USDA Climate Report Published, Public Invited to Comment 

The Climate Change Program Office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Office of the Chief Economist today released and requested public comments on the report Science-Based Methods for Entity-Scale Quantification of Greenhouse Gas Sources and Sinks from Agriculture and Forestry Practices. The report is the work of 38 scientists from across academia, USDA and the federal government, who are experts in greenhouse gas (GHG) estimation in the cropland, grazing land, livestock and forest management sectors. The report has undergone technical review by an additional 29 scientists.

The report outlines a set of consensus methods for quantifying GHG emissions and carbon storage at the local farm, ranch or forest scale. It is important that the methods exhibit scientific rigor, transparency, completeness, accuracy, and cost effectiveness, as well as consistency and comparability with other USDA GHG inventory efforts. The report can be downloaded at www.usda.gov/oce/climate_change/index.htm. A Federal Register Notice is included on the web site and provides detailed instructions for comment submission. Comments must be received within 45 days of the August 28, 2013 publication of the Federal Register Notice.
 

Oklahoma Quality Beef Network Preparing for Fall Sales 

Gant Mourer, Oklahoma State University Beef Value Enhancement Specialist, writes in the latest Cow-Calf newsletter:
 

With the start of school and football season, many cattle producers are gearing up for weaning of their spring born calves. This time last year many producers already weaned due to drought, but what a difference a year makes. With ample amounts of moisture in eastern Oklahoma and timely rains in western Oklahoma, cattlemen have been able to keep calves on the cow longer. Also, with access to hay and pasture as well as feed prices somewhat lower, producers who were not able to precondition calves prior to sale are finding it easier and cost effective to do it this year.

The Oklahoma Quality Beef Network (OQBN) is available to aid producers in making preconditioning decisions and capturing value of preconditioned calves when it becomes time to market. The Oklahoma Quality Beef Network (OQBN) is a program, which began in 2001, and is a joint effort by Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service (OCES) and the Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association. At its core, OQBN provides improved communication among producers of all segments of the beef industry and allows for increased education while providing tools to improve access to value-added programs. One way in which this is done is through the OQBN Vac-45 health verification program. Cattle meeting the management requirements are verified through OCES and can be marketed as OQBN Vac-45 cattle. Once verified producers have the option but are not obligated to market cattle in a certified OQBN sale.

The program benefits both buyers and sellers in several ways, including reduced shrink, improved immune system, and weight gain during the weaning period increased market demands and feedlot performance. In addition to healthier, heavier calves when sold, sellers may earn higher prices per/cwt. Research has found buyers paid $3-6/cwt more for preconditioned calves in recognition of buying healthier, higher-performing calves for a stocker or feedlot program. 

Click here to read more. 

Environmentalists Offer Monday Morning QB Analysis of 2012 Crop Losses

The following is an editorial by the National Resources Defense Council:

Extreme weather forced the Federal Crop Insurance Program (FCIP) to pay out a record-breaking $17.3 billion in crop losses last year, much of which could have been prevented using water-smart strategies, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. Payments made to farmers during the 2012 growing season to cover losses from drought, heat and hot wind alone accounted for 80 percent of all farm losses, with many Upper Midwest and Great Plains states hit hardest.

With extreme weather conditions such as drought expected to become more common, record-breaking insurance payouts will likely continue to increase. However, widespread adoption of crop-loss prevention methods that build soil health and improve water management on farms can limit these losses. From 2001 to 2010, crop losses averaged just $4.1 billion a year, making the 2012 record-breaking FCIP payouts even more staggering.

"The Federal Crop Insurance Program has failed farmers and taxpayers by ignoring water challenges," said Claire O'Connor, NRDC Agricultural Water Policy Analyst. "The program was designed to be a safety net, not a subsidy for increasingly risky practices and less sustainable food production. We need to empower farmers to invest in low risk, water-smart practices that are proven to reduce crop losses." 

You can read more by clicking here.

 

Monsanto Announces 'Follow-a-Field' Educational Initiative

Farmers have a new training tool this summer to help prepare them for the next innovation in soybean and cotton weed control. The Follow-A-Field initiative from Monsanto will be an interactive experience featured on XtendFollowAField.com that follows 3 commercial-scale Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybean fields from burndown through harvest as part of the Monsanto Ground Breakers® Field Trials Under Permit program. The initiative will incorporate testimonials, videos and photos captured from 3 growing sites, with real farmers, across the Midwest.

