Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
From: Ron Hays <ronphays@cox.net>
Date: 12/4/2019, 5:40 AM
To: ron@ronhays.com



 
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We invite you to listen to us on great radio stations across the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network weekdays- if you missed this morning's Farm News - or you are in an area where you can't hear it- click here for this morning's Farm news from Ron Hays on RON.
 

 
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Today's First Look:
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.



FedCattleExchange.com has 1189 head of cattle on their showlist for the Wednesday, December 4th sale of finished cattle - click here to jump to the website.
 
 
Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futures- click or tap here for the report posted yesterday afternoon around 3:30 PM.
 
 
Okla Cash Grain:  
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- as reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture on Tuesday, December 3rd.
 
  
Futures Wrap:  
Our Daily Market Wrapup from the Radio Oklahoma Network - analyzing the Futures Markets from the previous Day.
 
Feeder Cattle Recap:  
The National Daily Feeder & Stocker Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
 
Slaughter Cattle Recap: 
The National Daily Slaughter Cattle Summary- as prepared by the USDA.
 
TCFA Feedlot Recap:  
Finally, here is the Daily Volume and Price Summary from the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
 


 
Our Oklahoma Farm Report Team!!!!
 
Ron Hays, Senior Farm Director and Editor
 
Pam Arterburn, Calendar and Template Manager
 
Dave Lanning, Markets and Production

Kane Kinion, Web and Email Editorial Assistant

Oklahoma's Latest Farm and Ranch News
 
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON
   Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Howdy Neighbors! 

Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 
One Featured Story:

The Ag Economy Barometer rose in November for the second month in a row, climbing to 153, 17 points higher than in October when the index stood at 136. This month's rise in the ag economy sentiment index left the barometer tied with July for the highest barometer reading of 2019. Once again, the rise in the barometer was driven by improvements in farmers' perceptions of both current economic conditions and their belief that conditions will improve in the future, with the biggest boost coming from improved perceptions of current conditions. This month's Index of Current Conditions rose from 115 in October to 153 in November while the Index of Futures Expectations climbed just 7 points to reach a reading of 153. The Ag Economy Barometer and related indices are all based upon results from a nationwide telephone survey of 400 U.S. crop and livestock producers. This month's survey was conducted from November 11-15, 2019. As a result, most survey responses were received before USDA's announcement on November 15th that the second round of 2019 Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments would be made to farmers in November.


The Farm Capital Investment Index rose to a reading of 71 in November, up 12 points from a month earlier and 24 points higher than in September. This month's rise in the investment index coincided with a sharp upward move in the Index of Current Conditions, suggesting that, as producers' perspective regarding their farm's current situation improved, they were more favorably inclined toward making farm capital expenditures. This month's investment index reading was not only the highest of 2019, but the Farm Capital Investment Index's highest value since February 2018.


Producers had a more optimistic view regarding farmland values this month than in October. Although the percentage of farmers reporting that they expect to see higher farmland values in the upcoming 12 months did not change, the percentage expecting values to fall declined from 22 percent to just 11 percent. As a group, the shift among respondents was from expecting lower farmland values in the year ahead to expecting farmland values to remain unchanged. When asked for their perspective on farmland values five years ahead, fewer farmers said they expected values to decline than a month earlier and that shift nearly matched the increase in the percentage of farmers expecting farmland values to increase.  So, looking at both time frames, producers were more optimistic about farmland values when queried in November than in October, but there was a bigger increase in confidence that farmland values would rise over the next five years than over the upcoming 12 months.



Click here to read more from CME Ag Barometer this month. 


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Today, Farmers for Free Trade hosted a call with Michelle Erickson-Jones, a wheat farmer from Montana; Former U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and current President and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council; and Coalition Spokesperson, Former Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) to discuss the need to pass the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). On the call, the participants also spoke about a new letter from more than 2,200 farmers nationwide that was sent to House and Senate leaders, calling for swift passage of the modernized trade agreement, which was signed nearly a year ago.


"USMCA does two very important things for American agriculture: it guarantees open access to critical markets in Canada and Mexico, and for the dairy farmers of this country, it provides additional access to a market that has been closed for far too long in Canada-additional access in terms of the ability to sell more product in Canada, but also an end to a discriminatory pricing system that the Canadians have established," Secretary Vilsack said on the call.


American agriculture is struggling, and USMCA is a badly needed victory that will help restore certainty for farmers, ranchers and rural communities. The U.S. food and ag industries export $20.5 billion in goods to Canada and $18.6 billion to Mexico annually. Under NAFTA, which USMCA updates and upgrades, agricultural exports from the U.S. to Canada and Mexico have increased from $8.9 billion in 1993 to $39 billion in 2017.


