Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
From: Ron Hays <ronphays@cox.net>
Date: 1/22/2018 5:55 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.
 
  
  
Let's Check the Markets!  



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.

 
   
Today's First Look:
mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
  
  
Each afternoon we are posting a recap of that day's markets as analyzed by Justin Lewis of KIS futuresclick 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 January 19, 2018.
  
  
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

Carson Horn, Associate Farm Director and Editor
  
Pam Arterburn, Calendar and Template Manager
  
Dave Lanning, Markets and Production

Oklahoma's Latest Farm and Ranch News

 
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON
   Monday, January 22, 2018

Howdy Neighbors! 

Here is your daily Oklahoma farm and ranch news update. 
 









Featured Story:
PoopNo, It's Not Fake News - Starting Monday, Producers will be Required to File Report on POOP! to EPA 

As of this morning(subject the Federal Government shutdown), farmers and ranchers that fall within a certain threshold of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide emissions - that is, the breakdown of manure from livestock - may have to begin reporting their estimates for continuous low-level emissions to the Coast Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency as mandated in the CERCLA and EPCRA laws. Also known as Superfund, these regulations were meant to primarily oversee the cleanup of toxic spills and dump sites, but never for agriculture. Environmental Counsel for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association Scott Yager says to require producers to report emissions from their cattle is ludicrous, and is now leading NCBA in a campaign to exempt those in agriculture from this requirement. He explained in a recent phone interview with us how the industry even found itself in this position.


"This is one of the few times EPA was on our side, because in 2008, EPA crafted a regulatory exemption for agriculture so that agriculture did not have to do these reports under CERCLA and EPCRA," Yager said. "However, environmental activist groups sued the EPA and forced this bad court decision in April that vacated the EPA exemption for agriculture - which now means around 200,000 ranchers across the country will have to report their emissions."


Those affected will be determined by a reporting threshold, requiring any livestock operation that exceeds 100 lbs./day of ammonia and/or hydrogen sulfide emissions to notify the EPA and Coast Guard. Figuring out if that applies to you, is the hard part Yager says. Luckily, the University of Nebraska and Texas AgriLife have developed some calculators to help feedlots determine their emission levels. Unfortunately, though, there are no available tools for the cow/calf man, but Yager says that from extrapolating numbers from the feedlot tools, 330 head of cattle or more is the magic number for producers to go by.


This past week, NCBA kicked off a media campaign aimed at spotlighting and correcting a recent court decision, with a new online video  featuring Yager donning a yellow hazmat suit and explaining the issue at an actual toxic Superfund site near Fredericksburg, Virginia. He then shows the contrast between the contaminated Superfund site and a cattle farm in nearby Louisa County, Virginia, that would likely have to comply with the new reporting requirements. Click or tap here  to listen to Yager further explain this situation on Friday's Beef Buzz, and watch NCBA's video featuring Yager as well.


Sponsor Spotlight


The Oklahoma Farm Bureau - a grassroots organization that has for its Mission Statement- Improving the Lives of Rural Oklahomans."  Farm Bureau, as the state's largest general farm organization, is active at the State Capitol fighting for the best interests of its members and working with other groups to make certain that the interests of rural Oklahoma are protected.  

Click here for their website to learn more about the organization and how it can benefit you to be a part of Farm Bureau.

GovtShutdownFederal Government Shutdown- Secretary Sonny Explains the USDA Plan

The US Senate has failed to gather up enough votes to end a Federal Government Shutdown that began Friday night- it seems unlikely that they will come up with 60 votes at midday today to end it- that's when the next vote is scheduled to happen on the US Senate floor. 

Most of the impact on the farm community starts this morning- with many USDA employees being told to stay home. Don't expect to find USDA Service Centers in your local county open until Congress figures this out. 

However, there are essential USDA services that will remain up and running.  Secretary Sonny Perdue released a list on Friday evening- click or tap here to see what those services are. 

The Secretary also signaled via Twitter that we can expect Market News reports to continue to be available- "In order to protect the value of commodities, Market News will continue to operate during the federal government shutdown through @USDA_AMS. We will continue to provide this critically important information to our farmers, ranchers, and the larger ag economy."

