JANUARY 26, 2024 | VOLUME 27 | ISSUE 2
Farm Bureau Press A PEEK INSIDE
ArFB EARNS PINNACLE AWARD, RECOGNIZED FOR 2023 MEMBER PROGRAMS, ACHIEVEMENTS Arkansas Farm Bureau earned a Pinnacle Award at the 105th American Farm Bureau Convention in Salt Lake City. The Pinnacle Award is the highest honor a state can earn for program and membership achievement.
Six Selected for Arkansas Ag Hall of Fame, Page 2
Arkansas won the Pinnacle Award in membership category 5, while Delaware, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and North Carolina earned recognition in the other membership categories. “This is a great testament to the teamwork that is so critical to the work of Arkansas Farm Bureau,” said Dan Wright of Waldron, president of Arkansas Farm Bureau. “The work our Federation staff performs daily, in tandem with the work being done by our county Farm Bureaus, is at the heart of this recognition. The work ArFB president Dan Wright (left) is to achieve membership quota by presented with the 2024 Pinnacle Award by the counties in conjunction with our AFBF President Zippy Duvall. agents and staff throughout Farm Bureau was an important part of this recognition. “I congratulate our staff and our counties for their work in earning this Pinnacle Award.” State Farms Bureaus are required to meet membership quota to be eligible for the Pinnacle Award recognition. Arkansas Farm Bureau also received Awards of Excellence in four program
AFBF Convention Photo and Video Recap, Page 3
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SIX SELECTED FOR ARKANSAS AG HALL OF FAME The Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame is slated to add six new members to its ranks this year. Inductees include the late Dr. George Berger, who served as dean of the Arkansas State University College of Agriculture from 1971-1981 and founded the Eagle Seed business in his hometown of Weiner; Dr. Fred Bourland of Blytheville, a cotton breeder who created more than 100 improved cotton varieties adapted to Arkansas; Dr. Mark Cochran of Fayetteville, retired vice president of the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture; the late Melvin Daniel of Hot Springs, a long-time ag education instructor and FFA advisor; Dr. Charles Looney, a nationally recognized cattle geneticist who serves as director of the UA Experiment Station in Hope; and Gary Sitzer of Weiner, a fourth-generation rice and soybean farmer who has been highly involved in research and policy work in support of Arkansas agriculture. Class XXXVI induction ceremonies are set for 11:30 a.m. March 1 at the Grand Ballroom of the DoubleTree Hotel in Little Rock. Contact Cindra Jones at 501-228-1609 for ticket information or to purchase tickets online here.
ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ACCEPTING RESILIENT FOOD SYSTEMS INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM PROPOSALS The Arkansas Department of Agriculture is now accepting applications for the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) program. More than $4.2 million will be awarded to subgrantees to improve food supply chain operations and strengthen local food systems throughout the state. Applications will be accepted through Feb. 16. The Department is offering two grant types under the RFSI program: infrastructure grants and simplified equipment-only grants. Applicants may apply for one grant type only. Infrastructure Grant funding will support projects focused on the processing, aggregation, and distribution of locally and regionally produced food products as part of the RFSI program. Eligible entities include agricultural producers, processors, nonprofit organizations, local governments, tribal governments, and institutions. The Department will use a two-phase application process for administering the infrastructure grant funds. Project concept proposals outlining the project’s goals, tasks, and budget requirements must be submitted by February 16. After all concept proposals are reviewed by an advisory committee, selected projects will be invited to submit detailed project proposals. Simplified Equipment-Only Grants are dedicated to benefitting producers directly for on-farm middle-ofthe-supply-chain equipment. The Equipment-Only Grant will provide a walk-in cooler to awarded producers for on-farm use as part of the RFSI program. Applications will be reviewed by an advisory committee.
National Milk Day | Clark Co. Farm Bureau celebrated National Milk Day with a Milk Tour at Helms Dairy, delivered milk to the daycares in town and read stories about milk products and dairy cows to area pre-k children. Clark Co. Farm Bureau Board President Derek Helms is shown demonstrating some of the milking process in the dairy barns. 2
A PUBLICATION OF THE ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
The applications for both grant types, the Request for Applications, and additional information can be found online. Additional information from USDA can be found at here. ams. usda.gov/services/ grants/rfsi.
AG IN THE CLASSROOM TEACHER AWARD
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The Arkansas Ag in the Classroom Outstanding Teacher Award recognizes an outstanding teacher in Arkansas who incorporates agricultural themes into nonagricultural 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 nominated by a county Farm Bureau leader.
areas: Advocacy, Coalitions & Partnerships, Engagement & Outreach and Leadership & Business Development.
ARKANSAS
ArFB RECOGNIZED
The winning teacher will be awarded a monetary prize, an expense-paid trip to the National Ag in the Classroom Conference June 24-27, in Salt Lake City and will be recognized at the Arkansas Farm Bureau Annual Convention.
The award program guidelines and a nomination form are online. Deadline for application is April 1. If you have any questions, please contact Donette Spann at (501) 228-1222 or donette.spann@arfb.com.
