Plant Biotechnology Companies Begin New Conversation about GMOs and How our Food is Grown 

The agricultural biotechnology companies that develop genetically modified seeds - or GMOs - are coming together to launch a broad, new initiative to provide accurate information and answer the toughest questions about GMOs and how our food is grown. GMO Answers is a new conversation, public Q&A, and central online resource for information on GMOs, their background, use in agriculture, and research and data in one easy-to-access public resource for the first time.

"GMOs are a growing topic of discussion today, with a wide range of questions and emotions," Cathleen Enright, Ph.D., spokesperson for GMO Answers, said. "Food is personal, so we want to open the door for personal discussions. We recognize we haven't done the best job communicating about GMOs-what they are, how they are developed, food safety information-the science, data and processes. We want people to join us and ask their tough questions. Be skeptical. Evaluate the information and decide for yourself. We look forward to an open conversation."

As the public discussion on GMOs continues, the scientists who develop biotech seeds along with farmers who grow them want to make information about GMOs easier to find and understand.

"This type of open conversation, connecting consumers to experts in academia, government and the industry, is absolutely necessary to advance food and agriculture research to ensure that everyone has access to the highest quality most sustainably produced food. Having grown up on a small farm and spent much of my life in academia I can relate to the issues on several levels. I've offered to address questions submitted to GMO Answers openly, based on my personal insights, experience and research," Professor Martina Newell-McGloughlin, director, International Biotechnology Program, University of California Davis said. 

Click here for more.  

Derrell Peel Takes First Look at Fall Grazing Prospects 

Derrell S. Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist, writes in the latest Cow-Calf Newsletter:

Most of Oklahoma has received some rain in the past 10 days with virtually all parts of the state having received moisture the past 30 days. Some critically dry areas remain in the western counties and the Oklahoma Panhandle. The moisture has two impacts, including boosting summer forage production of both pastures and hay; and increasing prospects for wheat pasture this fall. While conditions could turn dry at any time, the soil moisture in place now likely means that early wheat establishment for grazing will be possible. At this point in time, this looks like the best chances for fall and winter grazing in over three years.

Feeder cattle prices have improved significantly since the lows in late May, with most classes of feeder cattle up $10-$12/cwt. Price for heavy feeders have improved proportionately more than for the calves and that has improved the stocker value of gain offered in feeder markets. At current prices, the value of weight gain for stockers is over $1.00/lb of gain for wide range of beginning stocker weights from 400 to over 600 pounds and for weight gain ranging from 250 to 400 pounds. This value of gain reflects the facts that feedlot cost of gain continues to run in well in excess of $1.10/lb in most cases.   

Click here to read more from Derrell Peel. 

Oklahoma received an average rainfall of 2.25 inches over the past week. The rain was widespread, but parts of western Oklahoma and the Panhandle received less than half an inch, while places in central and eastern Oklahoma received upwards of six inches.

Condition ratings continued to improve for most row crops. Corn, sorghum and soybeans were all rated mostly good. Corn silking was 80 percent complete by the end of the week, and 31 percent reached the dough state, 34 points below the five-year average. Soybeans blooming were 23 percent complete, 22 points behind the five-year average.  (Click here for the Oklahoma Crop Progress and Condition report.)

Rainfall amounts of 1 inch or more were common in central Kansas with lighter amounts in other areas. The rain was accompanied by cooler temperatures, relieving some stress on row crops.  Corn silking was 79 percent, behind 90 last year and 89 average.  Soybeans were 54 percent blooming, behind 67 last year and 65 average.  (The Kansas report is available by clicking here.)

In Texas, scattered showers prevailed across the state. While most rainfall was limited to 1 inch or less, localized areas of the Northern Plains and the Trans-Pecos received upwards of 1.5 inches.  Producers were defoliating cotton and preparing for harvest. Cotton in the Trans-Pecos and East Texas was squaring and setting bolls. Corn progressed and neared maturity in the High Plains, while harvest was underway in most other areas of the state.  (Click here to read the full Texas report.)

NCBA Research Targets Education Message to Millennial Generation

The 2013 Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association Conference and Trade Show is in the history books, but not before planting some seeds in producers' minds.

Forrest Roberts, chief executive officer of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association was the keynote speaker and he talked about today's audience for beef products. He says it's an audience that is a more skeptical than the audience of five or ten years ago. 

"If we look at some of our recent research it would suggest, when you look at all of agriculture, 49 percent of consumers feel that conventional agriculture is headed down the wrong track. So, as we look at how we build trust with today's consumer-especially that of the Millennial Generation-they have a lot of questions about how that-especially in the beef industry-how that beef eating experience is actually produced.