"Those export dollars provide economic certainty and security, not only to farmers and ranchers, but also to workers at every stop in the supply chain for agriculture - from grain elevator operators, to rail and ship workers, to rural small businesses,"Senator Lincoln said on the call.


You can read more from Farmers for Free Trade and review the complete letter, by clicking or tapping here


The National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), the nation's oldest and largest national organization representing American cattle producers, today reaffirmed its policy supporting voluntary country-of-origin labeling (COOL). Because the association takes the concerns of its members and stakeholders seriously, its Executive Committee has unanimously approved efforts to work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service (USDA FSIS) to address the Agency's longstanding policy on geographic origin statements.


Specifically, NCBA is seeking solutions to the labeling requirements and verification procedures in place for beef products labeled as "Product of the U.S.A," "Made in the U.S.A.," or similar origin claims, which will resolve the concerns of beef producers, work at the speed of commerce, meet America's trade obligations and prevent confusion among consumers.


For several months, NCBA has been studying origin claims in use on some beef product labels. During the NCBA Summer Business Meeting in July, NCBA leaders formed a producer-led working group to examine the extent of these concerns and the federal regulations governing such practices. Although the working group has not determined whether such practices are occurring on a widespread basis, concerns remain that consumer expectations relative to beef product labels bearing origin claims may not be consistent with FSIS's current policy.


"NCBA recognizes that product labels are a defining feature of the shopping experience for consumers. While the majority of beef products currently advertised, marketed, or labeled as 'Product of the U.S.A.' are likely compliant with current FSIS regulations, the potential for consumer confusion exists," said NCBA CEO Colin Woodall. "The core mission of FSIS is to ensure all meat and poultry products are safe, wholesome, not adulterated, and properly marked, labeled, and packaged. While FSIS has policy regarding origin labels, ultimately origin claims are marketing claims and should be regulated as such." 


Click here to read more from NCBA regarding their call on FSIS. 



BY THE WAY- we are featuring Ethan Lane of the NCBA Washington office on this subject in the Beef Buzz coming out this morning- that will be featured in tomorrow's email.

Designed to identify superior Herford-influenced feeder cattle, the Hereford Advantage program now offers additional benefits to add value to feeder cattle. With these enhancements, cattlemen using Hereford bulls can provide value beyond genetic merit through health and management practices. New components of the program are backed by documented market price advantages, giving producers a great opportunity to increase their bottom line. Established by the American Hereford Association (AHA), this tagging program is now offered in conjunction with IMI Global, an industry-leading source for third-party verification of food production practices in North America.


"The Hereford Advantage program serves as a valuable tool for commercial cattlemen using Hereford bulls to set themselves apart in a competitive market," says Trey Befort, AHA director of commercial programs. "Cattle feeders are looking for healthy cattle that have been managed properly and that will perform in the yard and on the rail. The Hereford Advantage program helps to identify cattle that will check those boxes and reward producers who are working to do so."
Requirements include:


- Source and age (required IMI base verification)
- Genetic merit
- Minimum of 50% Hereford genetics
- Bull battery ranking in top 50% of breed for CHB$ profit index (bull battery average)
- Bull ownership transferred (all bulls)
- Vaccination program
- Two rounds of preweaning vaccinations (minimum)
- BQA certification


You can read more from AMA regarding the added benefits of Hereford marketing program, by jumping over to our website


Sponsor Spotlight

 
The vision of the Oklahoma Beef Council is to be a positive difference for Oklahoma's farming and ranching families and the greater beef community and its mission is to enhance beef demand by strengthening consumer trust and exceeding consumer expectations.  To learn more, visit www.oklabeef.org.  Also, don't forget to like its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/oklabeef for stories on Oklahoma's ranching families and great beef recipes.  



Anti-Animal agriculture folks are preaching "Stop Eating beef and save the planet" But the beef industry is pushing back on these claims, and the beef checkoff has funded research regarding the sustainability story of today's U.S. Beef.


Greg Hanes, the Chief Executive Officer of the Cattlemen's Beef Board, wants to set the record straight, "I think that it's hugely important for the checkoff to be able to get this information out. You've got activist groups that are still using data from reports that have already been debunked, and they keep touting that data as the facts. So getting this type of information out is critical that really shows the carbon footprint, the C02 emission is much less than what people really are seeing and what they are putting out there, so it's very very important that we get that out there."