“The heart and soul of Arkansas Farm Bureau is the work our staff and county leaders put into the programs and advocacy efforts,” said Jarrod Yates, ArFB’s executive vice president. “It is a great honor to receive the Pinnacle Award. We commit to continue that work on behalf of our members. Arkansas Farm Bureau will continue to be a vital partner for the men and women who make Arkansas agriculture our state’s largest business segment.”
AG WOMAN OF THE YEAR NOMINATIONS OPEN Nominations are now open for the second annual Arkansas Ag Woman of the Year Award. This award recognizes the accomplishments of women who have significantly contributed to the agriculture industry in Arkansas and beyond. Nominees must be: • Female • A resident of Arkansas for more than one year • 18 years or older • Involved in the agricultural industry The 2023 Arkansas Ag Woman of the Year was Jamie Daniel of Magnolia, a third-generation cattle producer and owner-operator of 777 Farms in Columbia County. Do you know an outstanding woman in agriculture? Nominate her for the 2024 Arkansas Ag Woman of the Year Award here.
American Farm Bureau Convention | Catch the Arkansas video recap and all the photo highlights from the convention online.
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MARKET NEWS as of January 24, 2024 Contact Brandy Carroll
brandy.carroll@arfb.com
Tyler Oxner
tyler.oxner@arfb.com
Rice Rice futures continue to be supported by global food supply concerns. High prices for Asian rice are making U.S. rice more competitive, as recent export reports show. Last week, 110,000 metric tons of rice were sold for export. Mexico and Venezuela were the top buyers. Export shipments were also strong at 89,000 metric tons. The January production and WASDE reports had a little something for the bulls and the bears. In the annual production report, the final look at the 2023 crop, the U.S. production estimate was cut by 1.4 million cwt to 218.3 million, but up significantly from the 160,041 million cwt produced in 2022. March futures began the year by charting a huge bearish reversal, but there has been little follow-through selling. That high of $18.14 looks like a significant top, but the market has support at $17.21. Cotton Cotton futures have broken out of the recent sideways pattern thanks to improving export demand. March is now testing resistance at 85 cents after breaking above previous resistance at 82 cents last week. USDA reported weekly net export sales of 420,000 bales, with China the primary buyer. Weekly shipments of 257,700 bales were a marketing year high. The January reports contained some bullish news and some bearish news. On the bullish side, USDA lowered the 4
U.S. crop estimate to 12.43 million bales and cut the carryout estimate to 2.9 million bales. However, the world balance sheet held negative fundamental news (a 2 million-bale increase in carryout) that resulted in a one-cent cut to the expected U.S. on-farm price. Soybeans Soybean futures are attempting to bottom. November could build support at the recent low of $11.85. The market has seen pressure in recent weeks from the January annual production report and the monthly WASDE. The production estimate was raised 35 million bushels to 4.2 billion, which, coupled with slightly lower beginning stocks, raised the supply estimate to 31 million bushels. Ending stocks are now projected to be 280 million bushels. The U.S. season-average soybean price was down 15 cents from last month and is now projected to be $12.75. Corn Corn futures also appear to be bottoming. Old crop March is building support at $4.35, while new-crop December is building on support at $4.71. The January annual production report increased the 2023 production estimate by 108 million bushels to a recordsetting 15.3 billion bushels. That increase comes from an increase in yield, which also set a record, to 177.3 bushels per acre. Supply increased more than use on the WASDE balance sheet, and ending stocks were up 31 million bushels. The season-average corn price was lowered by a nickel to $4.80. Livestock and Poultry In the monthly WASDE, red meat and poultry production estimates for 2023 were raised from the previous report as November production data and preliminary slaughter estimates and weights for
A PUBLICATION OF THE ARKANSAS FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
December were considered. For 2024, the beef forecast was raised with higher expected firsthalf slaughter totals and higher dressed weights. The January Cattle report will provide an indication of the number of cattle available for placement during 2024 as well as producer intentions for retaining heifers for breeding. First-half pork production was increased on pig crop data for the second half of 2023. Production in the second half reflects first-half 2024 farrowing intentions reported in the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report. Broiler production was raised for the first half of the year based on recent hatchery data. Turkey production was lowered on hatchery data and lower prices. Beef export estimates for 2023 were lowered and imports were raised on recent trade data. For 2024, beef imports were raised largely on higher expected imports from Oceania. The export forecast was lowered on weaker sales, mostly to Asia. Pork exports for 2024 were raised slightly, as were broiler export projections. Dairy In the monthly WASDE, milk production estimates for 2023 were lowered from last month on lower milk cow inventories and lower expected milk per cow. For 2024, prices for cheese were lowered due to recent price weakness, while butter, non-fat dry milk and whey prices were all projected to be higher. The 2023 all-milk price forecast was unchanged at $20.60 per cwt, and the 2024 price was lowered to $20.00 per cwt.
EDITOR Ashley Wallace ashley.wallace@arfb.com