AUGUST 13, 2021 | VOLUME 24 | ISSUE 16
Farm Bureau Press A PEEK INSIDE
MORE THAN $1.7 MILLION PROVIDED TO ARKANSAS FAIRS TO SUPPORT AG The Arkansas Department of Agriculture Department recently provided $1,770,272 in funding to Arkansas fairs for 2021. This funding includes $724,272 in agri fair funding to county fairs, the Four States Fair, the ArkansasOklahoma Fair, and the Arkansas State Fair, and construction funding totaling $1,046,000 to county and district fairs. “Fairs are great venues to showcase our state’s largest industry and they provide opportunities for Arkansas youth to learn more and be involved in the agriculture industry,” said Secretary of Agriculture Wes Ward. “We hope that fairs across the state will be able to have their scheduled events this year after the Coronavirus forced many events to cancel last year.”
2021 Rice Field Day Moves Online Aug. 20, page 2
Funding is to help cover costs of fair operations and other fair-related expenses. Construction funding has historically been paid to counties and districts every other year to cover routine maintenance and/or improvements to fair facilities. In 2021 the Arkansas General Assembly granted recipients of construction funding flexibility to utilize the funding to defray other unavoidable expenses and needs created by the Coronavirus.
Handling and Storage of Treated Seed during Harvest , page 2
Livestock and Poultry Division inspectors provided thousands of hours at fairs across the state to complete health inspections of exhibition animals and to ensure that the applicable animal health regulatory requirements are satisfied. In 2019, the last full year of fair events before the Coronavirus, Livestock and Poultry inspectors provided 3,626 hours at 76 Arkansas fairs.
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“It’s an honor to partner with fairs across the state to help promote Arkansas agriculture while also helping ensure the health of exhibition animals and the livestock and poultry industries,” said Patrick Fisk, Director of the Department’s Livestock and Poultry Division.
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A PUBLICATION OF THE ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
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FARM BUREAU COUNTY SCHOOL SUPPLY DRIVE The start of a new school year is fast approaching and teachers are busy restocking their classrooms. According to the Kids in Need Foundation, 90% of students arrive to class without all the needed school supplies and 99% of educators use their own money to purchase supplies for their students and classrooms. In an effort to assist educators across the state, ArFB state Women’s Leadership Committee (WLC) and Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) committee will be sponsoring a statewide school supply drive during Aug. 9 –20. County committees may participate by purchasing schools supplies to donate, organizing a school supply drive at the county office or donating gift cards to teachers to purchase supplies ArFB will reimburse up to $200 per county. If you have previously held a school supply drive, you will also be eligible for the reimbursement. Please submit a copy of receipt to lori.croy@arfb.com for reimbursement. All counties that donate will receive an electronic copy of the new Ag in the Classroom book, "Bringing Farming to the Classroom", to distribute to educators along with the school supplies. Below is a list of suggested classroom and educator supplies, but counties should check with their local schools for a specific list. Student supplies Crayons Spiral notebooks Composition Notebooks 3-ring Binders Pens Pencils Loose leaf paper Glue sticks Scissors Pocket folders Post its Classroom supplies Kleenex Clorox wipes Hand sanitizer Lysol Expo markers Card stock Command products Washi tape
2021 RICE FIELD DAY MOVES ONL The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture rice field day, originally scheduled as an in-person event for Aug. 6, will be presented online on Aug. 20. Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station researchers and Cooperative Extension specialists will present their programs in recorded sessions that will go live that day. “Out of an abundance of caution, given the rise in COVID-19 cases brought on by the rapid spread of the Delta variant, our scientists are moving their presentations to an online format for this year’s rice field day,” said Jean-Francois Meullenet, director of the Agricultural Experiment Station and senior associate vice president for the Division of Agriculture. “Our goal is to provide as close as possible the experience of attending an in-person field day. It will be just like being on the wagon, but without the heat and humidity." Videos will be available Aug. 20 on the Rice Field Day website: https://aaes.uada.edu/rice-field-day. Registration is not required to view the videos however, registration will be required to receive CEU credit. The website will be live throughout 2021 to allow people to view the presentations at their convenience. Field day video presentations will include: • Introduction and Rice Update – Jarrod Hardke, professor and extension rice agronomist
GRAIN BIN SAFETY TRAINING Firefighters, grain bin operators, and farm workers in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi were invited to attend a grain bin safety course on July 19 in McGehee. The class was designed to teach the skills necessary to rescue an individual who has become partially or completely engulfed in grain within a bin or silo. John David Farabough, agricultural agent for the Desha County Cooperative Extension Service, reported there have been at least two known grain elevator fatalities in the southeast Arkansas area in the past decade. According to Purdue
We encourage counties to take this opportunity to educate students about agriculture, while providing needed supplies to schools in your county. As an activity that falls under the Health and Wellness program, participation in the School Supply Drive will count towards the WLC, YF&R and Youth Education portions of Gold Star. 2
A PUBLICATION OF THE ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
LINE AUG. 20 • Integrated Rice Disease Management with a Major Focus on False Smut – Yeshi Wamishe, associate professor, plant pathology • Using Rice Tissue Testing Effectively – Trent Roberts, associate professor and holder of the Endowed Chair in Soil Fertility Research • Weed Management in Rice Update and Sedge Identification and Control – Jason Norsworthy, Distinguished Professor, and holder of the Elms Farming Chair of Weed Science and Tommy Butts, extension weed scientist • Management of Rice Water Weevil, Rice Stink Bug, Armyworms and Billbugs in Rice – Nick Bateman, assistant professor and extension entomologist • Fertigating Furrow Irrigated Rice and Irrigation Water Management for Rice Growers – Chris Henry, associate professor, irrigation and water management • Rice Breeding Program Updates – Xueyan Sha, professor, rice breeding and genetics; and Christian de Guzman, assistant professor, rice breeding and genetics
University, there were 35 grain-related entrapments in 2020, with 20 of them being fatal. The day-long course was divided into two portions — classroom instruction and hands-on practice. Because many farm workers in Arkansas and surrounding states speak Spanish as their first language, Spanish translators were in attendance working with the English-speaking instructors. The event was sponsored by the Farm Bureau Foundation and presented by the Safety and Technical Rescue Association.
