From: Ron Hays [ron@oklahomafarmreport.ccsend.com] on behalf of Ron Hays [ron@oklahomafarmreport.com]
Sent: Wednesday, January 06, 2010 12:50 AM
To: ron@oklahomafarmreport.com
Subject: Oklahoma's Farm News Update
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Oklahoma's latest farm and ranch news
Your Update from Ron Hays of RON for Wednesday January 6, 2010
A service of Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, Midwest Farm Shows and KIS Futures!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-- From the 2010 Beltwide Cotton Conference- NCC Chairman Accentuates the Positive for the New Year
-- 2010 Oklahoma Market Gardening School Starts January 19 in Enid
-- Taiwan Beef Reversal Earns Strong Rebuke From US Meat Industry and US Lawmakers
-- Farm Bureau Reports Retail Food Prices Much Lower Than A Year Ago
-- Cargill Trying to Grab E-Coli by the Horns as They Run a 100,000 Animal Test of Vaccine
-- Veteran Democratic Senator Byron Dorgan Won't Seek Reelection in 2010
-- Let's Check the Markets!

Howdy Neighbors!

Here's your morning farm news headlines from the Director of Farm Programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, Ron Hays. We are proud to have KIS Futures as a regular sponsor of our daily email update. KIS Futures provides Oklahoma Farmers & Ranchers with futures & options hedging services in the livestock and grain markets- Click here for the free market quote page they provide us for our website or call them at 1-800-256-2555.

We are also excited to have as one of our sponsors for the daily email Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, with 64 years of progress through producer ownership. Call Brandon Winters at 405-232-7555 for more information on the oilseed crops they handle, including sunflowers and canola- and remember they post closing market prices for canola and sunflowers on the PCOM website- go there by clicking here.

And we salute our longest running email sponsor- Midwest Farm Shows, producer of the springtime Southern Plains Farm Show, as well as the just concluded Tulsa Farm Show. Click here for more information on the Southern Plains Farm Show, coming up April 15,16 and 17, 2010.

If you have received this by someone forwarding it to you, you are welcome to subscribe and get this weekday update sent to you directly by clicking here.


From the 2010 Beltwide Cotton Conference- NCC Chairman Accentuates the Positive for the New Year
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
National Cotton Council Chairman Jay Hardwick believes that although the U.S. cotton industry still faces many challenges but has excellent prospects for achieving profitable cotton production and processing. In the opening address at the 2010 Beltwide Cotton Production Conference on Tuesday in New Orleans, the Louisiana cotton producer said, "Research, education and technology transfer continue to be critically important. I assure you that the Council will continue its longstanding commitment of its resources for technology development and transfer and bringing resolution to the technology-based priorities."

He talked farm policy, disaster assistance needs as well as trade in his address. Hardwick reported that USDA spoke of the New Year's Eve announcement of a less restrictive interpretation of the labor and management provisions of the actively engaged requirements for some entities for 2010. For operations where the total direct payments do not exceed $40,000, only stockholders that have at least 50 percent interest in the legal entity have to make a significant contribution of active personal labor or management. Otherwise, he said the NCC believes the eligibility regulations for 2010 will be unchanged.

On the trade front, Hardwick said the NCC remains active on several issues including the WTO Brazil cotton case. The NCC responded to the Arbitration Panel's findings and met with the U.S. Trade Representative's Office to examine options, including USTR calling for a new panel if Brazil announces retaliation and that retaliation is excessive.

Click on the link below for more from Jay Hardwick's comments on where the cotton industry in the US stands as we begin a new decade. And, we will have additional stories from the Beltwide as they develop in New Orleans over the next couple of days.

Click here for more on the Jay Hardwick speech that opened the 2010 Beltwide Cotton Conference.


2010 Oklahoma Market Gardening School Starts January 19 in Enid
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In an effort to provide fresh market producers with the most up-to-date information on management, production and marketing techniques, Oklahoma State University is teaming up with the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, to host the 2010 Oklahoma Market Gardening School.

