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We hope you enjoy this week’s edition of KAWG E-News. |
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Win Big in Kansas Wheat Yield Contest
Now that the 2017 Kansas wheat crop has received some much-needed rainfall, achieving top yields is on the minds of wheat farmers. With Mother Nature’s help, your best management practices could be just the ticket to earn you a quick $1,750 in cash, if you enter the Kansas Wheat Yield Contest.
The state contest is being held in addition to the National Wheat Yield Contest, which is sponsored by the National Wheat Foundation. Entries for the National Contest are $125 and due by May 1. You must be a member of the state wheat growers association, ages 14 and older, to enter the national contest. The national contest is open to spring and winter wheat, both dryland and irrigated.
Entries for the Kansas Wheat Yield Contest are $50 and due by June 1. The Kansas contest is open to all Kansas wheat farmers, ages 18 and up. Members of the Kansas Association of Wheat Growers receive one free entry in the Kansas contest. The contest is open only to dryland fields in Kansas, planted to certified Hard Red Winter or Hard White winter wheat. (Read more.)
Republican Ron Estes prevails in tough Kansas
congressional race
From Kansas City Star
Republican Ron Estes will be the next congressman from the state of Kansas, but his victory Tuesday night did not come as easily as many expected in the deep-red state.
GOP strategists warned in recent days that Democrat James Thompson, a civil rights attorney, was in striking distance against Estes, the Kansas state treasurer from Wichita, in the special election to replace Mike Pompeo.
Estes trailed Thompson early in the night, but began to pull ahead around 9 p.m. In the end, Estes prevailed with 53 percent to Thompson’s 46 percent. Libertarian candidate Chris Rockhold drew about 2 percent of the vote. (Read more.)
Midwest Wheat Study
From Michael Thompson
Farms growing wheat in Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, or the Dakotas are needed for a sustainability study by the Swiss Agricultural Research Institute. Master student Michael Thompson will visit the farms between April and the end of June to conduct a three- to four-hour assessment. Participating farms will receive the confidential, comprehensive assessment results. Register at bit.ly/wheatstudy or email m.thompson@tum.de.
Congressman reflects on recent Cuba trip
From Congressman Roger Marshall
Recently, I had the opportunity to travel to Cuba with several of my colleagues on a 3-day congressional delegation. On this trip, we saw the country and were warmly welcomed by citizens and government officials alike. While everyone knows that the cars and architecture look like the year is still 1959, so much has changed, and in a very positive way. Cuba is becoming a modern country, and very much wants to engage with and trade with America.
While much about our past relations with Cuba can be debated, one thing this trip cemented for me is how dramatically our current policy of isolation has failed. Cuba has moved on, as has the rest of the world. The 50-year-old embargo now only serves to generate animosity toward America and to arbitrarily limit our citizens’ chances to engage with Cubans. The moves over the last two years toward greater engagement are already paying dividends in peoples’ hearts and minds. Folks there are getting a taste of capitalism, and are craving more. (Read more.)
NAWG News
Update on National Wheat Yield Contest
The National Wheat Yield Contest enrollment is in full swing. Entering its second year, the contest is sponsored by the National Wheat Foundation. The Contest is entirely web based and growers can enter at http://yieldcontest.wheatfoundation.org . The Foundation has streamlined the entry process, making it simple and easy. “Growers are excited about the contest because it provides them the opportunity to showcase their management ability for wheat production, while encouraging them to think creatively about changes to their methods in order to improve productivity”, said Steve Joehl, the contest Director and NAWG’s Research & Technology Director. “It is a vehicle for growers to learn new practices that can be adopted on their own farms as well.” Deadline to enter for winter wheat is May 1st, and August 1st for spring wheat.
In addition, the NWYC management team has begun development of a quality component to add to the contest for future years. Growers and wheat production specialists believe wheat yields can be increased and quality maintained or improved when production is managed under sound practices. Wheat growers know that quality is an essential component to carry out successful farming practices which is why the Foundation is working with all sectors within the wheat industry to identify the key quality points to base the contest on. Mr. Joehl states, “the goal is to improve wheat productivity, which is comprised of yield and quality. We are hopeful to have this component included in the Contest for the 2018 crop year.”
With Congress in Recess, Engage Your Lawmakers at Home!
