Industry Groups Split on WTO Ruling that U.S. COOL is Permissible, but Violates Global Trade Rules 

The World Trade Organization has ruled a U.S. requirement for Country of Origin Label on meat sold in the United States violates global trade rules. While not ending the U.S. COOL mandate, the ruling does put pressure on officials to bring the program into line with WTO guidelines.

The ruling affirms a country's right to require COOL , but sided with Mexico and Canada which had said the increased costs of segregating their animals for processors unfairly lowered the value of their products.

Reaction from industry groups was mixed.

The National Farmers Union and the U.S. Cattlemen's Association generally applauded the announcement from the WTO. The groups support country of origin labeling, and promised to work with the administration to develop measures to address the concerns of Mexico and Canada.

(You can read NFU's statement by clicking here.  A statement from the USCA is available by clicking here.)

The National Pork Producers Council and the National Cattlemen's Beef Association took a different view of the ruling. The groups opposed COOL when it was under consideration in the U.S. Congress. Instead of relying on country of origin labeling, the NPPC believes harmonization of North American meat and livestock policies regarding food safety, labeling and animal health is a better approach.

(Click here for the NPPC statement.  Read the NCBA's statement by clicking here.)

Champion Livestock Auctioneer Says Some Things Are 'Worth Breaking Your Back For' 

Oklahoma National Stockyards auctioneer Bailey Ballou begins his year-long reign as the newly-crowned World Livestock Auctioneer Champion. We recently spoke with him about the competition, the livestock auction industry, and being a spokesman.

Ballou said he really loves to speak about the cattle industry and he's glad to be called on as a spokesman at this time.

"One big thing for me is anytime we're given the opportunity to put a positive light on our industry, I want to do that. Our industry is facing some battles right now in the public eye as far as livestock handling goes and I would like to put a positive message out there every chance I'm given.

"I think we have some common ground with the folks who are against us in the fact that we care about the livestock. That's what they care about. That's what we care about. We put our due diligence in to care for our livestock and I think if we can find that common ground, that's really important."

You can read more from Bailey Ballou and hear the full interview by clicking here. 

USDA Releases the Latest Acreage and Grain Stocks Numbers

The USDA released the latest Acreage and Grain Stocks numbers.  Tom Leffler of Leffler Commodities says the total US acreage numbers appear to be on the negative side with increases across the board for corn, soybeans and wheat acres.

Corn acres were pegged at 96.4 million acres, soybeans at 76.1 million acres and all wheat came in at 56 million. All these numbers were more than the trade was anticipating.

In the stocks numbers, wheat and soybeans came in more than what the trade was expecting. Corn stocks numbers were a little less than year ago totals which is looked on as friendly right now.  

Click here for a link to the full USDA report and to hear Tom's analysis of all the numbers. 

When you drill down to the Oklahoma numbers- the really key numbers are how many acres USDA thinks we will harvest- for example for corn- USDA says we planted about the same number of acres of corn both last year and this year- the difference is that the drought of 2011 forced about half of the acres to be abandoned- we harvested just 190,000 acres a year ago- and many of those acres were drought stressed- this year- the crop got in early- has had a few timely rains earilier and USDA thinks we will harvest 330,000 acres this year.  It's the same story with soybeans- although we will need more rain to help this soybean crop along- a year ago- we harvested 265,000 acres and the projected harvest number for 2012 is currently pegged at 380,000 acres. 

Another crop that we have not mentioned is cotton- total upland cotton acreage numbers that were planted in 2012 nationally stands at 12.4 million acres- off two million acres from a year ago- no harvested acres were given in the Friday report- but the hope for the southwest is that the heat of a year ago is not repeated and that more acres will make to fall with enough cotton lint to harvest. Oklahoma's cotton acres are off 20% from a year ago- based on harvested acres- but the hope is for many more acres than 2011 to make it to harvest in 2012.  Click here to jump over to the Oklahoma Acreage summary as released this past Friday.

