JANUARY 21, 2022 | VOLUME 25 | ISSUE 2
Farm Bureau Press A PEEK INSIDE
FARM BUREAUS HONOR TWO RETIRED PROFESSORS The Drew County Farm Bureau and Arkansas Farm Bureau Federation are making sure that recently retired agriculture University of Arkansas at Monticello professors Dr. Bob Stark and Dr. Paul Francis aren't forgotten. The organizations have endowed scholarships in the names of the two professors. Both retired last year from UA-Monticello's College of Forestry, Agriculture, and Natural Resources after long careers on the campus. Francis spent 33 years teaching agronomy and horticulture subjects, while Stark taught agricultural economics subjects for nearly 25 years.
DATE CHANGE: ArFB Postpones Winter Commodity Division Meetings to March 1, page 2
Dr. Robert Stark (left) and Dr. Paul Francis were
surprised with endowed scholarships in their “Drew County Farm Bureau names during the Drew County Farm Bureau decided to do something for these two individuals because Christmas party. they had such a role in the Drew County Farm Bureau and UAM” said Kerry Hartness, Drew County Farm Bureau president. “Half of the current county board members are UAM School of Agriculture graduates. We wanted to recognize those two men for their contributions to the community, UAM, and the Drew County Farm Bureau.”
The scholarships were presented as a surprise at the Drew County Farm Bureau Christmas party. “Stark was a sponsor for the Collegiate Farm Bureau Chapter, where he was involved in recruiting of agriculture students and acknowledging how Farm Bureau works on the political side,” said Mike Zieman, Agency manager for
ArFB State Women’s Leadership Conference, page 3
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Drew County. Of the five collegiate Farm Bureau chapters in Arkansas, Zieman said UAM is the most active, noting the number of students who attended the national convention. ”Ninety percent of that participation is due to Dr. Francis and Dr. Stark,” he said. Stark said the collegiate chapter was started because the Farm Bureau wanted to establish a connection with students coming right out of high school, and Arkansas was one of the first in the nation to start a chapter. “I jumped on it because I saw it as a great opportunity for our students to establish connections in the agriculture industry at the local, state, and national levels, provide opportunities for career explorations, and just general connection with the agricultural industry,” said Stark. “Young people in agriculture-related careers should get involved because Farm Bureau is a powerful lobby in Arkansas with the most influential leaders in the agriculture community. They should be proactive,” Francis said. Both Stark and Francis encouraged students to apply for these scholarships, which can be done through the UAM Financial Aid office. “When professors dedicate their careers to our university and our students, we need to rightly recognize that, and we thank the Farm Bureau for recognizing the excellent faculty we have,” said Jeff Weaver, UAM vice chancellor for advancement. “UAM was founded as an agriculture school; it will always be a big part of our university, as it should be.”
ArFB POSTPONES WINTER COMMODITY DIVISION MEETINGS Our members’ health and safety are of the utmost importance. Due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases and out of an overabundance of caution, Winter Commodity Division Meetings have been postponed until March 1. Additional information will be shared as we approach March 1st. Please feel free to call to the Commodity and Regulatory Affairs director responsible for your commodity with any questions.
2022 ARKANSAS RICE ANNUAL MEETING TO BE HELD IN-PERSON The Arkansas Rice Farmers and Arkansas Rice Council will hold their annual meeting on Feb. 8 at 8 a.m. in Jonesboro at the Red Wolf Convention Center. USA Rice CEO Betsy Ward will deliver an industry update, she will be followed by keynote speaker Gov. Asa Hutchinson. This year's event will begin with a discussion on national affairs and farm bill policy from U.S. Senate Ag Committee staff, as well as representatives from Rep. Rick Crawford’s office. A conservation panel will follow that will include RIPE, Riceland, and the National Ag Law Center. The meeting will conclude the meeting with an Arkansas overview from Dr. Jarrod Hardke and Dr. Tim Burcham. “Our farmers are looking forward to gathering in-person again this year. 2022 looks to be promising with the release of the recent yield reports,” said Kelly Robbins, Arkansas Rice Executive Director.
