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Free-market capitalism may be a dirty word in our nation's beltway
right now, but it’s amazing just how brutally effective the invisible
hand of the marketplace is.
The government subsidies that upset market fundamentals and drove corn
prices significantly higher have been severely damaging to the livestock
industry, but the effects have been less than devastating with record
crop after record crop resulting from the transfer of wealth to corn
growers. Give the American farmers significant profits and they will
produce.
USDA's final corn harvest report released this week showed that despite
a tough spring and difficult harvest conditions, U.S. corn farmers
shattered the record for yield and total production – 13.2 billion bu.
(See "USDA January Crop Report Sees Record Corn Crop" elsewhere in this
issue.)
Of course, these numbers are welcomed by the cattle industry as
they’ll hopefully keep corn prices from moving higher. But, while
supportive to calf prices in the short term, these record harvests may
in fact be a negative for the industry in that they give the biofuels
industry a lot of ammunition as it tries to make the case that there
doesn't have to be a tradeoff between fuel and food.
While great news, record harvests continue to cover up the risk the beef
industry faces in the post-ethanol subsidized world.
-- Troy Marshall
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When I got started in the purebred cattle business, a veteran of the
business told me there were four events he couldn't afford to miss –
the National Western Stock Show (NWSS), the Beef Improvement Federation
convention, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association convention and
his breed convention. That advice is as good today as it was then.
The "Stock Show" has always been looked at as kind of the indicator for
the year – how are the sale averages, which breeds have momentum,
which breeds have problems, etc.? Certainly it’s fairly easy after
walking through the "yards," attending the sales and talking to everyone
to get a real good indication of the breed hierarchy and who’s hot and
who’s not.
The sale averages aren’t as important as they used to be. Most of the
bulls in the yards go home to highlight production sales, and the bigger
national sales represent a different segment of the business. About the
only thing you can really determine by studying those averages is
whether a particular sales-management team did a really good or a really
poor job.
Today, the NWSS remains the Super Bowl of cattle shows, but like the
National Football League’s Super Bowl where the advertisements often
upstage the actual game, NWSS is often more about tradition and the
event than the actual shows and sales. Nevertheless, there’s something
special about walking through the yards looking at bulls on a crisp
January morning. If nothing else, you know the cattle industry as we
know it will largely be around for at least one more year.
-- Troy Marshall
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The reality of the Haiti tragedy and a firmer grasp on the extent of
the damage and suffering are growing moment by moment. I'm always proud
of America and most of the rest of the world that always steps up and
acts quickly to help in such devastating instances.
It makes us realize how fortunate we are, how blessed we are, and how
much we all have in common. I can't imagine the smell of death, the
cries of those who survived finding love ones, and all that comes along
with such a tragedy.
Those of us in rural America have had to develop and understand the
sense of community and the need to help and support one another.
Sometimes I think we give ourselves too much credit; we may not be
inherently nobler, we have just had to help one another out of self
preservation.
If there is anything good that comes from such tragedies, it’s that
they remind us all that we are too part of a global community. No matter
how sufficient and successful we feel we are, we may need assistance
from others someday and we all owe something to the community and a
responsibility to come to its aid when needed.
-- Troy Marshall
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 Nichols Farms Private Treaty
Bull Sale
Opening Day Jan. 30, 2010 at 1 PM
The Nichols Farms Private Treaty Bull Sale kicks off at 1:00 p.m. (CST)
on Sat., Jan. 30, 2010. Nichols Farms offers 400 head to choose from
featuring Angus, Simmental, DX2 and SX1 bulls for every herd size.
Nichols Farms customers get personalized service to help choose the
right bull for the job.
Learn more at www.nicholsfarms.biz, or call
641-369-2829 to talk with a real, live person, not a recording.
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Whoever said there’s no such thing as a free lunch has never met
the farmers of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Missouri and Iowa. Farmers in
each of these states are participating in a program called “Farmers
Feed US,” which offers consumers the chance to win free groceries for
breakfast, lunch, and dinner – for an entire year.
On the heels of a highly successful campaign in Ohio where more than
200,000 consumers registered for a chance to win, and in the midst of an
ongoing sweepstakes in Michigan where more than 105,000 have done so,
three more states – Indiana, Missouri and Iowa – have now launched
Farmers Feed US programs, featuring farmers from each of their states,
respectively.
The Farmers Feed US program allows consumers the opportunity to meet and
engage with the farmers who grow their food, at www.FarmersFeedUS.org.
Through short online video farm tours, consumers learn how they produce
safe, nutritious and affordable food, while they also have the
opportunity to register in a "Free Groceries for a Year" sweepstakes.