"So they begin from kind of a sense of skepticism because they just weren't raised with any knowledge about not only where their food comes from, but how it was raised. And so we've really tried to understand not how we talk at them, but how we created a dialog with them. And that's an effort that we've been involved with in the beef industry not only directly within beef consumers, but also across all of today's agriculture with an effort that we call the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance. So, we're trying to balance both sides of that in our role not only in the beef industry, but also across all of today's agriculture."

Forrest Roberts is my guest on the latest Beef Buzz.  Click here to go there.  

Registration Deadline Approaching for International Leadership Alumni Conference 

The registration deadline for the 2013 International Leadership Alumni Conference set for Aug. 14-17 in Oklahoma City is fast approaching. 

Expanded insights, skill-enhancement and personal fulfillment relative to sharing the importance of agriculture will be the focus of the conference.

"We're excited to have ILAC in Oklahoma this year; traditionally, the conference has been for alumni of agricultural and rural leadership programs, but this year we're inviting anyone who is interested in the speakers and tours that we have planned," said Hope Pjesky, Agricultural Leadership of Oklahoma president and a farmer-rancher from Goltry, Okla.

Participants must register no later than July 31.

For more information, click here.  

 

Corn Silking Numbers Catching up to Five Year Average- National Crop Progress Numbers Suggest Bumper to Record Crop 

The U.S. corn crop made rapid progress toward full maturity last week while remaining in good condition, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report released today. The percentage of the corn crop silking increased by 28 points last week, narrowing the lag behind the five-year average to a four point gap from a 13 point gap the week prior.  Reports also indicate that the crop condition remains unchanged from the previous week with 63 percent of the crop forecast to be in good-to-excellent condition. Last year at this time, only 24 percent of the crop still fared as well.

"As the summer passes, we are pleased to see that the crop condition across the country remains strong," said National Corn Growers Association President Pam Johnson, a grower in Floyd, Iowa. "Despite wet, cool conditions this spring and, for some, this summer, farmers forged ahead to plant a near-record number of corn acres. Should favorable weather continue to fuel growth and maintain quality, U.S. corn farmers could produce a record crop in 2013."

Currently, 89 percent of all corn acres are forecast to be in fair-to-excellent condition, with only 11 percent rated in poor or very poor condition. The crop condition forecast remained completely unchanged from a week prior, remaining strong across the country. This stands in stark contrast to condition forecasts at this time in 2012, which fell continuously as high temperatures and dry conditions hit large portions of the Corn Belt.

Dead People Cash in on Crop Insurance- GAO Study Offers Details 

A GAO study that is now out suggests that both the NRCS and the RMA have issued payments to farmers and other stakeholders who have been dead one or even two years when the check was cut (or the electronic deposit hit their account).   

The General Accounting Office says about ten million dollars has been handed over to dead folks- "GAO did a data review for fiscal year 2008 to April 2012, and estimates that NRCS made $10.6 million payments on behalf of 1,103 deceased individuals 1 year or more after their death."  They admit some of these payments were legit- but that NRCS doesn't really know if they were or not.

Likewise- the Risk Management Agency that oversees Crop Insurance handed out subsidies of more than twenty million dollars to folks that apparently were already in the grave.  "GAO matched every policyholder's Social Security number in RMA's crop insurance subsidy and administrative allowance data for crop insurance years 2008 to 2012 with SSA's master list of deceased individuals and found that $22 million in subsidies and allowances may have been provided on behalf of an estimated 3,434 program policyholders 2 or more years after death."   

Keep in perspective that the numbers for Crop Insurance are over a five year period- which means Four Million Dollars worth of questionable payments per year- a pretty small number for sure. I guess the question that is sticks out to me- how the devil did that dead guy sign for Crop Insurance?  (especially the second year out)

Click here to see the one page summary of this GAO study.

As you might well imagine- some anti- Farm Bill folks are truly gleeful over this report.  Scott Farber with the Environmental Working Group smells a HUGE coverup- "Not only are unlimited crop insurance subsidies flowing to the largest and most successful farm businesses, they are now going to deceased policyholders. At a time when some lawmakers want to cut off funding for the hungriest children, we find out today the federal government has spent $22 million over four years to lavish insurance subsidies to individuals who are no longer alive. It is appalling to learn that bureaucrats didn't match the names of the recipients of crop insurance with the Social Security Administration's master list of deceased individuals. This irresponsible use of scarce taxpayer dollars reinforces just how broken the system is and how badly it is in need of reform.  "