Farm Radio

Ag News Notes this week: Colorado State Fair ends Monday, September 3. Jr Livestock sale this year netted $45K Congress will conference on the 2019 Farm Bill for the second time next week. Bills differ a lot between Senate and House. The U.S. and Mexico have found common ground in a trade deal that would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement. The U.S. is trying to get Canada to do away with their dairy support program so that Canada can again be a part of NAFTA. They have not agreed to do that as of now. Silage harvest has begun in NE Colorado. There will be fewer trucks on the road in Morgan County because a lot was lost East and West of Fort Morgan due to weather and storms. Early Wheat planting has begun in NE Colorado. Need moisture to really get going going with planting.

From www.eenews.net (Photo from farmfutures.com) The Obama-era Clean Water Rule became the law in 26 states today as a federal judge in South Carolina issued a nationwide injunction on the Trump administration's delay of the regulation that defines what wetlands and waterways get federal protection. The  injunction  targets the Trump administration's February order suspending the rule while EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers worked up a new version. The Southern Environmental Law Center sued on behalf of several environmental groups, saying the administration rushed the rulemaking and violated the Administrative Procedure Act. U.S. District Judge David Norton for the District of South Carolina agreed with the greens, saying the administration failed to seek public comment on the substance of rule or the implications of delaying the regulation by two years. "Certainly, different administrations may implement different regulatory priorities, but the [Administra...

Morgan County has really taken a hit this growing season. On July 29th, producers on the Eastern end of the county experienced two F2 tornadoes that have resulted in field and livestock damage. Some corn fields are a 100% loss, others are so hail damaged that it will be difficult to harvest and what is harvested will be low quality. Western Sugar reports an 8% loss in sugar beets. The beets will continue to grow, but will spend the energy growing a new canopy and not sugar content in the beet below ground. Hail also took a toll on livestock. I know of at least one cow that dies from the half-dollar size hail that swept through the Hillrose- Synder area. A local veterinarian reported in an interview that the stress cattle endured during this storm will most likely lead to issues when breeding time rolls around next month. Facebook also had photos of welts and some open lesions in horses. In addition, nitrates could pose a problem as the corn that is not harvested will leave nitrat...

Lots of Milk! (Photo from Youtube.com) The latest milk production data from USDA shows farmers are still harvesting a lot of milk, even with low prices. Colorado's production is leading the way in the amount of milk produced in the U.S. Colorado has increased production by 11% over last year, Kansas reports a 7.55 increase and Texas is up by 6.6%. Nationwide, milk production is up 1.3% from last year in the top 23 milk producing states. USDA is also reporting the highest per cow milk production numbers- with individual cow production averaging just over 19,000 pounds per month.

The House of Representatives placed the farm bill back in the court of the Senate, voting to move towards conference yesterday. The voice vote approval paves the way for the Senate to consider similar action so the two chambers can appoint conferees to mend differences between the House and Senate versions of the farm bill. Now, the Senate must also vote to proceed to conference and appoint conferees. However, when the conference committee will convene remains uncertain, before or after the August recess. The current farm bill expires September 30th. Wheat harvest is nearing completion (about 85% complete). Dryland yields are averaging 40 bushels per acre, irrigated about 80 bushels per acre. Of course where hail and heavy winds have hit, those yields are much lower. In addition, farmers in NE Colorado are dealing with an epic sawfly infestation. There is not much they can do but ride it out at this point in the growing season. There is a photo of a f...

(From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting ) Japan Will Resume Sheep and Goat Imports from U.S. (Photo credit: African  Farming) Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue announced that the Japanese government has finalized the technical requirements that will allow U.S. sheep and goat exports to Japan to resume for the first time in 14 years. U.S. Meat Export Federation Chair Dennis Stiffler says Japan was a primary market for U.S. lamb before losing access in December of 2003 because of mad cow disease detection in the American cattle herd. “Our lamb producers and the overall industry are very excited about the opportunity to export our quality products to an upscale market,” Stiffler says. “The Japanese have proven in the past that they’re very receptive to the unique flavor of U.S. lamb.” While U.S. lamb has already been well-received in other markets like Taiwan, which reopened to U.S. lamb in 2016, Japan presents an exceptional opportunity for significant export growth. Japan...

Recently, on AgriTalk, there was discussion on what makes Colorado Corn production different than that of the mid-west. I had not really thought of all the differences, but here are some of the main things that were mentioned: -Colorado is overall and colder climate than the mid-west. -In Colorado, there is a lot of silage, which means more passes through the field, which also that means more fuel costs. And because of the field passes, more carbon escapes from fields compared to the mid-west states. Even though it is replaced with manure, the high winds still make it imperative the Colorado producers monitor fields for adequate carbon. No till in Colorado may also require more passes through the filed to take away tracks in the field. -Colorado adds phosphorus, mid-west states don't need to. -Colorado has more salt in the soil, leading to high PH situations- again mid-west states have to add in salt sources such as sulphur and/or lime. -Colorado uses primarily cow manu...