Heath Sanders Says Topping the Canola Planting "To Do" List is Crop Insurance Sign Up and Seed Selection 

As the canola planting window draws closer, Heath Sanders, the canola field specialist with the Great Plains Canola Association says there are a few things producers need to keep in mind. He spoke recently and he will be my guest on "In the Field" Saturday morning about 6:40 a.m. on News 9.

Sanders said as farmers contemplate planting the 2014 crop in just a few weeks, they need to get their canola insurance agreements turned in soon. The deadline to have all the paper work completed is August 31st. "I believe that's priority No. 1," he said.

"Priority No. 2 is to go ahead and get their seed booked and ordered and get that seed to their farm. I think there's going to be certain varieties , different cultivars and things, that may run short. I don't think we're going to run out of seed, but if you want to be able to get what you want to plant, then you need to go ahead and get that done right now."

He said seedbed preparations are ongoing and consideration needs to be made by those using a no-till system to control crop residue to ensure good seed-to-soil contact.

In his new position with the GPCA, Sanders says he will be out in the field helping farmers with education and assistance to grow canola.

He said that everyone involved in the winter canola industry learned a lot last year given the adverse weather conditions. They main thing they learned, he said, was how well winter canola and winter wheat go together in this area.

Click here to listen to my interview with Heath Sanders or to read more of this story.

 AND- in regards to seed selection for the 2014 planting window- you might want to check out the story we did yesterday with Matt Gard about the handy reference that he has assembled of info for every variety of winter canola that is available for the farmers to plant here for the 2014 crop in the southern plains.  Click here for our story from earlier this week with Matt about this handy dandy guide.

The Farm Bill's Barnyard Brawl 

The following is an editorial by Will Coggin, a senior research analyst at the Center for Consumer Freedom, a nonprofit coalition supported by restaurants, food companies and consumers to promote personal responsibility and protect consumer choices.

The jostling over food stamps and commodity subsidies may be the crux of the Farm Bill news, but there's a battle brewing beneath the surface. The National Conference of State Legislatures has recently shown concern, at the urging of animal liberation groups, over an amendment by Iowa Congressman Steve King that is aimed at stopping California's interference in interstate commerce in agriculture. Opponents claim that scores of state laws will be at risk of nullification.

Far from the sky falling, if King's amendment isn't passed, it could encourage trade wars between states, and the average consumer's grocery list would take a hit.

King's amendment prevents a state from imposing additional regulations on any agricultural product that is produced elsewhere, unless the other state has the same regulation. The proposal comes after an animal-rights ballot campaign in California that banned the common hen housing used on state egg farms. The initiative was heavily funded by the vegan Humane Society of the United States. University of California-Davis researchers determined that it if passed would bankrupt the state egg industry.

Click here to read more of Coggin's editorial.

Anderson Says Grain Prices Testing Bottom Supports and Could Drop Lower

In this week's preview to the SUNUP program, Oklahoma State University Small Grain Marketing Specialist Kim Anderson says there's a lot going on in the markets, but there's not a lot happening with prices.

"You look at the corn crop-we may be fixin' to harvest a 14-billion-bushel corn crop here in the United States. They are already cutting in the extreme southern parts of the United States. You've got reports in Canada that they're fixin' to harvest the biggest wheat crop in the last 20 years. That's going to bring some protein on the market to compete with ours. They're talking about a record canola crop in Canada. Reports this week said that Australia's crop is going to be below average or the odds are that it will be below average and less than the last couple of years. You just have a lot going on around the world that has the potential to impact price, but there's just no price movements."

He said the Kansas City and Chicago September and December contracts are moving in a 20- to 25-cent price range with most of the movement recently at the bottom end of that range. He said if the market continues to hammer on that bottom support, prices could break lower. 

You can hear the rest of Kim Anderson's analysis as well as seeing the lineup for this week's SUNUP program by clicking here.

 

Tablet App for 'My American Farm' Now Available

The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture has released a tablet app modeled after the popular agricultural game site, "My American Farm."

The app is now available for free download on iTunes and Google Play. The app features five games from My American Farm-In My Barn; My Little Ag Me; Equipment Engineer; Farmer's Market Challenge; and Ag Across America.

App users are rewarded with a virtual sticker after successfully completing each game. Stickers can be dragged and dropped onto a virtual passport, allowing users to track their progress. 

Click here to read more and to find a link to download this app.

OSU's Gant Mourer Helps Oklahoma Cattle Producers Get More at Market Time

Gant Mourer, working with Oklahoma State University animal scientists and the Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association, is helping state cattle producers get more money for their cattle when they go to market.

Mourer, OSU beef enhancement specialist, explained the program at the recent OCA state convention in Oklahoma City. He is responsible for the Oklahoma Quality Beef Network, a program partially funded by the OCA.

Since 2001, Mourer said OSU has led the VAC 45 program where calves are given all their vaccinations to keep them healthy and are weaned for 45 days before being sent on to the next step in the cattle production chain.

"Under this program," Mourer said, "ranchers' calves are verified by OSU Extension county directors before they are marketed."

Economists report the program yields 600 pound calves bringing a premium of $5.43 per hundredweight. Cattle certified in the VAC 45 program bring a $12.50 per hundredweight premium, he said. Statistics derived from surveys conducted by Mourer indicate ranchers with cattle in the program make a profit 62 percent of the time. "Figured on the average," Mourer said, "the profit is $35 per head."

You can read the rest of this article posted on our website by clicking here.

 

Beef Checkoff Seminar Program Educates Nutrition and Dietetic Community

Health professionals are cited as the #1 source of health information, with 40 percent of adults stating they ask a professional for information about "health problems" and 21 percent stating they'd seek out a professional for advice on personal diet/nutrition. (Source: 2011 Porter Novelli Styles) Noting the importance of this audience and their tendencies to recommend or not recommend, beef, the beef checkoff, in collaboration with state beef councils, through the Nutrition Seminar Program, provides leading experts to speak on cutting-edge issues at various state academy of nutrition and dietetics meetings, as well as other health professional organization annual meetings.

"It is important that we provide science-based information to the nutrition and dietetic community," says Garry Wiley, Michigan beef producer and vice-chairman of the beef checkoff's Nutrition and Health Subcommittee. "Sharing important checkoff-funded nutrition research is a win-win-win for consumers, dietitians and beef producers."

You can read more of this story by clicking here.  

Drought Improvement Could Come to a Screeching Halt, McManus Says

This week's improvement in the Drought Monitor map might be the last improvements Oklahomans see unless we get some rain soon, says Associate State Climatologist Gary McManus. The state did see an increase in the amount of the state where no drought or dry conditions are prevalent, 54 percent compared to last week's 49 percent.

The biggest improvements occurred in western Oklahoma where the D0 level was erased and where the extreme D3 drought area in Roger Mills and Beckham counties was dropped to severe D2 drought.   

Unfortunately, last week saw the re-emergence of Exceptional D4 drought in the far southwest, contained almost completely by Tillman County.   If you look at the rains we've had since mid-July, that remains an area that has gone without the higher totals to the north and east. The southeast has also become primed for drought intensification, where less than 3 inches has fallen since the summer rains began back in early July.

Click here to see the latest Drought Monitor maps and to read more from Gary McManus.