News Update
March 22, 2018
Online Entry Now Open for National Junior Angus Show and Contests
National Junior Angus Association (NJAA) members have an easier and more efficient method to enter their contest materials in the National Junior Angus Show (NJAS) taking place July 7-13 in Madison, Wis. An online entry portal has been established to allow participants to upload their materials and entries online, in addition to the traditional method of submitting entries by mail or signing up at the NJAS.
The deadline for graphic design, writing and photography is May 15. Prepared speaking and career development entries are due by May 25, while extemporaneous speaking, poster, judging, auctioneering and skill-a-thon entries must be signed up for prior to June 27. Contest sign-up at NJAS will only be available for a limited time during check-in. Quiz bowl, team fitting, team marketing and team sales will maintain the same entry format: state advisors must complete and enter those contests at the NJAS.
“In previous years, contest entries have been mailed into the Association where they were organized and hauled to the National Junior Angus Show,” said Caitlyn Brandt, Association events coordinator.
Learn more in the full Angus news release online.
NCBA Encouraged by ‘Positive Developments’
in Omnibus Spending Bill
In response to the omnibus spending bill, Colin Woodall, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), said:
“The omnibus spending bill includes a number of positive developments for cattlemen and women, including language that would prevent 200,000 farms and ranches from being regulated like toxic waste sites, delay the implementation of electronic logging devices for livestock haulers for another six months, and provide a critical fix for wildfire funding that also provides expedited authority to implement much-needed vegetation management on federal lands. We are also glad to see refinements to the tax code that address the 199A issue. NCBA and our affiliates have been working closely with Congress to ensure the spending bill addresses issues of concern for U.S. ranchers and beef producers, and we are glad to see our policy priorities reflected in the legislation. We urge Congress to take the next step and vote ‘Yes’ when the bill comes up for a vote.”
Read the full NCBA news release online.
NFU Disappointed by Harmful Modifications
of Section 199A in Omnibus Package
Congressional appropriators revealed an omnibus appropriations bill March 21 that includes significant and harmful modifications to an important tax break for farmers and agricultural cooperatives, known as Section 199A. The tax break was included in last year’s tax overhaul, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, as a means to level the playing field between agricultural cooperatives and corporations who received a dramatic tax break in the legislation.
National Farmers Union (NFU), a family farm organization, recently opposed these proposed changes to the tax provision. Its members passed a special order of business in support of Section 199A due to its value in improving the livelihood of farm families and in strengthening rural communities.
NFU President Roger Johnson said in response to the omnibus language:
“Farmers Union is deeply disappointed that Congress included harmful modifications to Section 199A in this must-pass legislation. Reverting back to Section 199, in light of double-digit corporate tax relief, leaves farmers and their cooperatives worse off than prior to the passage of the Tax Reform and Jobs Act.
Read the full NFU news release online.
USDA Records Freeze
Robert Magill, USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) director of financial management and agreements, sent an email informing all USDA nonfederal partners and recipients that USDA is under a “Records Disposal Freeze.” Such a freeze requires organizations to retain (i.e., not destroy) all paper and/or electronic records associated with agreements with some USDA agencies and offices. The freeze does not pertain to the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), only to records associated with the following USDA agencies and offices:
- OCE — Office of Chief Economist;
- NASS — National Agricultural Statistics Service;
- ERS — Economic Research Service;
- ARS — Agricultural Research Service;
- APHIS — Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service;
- AMS — Agricultural Marketing Service;
- OPMP — Office of Pest Management Policy; and
- OSEC — Office of the Secretary
The freeze was predicated upon a Freedom of Information Act request of the USDA, which may or may not require USDA to eventually provide third party cooperator records.
For more information, view the full NIFA release online.
Cattle Market Decline and China Livestock Trade
Fed-cattle futures were lower once again March 21 with April cattle down 187 points and June cattle down 162 points from the previous close.
Since mid-February the June fed-cattle contract has declined almost 10%. Fed-cattle futures so far have traded more in line with 2016 than with 2017, reflecting larger cattle supplies in feedlots and concerns that lower prices will be needed in the spring to work through all this supply.
Currently the June 2018 contract is 95.8% of where it was on Oct. 1. It is interesting to note that in 2016 the June contract continued to trade lower until late April before rebounding in May. This year the selloff has come earlier than it did in 2016. As we noted before, on feed supplies are expected to be 8% larger than a year ago and the supply of cattle that have been on feed for more than 120 days is currently some 12% higher than a year ago. Fed-cattle weights so far have been very near year-ago levels, and recent data show that weights are coming down in line with the normal seasonal trend.
Read the full report online at www.dailylivestockreport.com.
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