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For the first time in history (Dating back to the 1930s), the House has rejected a farm bill, with the final vote announced as 195 to 234.  

Democratic support for the bill evaporated in the final couple of hours before the midday vote, as several highly partisan amendments were considered, including one that had House Majority Leader Eric Cantor taking to the floor to endorse, demanding reform of SNAP.  Top Democrat on the House Ag Committee, Collin Peterson, told reporters after the vote that "I did have more Democrats."  The last straw, according to Peterson, was the Cantor- backed amendment that would have given the states the option to imposing work requirements on food stamp recipients.  Democrats howled at the suggestion of the plan- and it passed by a straight line party vote.  After that vote- Peterson contends that he had people come to him and say that "I was with you, but this is it.  I'm done."  

Chairman Frank Lucas offered a brief statement after the defeat saying "I'm obviously disappointed, but the reforms in H.R. 1947- $40 billion in deficit reduction, elimination of direct payments and the first reforms to SNAP since 1996 - are so important that we must continue to pursue them. We are assessing all of our options, but I have no doubt that we will finish our work in the near future and provide the certainty that our farmers, ranchers, and rural constituents need."  

This statement came after Lucas offered an passionate plea to members to set aside the partisanship and advance the bill- click here for our story that has the audio of his comments- we also have a link of how members voted. 

Chairlady of the Senate Ag Committee, Debbie Stabenow, called the defeat of the measure in the House unacceptable and told the House leadership to get their act together and get a bill out of the House to where a conference with the Senate can happen.   Click here for Senator Stabenow's statement.

Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack also weighed in Thursday afternoon- click here for his expression of disappointment. 

After the vote was finally announced- it was delayed as last minute arm twisting failed to sway any votes- cheers were heard from the Democratic side of the aisle- and the rancor level was turned up a notch or three as Eric Cantor and Stenny Hoyer  played the Capitol Hill version of the blame game. We have the video and audio of the exhange- click here to check out one or both.

Reaction to yesterday's defeat of the House version of the 2013 farm bill was mostly frustration and disappointment, but a couple of groups said they were relieved the bill did not pass.

Oklahoma Farm Bureau President Mike Spradling summed up the feelings expressed by most farm organizations:  "We are extremely disappointed in the vote against the farm bill.  Oklahoma's farmers and ranchers need a farm bill now to help them plan for their next crop. No business can successfully operate without a plan and this negative vote will indefinitely delay business decisions."

Terry Detrick of the AFR-OFU also expressed regrets over the stunning turn of events. "The House of Representatives turned their backs on rural America today. National farm policy, which has historically provided the cheapest, safest, most plentiful and most available food supply in the world was disregarded over partisan politics-not just between Republicans and Democrats, but three ways including the split Republican majority.  

"Peterson stated he had 40 Democrat votes for the bill until Republican leadership tried one last ditch effort to make SNAP benefits more difficult to obtain and another to remove a supply-management provision from the new dairy margin insurance program. Those changes cost 16 Democrat votes. Likewise, Lucas found his far right-wing members refusing to support their own committee chair who apparently worked too hard to achieve bipartisanship.

"We are proud of the Oklahoma delegation members that supported their chairman on this bill.  We are disappointed Congressman Bridenstein (R-Tulsa) chose to vote NO. "

 

There were those that are delighted with the failed vote. Scott Faber, the senior vice president for government affairs with the Environmental working group applauded the bill's defeat.   "The full House was right to reject a bloated farm bill that increases subsidies for the largest and most successful farm businesses, while needlessly cutting programs designed to help feed the hungry and protect the environment... This should be a wake-up call to lawmakers to produce a farm safety net that is equitable, fiscally responsible, and protects our food, family farms, and the environment."

Click on the group's name below to read their response to the farm bill's defeat.