The Follow-A-Field farmers, one in Missouri, one in Illinois and one in Minnesota, will be testing the seed and crop protection system from Monsanto, the Roundup Ready® Xtend Crop System. Pending regulatory approval, the Roundup Ready® Xtend Crop System will introduce Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybeans, which contain tolerance to dicamba and glyphosate herbicides.

"The Follow-A-Field program will showcase three farmers who will tell the story of how the system works on their farm. These farmers will share their own experience with the system and application requirements, as well as show the advantages of incorporating dicamba into their weed control plans." says Michelle Vigna, Monsanto Roundup Ready Xtend launch manager. "The goal of the program is to prepare farmers, retailers and applicators to effectively use Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans with a diversified weed management plan such as Roundup Ready PLUS® Weed Management Solutions. This combination is designed to allow growers to achieve optimum yield potential and a high level of efficacy on tough-to-manage and resistant weeds."

You can read more of this story on your website.  Please click here to go there.

Landowners Invited to Attend Lesser Prairie Chicken Strategy Meeting

Oklahoma Farm Bureau is hosting a meeting for landowners and other interested parties regarding a stakeholder conservation strategy for the lesser prairie chicken. The meeting will be Thursday, Sept. 5, at 6 p.m. in the Seminar Center at the High Plains Technology Center in Woodward. The meeting is open to the public.   

The stakeholder conservation strategy will provide a market-based response to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's proposal to list the lesser prairie chicken as a "threatened" species under the Endangered Species Act and will show how the need for continued energy production translates into a mitigation need.

"If the lesser prairie chicken is listed, oil and gas operations will be required to do mitigation, meaning the operations will need voluntary participation from landowners who can sell mitigation credits to preserve and enhance chicken habitat on their property," said Marla Peek, OKFB director of regulatory affairs.   

Successful implementation of the strategy will allow private landowners to develop alternative income streams in exchange for the implementation of habitat conservation and management practices that benefit the species, facilitating the continuation of valuable oil and gas activity within the lesser prairie chicken range. The strategy will also provide beneficial habitat preservation and restoration for the species.   

Click here to read more.

 

OACD, Oklahoma Churches Join to Pray for Rain September 18

While the specter of a continuing drought has largely receded from most of our state, the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts (OACD), the Oklahoma Conference of Churches and the Whole Creation Community, a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma, are continuing their partnership to remind everyone of the importance of protecting and conserving our water with a joint day of prayer for water on September 18. According to the Rev. Dr. William Tabbernee, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Conference of Churches, the rain we have received in Central and Eastern Oklahoma should serve as a reminder that water is a blessing that must be protected, even in times of abundance.

"It's tempting to put our guard down and take our mind off of our water resources since the drought is clearly broken everywhere but far western Oklahoma," Rev. Tabbernee said. "It's easy to forget that this precious natural resource is a gift from God that we are charged to be good stewards of.   That's why we are continuing our focus on water. We must be good caretakers of this gift we have so graciously been given this summer and care for it accordingly. We also have to remember that while we have abundance in central and eastern Oklahoma, our brothers and sisters in far western Oklahoma and the Panhandle have not had all the rain with which we have been blessed."

You can read more by clicking here.

 

This N That- Big Iron Sale, Oklahoma Pork Council Sets Up New Location and Last Call for Diamond Hats Ball

It's Wednesday- and that means another round of closings for the weekly no reserve auction being held by Big Iron.Com.  328 items are up for grabs on Wednesday- including items from featured seller Glen Moore of Seminole, Oklahoma. 

Click here for the Big Iron website- closing of items begins at 10 AM central time.

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The good folks at the Oklahoma Pork Council have been located in downtown OKC for several years now- but this week- they have made the jump from downtown just a few blocks out to 9th  and Lincoln.  To be exact- they are located- as of today- at 901 N Lincoln, Suite 380. 

Roy Lee Lindsay tells us that their phone numbers are expected to stay the same.

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Last call for the Diamond Hats Ball that is coming up really quick- next Friday, September 6th at the Sheraton Hotel, Reed Conference Center in Midwest City. 

For last minute tickets- contact Bonnie in the Oklahoma Youth Expo office at 405-235-0404.