The eight-week course will begin Jan. 19 and meet weekly through March 9 at the Garfield County Extension Office, 316 E. Oxford, Enid. Classes will take place from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Registration is $70 per individual or $85 per couple. Couples will receive one set of handouts. Lynn Brandenberger, OSU Cooperative Extension horticulture food crops specialist, said the school is geared toward those who are established in the business as well as those who are interested in exploring a new enterprise.

We have details on the eight week course that starts in just a couple of weeks- and info on registration. If you or someone you know is interested- they need to get signed up to lock in one of the fifty slots available for this course. Click on our link to the webstory found on our website- www.OklahomaFarmReport.Com.

Click here for more on the Market Gardening School that starts January 19 in Enid.


Taiwan Beef Reversal Earns Strong Rebuke From US Meat Industry and US Lawmakers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lawmakers in Taiwan on Monday voted to ban some U.S. beef products, a move that reverses an agreement reached between the U.S. and Taiwan in October. After the agreement was reached and the ban was reversed this fall, protesters in Taiwan rallied against the move and political tensions about the issue grew within the country.

Last week, as reports of potential action by the legislature circulated, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis and USDA Undersecretary Jim Miller issued a joint statement saying, "The proposed amendment's provisions do not have a basis in science or fact and thus in no way serve to protect Taiwan's food supply. The Taiwan authorities should consider very carefully the impact that passage of the amendment in its current form would have on Taiwan's reputation as a reliable trading partner and responsible member of the international community."

The President of the American Meat Institute, J. Patrick Boyle, registered strong objections on Tuesday. "In taking this action, the government of Taiwan clearly is failing to live up to its obligations under the bilateral agreement between our governments to expand beef trade," he said. "U.S. beef is among the safest anywhere and data show a record of sustained food safety progress. There is simply no scientific basis for Taiwan's action and at this point, we must question the seriousness of their commitment to being a reliable trading partner and member of the World Trade Organization." Taiwan bought $128 million in beef products from the U.S. in 2008.

NCBA, AMI, USMEF and Top Senate Ag Committee Leaders Have All Responded- Click here to see their full comments.


Farm Bureau Reports Retail Food Prices Much Lower Than A Year Ago
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Retail food prices at the supermarket decreased for the fifth consecutive quarter and are significantly lower than one year ago, according to the latest American Farm Bureau Federation Marketbasket Survey. The informal survey shows the total cost of 16 food items that can be used to prepare a meal was $42.90, down $3.13 from the third quarter of 2009 and $7.31 lower or about 15 percent less compared to one year ago. Of the 16 items surveyed, 11 decreased, four increased and one remained the same in average price compared to the prior quarter.

Compared to a year ago, potatoes decreased 35 percent; shredded cheddar cheese decreased 26 percent; chicken breasts decreased 22 percent; vegetable oil decreased 21 percent; and whole milk decreased 20 percent according to AFBF's survey. "Again this quarter and compared to one year ago, Farm Bureau volunteer shoppers found that the foods that declined the most in average retail price are among the least-processed items in our marketbasket," Gambrell said.

Four foods went up slightly in price compared to the prior quarter: milk, up 17 cents to $3.04 per gallon; eggs, up 11 cents to $1.55 per dozen; white bread, up 6 cents to $1.82 for a 20-oz. loaf; and ground chuck, up 4 cents to $2.69 per pound. Toasted oat cereal remained the same in price compared to the prior quarter, at $2.95 for a 9-oz. box. Compared to one year ago, none of the items in the survey increased in retail price.

Click here for more on the Farm Bureau survey and where they say food prices currently stand.


Cargill Trying to Grab E-Coli by the Horns as They Run a 100,000 Animal Test of Vaccine
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cargill Meat Solutions, under fire by the general media, is hoping to find some "solutions" to E-coli that is a part of life in beef animals. Cargill is currently running a test that involves about a dozen feedyards in eastern Colorado- they have vaccinated these cattle for E-Coli and will be monitoring them as they are ready for slaughter later here in 2010- expected to be in the May through September time period.