That tells me that we can expect our normal auction barn reports from the Monday cattle sales in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and Joplin later today- and our wholesale boxed beef reports as well.

Beyond the USDA- mail service will continue- social security checks will continue to be processed and sent electronically and many other services will continue  and not miss a beat. 

Click here for one of the many national reports on the negotiations over the weekend between Kentucky Republican Senator Mitch McConnell and New York Democrat Chuck Schumer. 
SurveySurvey: Nearly Half of Americans Support Banning Slaughterhouses Yet 90% of Population Eats Meat

According to the latest Food Demand Survey conducted by Oklahoma State University's Agricultural Economics Department, nearly half of of the respondents that answered the survey's ad hoc questions this month, said they were in favor of a ban on slaughterhouses. This revelation comes in despite of the fact that approximately 90 percent of Americans eat meat.


Surveyors were inclined to ask this question, based on a previous survey conducted by Sentience Institute, where 42 percent of Americans reported they supported a slaughterhouse ban. Surveyors with OSU hoped to disprove this notion, but actually found their results to be even higher in favor of the ban at 47 percent.


The results were found by those at OSU behind this month's survey to be "outrageous." But they still report that several other questions recreated from the Sentience Institute also yielded similar results.


Meanwhile, the survey's regular portion indicated that this month, customers' willingness-to-pay increased for deli ham and chicken wings, but decreased for steak, chicken breast, hamburger, and pork chops. WTP for hamburger saw the largest percent decrease among meat products compared to one month ago. WTP for all food products is lower than one year ago.


Click here to read more highlights from this month's report on the survey or to view the full report from OSU.

The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture recognized Dr. Rebekah Hatfield as a Significant Woman in Agriculture this past week.


Hartfield grew up in Bridgeport, Texas. Eventually, she would go on to become a veterinarian, but her love for animals began at a young age, when she first learned to ride horses. She began competing in Quarter Horse shows and judging contests through 4-H. As she grew older, her love and passion for equine also grew. It seemed fitting that she would study Equine Science when she went off to college. She went on to earn her bachelor's degree in animal science from Texas A&M, but Hartfield said she knew then it would be a long, hard journey to becoming Dr. Hartfield. 


A year later, Hartfield was accepted to the veterinary program at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Her total journey to becoming a veterinarian was 11 years. 


Later on, Hartfield began writing children's books about being a veterinarian and had her sister illustrate them. The first book was inspired by her own pig Rosie, who was sick on their farm when her niece Abby came to visit. Since August, over 1,500 copies have been sold of "Rosie the Pig" across Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Hartfield said the Doctor Hartfield Veterinary Book Series will contain six books, each one about a different animal, and all of them based on events that have taken place on their farm. The remaining books in the series will feature a horse, dog, cat, goat and a cow. 


Hartfield said the goal of the books is to educate readers about veterinary medicine, instruments they use, and practices for different animals. All books include educational tools like a quiz to help summarize what they have learned and a glossary of terms that builds with each book.  Additionally, a portion of the proceeds from the book go directly towards the Doctor Hartfield Veterinary Book Series Mixed Animal Scholarship. This scholarship is specifically for a veterinary student wanting to practice in a mixed-animal rural setting. The first scholarship will be given out this April at the OSU-Veterinary Teaching Hospital awards banquet. 


She also offers information and resources about becoming a vet on her website, doctorhartfield.com, where the Doctor Hartfield Veterinary Book Series is sold.


To read more about Hatfield's story as a Significant Woman in Agriculture, click here.

RuralDevUSDA Provides Funding to Increase Access to Educational and Health Care Services in Rural Areas

Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett announced last week that USDA will award grants totaling $23.6 million through the Learning and Telemedicine Grant Program for broadband projects to increase access to job training, educational and health care services in rural areas.


Among the 35 states that will benefit from this grant funding is Oklahoma. Oklahoma Rural Development State Director, Dr. Lee Denney, listed five Oklahoma projects that will receive funding through this program. All together, the five projects will receive a total of just under $2 million from the funds being distributed.


