BOOZMAN TO SERVE AS CHAIRMAN OF SENATE AGRICULTURE COMMITTEE
U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-Ark.), the top Republican on the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, was formally named chairman of the committee upon the Senate’s approval of its organizing resolution.
“It is an honor to serve as Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee,” Boozman said. “There are many pressing needs of agriculture producers that we will work to address including passing a farm bill that provides farmers and ranchers the policies and support they desperately need to continue feeding, clothing and fueling the world. I look forward to working with President Trump and my colleagues to implement an agenda that delivers certainty and predictability for hardworking farm families, improves the regulatory landscape to ensure it’s fair and transparent, and bolsters rural communities.”
YF&R Conference Set for February, Page 2
As chairman, Boozman will establish the agenda of the Senate Agriculture Committee next Congress.
Boozman served as Ranking Member of the committee in both the 117th and 118th Congress, where he worked across the aisle to enhance food assistance programs and modernize USDA’s summer meals program to permanently allow states flexibilities to reach more food-insecure children. He successfully fought for economic assistance to help producers minimize market losses, helped elevate the importance of securing new export markets for U.S. agriculture commodities and met with farmers, ranchers and agriculture stakeholders in more than 20 states to get their input as the committee crafts the next farm bill.
Nominations Sought for Arkansas Ag in the Classroom Outstanding Teacher Award, Page 3
ArFB 2025 Youth Leadership Summit, Page 3
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Sen. John Boozman, shown receiving the Friend of Farm Bureau Award from ArFB President Dan Wright, has officially been named as chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.
ARKANSAS
YF&R CONFERENCE SET FOR FEBRUARY
The Arkansas Farm Bureau Young Farmer & Rancher and Collegiate Conference will be held Feb. 7-8 at the Wyndham Fort Smith. Registration will open at 2 p.m. Feb. 7.
The Feb. 7 agenda will include collegiate discussion meet preliminary rounds, panel discussions and family night featuring Ag Olympics at The Bakery District.
Feb. 8 will open with a keynote address from Vance Crowe and will include workshops as well as addresses from Farm Bureau leadership. The conference will conclude Saturday evening with a reception and dinner at the U.S. Marshals Museum.
In addition, an agricultural tour will take place prior to the conference at Compass Cold Storage in Mulberry (CompassCold.com). The tour will begin at noon. Transportation will not be provided. Staff will be on-site to direct attendees. The address is 507 Industrial Park Drive, Mulberry, AR 72947.
Registration forms can be found online or by contacting your county office. Deadline for registration is Jan. 24.
If you have any questions, contact Lindsey Rucker at lindsey.rucker@arfb.com.
SAVE THE DATE FOR THESE UPCOMING Ar FB EVENTS
Winter Commodity Division Meetings
Jan. 14 | Embassy Suites, Little Rock
AFBF Convention
Jan. 25-28 | San Antonio
YF&R Convention
Feb. 7-8 | Wyndham, Fort Smith
FIRST CONFIRMED CASE OF AVIAN INFLUENZA IN ARKANSAS COMMERCIAL POULTRY FLOCK
The United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) has confirmed the first case of Avian Influenza (AI) in commercial poultry in Arkansas. The positive case was identified on Dec. 30, 2024, at a broiler farm in Clay County, affecting 227,500 birds.
Additionally, USDAAPHIS reported five confirmed cases of AI in backyard poultry across Lafayette, Pope, Craighead, and Jackson counties throughout December 2024, with the most recent case on Dec. 20, 2024. Approximately 370 birds were affected across all cases.
For more details, you can visit the USDA-APHIS tracker: Confirmations of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Commercial and Backyard Flocks | Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Arkansas Farm Bureau will continue to keep members updated on new cases and encourages members to report any suspected cases.
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Farmers Day at the Capitol
Feb. 25 | Little Rock
Women’s Leadership
April 3-4 | Marriott, Little Rock
Officers & Leaders
July 17-18 | Embassy Suites, Rogers
State Convention Dec. 3-5 | Hot Springs
Stay up to date with the latest Arkansas legislative news. Sign up for email and text updates by texting ARFB to 52886. Those signing up will need to enter a home address to ensure they are matched with their local legislator.
Email alerts include legislative updates, policy news and resources. Legislative updates are sent exclusively via email.
Text alerts include urgent updates, action alerts and calls to action for contacting legislators.
In addition to taking action through alerts, members are encouraged to contact legislators directly. Direct calls can make a big impact and ensure your voice is heard.
NOMINATIONS SOUGHT FOR ARKANSAS AG IN THE CLASSROOM OUTSTANDING TEACHER AWARD
Nominations are being accepted through March 1 for the Arkansas Ag in the Classroom Outstanding Teacher Award. The program recognizes an outstanding teacher in Arkansas who incorporates agricultural themes into non-agricultural curricula. If you know teachers who use Ag in the Classroom, please encourage them to apply for the award. Teachers can self-nominate or be nominated by fellow teachers, principals, superintendents or a county Farm Bureau leader.
There are many outstanding teachers using Ag in the Classroom and your teacher may be the next state, and possibly, national winner. The winning teacher will be awarded a monetary prize, an iPad Air and an expense-paid trip to the National Ag in the Classroom
Conference June 23-26, in Minneapolis, Minn. The winning teacher will also be recognized at the Arkansas Farm Bureau Annual Convention in Hot Springs.
