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The U.S. Senate cleared a procedural hurdle Monday afternoon and voted to proceed to consideration of the 2014 Farm Bill, paving the way for a final vote on the measure early Tuesday afternoon. Cloture was invoked with strong bipartisan support of 72-22.

Chairlady of the Senate Ag Committee, Debbie Stabenow, spoke on the floor of the Senate Monday afternoon- pounding home one more time why this is a bill worth supporting- ""This is not your father's Farm Bill. Tomorrow, the Senate can enact major reforms to farm programs, end outdated and unnecessary subsidies, and support the transition the American people are already making to a healthier food system. Congress has passed few major deficit reduction bills or major bipartisan jobs bills in recent years. Tomorrow, the Senate can reduce the deficit and help farmers, ranchers and business owners create jobs by passing the 2014 Farm Bill."  

You can see her full set of remarks from Monday on our website- and also read the comments of ranking member of the Senate Ag Committee Thad Cochran as well- click here to check it out.

Meanwhile- it's likely that both Oklahoma Senators will cast NO votes on the Conference Report- we have not heard from Senator Tom Coburn's office yet- but did hear from Jim Inhofe- who's office has released a statement from  Senator Inhofe saying that while he is satisfied with the Commodity Title and Crop Insurance aspects of the farm bill- and he congratulates Frank Lucas for his hard work- our senior Senator says the lack of significant SNAP cuts is more than he can bear- so a NO vote is the result.

Inhofe says "I support Chairman Lucas' important reforms to commodity programs for the benefit of our farmers and ranchers in Oklahoma and across the nation; however, I simply cannot support the lack of reforms to entitlement programs that Senate Democrats maintained in the farm bill conference report."

Click here to see the full statement released by Senator Jim Inhofe's office on his NO vote on the Farm Bill Conference Report.

Texas Rancher Bob McCan Ready to Take on Job of Lead Rider for the NCBA

His cattle ranching roots date back to the 1800s- and Bob McCan's journey in the beef cattle business has included holding the position of President of the Texas and Southwest Cattle Raisers Association- and currently- the job of President Elect of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. The word "Elect" will be removed from Bob's title at the end of this week, as he takes the reins of the largest cattle producer group in the country.

McCan is ready.  He knows the issues.  He understands the challenges and he has that air of optimism about him that cattle producers must have in order to be successful in today's beef cattle environment. As the 2014 Cattle Industry Convention was getting underway with board meetings, task force sessions and more- we caught up with Bob McCan outside the door of a meeting room he had spent several hours in discussing Border issues.  

McCan says that as cattle producers gather in Nashville for the 2014 Cattle Industry Convention, he is already sensing a pretty positive mood, driven by high cattle prices and more reasonable feed grain prices. 

You can hear our full conversation with Bob as we begin our coverage of the 2014 Cattle Industry Convention- click here to jump over to our story on the web.


 

W.B. Johnston Grain to be Acquired by CGB Enterprises, Inc.

Oklahoma's oldest and largest privately-owned grain company, W.B. Johnston Grain, has entered into a letter of intent to sell its grain company and related businesses to CGB Enterprises, Inc. The parties expect to close the transaction within 30 to 45 days.

WBJ's CEO Butch Meibergen said, "We are looking forward to being a part of the CGB team. WBJ prides itself in providing producers with services they need, and we look forward to offering even more resources in the future through CGB's global network."

WBJ operates 19 country grain elevators throughout Oklahoma and Texas including two grain terminals, and 18-million-bushel rail terminal in Enid and a two-million-bushel rail shipper/receiver facility in Shattuck, Okla. Operations include grain, retail, fertilizer, seed, and bulk transfer of frac sand and petroleum.

Click here to read the rest of this story.

Market Signals for Cattle Herd Expansion; Will Mother Nature Go Along?