Alumni Academy | Evan Teague (center), Vice President of Commodity and Regulatory Affairs, was inducted July 16 into the charter class of the Arkansas State University College of Engineering and Computer Science Alumni Academy. Dr. Alan Utter (left), ASU's Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Research, and Dr. Kelly Damphousse (right), Chancellor, of the Arkansas State University Jonesboro campus are also pictured.
HANDLING AND STORAGE OF TREATED SEED DURING HARVEST As harvest begins across the country, Arkansas Farm Bureau and the American Seed Trade Association remind farmers about the importance of taking precautions to ensure treated seed does not enter the grain supply. A one-page flyer graphically displays the five steps for stewardship of treated seed. At this time of year, it’s important to completely remove all treated seed left in containers and equipment used to handle harvested grain, and dispose of it properly. For more information on why and how seed treatments are used, a set of videos explore topics including: improving performance and safety with seed treatments; the five steps for stewardship of treated seed; and, how seed treatments support sustainability. For more information, visit seed-treatment-guide.com.
A PUBLICATION OF THE ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
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MARKET NEWS as of August 11, 2021 Contact Brandy Carroll 501-228-1268 brandy.carroll@arfb.com
Cattle October live cattle futures continue to find resistance near $130, and are consolidating between that resistance and support at $127. On the fundamental side, a bullish Cattle on Feed report provided support. Placements were pegged at 92.9% of a year ago, well below the average trade guess. Total cattle on feed were 98.7% of a year ago, and marketings were 102.7% of last year’s total. Boxed beef values have been higher this week, but the cash trade has been quiet so far. Cash trade was stronger last week and is expected to continue in an upward direction as supplies of market ready cattle are tight and product values remain solid. Once retailers have filled their Labor Day inventory needs, however, product values can be expected to soften. October feeders have run out of buying interest above $167 after a sharp rally. A correction could see the market close the gap between $161.30 and $161.67½, but for now the market seems to be building support at $163. Hogs Tight hog supplies, strong wholesale pork prices and futures’ discount to cash prices are all supportive fundamental factors. Last week’s slaughter was 9.1% below a year ago, and total production was down 9.7% due to lower carcass weights. Product values could top out soon, 4
though, as retailers complete their Labor Day purchases and demand slows down. High feed costs and high building costs are preventing farmers from expanding herds. October futures have violated trendline support and look to be heading to a retest of support near $81. Rice USDA says that 75% of the U.S. rice crop is in good to excellent condition, a 3-point improvement over last week. In Arkansas, that total is 67%. Questions remain regarding both the size and condition of the crop in Arkansas. The current USDA estimate has the Arkansas crop pegged at 1.241 million planted acres. Many in the state believe we will see a downward revision in that number on Thursday when the FSA certified acres are released. Last week’s exports came in at 101,000 metric tons, including a 40,000 ton sale to Iraq. This marks the first sales to Iraq in two years, and was the result of an MOU signed between USA Rice and the Iraqi grain purchasing entity Al Awees. The MOU calls for purchases of 200,000 tons of rice annually. Last week, Iraq purchased 80,000 tons, meaning they have met over half of its commitment in the past two weeks. The September contract has been on a bit of a roller coaster the past few weeks, but has found support around $13.15 and has turned higher this week. Resistance at $13.85 seems solid unless the reports hold major surprises. Cotton December cotton futures have moved to new contract highs, surpassing previous resistance at 91 cents. Export sales last week totaled 17,200 bales for the current marketing year, and 149,300 bales for 2021-22 delivery. The stronger dollar and resurgence of Covid could hinder demand in the near-term.
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Sixty-five percent of the United States crop is rated good to excellent. This week a year ago, that total was only 42%. That difference mostly reflects the more favorable conditions in Texas, which has seen cooler temps and more precipitation that usual early this summer. The market is expecting to see a cut to the USDA acreage estimate later this week when FSA certified acres are released. Corn December corn futures have been chopping along mostly sideways in a tight range between support at $5.40 and resistance at $5.60. USDA has rated 64% the crop good to excellent this week, an unexpected increase of two points. USDA has pegged production at a recordsetting 151.165 billion bushels, and trade has been light for a few weeks as traders work to get a better understanding of just how big this crop will actually be. The current yield estimate is 179.5 bushels per acre, but private estimates range from a high of 181 to a low of 170. Soybeans December soybeans have recovered somewhat after finding support at $13.80 and charting a potential double bottom. Resistance at $14.80 looks solid for now. The soybean market is also watching the weather carefully and trading volume has been relatively low amid uncertainty about the U.S. crop. The potential for a hot, dry August could increase crop stress and hurt yield potential. Pre-report yield estimates range between 47 and 51 bushels an acre. The current USDA estimate is 50.7 bushels, and a downward revision could prove to be bullish for prices.
EDITOR Ashley Wallace ashley.wallace@arfb.com