A Lincoln, Nebraska newspaper has an interesting piece on this effort by Cargill and how two researchers at the University of Nebraska view the efforts. They also quote Nebraska feedlot operator Alan Jansen who say there is a problem- but the solution is elusive- "it's an issue that almost has to be top-down driven. I can do that with my cattle and I can institute that in my program. But it does very little good industry-wide if it's something that the packer is not requiring for a specific line of product or for all the cattle they slaughter." The article adds that "The reality of meatpacking is that almost all of the E.coli problems are with ground beef, and the ground beef emerging from plants is typically as anonymous and scattered in its origins as corn or soybeans. Unless the packer has a vaccination program in place - perhaps with a price premium attached - there's no way for Janzen or any other producer to recover the cost of vaccinating. Nor can there be much of a gain made in meat safety."

Click on the link below for more on this latest attention on the issue of trying to find ways to deal with E-Coli at the production level- and the realities that everybody's gotta do it- or nobody will be willing to.

Click here for the article about Cargill's E Coli vaccine test that is now underway in several cattle feedlots.


Veteran Democratic Senator Byron Dorgan Won't Seek Reelection in 2010
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of the most populist members of the US Senate, North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan, won't run for reelection in the fall of 2010, putting his Democratic seat up for grabs this fall, with Republican Governor John Hoeven thinking seriously about running for the seat. In fact, it may have been Hoeven's possible entry into the race that factored into Dorgan's decision not to run for another term.

Early polls showed Hoeven well ahead of the incumbent if the race was held at this time. Governor Hoeven told the Associated Press on Tuesday that he will likely decide if he will run for Dorgan's seat within the next couple of weeks. If the Democrats lose Dorgan's seat, they could slip under the 60 filibuster proof level they now enjoy- assuming all other seats stay with the party now holding them.

While Dorgan has not sat on the Senate Ag Committee in recent years, he has been a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Agriculture and is currently the Chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee. In a statement on his website that appeared on Tuesday afternoon, Dorgan mentioned as one of his achievements pursuing with success a stronger safety net for farmers. He also spoke of the current political climate and offered a bit of denial of the reality of his political future- "although he inherited an economy in serious trouble, I remain confident that President Obama is making the right decisions to put our country back on track. Further, my decision has no relationship to the prospect of a difficult election contest this year. Frankly, I think if I had decided to run for another term in the Senate I would be reelected."

Click here for the complete statement on Senator Dorgan's website about his decision not to run again in 2010.


Our thanks to Midwest Farms Shows, PCOM, P & K Equipment/ P & K Wind Energy, Johnston Enterprises, AFR and KIS Futures for their support of our daily Farm News Update. For your convenience, we have our sponsors' websites linked here- just click on their name to jump to their website- check their sites out and let these folks know you appreciate the support of this daily email, as their sponsorship helps us keep this arriving in your inbox on a regular basis!

We also invite you to check out our website at the link below to check out an archive of these daily emails, audio reports and top farm news story links from around the globe.

Click here to check out WWW.OklahomaFarmReport.Com


Let's Check the Markets!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We've had requests to include Canola prices for your convenience here- and we will be doing so on a regular basis. Current cash price for Canola is $8.20 per bushel, while the 2010 New Crop contracts for Canola are now available are $8.40 per bushel- delivered to local participating elevators that are working with PCOM.

Here are some links we will leave in place on an ongoing basis- Click on the name of the report to go to that link:
Our Daily Market Wrapup from the Radio Oklahoma Network with Ed Richards and Tom Leffler- analyzing the Futures Markets from the previous Day-
Ron on RON Markets as heard on K101 mornings with cash and futures reviewed- includes where the Cash Cattle market stands, the latest Feeder Cattle Markets Etc.
Previous Day's Wheat Market Recap- Two Pager From The Kansas City Board of Trade looks at all three US Wheat Futures Exchanges with extra info on Hard Red Winter Wheat and the why of that day's market.
Daily Oklahoma Cash Grain Prices- As Reported by the Oklahoma Dept. of Agriculture. <
The National Daily Feeder & Stocker Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
The National Daily Slaughter Cattle Summary- as prepared by USDA.
Finally, Here is the Daily Volume and Price Summary from the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.



God Bless! You can reach us at the following:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
phone: 405-473-6144
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Forward email

Safe Unsubscribe
This email was sent to ronphays@cox.net by ron@oklahomafarmreport.com.

Oklahoma Farm Report | 10700 Whitehall Blvd | Oklahoma City | OK | 73162