American Farmers & Ranchers-OFU  

Oklahoma Farm Bureau   

American Farm Bureau 

American Soybean Association 

Dairy Farmers of America 

Environmental Working Group 

National Cattlemen's Beef Association 

National Corn Growers Association 

National Cotton Council 

National Rural Electric Cooperative Association 

National Sorghum Producers 

National Wildlife Federation 

Senators Raise Questions about Government Review Process Over Chinese Acquisition of Smithfield

Senator Debbie Stabenow, Chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, Senator Thad Cochran, Ranking Member of the Committee, and a bipartisan group of Agriculture Committee members, raised questions regarding government oversight of the proposed purchase of Smithfield Foods and future foreign acquisitions of American agriculture companies. In a letter, the Senators urged Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew to include both the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration in the review of the proposed purchase of Smithfield foods so that the oversight process includes experts on the American food supply and food safety.

The proposed acquisition by Shuanghui International, a Chinese food company, will undergo a national security review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), and the Treasury Secretary has the authority to add the agencies to the review process.

The senators said that the foreign purchase of such a significant American agricultural company-the largest acquisition of any American company by a Chinese company in history-raises a number of broader questions about how such transactions are reviewed and whether the appropriate authorities are evaluating risks and ensuring American interests are protected. The senators questioned whether reviews of these sales are adequately reviewed to take into account American national security interests, uphold food safety standards, whether overall trends in foreign ownership of the American food supply are examined, and whether appropriate measures are in place to safeguard American intellectual property.

You can read the full letter as well as a list of those who signed it by clicking here.  

NACD Submits Comments on Threatened Species Rule Proposed by FWS

The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) submitted comments  regarding the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) proposed rule on listing the lesser prairie-chicken as a threatened species (Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2012-0071).

"Ongoing conservation work is effectively contributing to the recovery of the lesser prairie-chicken," said NACD President Earl Garber. "Through proactive, voluntary, locally led conservation practices, stakeholders have collaborated to enhance both the health of the land and the health of the species. Based on these efforts, we believe that if this work is sustained, a threatened or endangered listing is not necessary."

As the FWS continues work to identify the range of the species, critical habitat, threats, conservation practices, impacts, and other factors surrounding lesser prairie-chicken recovery, it is important that any decisions or determinations be based solely on sound scientific data. 

You can read more of this story by clicking here. 

Rabo AgriFinance Report Finds Corn Margins to Tighten Significantly

As growth in demand for biofuels begins to slow and Chinese grain demand remains uncertain, U.S. corn prices could be pressured to below breakeven levels, according to a new report from the Rabobank Food & Agribusiness (FAR) Research and Advisory group.

The report, "AgFocus: Bracing for Tightening U.S. Grain Margins," notes softer medium-term prices could lead to a contraction of 5 to 6 million U.S. acres as growers look toward other crops.

"The three largest drivers of U.S. grain prices over the next few years will be demand from the U.S. ethanol industry, import demand from China and supply performance in Brazil," says report author and Rabobank Food & Agribusiness Research and Advisory (FAR) group Vice President, Sterling Liddell.

Click here for more. 

Kim Anderson Lays Out Marketing Strategies for Recently-Harvested Wheat

In his audio preview to this week's SUNUP show, Oklahoma State University Extension Grain Marketing Specialist Kim Anderson talks about marketing plans for this year's wheat crop. He says prices this year are about a dollar higher than last year and that dictates a different strategy.

"If you compare them to last year, it was almost the same supply and demand situation projected. Ending stocks were slightly below average for the U.S. and the world. We've got prices 80 cents higher than they were last year. Also, one of the surprises is that the basis for last year was -30 or -40 cents under the July-September contract. This year, in parts of the state, it's even or seven cents less. In other words, the basis is 20 to 25 cents, maybe even 30 cents in some areas, higher than last year."

In the current climate, Anderson says he would sell half his crop now and store half to see where the markets go. 

You can here more of Kim's analysis as well as see the lineup for this week's SUNUP show by clicking here.
 

Drought Improves- But for How Long? 

Associate State Climatologist Gary McManus says the latest drought map shows improvement across Oklahoma, but it may be the last to show that for a while. An upper-level ridge of high pressure appears ready to park itself over the Southern Plains, decreasing chances for rain over the next week to ten days.

We have the latest Drought Monitor map that was released on Thursday morning- showing that almost half of Oklahoma is now out of drought just as enter the hot dry part of the year.

Click here to read more of Gary's thoughts on current weather conditions- and for a chance to see the state Drought Monitor map.