Dearth of Data Due to Government Shutdown Will Affect Research for Years to Come, Peel Says 

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

The lack of data that has accompanied the federal government shutdown has many impacts directly on cattle and beef industry participants. Many business transactions depend on publically reported markets for pricing points that determine transaction values. Lack of data also has many impacts on market analysts who synthesize a great deal of data into information about current and future market conditions for the benefit of the beef industry. I monitor many different data all the time but at specific times or in specific market conditions, some data is more critical for me than others. The following is a partial list of data that is particularly important from my perspective at this point in time: 

Feeder Cattle Auction Data
Feeder cattle auction data that is missed is lost forever. With historically low feeder cattle supplies and counter-seasonal strength in prices prior to the shutdown, feeder prices at the current time are particularly important. October and November have the largest volumes of feeder cattle trade of the year and typically seasonal low prices. The lack of market data is particularly critical to cow-calf producers selling weaned calves and stocker and feedlot producers determining when to buy.

Cattle on Feed Report
Missing a single monthly Cattle on Feed (COF) report is often not especially important. However, the October COF report is particularly important due to falling feedlot inventories and expectations for sharply lower fed marketing late in the year and into 2014. Perhaps most importantly, the October COF report would include the quarterly on-feed breakdown by animal class. The number of heifers on feed was expected to provide valuable indications of heifer retention and herd rebuilding. Sadly, the data will likely not be provided or, if late, will be difficult to interpret.

You can read more from Derrell Peel by clicking here.
 

US Grain Industry Still Exporting Grain Despite Challenges of Government Shutdown 

The U.S. Grains Council says the partial federal government shutdown has reverberated through global equity, currency and commodity markets. Without official data and statistics - the Council notes hog buyers are rethinking the way producers are paid, grain traders are wondering about crop production and equity traders are wondering about official jobs figures. But the Council says the U.S. commitment to exports remains steadfast and solid. Foreign market reaction to the shutdown is cautiously mixed - with the lapse in accustomed points of contact and data reports unsettling to some buyers. But trade continues.

Grains Council Director of Communications Marri Carrow is sharing the message in major Asian markets that the U.S. is open for business and Council Manager of Global Trade Kevin Roepke is encouraging importers to actively manage their risk to mitigate the increased uncertainty. Without the core government reports, he says the market lacks a clear direction and is vulnerable to various headline swings especially if and when the government fully reopens. Nevertheless, even after a shutdown, Roepke says you won't find a country or a government as dedicated to exports as the U.S.

The Grains Council points out that the U.S. kept export inspectors on the job despite widespread furloughs. Further, even with much of the USDA website offline, federal grain inspection reports are being released to the public. Roepke says the partial shutdown is a nuisance but a core of essential federal employees are on the job and the US Grain inudstry is finding ways to keep trade flowing.

Click here to read more of this story.  

The House of Representatives passed a resolution Saturday instructing House conferees to support a Senate farm bill provision to reduce crop insurance subsidies for farmers making more than 750-thousand dollars per year.

House Ag Chair Frank Lucas says the resolution - sponsored by Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan, Illinois Senator Dick Durbin and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn - would shrink the pool of crop insurance participants and lessen the total crop insurance premiums contributed to the pool to make payments when farmers have a loss.

Scott Faber, senior vice president for government affairs with the Environmental Working Group (EWG), said, "We congratulate Rep. Paul Ryan on his leadership to bring a measure of fairness to crop insurance subsidies. It makes clear that the House expects the final farm bill to reduce crop insurance premium subsidies to the most successful farm operations by 15 percent... While other subsidy reforms, such as linking conservation compliance to crop insurance, are needed, means testing of crop insurance is long overdue."  (Click here to read more from Scott Faber.)

Oklahoma Farm Bureau's John Collison, vice president of public policy and media affairs, disagreed with Faber's assessment.

"Means testing in the crop insurance program impacts all farmers who purchase crop insurance, not just those above the arbitrary gross income levels discussed in the resolution. Reducing the participation of an entire class of producers results in an alteration of risk and potential rate changes.

"As many Oklahoma farmers know, agriculture is only beginning to emerge from one of the worst droughts in our nation's history. Due to the effective design and development of crop insurance, there were no calls for 100% taxpayer-financed ad hoc crop loss disaster assistance. Oklahoma Farm Bureau opposes the above mentioned resolution."

Rainfall Misses Altus and Other Parts of Southwest Oklahoma 

If you go back to last week's Drought Monitor map- Click here to check that out- you will notice a lot of the southeastern quadrant of the state was either abnormally dry or in moderate drought.  After this current system passes later today or tonight in the southeast- those areas will likely be out of drought or even the yellow of abnormally dry- lots of rainfall piling up around there.

Some of that rainfall has extended up into the northeast and central parts of the state- Canadian County and Oklahoma County both getting good rainfall totals according to the Mesonet- and even Mesonet stations like the one in Hinton have recorded more than an inch of rain since Sunday.   

HOWEVER- the drier areas of Jackson and Tillman Counties have simply not caught a break after it appeared that those locations would get more than an inch of rain with this system that has soaked areas south and east of there.  As of early this morning, the Altus Mesonet station has received just one hundreth of an inch of rain, Tipton six hundreths while Hollis hit the southwest Oklahoma jackpot with seven tenths of an inch since the bands of rain moved in from Texas.    

Click here for a snapshot in time of the latest Mesonet precipitation map that shows several locations with more than two inches of rain in southcentral into east central Oklahoma- while the more western counties got much more limited rainfall on this go round.

OKC West to Host OCA Board Meeting & Cattle Sale Nov. 1

The Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association's Fall Cattle Drive and Fourth Quarterly Board of Directors Meeting will take place on Friday, Nov. 1. OKC West Stockyards located near El Reno, Okla. will host the events.

The board of directors meeting, open to all OCA members, begins at 10 a.m., followed by lunch. The Fall Cattle Drive Special Replacement Female Sale will begin at 1 p.m. This is the 14th year for the OCA to hold the Fall Cattle Drive. This event was established to offer a service to OCA members and cattle producers across the state, just like many other OCA events.

"While many of our producers raise tremendous purebred cattle and breeding stock, the Fall Cattle Drive is primarily to market quality commercial cattle," stated Richard Gebhart, OCA President. "This special auction is not a production sale for large commercial ranches, but rather a tool for OCA members to showcase the improvements they have made in their commercial cattle and help them earn a premium for their hard work," continued Gebhart.

You can read more of this story by clicking here. 

A South Dakota Update- State Vet Being Conservative on Actual Death Losses from the October Blizzard

The South Dakota Stockgrowers Association continues to lean toward a higher death toll from the early October western South Dakota blizzard that caught cattle producers with their cattle in exposed summer pastures near Rapid City- as heavy rain, wind chills, ice, snow and blizzard conditions has resulted in thousands of healthy cattle dying.

State officials (including state vet Dr. Dustin Oedekoven) said at least 10,000 to 20,000 head of livestock died, but the estimate will likely rise.  

The South Dakota Stockgrowers Association estimates that western South Dakota lost at least 5 percent of its cattle, much of which are raised for slaughter. Nearly a third of the state's 3.7 million cattle and calves reside in the western part of the state.

Here are a couple of links to the most recent stories of what is going on in South Dakota- as well as in northwest Nebraska.  Regarding Nebraska- many cattle producers are suffering just like their colleagues in South Dakota- click here for an update on that.

In South Dakota- one story that sums things up fairly well comes from the USA Today website- click here for that.