~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oklahoma's latest
farm and ranch news
Your Update from Ron
Hays of RON for Thursday February 18, 2010 A
service of Johnston Enterprises, P & K Equipment/ P & K Wind
Energy and American Farmers & Ranchers Mutual Insurance
Company!
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-- Class XIV of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program Arrives in
Spain
-- It's Time for the "Staggering" Marketing Plan for Left Over Old
Crop Wheat
-- Worth Checking Out- HumaneWatch.Org
-- USDA Proposes Changes in Crop Insurance Program
-- February First Cattle on Feed Projected to be Smallest in Seven
Years
-- OSU's Don Murray Named Top Weed Scientist in the Southern US
-- Express Ranches Set for Two Sale Days March 4th and 5th for Annual
Spring Bull Sale and More
-- 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 pleased to have American Farmers & Ranchers Mutual Insurance Company as a regular sponsor of our daily update- click here to go to their AFR web site to learn more about their efforts to serve rural America! It is also great to have as an annual sponsor on our daily email
Johnston Enterprises- proud to be serving agriculture across
Oklahoma and around the world since 1893. For more on Johnston
Enterprises- click
here for their website! 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. | |
Class XIV of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program Arrives in Spain ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Class 14 of
the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program has landed in Spain for the first leg
of its international experience. The group of 28 young agricultural
professionals is traveling through Southern Spain and Morocco over the
next two weeks learning about agriculture and meeting producers in that
part of the world. The group will also have the chance to consider
opportunities of selling products into Europe and North Africa in the
future from Oklahoma.
On Wednesday February 17th, the class landed in Madrid Spain and then hopped aboard another airplane for a short flight to Malaga, a city on the Southern Mediterranean coast. Annette Riherd is an organic farmer near Oologah, Oklahoma. Her eye was immediately drawn to the fresh produce waiting for customers at the small markets along the street. She noticed some familiar vegetables, but also several items that she says that she has never seen before, adding the bell peppers that were at the streetside markets were huge and that she had never seen any that big before. Click on the link below for more from the OALP travels as our colleague Clinton Griffiths has made the trip to help chronicle the journey for us as well as for the weekly TV show that he hosts, SUNUP. Click here for more from the Day One Report on the OALP International Study Tour. | |
It's Time for the "Staggering" Marketing Plan for Left Over Old Crop Wheat ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you still
own any old crop wheat, it's probably time to "stagger" it into the
market- so says OSU Grain Marketing Economist Dr. Kim Anderson of OSU. Dr.
Anderson says that you need to be watching for even small rallies to move
old stocks into the market that you may be sitting on.
For the 2010 crop that is in the ground and waiting to break dormancy,
don't get in a big hurry sell in advance of harvest. Kim Anderson says
that there is little evidence of anything on the horizon that could drive
wheat prices higher between here and June when the combines are rolling.
Click on the link below to read more and to listen to our full conversation with Dr. Anderson as we talk old crop and new crop marketing strategies- and why Kim thinks that there will likely be looking at going "up from the bottom" when it comes to wheat prices this harvest season. Click here for more with Dr. Kim Anderson of OSU on current wheat market conditions. | |
Worth Checking Out- HumaneWatch.Org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Center for
Consumer Freedom has launched a website to analyze the activities of the
Humane Society of the United States. Director of Research David Martosko
says the new revamped version of the site will be much more interactive
and now includes a blog, and channels through which viewers can send
documents, information or anecdotes about HSUS to CCF for inclusion on the
site, even anonymously.
One of the Blog entries caught our eye as Martosko was refuting Wayne
Pacelle's claim that they spend up to $27 million annually working with
animal care. Martosko says the real figure is less than a half million
dollars when you are talking about dealing with pets, the animals that
HSUS constantly shows in their promotional materials. He writes in his
blog "Hands-on care for dogs and cats is a very different thing from the
more generic "hands-on animal care." Yes, HSUS runs a couple of wildlife
sanctuaries and a horse ranch. There are five facilities in all. But none
of them accepts dogs or cats. (You know—the pets in all of those weepy
HSUS ads? Remember them?) Click on the link below- we have an audio report with David Martosko on the website update- and a link to the site itself as well. Click here for more on HumaneWatch.Org- as the CCF Magnifies Your View of HSUS. | |
USDA Proposes Changes in Crop Insurance Program ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Changes have
been proposed that will improve producer access to crop insurance. USDA's
Risk Management Agency has released a second draft of a proposed new
Standard Reinsurance Agreement, which establishes the terms, roles, and
responsibilities for both USDA and insurance companies that participate in
the Federal Crop Insurance Program. The new draft includes a series of
significant changes, including many discussed during negotiations between
the RMA and the participating crop insurance companies.
