Farm Bureau Press
2024 ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU
OFFICERS
AND LEADERS CONFERENCE IN JONESBORO
Arkansas Farm Bureau’s (ArFB) 76th annual Officers and Leaders Conference is set for July 25 - 26 at the Red Wolf Convention Center in Jonesboro. Themed Breaking New Boundaries, the event will feature professional development sessions, commodity division meetings, recognition of outstanding Young Farmer & Rancher families and wrap up with a keynote from Dr. Cliff E. Jones, deputy director of the Arkansas State University Delta Center for Economic Development. More than 500 Farm Bureau leaders are expected to attend. Workshops will cover topics and issues important to the agriculture industry. Farm bill policy, grain marketing, updates to the State Water Plan and more will be discussed. ArFB’s summer commodity division meetings will also be held to discuss potential policy issues impacting nearly every agricultural commodity produced in Arkansas. The ArFB Women’s Leadership Conference will follow the Officers and Leaders Conference, beginning with a lunch session on July 26 and continuing through Saturday July 27.
“We are in the midst of a truly pivotal time for agriculture and it’s important we bring our industry together to discuss the challenges for farmers and the solutions to address them,” said Dan Wright, president of Arkansas Farm Bureau and a poultry producer from Waldron. “Farm Bureau’s strength is our membership, and we’re excited for the first statewide gathering of 2024.”
ArFB will also announce winners of its Young Farmer & Rancher competitions, which identify and highlight successful farm and ranch operations and engaged in the efforts.
See the full event itinerary here.
2024 County School Supply Drive, Page 2-3
Market News, Page 4
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AG Olympics | The Dallas Co. Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee recently hosted an AG Olympics for the Fordyce Elementary Schools. Students competed in chicken chasing, sheep shearing, trough filling, barrel racing, cow milking, fence jumping and calf roping.
New Agency Manager | Shane Davis was recently named the new Agency Manager for Lincoln/Cleveland County. Davis joins the team from Phillips County and has been with Farm Bureau for 10 years. He and his wife Jennifer have been married for 10 years and have a two-year-old son, John Luke.
2024 YF&R AWARD FINALISTS TO
Arkansas Farm Bureau Young Farmers & Ranchers recently announced its top three finalists for Excellence in Ag and Achievement Award. Both contests are designed to provide opportunities to give recognition for achievements in agriculture, business, and leadership to our young farmers and ranchers. The winner of each category will be announced July 25, day one of the ArFB 2024 Officers and Leaders conference in Jonesboro.
Excellence in Ag recognizes the accomplishments of contestants who derive the majority of their income from efforts other than agriculture but are involved in farming. The three finalists are:
• Garrett and Mallory Moix, Faulkner Co. The Moix’s have a 300-acre Bermuda grass hay farm and a run a 130-head cow/ calf operation where they work to improve genetics each year. Mallory works as a pediatric occupational therapist. They love to include their children in all their farming adventures.
• Caleigh Watlington, Columbia Co. Caleigh and her husband Coe have a small cow/calf operation in Buckner where they also sell alfalfa hay. Being raised on a beef and poultry operation, farming has always been a big part of Caleigh’s life. She is currently an agricultural loan officer for Farm Credit of Western Arkansas. They have one daughter.
• Hannah Walker, Baxter Co. Hannah and her husband Cody
2024 COUNTY SCHOOL SUPPLY
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 of the needed school supplies and 99% of educators use their own money to purchase supplies for their students and classrooms.
As part of the Community Cultivations Program, the ArFB state Women’s Leadership Committee (WLC) and Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) Committee will be sponsoring a statewide school supply drive, July 15 - Aug. 30. County Farm Bureaus can participate in several ways:
• Purchasing schools supplies to donate
• Organizing a school supply drive at the county office
• Donating gift cards to teachers to purchase supplies
BE ANNOUNCED JULY 25
have mixed cow-calf pairs, replacement heifers, bulls and feeder calves on their farm in Henderson. She is the financial secretary for the Mountain Home Public Schools Special Education Department. She and her husband have two children.
The Achievement Award recognizes young farmers and ranchers in Arkansas who have excelled in their farming and ranching operations and exhibited outstanding leadership abilities. The award is designed for those involved full-time in production agriculture.
The top three finalists for the Achievement Award are:
• Dalton and Skiver Dilldine, Mississippi Co. The Dilldines farm 5,500 acres where they grow wheat, soybeans, cotton, corn and rice. Skiver is a Registered Nurse at a local hospital. The Dilldine’s love to try new restaurants and travel to spend time with family at the lake.
• Cody and Olivia Stroud, Sharp Co., Both Cody and Olivia are fifth-generation farmers and have blended two operations where they run cattle in Carroll, Izard and Sharp Counties. They have a 1-year-old son who is the proud owner of three cows and three sheep.
• Justin and Laycee Story, Scott Co., The Storys have an 851acre farm in western Scott Co, where they run a 145-head cattle operation and 150 Black Belly and Dorper cross sheep. They operate a liquid feed business, while Justin also works part-time for other cattlemen in the area. They have three children.
DRIVE
In 2023, 29 county Farm Bureaus participated in the program, donating more than $10,600 in school supplies, with the state committees reimbursing more than $5,700. ArFB will reimburse one half of county contributions, up to $200 per county. This is in addition to the $400 reimbursements for food donations in the Community Cultivations Program.
To be eilgabile for reimbursement, a copy of a check and/or receipt(s) must be submitted to lori.croy@arfb.com by Sept. 16.