When talking about the sustainability of beef, Hanes says it's pretty incredible, "We've increased the amount of agriculture production by 300% almost, and our inputs have stayed flat. That is sustainability." Hanes goes onto say that those types of stories must be heard so that people understand Ag is sustainable and continuing to improve to be a good citizen in the global environment.


You can listen to the entire conversation between Hanes and I on Tuesday's Beef Buzz - here.
 

The National Milk Producers Federation today expressed hope that the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee vote to send Dr. Stephen Hahn's nomination to be commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to the full Senate for final confirmation represents another step toward greater transparency in the use of dairy terms in the marketplace.


"It is long past time for the FDA to begin enforcing its own standards, which make clear that dairy terms are reserved for real dairy products, not plant-based imitators that mislead shoppers by misrepresenting nutritionally inferior products," said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. "We are hopeful that today's vote to forward Dr. Hahn's nomination to the full Senate is the beginning of the end of this long process, and we are eager to work with Dr. Hahn upon his confirmation to ensure that dairy product standards are enforced once and for all."


Hahn voiced his support in his confirmation hearing last month for "clear, transparent, and understandable labeling for the American people" in an exchange with Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.


You can read more from NMPF regarding fake milk, by clicking or tapping here


Today, the United States Cattlemen's Association (USCA)submitted to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin a request for investigation of Marfrig Global Foods' near-acquisition of the U.S. based National Beef Packing Company.


The Brazilian-owned Marfrig Global Foods announced last week that it raised its stake in the U.S.-based National Beef Packing Company from 51% to 81.7%. In 2018, Marfrig acquired a majority stake in National Beef Packing Company, but this recent announcement means that the U.S.-based company will now be almost wholly owned by Brazilian interests.


The United States Cattlemen's Association (USCA) is firmly opposed to the increasing consolidation of the meat-packing sector and foreign ownership of U.S. agricultural interests. Our request for investigation of these actions by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CIFUS) demands a full review of Marfrig Global Foods' acquisition of U.S. companies, and calls for those outcomes to be explicitly written out and publicly published.


Click here to read the statement from USCA President Kenny Graner regarding the investigation. 

TradeTrade Notes- Japan Deal is Done, China Phase One Deal Inches Closer...Maybe


We have already mentioned USMCA this morning in an earlier story- two other trade nuggets to share- including VERY GOOD news out of Tokyo.

According to Nippon.Com- "
The Diet, Japan's parliament, approved Wednesday a recently signed trade agreement between Japan and the United States, with Tokyo and Washington expected to put it into effect on Jan. 1, 2020, after necessary adjustments.

"The pact was approved by a majority vote at a plenary meeting of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet, on Wednesday, with support mainly from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its Komeito ally. It was endorsed by the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, in November.

"Based on the trade deal, which was signed in October, Japan will open its agricultural market within the levels it promised under the Trans-Pacific Partnership multilateral free trade agreement, which entered into force late last year. For example, Japan's tariffs on U.S. beef, now at 38.5 pct, will be reduced in stages until the rate eventually falls to 9 pct in fiscal 2033."

And- very importantly- US Beef and Pork will have the tariff schedule as the TPP countries as of January first- which is HUGE.

*************************

Regarding US and China trade negotiations- this morning we have one major news outlet citing another major news outlet- all to say that the Phase One Deal with China is not dead- 

Reuters reports "The United States and China are moving closer to agreeing on the amount of tariffs to be rolled back in a phase-one trade deal, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing sources."

They then add in their early Wednesday am report what President Trump was saying yesterday in Europe- that the China deal might not get done until after the elections next November- yeah right- it is almost impossible to believe that the Administration would allow that to happen- since that would keep stocks from soaring which is very important for the President's chances with the voters next November.

 
Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, AFR Insurance,  Oklahoma Pork CouncilOklahoma Farm BureauStillwater Milling Company, National Livestock Credit CorporationOklahoma Beef Council, Oklahoma AgCredit, Oklahoma Ag Mediation Program, Inc.the Oklahoma Cattlemens Association and  KIS Futures for their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked here- just click on their name to jump to their website- check their sites out and let these folks know you appreciate the support of this daily email, as their sponsorship helps us keep this arriving in your inbox on a regular basis- at NO Charge!


We also appreciate our Market Links Sponsor - OKC West Livestock! 
 
 
We invite you to check out our website at the link below too that includes an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.   
 

 
God Bless! You can reach us at the following:  
 
phone: 405-473-6144
 

 



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