Jody Campiche Offers "End Game" Update On Farm Bill Decision

Feb 17, 2015

Several deadlines are approaching for farmers. This month farmers need to decide if they will reallocate their base acres and update yields and in March they need to select a safety net program offered through the 2014 Farm Bill. Speaking at the Oklahoma Crop Improvement Association annual meeting, Oklahoma State University Assistant Professor and Extension Economist Dr. Jody Campiche shared how she thinks a lot of farmers still have to decide if they will reallocate acres by the February 27th deadline.

"Right now I don't think we have seen a lot changes yet," Campiche said. "I think there are a lot of people haven't been in yet, but then in Oklahoma there is going to be a lot less base reallocation, then some of the other areas of the country, because a lot of our producers have wheat base and they have mostly planting wheat and if that is the case, then you really don't have a base reallocation option."

In visiting with Radio Oklahoma Network Farm Director Ron Hays, Campiche also addressed the other decision farmers have to make soon. Click or tap on the LISTENBAR below to listen to the full interview.

Farmers have until March 31st to choose a safety net program through the 2014 Farm Bill. Farmers can select the Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) program or the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program through the Farm Service Agency (FSA). She said it is easier to make that decision if a farmer has wheat right now as the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) has put out their county wheat yields averages. She said those will not be the final yield as the FSA will adjust that figure for failed acres, which will lower the county average.

"We have a pretty good idea which counties will trigger ARC on wheat for 2014 and which ones won't," Campiche said.

That is being taken under consideration as farmers make those choices. Campiche said if farmers are more worried about the price of wheat dropping further over the life of the Farm Bill, then they will likely select PLC instead. She said there are price forecasts available showing commodity prices will be going lower.

If farmers choose the PLC, they also have the option to get the Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO). Campiche said she thinks farmers will begin to look at this crop insurance tool, as they purchase their crop insurance coverage before the March 15th deadline. SCO is available for spring seeded crops and it will be available fall 2015 for winter wheat.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.