Counties are encouraged to take this opportunity to educate students about agriculture, while providing needed supplies to schools in the county. The School Supply Drive is a great opportunity for committees and county Farm Bureaus to give back and support those in their community.
A r FB 2024 COOKING CONTEST FINALISTS
Thank you to everyone who held a county Dairy Foods Contest and Rice is Nice Youth Cooking Contest this year!
The judges were sincerely impressed by the entries and selecting the finalists was a tough job.
From all the entries submitted, the judges have selected the following finalists to compete.
Dairy Foods Contest
Main Dish
• Harper Graham – Sebastian County
• Haylee Lucas – Sharp County
• Henry Witcher – Cross County
• Acea Edington – Craighead County Party Idea
• Bentley Ray – Randolph County
• Shannon Bateman – Pope County
• Elijah Olson – Fulton County
• Amanda Berryhill – Hot Spring County Rice is Nice Youth Cooking Contest
Main Dish
• Jash Shepard – Hot Spring County
• Hannah Ray – Randolph County
• Hunter Nuckols – Pope County Party Idea
• Caitlin Cooper – White County
• Skarlett Munn – Lincoln County
• Callie White – Faulkner County
The finalists will compete in the state contest on July 18 at the Arkansas State Fairgrounds. We can’t wait to see everyone in action in the kitchen!
2023 State Rice is Nice Cooking Contest
MARKET NEWS
as of July 10, 2024
Contact Brandy Carroll brandy.carroll@arfb.com
Tyler Oxner tyler.oxner@arfb.com
Corn
Corn prices are searching for a level to boost export demand, but without any immediate threatening weather forecasts, this trend is unlikely to change. The September 2024 contract hit a new low, while the December 2024 contract fell to its lowest in 3½ years. USDA is not expected to alter its new crop yield forecast in this month’s WASDE. On Monday, the USDA reported that 68% of the corn crop is rated good to excellent, up one percentage point, with 9% rated poor to very poor. On the September chart, resistance is at the 20-day moving average of $4.34, with support at the recent low of $3.92 and the lower Bollinger Band at $3.85.
Soybean
New crop November 2024 soybeans are continuing to hit new lows. Warmer weather is forecasted, potentially aiding crop development. This week’s crop progress report showed a one percentage point improvement, with 68% of the crop rated good to excellent and 8% poor to very poor. In Arkansas, 74% of the crop is rated good to excellent, with 5% poor to very poor. Additionally, 58% of Arkansas’ crop is setting pods, 12 percentage points ahead of last year and 28 percentage points above the five-year average. The November chart shows resistance at the 20-day moving average of $11.23 and support at the recent low and lower Bollinger Band at $10.77.
Wheat
Weakness in corn and soybean markets, along with increased Russian production reported by SovEcon, has pressured wheat prices. With the U.S. harvest nearly complete, traders are focusing on international production and export sales. Weekly export sales surpassed expectations, with total commitments at 254 million bushels, compared to 170 million at this time last year.
Cotton
The USDA’s recent increase in planted acres, reported on June 28, will be reflected in Friday’s USDA supply-demand tables in the July WASDE, likely raising projected production from 16.00 million bales to around 17.6 million bales. This could result in ending stocks of approximately 5.7 million bales, the highest since 2019/20. On Monday, the USDA’s weekly crop progress report showed a decline in the good to excellent rating to 45%, down from 50% last week and below the five-year average of 48%. For the December 2024 contract, chart support is at 70.00 cents, with resistance at 72.00 cents.
Rice
The September 2024 rice contract has significantly declined in recent weeks. After peaking at $15.83 in mid-June, prices fell for 11 out of 12 days, finding support at $14.54, a level last seen in April. Resistance appears at the 20-day moving average of $15.32. The overall rice condition is down one percentage point from last week and five percentage points from a year ago, now at 81% good to excellent. In Arkansas, the rice condition remains unchanged week over week at 68% good to excellent.
Forestry
Second quarter timber prices show stability for pine logs and chip-n-
saw, staying within first quarter ranges. Pine pulp prices increased significantly from $0.50-$1.00/ton in the first quarter to $2.00/ton in the second quarter. Miscellaneous products rose from $30-$33/ton to $35/ton. In the Southwest, pine logs dropped from $23-$24/ton to $20/ton, while pine pulp doubled from $1.00/ton to $2.00/ton. For the second quarter oak logs are at $68/ ton and hardwood pulp is at $10/ ton. Overall this is indicating mixed stability and increases, reflecting higher demand.
Livestock
In cattle, late cash trade in the South is steady at $190, with the five-area weekly average slightly down to $194.57 from $194.89 last week. Lean cow beef prices reached record highs, 127% above last year, driven by strong ground beef demand. USDA estimated cattle slaughter at 116,000 head, totaling 475,000 for the week, up from 459,091 a year ago. Average dressed cattle weight was 846 pounds, up from 817 a year ago, with beef production estimated at 436.4 million pounds, slightly down from 437.5 million a year ago. Hogs experienced a choppy week, with strong export sales but weak cash prices. Carcass weights are four pounds above last year. USDA estimated hog slaughter at 456,000 head, totaling 1.885 million for the week, up from 1.798 million a year ago. Pork production last week was 438.2 million pounds, down from 521.5 million the previous week but up from 409.7 million a year ago. Pork export sales for the week were 59,100 tonnes, exceeding the fourweek average of 30,200 tons.
EDITOR
Ashley Wallace ashley.wallace@arfb.com