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to recognize an outstanding teacher in your county. Their use of Ag in the Classroom is also a celebration of the efforts of your county Farm Bureau.
The award program guidelines and a nomination form can be downloaded from the Arkansas Farm Bureau website, www.arfb.com, on the Education page.
Thank you for helping spread the word about the award program. If you have any questions, please contact Donette Spann at donette.spann@arfb.com or (501) 228-1222.
A r FB 2025 AG YOUTH LEADERSHIP SUMMIT
Applications are being accepted for this year’s Arkansas Youth Leadership Summit (AYLS). The four-day seminar will provide an in-depth look at agriculture degrees and careers, introduce students to the Arkansas Farm Bureau Federation, and examine the issues affecting agriculture and rural Arkansas. All this and more will happen at the Southern Arkansas University (SAU) campus June 1‐4.
AYLS teaches youth several aspects of the agricultural industry, including agriculture agencies, companies, and technologies. The summit will also explore career opportunities in agriculture and the educational path needed for those careers.
a service project. The summit will conclude on Wednesday with a dinner for attendees and their families and a drawing for a $500 scholarship for one lucky participant.
AYLS is for students entering the 11th or 12th grades in the 2025‐26 school year. Links to the guidelines and the online application for AYLS can be found at here or on the Leader Portal.
The deadline for applications is March 15. Applicants must submit a letter of recommendation from a Farm Bureau county board member or agency manager.
In addition, the group will tour the SAU campus and farm, experience dorm life, and interact with a local producer. Students will also give back to the community with
We look forward to a successful summit and would appreciate your assistance in recruiting students in your community.
For questions, please contact Donete Spann at 501228-1222 or donette.spann@arfb.com.
MARKET NEWS
as of January 8, 2025
Contact Brandy Carroll brandy.carroll@arfb.com
Tyler Oxner tyler.oxner@arfb.com
Corn
Corn prices have rallied in recent weeks but remain mixed on a dayto-day basis, offering little clarity on market direction. Export demand appears to be losing momentum, and expectations for substantial South American crops are weighing on the market. Sideways trading may persist as traders await Friday’s USDA report. Early weakness in prices can be attributed to profittaking ahead of the report and some hedge selling as March futures approach resistance at $4.60. Caution may be warranted due to the significant growth in speculative long positions, which have shifted sharply from the heavily short positions held earlier this summer. Ahead of the WASDE report, analysts anticipate a 0.5 bushel per acre reduction in yield estimates, translating to a 51-million-bushel drop in production. This report will also provide the USDA’s final estimates for 2024 U.S. corn and soybean crops.
Soybeans
Soybean prices have experienced volatility, with futures recently recovering from double-digit losses. Early price weakness was linked to the upcoming central Brazilian harvest and concerns about large global ending stocks, as reflected in the forthcoming WASDE report. However, weather forecasts indicating warmer and drier conditions in southern Brazil and much of Argentina are providing
price support. Analysts expect the USDA to slightly lower its 2024 soybean production estimate by approximately 8 million bushels, bringing the total to 4.453 billion bushels. Despite this adjustment, production would still be 7% higher than the 2023 crop, making it the second-largest U.S. harvest on record.
Wheat
Wheat futures have faced downward pressure in recent weeks due to a stronger dollar and declining export activity. However, concerns about reduced supply from Russia, the world’s top wheat exporter, are offering some support. In the U.S., the condition of the Plains winter wheat crop has been downgraded, which also lends some price support. Arkansas reports 52% of its wheat crop is in good to excellent condition, with only 4% rated as poor. Top wheatproducing states, including Kansas and Oklahoma, have seen crop conditions decline to 47% and 45% good to excellent, respectively.
Rice
Rice futures plummeted in late December, moving to new contract lows and a new three-year low on a front-month basis. The nearby January contract is now attempting to stabilize but has so far been unable to move above resistance at the key $14 level. Export sales have been disappointing as world supplies remain ample. We are still seeing the impact of India’s monthslong export ban and now the lifting of that ban as their supplies hit the market and depress prices. Brazil has increased rice acreage and produced a big crop, creating further competition on the world market. USDA will release its final 2024 production estimates, grain stocks, and updated Supply and Demand balance sheets on Jan. 10.
It will be another 45 days until the first 2025 production estimates are released. If prices don’t recover, we could see reduced acreage.
Cotton
Cotton futures continue to trend lower and test the contract lows.
The March contract is building support at 67.5 cents, while new crop December has support at 68.81 cents. Disappointing export sales are the biggest factor currently, as sales lag behind the pace necessary to meet current USDA projections. The dollar remains strong, which doesn’t help our exports, and China is not currently an active buyer as they have ample domestic supplies. As with rice, we could see significant cuts in acreage at these price levels.
Cattle
Cattle futures remain in an uptrend, with prices surging higher during the holidays. February live cattle set a new all-time high of $196 last week. Strong wholesale beef prices are supportive, but the biggest factor is the relatively tight supply of U.S. cattle. Imports from Mexico are still suspended, further limiting the supply of market ready cattle. As winter weather storms move through the country, cash prices are expected to remain strong.
Hogs
Hog futures have been under pressure in recent weeks as demand has weakened due to seasonal factors. Pork cutout values have fallen, and the quarterly Hogs and Pigs report confirmed that farmers are no longer liquidating sows, suggesting a more robust supply of hogs will follow.