Due to significant increases in commodity prices in recent years, annual insurance industry payments more than doubled from 1.8-billion dollars in 2006 to an estimated 3.8 billion in 2009. At the same time, the number of policies decreased. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack says the proposal represents a significant step toward an agreement that will give us a stronger Federal crop insurance program that helps producers manage risk, reduces volatility for crop insurance companies and serve farmers in every region of the country. RMA Administrator William Murphy says - as with the first draft of the SRA, the second draft provides companies with relatively stable Administrative and Operating subsidies per policy for seven major commodities and will facilitate insurance company planning. | |
February First Cattle on Feed Projected to be Smallest in Seven Years ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The monthly
Cattle on Feed numbers will be released by USDA on Friday afternoon of
this week, after the futures markets are done for the week. Joe Victor
with Allendale has dropped us a note with the Allendale projections for
the report that will be issued by USDA at 2 PM central time.
Victor tells us that "January Placements are expected to be 7.4% smaller than last year. A lower supply of available calves and feeders and poor weather conditions were the prime reasons for this lower number. This was made despite the 17 cent decline in corn prices in January compared with December. This represents three months of straight placement declines. Cattle placed in January will be marketed from June through September." Joe Victor adds that "Allendale anticipates a Marketing total 0.3%
larger than January of 2009. This number comes after an adjustment for one
less weekday in January 2010 vs. 2009. Feedlots are working off those
higher placements made from July through October. Due to those placements,
Marketings will remain over last year through March. | |
OSU's Don Murray Named Top Weed Scientist in the Southern US ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oklahoma State
University's Don S. Murray has been named 2009 Weed Scientist of the Year
by the Southern Weed Science Society. Murray is a Regents professor in the
department of plant and soil sciences, part of OSU's Division of
Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. Murray's honor was announced
during the recent SWSS meeting at Little Rock, Arkansas.
The holder of OSU's P.E. Harrill Distinguished Professorship of Crop Science since 1991, Murray designs and conducts fundamental and applied weed science research with an emphasis on challenges associated with cultivated row crops, including experiments with reduced- and no-till production systems. Additional research projects with which he is involved include field experiments on pastures, forages and rangelands. Murray received the SWSS Outstanding Educator Award in 2006, and the SWSS Distinguished Service Award in 2004. He served as the organization's president from 1999-2000. Murray was named a Fellow of the society in 1999, the most prestigious honor a member can attain in the organization. “Don's historical perspective has been instrumental in providing newer
faculty with an understanding of the important role that the department
has played in strengthening the state's agricultural industry throughout
the years,” said Daren Redfearn, associate professor of forages with the
OSU department of plant and soil sciences. “His insights help give us a
continuity of vision that is beneficial to producers, agribusiness
operators and researchers in terms of focusing on issues of importance to
Oklahoma.” | |
Express Ranches Set for Two Sale Days March 4th and 5th for Annual Spring Bull Sale and More ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Express
Ranches invites you to their 2010 Spring Bull Sale and Commercial Heifer
Sale. On Thursday March 4 at 12 noon- 60 Limousin and Lim-Flex Bulls will
be offered, along with 225 females. The female offering will include Angus
Pairs, Open Angus Heifers and Commercial Angus Pairs.
On Friday, March 5th, the Angus Bull sale will get underway at 11:00 AM. Five hundred Angus Bulls will be up for sale, highlighted by the Express Ranches National Western Carload and Pen Bulls. For more details, call 1-800-664-3977. You can also click on the link below for more information from our calendar listing on our website- and a link to the Express Ranches Website, where you can either download a PDF version of the catalog that can be printed- or you can browse through the interactive version of the catalog that is also available on the Express Ranches website. Click here for more on the March 4th and 5th sales of Express Ranches in Yukon. | |
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. | |
Let's Check the Markets! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ After several
weeks of light receipts because of the weather- it was a big auction day
at OKC West in El Reno, where they had 11,033 cattle for the Wednesday
sale. According to our market reporters Tina Colby and John Stacy, "Steer
and heifer calves 4.00-7.00 higher. Feeder steers steady to 2.00 higher.
Feeder heifers steady. Demand very good for calves and stockers as local
farmers begin to put together light cattle to turn out on graze-out wheat
fields. Feeder cattle demand moderate." Five to six hundred pound steers
sold from $111 to $122, while the seven to eight hundred pound steer
yearlings commanded $97.50 to $107. Click
here for the complete report from the OKC West Market in El Reno.
Current cash price for Canola is $7.55 per bushel, while the 2010 New Crop contracts for Canola are now available are $7.65 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: | |
God Bless! You can reach us at the following: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
email: ron@oklahomafarmreport.com
phone: 405-473-6144
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