Those institutions receiving money include Northwestern Oklahoma State University and Stroud Independent School District 54 to help purchase video conferencing equipment to provide interactive distance learning services; YCO Tulsa to help YCO Tulsa purchase video conferencing equipment to provide mental health services to youth in Oklahoma City; Clinton Independent School District 99  to purchase equipment to connect schools to the Support Oklahoma through Advancing our Reach (SOAR) distance learning program; and Hennessey School District 16 to help connect schools to enable course sharing so all of the sites served will have access to a complete array of curricula.


"Working to invest federal taxpayer dollars in rural Oklahoma projects is the primary responsibility of my new position with USDA," said Denney. "The grants that Oklahoma is receiving today will serve to extend the reach to share the services of these vital Oklahoma institutions. I commend the recipients on their hard work to submit quality applications to this highly-competitive program. Their commitment to serving the people of rural Oklahoma is evident."


Click here to read more about how this grant funding will help improve distance learning and education and help address opioid abuse and rural healthcare systems in Oklahoma.


Sponsor Spotlight


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And- their iPhone App, which provides all electronic futures quotes is available at the App Store-
click here for the KIS Futures App for your iPhone.   



Our Associate Farm Director Carson Horn had the chance to speak with Texas A&M Extension Economist Dr. John Robinson last week at the Red River Crops Conference in Altus about the health of the cotton industry right now. According to him, most contributing factors in the economy seem to point to pretty favorable times in the cotton business, but he says there is some lingering uncertainty - the total impact of which he says remains to be seen.


Currently fundamentals seem to be well positioned and supportive of the market, with trade and domestic demand both performing well. What is really behind it all though, says Robinson, is the speculative buying of cotton futures by hedge fund managers who he believes are anticipating the upward trend of the current marketplace to continue. However, it is that situation in which he says lends a bit of longer-term uncertainty.


"When I lay out the long-term fundamental picture, it pencils out to heavier, longer increasing ending stocks of cotton," Robinson said. "That is ordinarily a prescription for lower prices. So, what I'm afraid might happen is that we'll have this sort of unusual period of high prices - but then that will downshift into a lower price situation."


Taking this into consideration along with expectations that cotton acres are likely to increase by almost another million acres from last year's near 12 million planted acres, Carson asked Robinson if there will be enough demand to support the level of profitability that farmers are counting on.


"That really remains to be seen. I would say yes there is - that the world situation is unfolding and improving and I'm a little bit more cautious," he said. "But, we could be in a situation where if we have a larger excess of supplies then that's basically saying, 'no, there is not enough demand.' All ag commodities are sort of a boom and bust sort of proposition and this is an example of it. Are we leading to a bust or is the situation changing as we speak to improve it enough...? It remains to be seen."


You can listen to Carson's full conversation with Robinson about his outlook on the cotton market and what producers might expect in the future, by clicking here.

Want to Have the Latest Energy News Delivered to Your Inbox Daily?
 

Award winning broadcast journalist Jerry Bohnen has spent years learning and understanding how to cover the energy business here in the southern plains- Click here to subscribe to his daily update of top Energy News.

 


The National Pork Producers Council strongly supports the U.S. Department of Agriculture in finalizing a new pork processing inspection rule. 


The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service will expand its current HAACP Inspection Model from five current pilot locations to full-scale implementation. 


NPPC President Ken Maschoff says, "We support the decision to advance HIMP as it introduces new pork production efficiencies while encouraging the deployment of new food safety technologies in packing plants." 


He says the pilot program was very successful and expanding the program is another step in the industry's ongoing focus to continually improve the safety of America's food at an efficient cost. 


The new inspection model assigns increased inspection responsibility to plant operators, which allows the USDA to dedicate its resources to general oversight of food safety standards and the overall inspection process. Plants can choose to adopt the HIMP model or continue to operate under the current inspection system. 


Maschoff adds that "The U.S. pork industry is the most competitive in the world because we've built a reputation for quality, affordability, and food safety. We applaud the USDA for taking this step to strengthen our competitive position."


Get the full story up on our website, by clicking or tapping here.
Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, P & K Equipment, American Farmers & Ranchers, Oklahoma Beef Council, Livestock Exchange at the Oklahoma National Stockyards, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Stillwater Milling Company, National Livestock Credit Corporation, Oklahoma AgCredit 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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