Cattle Breeding Specialist says The article titled “Carcass Weights, Quality Grades & Consumer Demand” from last week led to several good questions. This week, I will address the most commonly asked questions.

First, the key points from last week. Carcass weights are going up and there are currently no market signals to indicate they will go down. Even long-term, pending increased heifer retention and a larger national cow inventory, market signals indicate more days on feed and heavier carcass weights will be the new normal.

One of the most dramatic and interesting market signals is the proportion of higher USDA Quality Grade (upper two-thirds Choice and Prime) carcasses currently in the weekly harvest mix and robust consumer demand for consistently great tasting, higher quality beef. Consumer preference for high quality beef and their willingness to pay for a great tasting beef product have created the need to supply this demand.   

German chemical giant Bayer must pay a $600 million Missouri court judgment that found its herbicide Roundup causes cancer, a ruling the company says could hasten a decision to stop making the popular product.

The Missouri Supreme Court on Sept. 30 refused to hear an appeal in the Cole County lawsuit that initially awarded four plaintiffs $1.56 billion. The October 2023 jury award was reduced to $611 million by Circuit Judge Daniel Green, a decision upheld in May by the Western District Court of Appeals.

In a statement to The Independent not attributed to any individual, Bayer said it was considering whether there were further appeals that could be filed. “We continue to believe that significant and reversible errors were committed during trial and the appellate phase and warrant review by a higher court,” the company stated.

Each October, approximately one-fifth of CLO agricultural lease lands are appraised and offered at public auction for farming, grazing, and recreational use. Revenue generated from these auctions supports Oklahoma schools, contributing over 88 million dollars in the past five years.

Tracts which go unleased at public auction are offered on a first come, first served basis through the end of the year. Remaining unleased tracts are offered through a sealed bid auction the following year.

Wednesday October 15ths auction will take place in Stillwater Oklahoma at the Payne County Expo Center – Heritage Hall. the auction will begin at 10am and will feature leases from Lincoln, Logan, Noble, Pawnee, Payne, and Pottawatomie Counties. This wraps up the 2025 Lease Auctions for the Commissioners of the Land Office.

Checking the Markets...

Choice Boxed Beef prices were slightly higher on Tuesday compared to Monday. The Choice cutout closed at $364.42, up $0.51, while Select finished at $350.55, up $0.80. The Choice/Select spread narrowed modestly to $13.87, down from $14.16 the previous day. Total loads came in at 145, compared to 173 on Monday.

OKC West in El Reno had 2,500 head on Tuesday for their stocker and calf run. Compared to last week: Steer calves 10.00-20.00 higher with spots up to 30.00 higher. Heifer calves 15.00-25.00 higher with spots up to 40.00 higher. Looking ahead- They expect 3,000 yearlings on Wednesday- 1,400 Feeder Heifers at 9:00 AM and 1,600 Feeder Steers at 10:30 AM.

Beaver County Stockyards- Compared to last sale: Feeder steers 12.00-18.00 higher. Feeder heifers 10.00-20.00 higher with instances of 30.00 higher. Steer and heifer calves 12.00-18.00 higher with instances of 25.00-30.00 higher. 

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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