Michael Brooks has been hired as director of finance for the Arkansas Farm Bureau Federation, bringing more than a decade of experience and expertise to the Finance department. Brooks will manage the daily work of the department, including directing personnel involved in accounting, financial statements and overseeing the county records program.
Brooks, a Bryant native, most recently served as an audit manager at Saltmarsh, Cleaveland and Gund. Prior to that, he owned a small business and audited farming operations.
Brooks, a University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate, holds dual bachelor’s degrees in accounting and management. He is a certified public accountant, and he also serves as a member of the Arkansas National Guard.
2024 YF&R DISCUSSION MEET APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN
The 2024 YF&R Discussion Meet will be held during the Arkansas Farm Bureau Annual Convention, Dec. 4-6 at the Hot Springs Convention Center.
First place will receive $7,000 and the three runners up will each receive $500. The application deadline is Nov. 15.
The winner will also receive an all-expenses paid trip to the American Farm Bureau Annual Convention to be held Jan. 2429, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas.
Additional information, including discussion meet questions and resource materials, is available online.
Michael Brooks
Book Barn | Conway County Farm Bureau Agency Manager Jonathan Higgins (left) and Agent John Widner (right) recently delivered a new Arkansas Farm Bureau book barn to Conway County Library Outreach Coordinator Alexis Scroggins (center).
Backpack Program Donation | Jamie Carter (right), a member of the Lonoke County Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee, recently presented a $1,500 check to Emily Shaw of Carlisle Elementary School for their backpack program.
ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU
WEEKLY FUTURES UPDATE
Stay informed and stay ahead with Arkansas Farm Bureau's Weekly Futures Update. Receive concise and easy-to-understand summaries of the latest agricultural trends and insights. Track market data, key indicators, historical trends and other valuable information to optimize decision-making, and cultivate success in the market.
To signup, text ARFBFUTURE to 52886.
NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL
RIGHT TO REPAIR WEBINAR
The National Agricutlural Law Center is hosting a ‘Right to Work’ webinar.
The nationwide movement to enact right to repair statutes seeks to ensure that consumers and endusers have the ability to perform routine maintenance and repairs on agricultural equipment and machinery. During the past few years, several states have enacted legislation imposing requirements upon manufacturers to make certain information and tools available to consumers. While each of these statutes is similar in general purpose, the statutes differ in their approach and scope of coverage.
FAILURE TO MODERNIZE FARM BILL HAS MEASURABLE CONSEQUENCES
The very real and damaging consequences of Congress’ failure to pass a modernized farm bill are brought to light in a new analysis by American Farm Bureau Federation economists. It provides a clearer picture of major impacts of relying on the antiquated 2018 farm bill, including the likely loss of more family farms in the U.S., all of which impact the country’s ability to produce the food, fuel and fiber America’s families rely on.
The Market Intel highlights five specific impacts of the failure to pass a new farm bill: a weakened farmer safety net, less future funding for sustainability efforts, a gap in coverage for dairy farmers, further erosion of U.S. leadership in public agricultural research as China takes the lead, and reduced overall economic and national security.
AFBF President Zippy Duvall said, “if Congress fails to pass a new and improved farm bill, they will be responsible for leaving farmers in a lurch at a time when we’ve lost more than 140,000 family farms in just five years. When the current farm bill was drafted in 2018, the agricultural landscape was drastically different. Policy that pre-dates a global pandemic, historic inflation, skyrocketing supply costs and geopolitical uncertainty just won’t cut it today or next year. Congress must not put farmers, ranchers and America’s families on the back burner. The House Agriculture Committee has done its part so far. It’s now time for the Senate Agriculture Committee to move this process forward.”
Reference prices, the point at which federal programs
CENTER
The webinar will focus on the current status of the right to repair movement as it pertains to agriculture. We will provide a broad overview of the right to repair topic and then discuss state legislation that has been enacted with a specific emphasis on provisions of importance to the agricultural community. We also will discuss other legal developments impacting the right to repair in agriculture including litigation, evolving industry standards, and the use of memoranda of understanding that aim to provide farmers with access to information and diagnostic tools.
The webinar will be held at 11 a.m. on Sept. 18 and will be led by Ross Pifer, director of the Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law.
There is no cost to attend and registration is online.
BILL CONSEQUENCES
compensate farmers when markets bottom out, need to be modernized. The Market Intel states that while a few commodities’ reference prices have increased due to a price escalator added in the 2018 law, all lag significantly behind increases in cost of production.
Once a global leader, America has fallen far behind China in publicly funded agricultural research. China spends more than $10 billion a year on agricultural research, double the spending in the U.S. In fact, China’s research investments nearly match the combined investments by the U.S., India and Brazil. “Supporting the productivity of U.S. agriculture is critical to our competitiveness in the larger world market; it is fundamental to building our capacity to contribute to environmental sustainability; and it is absolutely necessary to supporting the health and nutrition of the world’s population.”
The current farm bill extension will expire in September. The nearly seven-year-old law never anticipated a global pandemic, global unrest, record-high inflation and supply chain issues. The people who rely on crucial farm bill programs recognize the need for action now. Five hundred and thirty organizations, including the American Farm Bureau Federation, this week sent a letter to Congress urging lawmakers to come together and pass a bipartisan farm bill.