For additional info about Farmers Feed US and how the program works,
visit www.youtube.com/watch
and review a campaign overview video.
-- Center for Food Integrity release
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Steve Foglesong loves being a cattleman. Sure, he sees challenges in
the beef business, and as incoming president of the National Cattlemen's
Beef Association (NCBA), he'll be the point man in addressing those
challenges for the U.S. beef industry in 2010.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by Joe Roybal
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“This past year is probably one that most cattlemen are glad to
have over and I am sure they are looking for better things in 2010,”
says Dillon Feutz, Utah State University Extension economist. “After
averaging near $93/cwt. for fed cattle in 2007 and 2008, prices declined
to only average $83 in 2009. A disastrous 2008, where feedlots lost on
average over $100/head, was followed by only a slightly less disastrous
2009 where my model predicts feedlots lost about $85/head.”
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by the Livestock Marketing Information Center
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Transgenic screwworms developed by USDA Agricultural Research
Service (ARS) scientists could set the stage for new, improved methods
of eradicating the pest based on the sterile insect technique (SIT).
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
USDA release
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The U.S. average price for regular gasoline was up for the third
consecutive week (week ending Jan. 11), adding nearly 9¢ to settle at
$2.75/gal., or 97¢ higher than the average a year ago. Diesel also
increased sharply, moving up 8¢ to $2.88, or 57¢ above the year-ago
price.
Despite an increase of more than 16¢ the past three weeks, the U.S.
average for regular gasoline at retail remains $1.36 under the all-time
high of July 7, 2008. For the week, prices were up by at least 6¢ in
all regions, with the East Coast, Midwest and Gulf Coast shooting up 9¢
to $2.75, $2.73 and $2.62, respectively. The Rocky Mountains and West
Coast added 7¢ to $2.58 and $2.97, respectively, and California 6¢ to
$3.05/gal.
For diesel, the East and Gulf Coasts added 10¢ for the week to $2.92
and $2.85/gal., respectively, while the Midwest and Rocky Mountains
surged 7¢ to $2.84 and $2.81. The West Coast was up 6¢ to $2.97, while
California 7¢ to $3.03.
-- U.S. Energy Information Administration
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Last fall, BEEF magazine presented a monthly series of maps
depicting beef industry demographics derived from the latest U.S.
Agricultural Census. PDFs of those maps, which both provide visual
representations and lists of the top 500 counties, are now available at
beefmagazine.com/maps/?cid=resources.
Available are:
- BEEF Cows in Inventory 2007
- Fed Cattle Sold 2007
- Stocker Cattle Sold 2007
- Value of All Cattle Sold 2007
- Ethanol Plants & Fed Cattle Sold in 2007 (Midwest View)
The U.S. Census of Agriculture is conducted every five years and is
designed as a complete count of U.S. farms and ranches and the people
who operate them. The census looks at land use and ownership, operator
characteristics, production practices, income and expenditures and many
other areas.
In fact, this census provides the only source of uniform, comprehensive
agricultural data for every county in the nation, but the published data
isn't always complete. For reasons of privacy, data for some counties
with a small number of producers is omitted. In fact, of the data
depicted on the pages, information on 750 (24%) out of the total of
3,141 counties was not released by USDA, says BEEF research
manager Scott Grau.
“By using proprietary methods, we can arrive at a more complete and
accurate picture than that provided publicly by USDA, and that's what
we've done in these cases,” Grau says.
Census of Agriculture data is available through the National
Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) field office in your state, many
depository libraries, universities and state government offices. Or find
it online at www.nass.usda.gov or www.agcensus.usda.gov. You
can also call 800-727-9540.
-- Joe Roybal
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 Profitability in a Turn-Around Economy – February
10, 2010 at the World Ag Expo in Tulare, CA.
BEEF magazine has put together a lineup of speakers, that will help
cattlemen not only understand the challenges facing cattle producers in
2010 and beyond, but plan to succeed in a business faced with new and
different challenges. The BEEF Seminars are sponsored by Avitrol, Allflex USA and Kooima Company
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USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) will host two web
outreach seminars on mobile-slaughter units. Mobile-slaughter units are
self-contained slaughter facilities that can travel from site to site.
FSIS-inspected mobile slaughter units provide a feasible option for
small livestock producers wanting to provide safe, wholesome meat
product to local and interstate consumer markets.
FSIS will hold the seminars on Jan. 20 and 21 from 1:30-3 p.m. (EST) and
will highlight inspection issues unique to mobile-slaughter units as
presented by industry and agency experts. For more info, visit the FSIS
website at www.fsis.usda.gov/News_&_Events/
The sessions will also include information on USDA Rural
Development loan and grant programs available to under-served rural
areas.