NAWG continues to take proactive steps to engage our membership, particularly given the importance of the upcoming Farm Bill reauthorization process. As Congress continues to hold hearings in the countryside and in D.C. to get input about how programs are working, it’s very important that we hear from farmers across the country to help inform our advocacy efforts. And while Congress is in recess this week and next, NAWG strongly encourages growers to attend public events of your elected officials and share with them how the current state of the ag economy is affecting your operation.
2017 CTIC-SARE-ASTA Cover Crop Survey
The 2017 Cover Crop Survey is now available. The survey is sponsored by USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Agency (SARE), the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA). NAWG encourages you to distribute this link to farmers within your networks, and to others who can also distribute the link to farmers in their networks. The goal is to reach out to farmers in every state, both those using cover crops and those who are not.
House Ag Committee Chairman Responds to GAO Report on Food Aid
On April 10, GAO published a report examining the changes made to the Food for Peace program in the 2014 Farm Bill which provided additional flexibility in emergency funding known as Section 202(e). This increased the tools that USAID has available to address emergency situations using cash, vouchers, local or regional procurement and monetization. The report takes a comprehensive look into the extent USAID is using the new authority to reach those in need across the globe. In response to the report, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway released a statement criticizing USAID for using its new authority on cash, vouchers, and LRP and avoiding monetization of U.S. commodities to the greatest extent possible. Read Conaway’s statement here in its entirety.
Market Analysis: FAST START THEN A POOR FINISH
Larry Glenn, market analyst for Frontier Ag, Oakley and Leffler Commodities, Augusta, provides market analysis for KAWG members. E-mail Larry at larryglenn61@yahoo.com.
Bullish wheat traders were excited at the beginning of the week as the price for the July Kansas City wheat futures contract broke out of a sideways trading pattern. A reversal in the price trend verified and the beginning of a spring time rally was in the making. By the end of the shortened trading week, those bullish traders threw in the towel and went home disappointed. These rally and fail price actions are becoming the norm for the wheat.
Wheat demand, weather and seasonal tendencies are the reasons bullish traders want buy wheat. The weekly export sales number of 547,000 metric tons was in the range of estimates. China topped the list of buyers for last week but this news failed to excite the wheat price. Each year China buys wheat from the United States because of a pricing opportunity or a quality issue. Weather concerns in Europe and the Black Sea Region attracting some attention. If dry conditions persist, production will suffer. The seasonal price tendency is for rallies to occur prior to wheat harvest. Granted, seasonal price swings are not a guarantee. For the grains, these seasonal tendencies are usually related to the seasonal weather pattern.
The USDA released their April update for the grain markets. For the wheat, ending stock numbers increased over the previous month for both the United States and the World reports. The wheat market accepted this bearish information without selling off. Wheat traders seem to be immune to bearish news.
Wheat producers should remain patience with your forward pricing. I believe a rally will occur for a better opportunity to forward price wheat ahead of harvest.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE IS AN INHERENT RISK OF LOSS ASSOCIATED WITH TRADING FUTURES AND OPTION CONTRACTS EVEN, WHEN USED FOR HEDGING PURPOSES. PLEASE CAREFULLY CONSIDER YOUR FINANCIAL CONDITION BEFORE INVESTING IN FUTURES AND OPTION CONTRACTS. FUTURE’S TRADING IS NOT SUITABLE FOR ALL INVESTORS. OPTIONS CAN AND DO EXPIRE WORTHLESS. IF YOU PURCHASE A COMMODITY OPTION, YOU MAY SUSTAIN A TOTAL LOSS OF THE PREMIUM AND OF ALL TRANSACTION COSTS.
PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS.
SEASONAL TENDENCIES ARE A COMPOSITE OF SOME OF THE MOST CONSISTENT COMMODITY FUTURES SEASONALS THAT HAVE OCCURRED IN THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS. EVEN IF A SEASONAL TENDENCY OCCURS IN THE FUTURE, IT MAY NOT RESULT IN A PROFITABLE TRANSACTION AS FEES AND THE TIMING OF THE ENTRY AND LIQUIDATION MAY AFFECT THE RESULTS.
Best Regards,
Kansas Wheat Staff
Source: Kansas Association of Wheat Growers