Read the letter here.
Read the Market Intel here.
Snack Stick Donation | Lincoln Farm Bureau County Agency Manger Shane Davis (left) and President Keith Shepherd (right) recently delivered 1,000 snack sticks to Star City School District Superintendent Jordan Frizzell. This donation was made possible through the Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry (AHFH) Snack Stick Program and will assist with their backpack programs
Ag Education | Clarksville kindergarten classes recently experienced Arkansas agriculture by going on a field trip to the Johnson County Fair. The Johnson County Women’s Leadership Committee collaborated with the Johnson County Extension/4-H, local FFA members and the Johnson County Junior Fair Board to setup six stations for students to visit. The stations included: poultry and rabbits; a germination station; sheep, goats and hogs; a corn pit and cow simulator; “Ask Me about My Animal” and cattle.
MARKET NEWS
as of September 4, 2024
Contact Brandy Carroll brandy.carroll@arfb.com
Tyler Oxner tyler.oxner@arfb.com
Mississippi River Levels
Mississippi River levels at Memphis have been steadily declining since mid-July, nearing the low water reference plane. This pattern has been recurring in recent years, with water levels usually falling below the reference plane by October. If this trend continues, as it has in the past, barges may be unable to load fully, forcing elevators to widen the basis to discourage deliveries. This would result in producers receiving even less for their crops than the current market price. You can find local grain bid prices on Arkansas Farm Bureau’s website here.
Rice
Rice harvest is underway as farmers have 43% of the US crop and 39% of Arkansas’ crop in the bins—well ahead of the usual pace. Harvest pressure is expected to keep a lid on prices for the next few weeks. The August USDA rice stocks report showed rough rice supplies in all positions of 32.4 million cwt., up 34% from a year ago. On farm stocks totaled 1.8 million cwt, with 30.6 million cwt held off the farm. 49% of those stocks were long-grain. Milled rice stocks in all positions totaled 4.84 million cwt, up 15% from a year ago. 3.71 million cwt were whole kernel rice. Export commitments have been somewhat disappointing, resulting in the increase in stocks. September futures are holding above previous resistance at $15 but have tough resistance just below $15.40. As the September contract nears expiration, traders will be rolling positions into November, which has resistance at $15 and $15.20.
Cotton
Cotton futures are having a tough time building upside momentum. December futures could be confirming a bottom at the recent low of 66.26 cents, but need to hold above 70 cents. The next target for bulls is the resistance at 73 cents. Deterioration in the crop has been somewhat supportive for prices, but the crop is still expected to be sizable. In fact, the condition ratings actually improved this week, with 44% now rated good to excellent. Export sales and shipments have been unremarkable in recent weeks despite a weaker dollar.
Corn
September corn is approaching its 50day moving average, while December corn recently closed above this level for the first time since July. The recent price strength can be attributed to increasing U.S. export demand and dry weather across parts of the Midwest, which isn’t ideal for crop maturation in some areas. As a result, some private crop estimators have lowered their corn production forecasts ahead of the USDA’s September crop report, though projections still anticipate recordhigh yields. The latest crop progress report, released this week, shows little change, with 65% of the national crop rated good to excellent. Arkansas corn conditions are strong, with 77% rated good to excellent, on par with other top producing states. However, rising barge freight costs on the Mississippi River have made U.S. corn less competitive globally, although it remains slightly cheaper than Brazilian corn. If the market stays above the 50-day moving average through the week’s close, it could trigger further short-covering. The next resistance levels for September and December corn are at the July highs of $4.09 and $4.26, respectively
Soybean
November soybeans, like corn, are edging closer to their 50-day moving average, which currently stands at $10.37 and serves as a resistance point until surpassed. This
movement suggests that prices may be establishing a near-term bottom, driven by a recent uptick in export activity and speculator short-covering. China has purchased an additional 4.9 million bushels of soybeans this week, with rumors circulating of another six to nine cargoes being purchased soon. As expected, soybean conditions have declined by two percentage points to 65% rated good to excellent, while those rated poor to very poor have increased by one percentage point to 10%. In Arkansas, conditions remain relatively strong, with 73% of the crop rated good to excellent. Additional price support comes from Brazil, where the National Disaster Monitoring Center (Cemaden) reports that the country is experiencing its worst drought since 1981.
Livestock
Cattle futures rebounded a bit last week on ideas that the market was oversold. The monthly USDA Cattle on Feed report was mostly neutral. The total on feed inventory was up 1% from 2023, and placements were up 6%. Those totals were within expectations and provided some support for the rebound. October live cattle are now building support at the low of $173.72 and are challenging resistance at $180. Seasonal weakness in beef demand as summer ends could add additional pressure, but longer-term, cattle supplies are expected to tighten into 2025.
Hog futures continue to work higher after charting a double bottom in early July. The October contract has run into resistance near $83, and that has resulted in a more sideways trading pattern over the past few days. The August Cold Storge Report suggested strong demand with pork stocks down 7.1% from the previous month and 4.3% from the previous year.
