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At the National Association of Farm Broadcasters annual meeting this week in Kansas City, Colin Woodall of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association said he is very optimistic that the 2013 farm bill is well on its way to final passage.

"I think, finally, we are just about to wrap this thing up. I anticipate us having this bill done, signed and delivered by Christmas, the way things are looking. We had the face-to-face meeting of the conference committee. The four principle members of both the Senate and the House ag committees have been meeting almost daily. Their staffs are meeting daily. So, we're making a lot of good progress here. I think we're finally, after three years, going to get this bill done."

Woodall said the major sticking point, in his estimation, has been the nutrition title and what level of compromise in cuts will be necessary to draw sufficient Democrats into voting for the bill to compensate for Tea Party-affiliated lawmakers who will walk away.

"We have heard that $10 billion dollars kind of being that magic number. I just don't know right now. That is the conversation that is being had by Chairwoman Stabenow and Chairman Lucas."

Woodall said that he thinks Lucas will be successful in maintaining most of what the House has wanted in the commodity title and truly make it a bill that will work for all commodities in all regions of the country. He was also optimistic that the disaster relief portions of the bill would survive and would be made retroactive.

Colin speaks with me about a number of other issues and you can read more and listen to our interview by clicking here.

 

Quarter Horse World Show Comes to Oklahoma City 

There are 17 recognized colors of the American Quarter Horse. Undoubtedly each color will be represented as 2,021 horses will be exhibited during the American Quarter Horse Association World Championship Show in Oklahoma City. For 14 days the AQHA World Show will descend upon State Fair Park for what is known as the pinnacle event for American Quarter Horse owners and exhibitors from around the world.   

This year marks 40 years of the AQHA World Show. Truly a world show, exhibitors from United States, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, Mexico and the United Kingdom are competing for 98 world championships. This year's purse is more than $2.4 million. According to the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the show has an economic impact of more than $17.9 million for the Oklahoma City area.   

Click here to read more and to find a link to the show's full schedule.
 

Tom Vilsack: More than Agriculture at Stake in Farm Bill

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack pushed back on Thursday against efforts by some lawmakers to include provisions to change the controversial country-of-origin labeling rules in a final farm bill, saying the issue is better handled by the World Trade Organization, which is already looking at the issue.

It would set a bad precedent if "every time there is a trade discussion, folks can run to Congress and get the rules changed in the middle of the game, and I think we need to let the game play out," Vilsack said at an event to mark the launch of POLITICO Pro Agriculture.

Country-of-origin rules, which require that certain meat and food products imported into the United States are labeled, have been a hot topic during the farm bill negotiations. In opening statements last month, several lawmakers came out in opposition to the controversial USDA rules, pointing to concerns that they serve as a protectionist trade measure and complaints about the rules by the meat industry.

Click here for more of this story.

Lots of Options for Cull Cows and Stockers this Year, Derrell Peel Says

With winter pasture coming on and a need to rebuild the nation's cow herd, many producers are thinking about holding back cows that otherwise would have been culled and sent to market this year. Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Market Economist Dr. Derrell Peel says cull-cow prices are strong this season.

"For cull cows, cow-calf producers, if you sell now the prices are strong and are holding up well. Normally they're at the seasonal low right now. On the other hand, if we take them through next spring, we normally see a strong price increase. We might not see as much price increase because they're holding up so well this fall. But, on the other hand, they're likely to actually go up even with this just because of the overall situation for cows."

Current calf prices are also holding well, Peel says, and that gives producers a number of marketing options.

"We're nearly at record levels for these lightweight calf prices. So, selling now, not a thing wrong with that if that's what you need to do. If cow-calf producers are thinking about retaining ownership of these calves and putting some more weight on them before they sell them as heavier feeder cattle, the thing to keep in mind right now is there's a pretty sharp price break in this market in that 500-pound range. And, so, if the calves are lighter than that and you're going to put just a little bit of weight on them-100 to 125 pounds-you might not get paid very well for that right now because of the size of that price break. On the other hand, if you're going to put quite a bit of weight on them and hold them long enough to put 250 to 300 pounds on these calves, it'll probably turn out OK."

Dr. Peel is my guest on the latest Beef Buzz.  Click here to listen in.  

Ethanol Industry Craves Certainty Amid Rumors of RFS Volume Reduction, Tom Buis Says

Rumors have been flying for the last few weeks that the EPA is considering lowering the volume of ethanol that must be blended with gasoline under the Renewable Fuel Standard. Tom Buis, president of Growth Energy, recently spoke with me at the National Association of Farm Broadcasters convention in Kansas City, Missouri.

Buis said the uncertainty of what the EPA will finally rule is making it very difficult on ethanol producers at the moment.

"Right now you're kind of like shadowboxing. We're fighting rumors. We want to see the real meal deal and we can figure out how to comment because the important thing for us is moving forward not backward. It's important for our country. You look at all the trillions we spent in the last 40 years on our addiction to foreign oil. The oil price is still set by OPEC which is a cartel. And a lot of those OPEC members don't like the United States. We've lost soldiers' lives and soldiers' health over those conflicts. Now's not the time to back out. We're all for an 'all of the above' energy policy but oil has taken the position that it's 'all of the above except anything renewable' and they continue to pound that out there."

Buis said that ethanol producers simply want the EPA to make its determination and move forward as quickly as possible for the good of the consumer ant the country.

Click here to listen to our conversation or to read more of this story.  

 

World Situation Currently Neutral on Wheat Prices, Anderson Says

Taking a snapshot of the current situation with regard to wheat prices, OSU Extension Small Grain Marketing Specialist Kim Anderson says there are a variety of issues, but not much impact on prices. 

In his preview of this week's SUNUP program, he tells host Lyndall Stout that:

--Australian production looks relatively good, but protein content might be low.

--Production in Argentina may be good, but political chaos will make exports problematic.

--China will probably import more wheat than originally thought.

"It's a mixed situation going on around the world, not much impact on prices," Anderson says.

You can listen to the SUNUP preview and see the show's full lineup by clicking here.

This N That- Apache Livestock Holding Replacement Female Sale, Oklahoma Farm Bureau Convention and Update Your App!

The Apache Auction Market is holding a Special Replacement Female Sale on Saturday, November 16th at 11:00 am (tomorrow folks!) 

This Special Replacement Female sale will feature approximately 375 3-6 year old bred cows and 190 head of bred heifers

For more information, call Bob Rodenberger at 405-641-8998  or Greg Griffeth at 918-306-1359.

The folks at the Apache market have some of the highlights of the cattle being offered on their website- go there by clicking here. 

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"Deep Roots, New Heights" is the theme for the 72nd annual meeting of the Oklahoma Farm Bureau,that is now underway at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center, Norman.  More than 1,000 Oklahomans are expected to attend the four-day event which features Governor Mary Fallin, Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese, Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak and American Farm Bureau public policy expert Mary Kay Thatcher. 

A spirited Presidential election has shaped up- with the latest indication that there will be three candidates vying for the two year term to lead the state's largest general farm organization.  Two Directors on the Farm Bureau state board are running- Tom Buchanan and Roland Pederson(Pederson has been serving as State President since mid September) as well as the wife of Past Farm Bureau President Mike Spradling- Lotsee Spradling. Delegates will choose the new President as well as set policy for the group on Saturday.

Awards will be handed out this evening- including the top YF&R honors and the Oklahoma Farm Family of the Year award- we will look forward to serving once again as emcee of the Awards Program for 2013 later today.

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