Category: Ag News

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 14:52:59 CDT

National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) leadership unanimously endorsed a proposal to modernize the Federal Milk Marketing Order milk-pricing system at its annual meeting in Denver, which concludes tomorro…

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 14:10:28 CDT

Challenge will foster innovations that further markets for U.S. soybean farmers.

The United Soybean Board (USB) and The Yield Lab Institute (YLI) challenge companies to create innovations that increase the use and value of soybean meal in existing markets through the Soy Innovation Challenge.

“Soybean oil demand is increasing as a feedstock for renewable energy, creating unique opportunities for soybean farmers. But an increase in expanded crush for oil means higher meal supply. With U.S. soybean meal’s strong reputation as a high value product, additional pathways are necessary to advance consumption both domestically and internationally,” said Ralph Lott, USB Chair and farmer from New York.

The Soy Innovation Challenge will enhance the value of soybean meal in existing markets and uses by targeting:
· Innovations that increase use and value for soybean meal in animal agriculture, aquaculture, pet foods and soyfoods for human consumption.
· Innovations that advance the commercial viability of existing uses and segments in both food and feed spaces, overcoming the technical challenges of increasing soybean meal usage.
· Innovations that advance the transportability and storage viability of soybean meal.

“With clear sustainability differentiators, such as soil health and land stewardship, this competition has the potential to create unique revenue streams for U.S. soybean farmers in meeting customers’ evolving preferences,” said Mac Marshall, USB vice president of market intelligence. “Sustainability is the future of our industry, and these new innovations will enhance the profit opportunities for our farmers.”

Soybean meal is used as a feed ingredient for animal agriculture. These markets are limited by demand constraints of poultry and livestock volume, competition from alternative ingredients, storage capacity and transportation challenges. The Soy Innovation Challenge aims to solve these problems.

The application period is open October 25 through December 6. USB and YLI invite ag-tech startups, project/research teams and groups to submit applications online. This includes entities that operate in the soybean meal value chain and have an innovative solution that can enhance known uses and markets of soybean meal. The challenge is sponsored by USB and Amazon Web Services (AWS). The selected teams will compete for:

· $170,000 in cash prizes courtesy of USB.
· $5,000 in in-kind technical services and credits per finalist courtesy of AWS.

All selected teams will receive mentoring and resources to help advance their ideas in the areas of technical, business and financial impact.

“With a favorable market for soy, an increased interest in enhancing the existing value of soybean meal is often forgotten in the equation. This innovation challenge will uncover ideas and technologies that will drive more value for soybean meal and its constituents within existing markets and uses. This is truly an exercise in circular economy and optimizing the bean,” said Brandon Day, COO of YLI.

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 13:07:40 CDT

Oklahoma ranchers are getting creative with alternative feedstuffs this fall because the drought has drastically reduced normal hay yields.
“It’s been an unusual year, and all summer crops have potential to be failed out,” said Todd Baughman, Oklahoma State University Extension specialist for row crop weeds. “Producers should make sure they’re clear with their insurance companies and have the ability to turn that crop into a forage or feed value.”

Some producers are choosing to bale up failed summer crops, such as soybeans or cotton. However, not everything that can be swept into windrows and fed as hay is safe for livestock to eat. Individual producers and hay customers should research the chemicals applied to crops before converting a field to feed or forage.

Baughman said most failed crops this year received herbicide treatments but contain lower amounts of fungicides or insecticides.

“The biggest issue is each individual label is different in regard to what you can or can’t do from a feed or forage or hay standpoint,” he said. “Even within that specific label, it may vary between crops. For instance, there may be a seven-day restriction on corn or grain sorghum or a 30-day restriction or you can’t even feed cotton or soybeans.”

Baughman said there are two key things to remember when reading labels:

1) The specific pesticide label of the product applied must be checked and not just a label with a similar active ingredient. For example, if a generic form of glyphosate was applied rather than Roundup®, producers must refer to the label of the specific glyphosate formulation and not the Roundup® label.

2) Products, such as atrazine and 2,4-D, have individual labels, but if a pre-mix of two products was applied, that could change the feeding restrictions. Therefore, the actual premix label should be consulted.

“The most important thing is consulting the label,” Baughman said. “If there is no mention of forage or hay on the label for a particular crop, then it is an off-label use.”

Failed cotton can help extend the grazing season, replace hay and provide additional revenue for an operation. Dave Lalman, OSU Extension beef cattle specialist, and Marty New, west district area livestock specialist, said the seed, lint, boll and leaf components of the cotton plant are a nutritional feed source, but cattle will not consume much of the stalk unless the field is first overgrazed.

“Leaf material will decline rapidly once the bottom leaves begin to yellow,” New said. “Most cotton fields will provide additional grazeable forage in the form of grass or forbs around field edges, fences and waterways.”

The leaf, boll, lint and seed should average around 15 to 20% protein and around 55 to 60% total digestible nutrients, which is the equivalent to energy common in average-quality grass hay, Lalman said.

The OSU Extension specialists said research indicates each acre of a poor cotton crop could provide 20 days of grazing per cow while an acre from a good crop might provide around 41 days of grazing per cow.

“Cattle will graze the more palatable and high-nutritional value plant components first,” New said. “For this reason, the grazing period can be extended by strip grazing or rotational grazing. To make the most efficient use of crop residue, no more than one week’s worth of grazing area should be offered for each grazing period.”

When feeding failed cotton, producers should also consider the possibility of gossypol toxicity. Gossypol is a natural toxin present in the cotton plant that protects it from insects.

“Ruminants with fully functional rumens can detoxify gossypol because the ruminal microorganisms bind the toxin so it can be absorbed,” Lalman said. “Non-ruminants and pre-ruminant calves (less than four months of age) are unable to tolerate gossypol. It is not recommended to graze cotton residue with breeding bulls within 60 to 90 days of the breeding season.”

Labels for pesticides, fungicides and herbicides can be confusing and hard to find on packaging. OSU Extension county educators are available to help explain label restrictions and alleviate concerns.

Watch OSU Extension specialists discuss feeding failed cotton and herbicide concerns with failed crops on SUNUP, OSU Agriculture’s television show.
OSU Extension uses research-based information to help all Oklahomans solve local issues and concerns, promote leadership and manage resources wisely throughout the state’s 77 counties. Most information is available at little to no cost.

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 10:14:56 CDT

Public Invited to Vote for Winner

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) announces the four finalists in the 10th annual National Anthem Singing Contest, sponsored by Norbrook®. Th…

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 10:11:12 CDT

American Farmland Trust will begin accepting applications on November 1 to help farmers nationwide improve farm viability, access, transfer or permanently protect farmland or adopt regenerative agricultural …

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 10:07:19 CDT

As a farmer and rancher, I have firsthand knowledge of how devastating the current drought conditions have been for our state’s agriculture industry. This is one of the worst droughts we have seen over…

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 09:17:18 CDT

By: Kelsea Forward

American Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) Committee Chair Alisha Schwertner and her family grow cotton, corn, grain, sorghum, wheat, hay and cattle in Texas. She…

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 08:13:16 CDT

Should I Cull My Bulls? (Is It Time to Seize Financial and Genetic Opportunity?)

Mark Johnson, Oklahoma State University Extension Beef Cattle Breeding Specialist, offers herd health advice as part o…

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 19:01:30 CDT

Joplin Regional Stockyards
Mon Oct 24, 2022

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