Tools for Your Operation
By Jeff Moritz, Lead Grain Merchandiser
As I survey the fields in the area it appears another harvest season is fast approaching. In talking to a few of you, it sounds as if we could be combining new corn in about two weeks. It’s hard to believe, as it seems like the summer flew by, but here we are… another harvest upon us and it appears we will be blessed with a very good crop.
Market driving news has been hard to come by this week as the trade awaits news out of D.C. on a trade deal with Canada. It feels like the US/China trade dispute has grown tired, even with the recent rhetoric from Beijing this week about ambitious plans to double their current soybean production by 2020 in an attempt to compel action from the U.S. There have been some mixed early harvest reports on crop yields to the south, but they have not provided the needed direction yet.

While the headlines have been less than stellar, the market seemed to be attempting to form a seasonal bottom last week as many deadline pricings of old crop Delayed Price and Basis contracts were due. From a technical perspective, chart signals are not overbought and in fact are pointing to a potentially friendly move. Fundamentally, we are entering a period that historically has been very strong from a demand perspective for U.S. crops.

Even with the rather large supply of new crop coming at us this year, U.S. and Global balance sheets for grains are friendly and the market will shift its focus from supply to demand rather quickly. With this consideration in mind, we have many marketing alternatives that allow you to retain pricing power of your crop and participate in better pricing opportunities that could exist post-harvest. Give your CFC originator a call today for the marketing tool that’s right for your operation.
The Producer's Calendar
By Jacob Horstman, Nutritional Consultant
As we turn the calendar to a new month there are two things on a cattle producer’s mind.

Number one is getting silage cut and number two is knowing that weaning time is just around the corner.

Silage season, in most places, is in full swing.
It is very important that silage, whether it be corn silage or sorghum silage, is put up at the optimum moisture level. If silage is put up too wet you can run in to a problem such as having the pile run, which causes a mess to begin with and can result in a loss of nutrients. On the other side of the coin, if the silage is put up to dry it becomes difficult to get the silage pile packed decent. If the pile is not packed decent, quality can become an issue. With the amount of work that you have stuck into your silage pile, you want to get the best bang for your buck. Also on the topic of silage piles, I would like to stress the importance of tarping, even if you are going to feed off of it right away. Spoilage and shrink can be anywhere from 5-20% on a pile and, with the cost of everything rising, it is important to minimize shrink.

With the approach of fall, it is time to start thinking about weaning. With the stress that these calves went through early on it is going to be important that we get a good weaning program in place. The goal is to get these calves started and on feed as quickly and as stress free as possible. When you do decide to wean calves, give Brooke (605-523-2244) or me (605-421-1537) a call and we will get you set up with the proper calf ration that will work best for your program.