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

As expected, the annual cattle inventory report confirmed that the U.S. cattle herd continued to liquidate in 2013. The inventory of all cattle and calves was 87.7 million head, down 1.8 percent from one year ago and the smallest total U.S. cattle herd since 1951. The beef cow inventory was 29.0 million head, down 0.9 percent from last year and the smallest beef cow herd since 1962. The numbers indicate that the industry is poised to begin rebuilding in 2014...weather permitting.

Among the ten largest beef cow states, the cow herd was up in five states and down in five. The largest decrease in cow numbers occurred in Texas, followed by South Dakota, Montana and Kentucky and Nebraska. Beef cow numbers increased in Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and North Dakota. On net, there was a slight increase in beef cow numbers in the top ten beef cow states.   

The inventory of beef replacement heifers was up 1.7 percent, a bit smaller than pre-report expectations. However, the number of beef replacement heifers as a percent of the beef cow herd, at 18.8 percent was the largest in more than 20 years, including the last cyclical expansion in the early 1990s.

You can read more of Derrell's analysis by clicking here.

OIG Follow-Up Reaffirms Solid Checkoff Management

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) reposted revised results of its financial review of Beef Board management of checkoff dollars, reaffirming that checkoff dollars were reimbursed in accordance with the Beef Act. While the revised report is reworded, in general, and provides more detailed information about complaints against the checkoff, it still showed that no mismanagement was found.

Following is the statement from CBB Chairman Weldon Wynn, in response to release of the latest OIG report:

"The Cattlemen's Beef Board (CBB) is delighted that this review has been completed and published and that it confirmed the original report's results. Once again, the OIG did not find any cause to question the relationship between CBB and its contractors, nor did OIG find inappropriate reimbursement of contractor expenses. The bottom line is that producers and importers can be assured by the OIG report, the peer review of that report and CBB's mission of continual improvement that their checkoff dollars are being invested appropriately and effectively."

To access to the full OIG report, click here.  

January's High Winds, Low Precipitation Affect Oklahoma Crop Condition

The USDA's lasts Crop Weather report says that, overall, the month of January could have been a little nicer to the Oklahoma's winter crops. According to the most recent drought monitor, the majority of the state was rated abnormally dry to no drought at all, while the Panhandle and the far southwest district were rated an extreme to exceptional drought. Due to the limited amount of moisture, wheat grazing was inadequate. Some canola and winter wheat have also experienced freeze damage.

Conditions of small grains and canola declined over the past month. Small grains and canola were rated mostly good to fair. Forty- one percent of the wheat crop was being grazed, six points ahead of the five-year average, and 19 points more than during January 2013. Five percent of the wheat crop was listed in excellent shape, 31 percent was in good condition, 40 percent was fair and 24 percent was in poor or very poor condition. Click here for the full Oklahoma Crop Weather report.

In Texas, cold temperatures continued as another winter storm hit the state. Many areas of northeast Texas, southeast Texas and the Lower Valley saw significant amounts of precipitation.

Wheat producers in the Cross-Timbers reported wheat going into a semi dormant state due to the cold, dry weather. Producers in the Edwards Plateau were encouraged by the wet cold weather. Wheat in the Coastal Bend had been damaged by migratory birds. Two percent of the state's wheat crop was in excellent condition, 17 percent was listed as good, 40 percent was in fair shape and 41 percent was considered to be in poor or very poor shape. You can read the full Texas Crop Progress report by clicking here.

 

Here's Agenda for Soy Expo Happening Next Week in Stillwater

It's a busy time of year for ag related meetings- we are in Nashville this week for the 2014 Cattle Industry Convention which includes the meetings of the Cattlemen's Beef Promotion Board, the American National Cattlewomen and the National Cattlemen's Beef Association.  

Next week- there are a multitude of meetings planned- including the 2014 Oklahoma Soy Expo- being held at the Wes Watkins Center on the Campus of OSU in Stillwater- they have a great program lined up- and we now have the agenda to share with from that upcoming meeting- click here to take a look- and if you want more information about this year's Soy Expo- contact Rick Reimer and his folks at 866-343-2326.