Dakota Blizzard Underscores Urgent Need for Farm Bill Action, Lucas Says 

An early blizzard in the Dakotas caught ranchers off guard this week, killing as many as 75,000 head of cattle.  Many ranchers' operations are in tatters, and with the federal government shut down and no disaster assistance available without a farm bill, their short term prospects appear bleak.

Congressman Pete Sessions invited Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas to address the Rules Committee about the disaster.  Here are Lucas's comments:

"My understanding is it was a combination of the worst possible weather events for livestock outside-a series of soaking rains, a dramatic drop in temperature, followed by ice, followed by snow.  So, whether you're a 1200-pound cow, or a 600 pound calf, or even something younger than that, when you're soaked to the bone, you're subjected to incredibly low temperatures-below freezing-and the wind chill factor, you can't generate enough heat to dry out and stay warm.  And you freeze to death."

"It is a tragedy in many ways.  Understand that many of these are breeding stock operations.  These are cattle-the bulls, the cows-the genetic pool has been in families for generations and generations and generations.  There are pedigrees on a lot of these cattle that go back farther than most of our fellow citizens can identify who their ancestors are.  So there's that loss.  There's a loss of much of production into the human food chain."

You can read more or listen to Frank Lucas's testimony by clicking here.

Chipotle's 'The Scarecrow:' Using Fear to Sell Burritos

Grace Boatright, National Grange Legislative Director, published the following editorial:

Chipotle recently released a video featuring an animated scarecrow going to work in what equates to a "food factory" overwrought with animal mistreatment and unhealthy, if not immoral, production practices. The ad, roughly 3 ½ minutes long, is obviously taking a very misguided swing at the agriculture industry and attempting to make a statement about food production in the United States.

Chipotle's video, entitled The Scarecrow, is attempting to convince consumers that large-scale conventional farming, or "factory farming" as they put it, is slowly poisoning the American public and we as a society need to begin the transition to all organic, non-GMO agricultural practices. To say the video is biased would be an understatement. Some may even wonder if the video was made for the sole purpose of justifying price increases at their "factory restaurants."

Click here to read more of Boatright's editorial.

Two Pioneers--One with Oklahoma Ties--Inducted into Cattle Production Veterinarian Hall of Fame

Two distinguished veterinarians - Don Williams, D.V.M., and Elmer Woelffer, D.V.M. - have been inducted into the Cattle Production Veterinarian Hall of Fame (CPVHOF), recognizing their exceptional contributions to the practice of veterinary medicine in the beef and dairy cattle industry.

"Drs. Williams and Woelffer are role models for all of us, and we are honored to induct them into the hall of fame," said Rick Sibbel, D.V.M., director of beef technical services for Merck Animal Health, who served as emcee of the induction ceremony. "Their vision, standard of excellence and ability to make a difference in the beef and dairy veterinary community is something we can all aspire to."

Williams developed the first national preconditioning program and was instrumental in developing large-scale cattle health programs, training initiatives for feedyard personnel and science-based animal health management protocols. After 18 years of private practice in Texas and Oklahoma, he served as company veterinarian for Hitch Enterprises in Guymon, Okla., and later moved into feedyard management for the Henry C. Hitch Feedlot.

You can read more of this story by clicking here.

 

Kansas Farm Bureau President Says Trade Barriers Must Come Down

Kansas Farm Bureau President Steve Baccus said Thursday in remarks to world leaders that barriers between the United States and its trading partners must come down.

Baccus, an Ottawa County grain farmer, spoke to the 36th North American and European Union Agricultural Conference in Mexico City, Mexico. Baccus serves as chair of the American Farm Bureau Federation's Trade Advisory Committee between the U.S. and the EU must deal with the many substantive issues that impede U.S.-EU agricultural trade, such as long-standing barriers against conventionally-raised U.S. beef, ongoing restrictions against U.S. poultry and pork, and actions that limit U.S. exports of goods produced using biotechnology," Baccus said. The U.S. and the EU are major international trading partners in agriculture.

U.S. farmers and ranchers exported more than $8.8 billion in agricultural and food products to the EU in 2012, while the EU exported more than $16.6 billion in agricultural products to the U.S. last year. 

Click here for more of this story.

 

Instructions Given to House Farm Bill Conferees- Tinker With Crop Insurance 

On Friday and Saturday, the full House voted on several resolutions expressing "sense of the House" instructions to House Farm Bill conferees in how they are supposed to negotiate with the Senate in developing a final 2013 Farm Bill Conference report. One of the three non binding resolutions was adopted on a voice vote on Friday, with the House Saturday morning rejecting two non-binding motions to instruct conferees on the farm bill dealing with sugar policy as well as permanent law and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.


The House defeated, on a 192-212 vote, a resolution (H. Res. 378), offered by Rep. Joseph Pitts, R-Pa., to instruct conferees to give the agriculture secretary authority to increase sugar imports year-round, rather than just during the current six-month window. Then, the House rejected, on a 195-204 vote, a motion to instruct conferees to support permanent law provisions in the Senate bill and a five-year reauthorization of SNAP benefits. The current House proposal includes a three-year reauthorization of SNAP with a $40 billion cut.


The third of the resolutions, House Resolution 379, was agreed to on Friday afternoon by a voice vote. The instruction directs House conferees to partially agree to a Senate measure cutting crop insurance premium subsidies for operations with an adjusted gross income in excess of $750,000 per year. 

House Ag Chair Frank Lucas argued before the Rules Committee on Friday morning against the measure and then later in the day before the full House- standing against Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan who helped author the bill on the House side of Capitol Hill (Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn was a key player in this amendment to what became the Senate's version of the Farm Bill earlier this year).

You can read more and you can listen to the closing comments and arguments of both Lucas and Ryan by clicking here.

Oklahoma Forestry Services Conducting Inventory in 12 Counties

What types of forest or woodlands are present in Oklahoma? What tree species? Is our forest healthy?

These and many other questions will be answered as a Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) crew from Oklahoma Forestry Services begins collecting data on plots in 12 Oklahoma counties this month. They will be working in Dewey, Ellis, Garvin, Grady, Harper, Johnston, Lincoln, Logan, Murray, Okfuskee, Pontotoc and Pottawatomie counties.

Foresters began this important data collection in 2009. Each subsequent year, foresters continue gathering information about the amount of land under forest cover, the type of forests and tree species that are present, tree size, invasive species and forest health issues.

"Healthy forests and woodlands provide Oklahoma with many valuable goods and services," said State Forester George Geissler. "We are collecting information about our forests in all 77 counties which will improve our planning and management strategies and ensure our citizens receive the greatest benefit possible."

 You'll find more of this story on our website by clicking here.