(From left) Kerry Hartness (black vest), Dr. Robert Stark, Dr. Paul Francis, Jeff Felts (green vest), College of Forestry, Agriculture and Natural Resources Dean Michel Blazier. (Image courtesy of UAM.) 2
“This meeting will provide important information that helps to keep our stakeholders up to date on industry issues so that our producers can continue to grow a safe and quality food supply.” Individual registration and sponsorship opportunities can be found here. Individual registration deadline is Feb. 1. Sponsorship registration deadline is Jan. 24.
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ArFB STATE WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE The 2022 Arkansas Farm Bureau State Women’s Leadership Conference is set for March 11-12 at the DoubleTree Little Rock. Registration will begin at noon on March 11. The conference will begin at 3 p.m., Friday, with an address from President Rich Hillman, followed by an ArFB Ag in the Classroom/ Education update and committee networking. Friday Dinner will be at the Robinson Conference Center with keynote speaker, Col. Angela F. Ochoa, the first female commander of the Little Rock Air Force Base. Saturday’s agenda will include
three rotating workshops. The conference will end with a luncheon featuring humorist Jane Jenkins Herlong, beginning at 11:45 a.m. Registration for the conference can be made through your county office. As you check in at the hotel, you will be asked to post a credit card for incidentals. Please pay for your personal charges upon checkout. Registration deadline is Feb. 18. Room cancellations not made by Feb. 18, will be billed to your county.
AG IN THE CLASSROOM GARDEN GRANTS Applications are now being accepted for the ArFB Ag in the Classroom Outdoor Classroom Garden Mini-Grants. The program is designed to show that agriculture is an integral part of our everyday environment and can demonstrate the connection between agriculture, food, fiber, conservation, wildlife and the urban environment. Applications will be accepted through Feb. 15 or as long as funding is available. Programs will receive up to $500 for new gardens, and up to $250 for ongoing garden projects. More information and applications can be found online.
2021 Garden Grant Recipients | The Pangburn FFA was awarded a Garden Grant for their garden and greenhouse project. On hand for the presentation were ag teacher Brian Harris (right) and White County extension agent Jan Yingling (left).
COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE TO HOST IN-PERSON LIVESTOCK & FORAGE WINTER PRODUCTION MEETINGS The Cooperative Extension Service’s livestock and forage production meetings will take place in-person in winter and spring 2022. “[These meetings] will be open to all producers who want to come and learn about what happened this past year and what we’ve got coming up,” said Kevin Lawson, director of extension’s Ozark District. “We have some hot topics right now. One of them, of course, is fertilizer prices. A lot of these meetings are going to cover fertility issues with forages, like alternatives to putting out fertilizer, including chicken litter.” Lawson said the meetings will encourage producers to be aware of “things that don’t work” and avoid salespeople who take advantage of high fertilizer prices to sell misleading products. He added that “a lot of our beef producers are looking at ways to get more bang for their
buck,” so the meetings will also cover how producers can add value to their livestock. Lawson said producers are excited to hear about the “economics side” of the industry from Dr. James Mitchell, extension livestock economist and assistant professor for the University of Arkansas System Division Of Agriculture. He said producers are also interested in learning more about small ruminates, which includes sheep, goats and specialty animals, such as llamas. Dates and locations for individual meetings may be subject to change due to weather, COVID or other factors. For specific production meeting details, contact your county extension office. Find the meetings list online on the Division of Agriculture events calendar.