-- Southwest Meat Association InfoMeat
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Cowboys, observes Dennis Cash, are not the best farmers. No
disrespect intended; it's just that in the Northern Plains, when
cattlemen should be pulling into the field to drill forage crops in the
spring, they're busy branding and getting ready to turn out on summer
pasture.
Indeed, a short growing season and shorter moisture don't make a recipe
for easy forage production on the Northern Plains. That may be changing
thanks to Willow Creek, a new variety of winter wheat that out-yields
other small-grain forage varieties.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by Burt Rutherford
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You can keep your horse, and yourself, happier and healthier with
these tips:
- While a horse is eating, it’s less afraid of ear handling,
spray and clippers. Helping it work his mouth, using food in really
bothered situations, can be helpful and fast.
- Before asking for a foot, ask the horse to prepare to give it. All
four feet on the floor.
- Only release the foot when you’re ready and place it exactly
where you want it.
- A dollop of molasses on a bit makes it a more pleasant experience,
especially for hard-to-bit or first-time horses.
- On a cold day, a bit warmed up under your armpit shows that you
care.
- Make being away from the barn a fun, educational adventure.
- Give your horse a good foot massage prior to trimming or shoeing.
- Always mount and dismount with rein in hand.
- Only your toe should go in the stirrup when mounting and
dismounting.
- Rock in the saddle prior to dismounting. This lets the horse know
it's coming.
-- Country Living Association
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J. Dudley Butler, Administrator of USDA’s Grain Inspection,
Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA), will headline the R-CALF
USA (Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of
America) convention Jan. 22-23 in Rapid City, SD. Set for the Best
Western Ramkota Hotel, the convention opens at 10 a.m. on Jan. 22.
Highlights of the meeting are the annual property rights seminar and
presentations by Butler, Brian O’Shaughnessy of Coalition for a
Prosperous America, and the Paragon Foundation’s GB Oliver III and
Bill Reynolds, as well as a talent show.
For more info, visit www.r-calfusa.com or call
406-252-2516.
-- R-CALF release
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Despite the ongoing challenges of the past growing season, USDA
projects a record-breaking 2009 corn harvest. The report released
Tuesday projects an average of 165.2 bu./acre of corn, with a total
production of 13.2 billion bu.
Here are the particulars:
Corn: U.S. corn for grain production is estimated at a record
13.2 billion bu., up 2% from the Nov. 1 forecast, and 1% above the
previous record of 13 billion bu. set in 2007. U.S. grain yield is also
estimated at a record level for 2009, at 165.2 bu./acre., up 2.3 bu.
from the November forecast and 4.9 bu. above the previous record of
160.3 bu./acre set in 2004.
Sorghum grain production in 2009 is estimated at 383 million bu.,
up 5% from the Nov. 1 forecast but 19% below 2008. Planted area is
estimated at 6.63 million acres, down 20% from last year and is the
third-lowest acreage total on record. Area harvested for grain, at 5.52
million acres, is down 24% from 2008. Average grain yield, at 69.4
bu./acre, is up 5.4 bu. from the previous forecast and up 4.4 bu. from
last year.
Rice production in 2009 is estimated at 220 million cwt., up 1%
from the previous forecast and up 8% from 2008. Planted area is
estimated at 3.14 million acres, up 5% from 2008. Area harvested, at
3.10 million acres, is up slightly from the previous forecast and up 4%
from the previous crop year. The average yield for all U.S. rice is
estimated at 7,085 lbs./acre, up 47 lbs. from the previous forecast and
239 lbs. above the 2008 yield.
Soybean production in 2009 totaled 3.36 billion bu., up 1% from
the Nov. 1 forecast and up 13% from 2008. U.S. production is the largest
on record. Average yield per acre is estimated at a record-high 44 bu.,
0.7 bu. above the Nov. 1 forecast and 4.3 bu. above last year’s yield.
Harvested area is up 2% from 2008 to a record 76.4 million acres.
All cotton production is estimated at 12.4 million, 480-lbs.
bales, down 2% from last month and down 3% from 2008. The U.S. yield is
estimated at 774 lbs./acre, down 8 lbs. from the Dec. 1 forecast and
down 39 lbs. from last year. Harvested area, at 7.69 million acres, is
down less than 1% from December but up 2% from last year.
To see the full report, go to usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/.
-- Joe Roybal
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“What’s COOL and What’s Not COOL” is the title of a
five-minute video explaining country of origin labeling (COOL) and
available on USDA’s YouTube page. See the video at www.youtube.com/.
You can also find an abundance of other info on COOL at www.ams.usda.gov/.
-- Joe Roybal
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