Kansas Farm Brothers' Catchy Video Goes Viral

Three farm brothers from Saline County, Kansas, are basking in the limelight.   Greg, Nathan and Kendal Peterson posted a parody of LMFAO's "Sexy and I Know It" to YouTube, and their video has gone viral.

Since Monday evening, over 1.5 million people have viewed the Petersons' "I'm Farming and I Grow It" video. Their popularity earned the brothers an appearance on Fox News in New York Friday morning. The video has also been featured on Good Morning America and CNN.

The video is a catchy adaptation of the pop hip-hop tune and features the brothers at work around their family's farm.

The boys requested assistance from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association to help them prepare for their media interviews.

Click here to the the Peterson Brothers' video.

FSA Acreage Reporting Deadline Quickly Approaching

Francie Tolle, executive director for the Oklahoma Farm Service Agency (FSA), reminds producers of the acreage reporting requirements that must be met prior to receiving program benefits.

Producers are required to file an FSA-578, Report of Acreage, certification for their farm by July 16 for crops other than small grains. To be considered timely, acreage reports are due in the county office by July 16 for nearly all crops other than small grains, or 15 calendar days before the onset of harvest or grazing of the specific crop acreage being reported.

It is also very important that producers report crop losses, including those insured under Federal Crop Insurance (FCIC) and Non-insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) within 15 days of the date damage occurred or 15 days from the date damage is apparent. Losses and or damages to crops must be reported on a form CCC-576, Notice of Loss, after each disaster occurrence and in a timely manner to insure continued eligibility for benefits. 

Click here for more.

Ag Groups Applaud Approval of Highway Bill and the Ag Hours of Service Exemption

With the previous highway bill poised to end on June 30, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA), the Agricultural and Food Transporters Conference (AFTC) of the American Trucking Associations, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives (NCFC) and The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) applauded Congress for approving the conference report on the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) last Friday. The 2-year reauthorization of the Surface Transportation bill includes a clarification of regulations critical to the agriculture industry's ability to distribute farm supplies in a timely manner.

NCBA President J.D. Alexander said, "This very important bill is another example of legislation that resulted from bipartisan compromise. This bill has been on a road to nowhere for more than three years. Cattlemen should be relieved that progress has been made."
 

The final agreement includes the Farmers' Freedom Act (H.R. 2414), which was sponsored by Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.). Alexander said H.R. 2414 will prevent certain farm vehicles from vigorous federal requirements, such as commercial driver's licenses, designed for fulltime commercial drivers. Among the provisions included in H.R. 2414, the legislation provides additional uniformity across state lines. Also included on that list of provisions is H.R. 3265, which was introduced by Congressman Sam Graves (R-Mo.). This legislation waives certain driving restrictions during planting and harvesting seasons for farmers who are transporting commodities. 

Click here to read the NCBA's response by clicking here.

You can read more of the other groups' reactions to the highway bill by clicking here.

Oklahoma Conservation Commission's Mike Thralls Back on the Job

Good news came on Friday in the form of an email via Mark Harrison of the Oklahoma Conservation Commission Mike Thralls- some of you received this already- but for those who did not- I wanted to share Mike's message about his medical journey this spring-

"With much gratitude I have been able to return to work this week.   Since receiving the news of more cancer, my spirit has been greatly encouraged and my recovery aided by the prayers, cards, calls, visits and support I have consistently received from you.  My most recent doctor's visits report that the cancer has been addressed, although we will remain vigilant.  Interestingly , our local mail carrier stopped Dad a few weeks ago asking about me because of the sheer volume of cards she was delivering to our mail box.

"I simply cannot thank you enough nor adequately describe how much your encouragement meant to me.  But I can add my testimony to that of others with similar experiences that this conservation and agriculture family is the best in their care for each other.  I am also deeply appreciative to those who donated leave when mine was exhausted.  Thank you for all you have done to support me and my family during this challenge.

"I continue to gain strength and it is good to be back.   I look forward to seeing you soon.  May God's grace be with each of you."