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MARKET NEWS as of January 19, 2022 Contact Brandy Carroll 501-228-1268 brandy.carroll@arfb.com Corn The January USDA reports were somewhat bearish for nearby corn contracts. A 47-million-bushel increase in projected U.S. carryout raised total carryout to 1.54 billion bushels and the stocks-to-use ratio to 10.4%. Dec. 1 corn stocks were up 3.1% from a year earlier. Weekly exports of 18 million bushels were disappointing as trade estimates ranged from 16.5 million to 63 million bushels. March continues to find support at the recent low of $5.85 and will face tough resistance at the key-reversal top of $6.17¾, in the event of a rebound. December has moved into position to retest the contract high of $5.65 after recovering from initial losses charted in reaction to the report. Soybeans Soybean futures have retreated after posting bullish chart-signals following the January reports. March has been unable to break through resistance at the key $14 level. New-crop November has resistance at the high of $13.22½. USDA raised its U.S. soybean carryout by 10 million bushels to 350 million bushels, but also raised its projected on-farm price by 50 cents to $12.60 based upon tighter world supplies and projected cuts in South American production. Weekly exports of 33.7 million bushels were supportive if not spectacular. Improving conditions in South America have added to the negative undertone, as has severe weakness in meal futures. Cotton Cotton moved to new 10-year highs on Tuesday, setting new contract highs in both old- and new-crop contracts. Those highs are 121.37 cents for March, 4
117.71 cents for May, 97.87 cents for December. The market continues to find support from the fundamental situation. In the January report, U.S. cotton production was pegged at 17.62 million bales, down from the previous estimate of 18.28 million. Projected 2021-22 carryout is now 3.2 million bales, down 200,000 bales from the December estimate, which is a stocks-to-use ratio of 18%. The projected on-farm season-average price for upland cotton was unchanged at 90 cents per pound. Weekly export sales were up sharply at 401,000 bales, up 85% from the four-week average. Shipments were up 27% from the fourweek average at 167,000 bales. Rice The January reports should have been bullish for rice, but the market did not find new buying interest at current price levels. It seems the smaller crop was already built into prices. USDA lowered its all-rice production estimate to 191.8 million cwt, down 2 million cwt from the last report. Ending stocks are now pegged at 33 million cwt, down from 24.5 million in December. Technically, March has lost ground this week after charting a bearish reversal on Monday. So far, the market has found support at $14.10, but is being capped by resistance below $14.70. Weekly export sales were disappointing at 21,300 metric tons, down 63% from the previous fourweek average. Cattle The USDA reports didn’t hold many changes for the cattle market. Beef production is expected to increase slightly, and export projections were unchanged from the December report. February live cattle futures have charted losses in recent days. Nearby chart support begins at $136.88, with further support at the December low of $135.50. Light trade has been reported this week. Uncertainty surrounding the Omicron variant of Covid and its impact on demand continues to pressure the market. February has support at $136 and resistance near $138 and then the chart gap left
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between $138.72 and $138.87. Poultry In the monthly supply/demand report, USDA raised its broiler production estimate for 2021 on recent slaughter data while turkey production was unchanged from the previous month. Egg production was reduced on slightly lower table egg production. For 2022, the first quarter poultry forecast was raised on higher expected broiler production and hatchery data. Broiler export forecasts were reduced on slower expected global demand. For 2022, broiler, turkey and egg price forecasts were raised based upon current prices and expectations for continued firm demand. Dairy In the January supply/demand report, the 2021 milk production estimate and the 2022 were unchanged from the previous month. On a fat basis, the 2021 import estimate and the 2022 forecast were raised from last month on recent trade data and higher imports of cheese and butter fat products while exports for 2021 and 2022 were reduced. On a skimsolids basis, the 2021 import estimate was raised on recent trade data and higher imports of cheese and milk proteins. The 2022 skim-solids basis import forecast was also raised. The 2021 skim-solids basis export estimate was raised on recent trade data while the 2022 forecast was lowered on slower expected global demand for skim milk powder. For 2022, cheese, butter, nonfat dry milk, and whey price forecasts are raised from last month on firm domestic demand and tight supplies. Class III and Class IV prices for 2022 are raised from the previous month on higher dairy product prices. The 2022 all milk price forecast is raised to $22.60 per cwt.
EDITOR Ashley Wallace ashley.wallace@arfb.com