Ag Alert. August 23, 2023

County Corner Highlighting county Farm Bureaus working on behalf of California’s agricultural communities After a wet year, we are racing to harvest the bounty

Agricultural Market Review Quotations are the latest available for the week ending August 18, 2023 Year Ago Week Ago Latest Week Livestock Slaughter Steers – 5-Area Average Select & Choice, 1150–1460 lbs., $ per cwt. 138-140 179-180 178-179 Hogs – Average hog, 51-52% lean, Iowa-Minn. market, $ per cwt. 116.95 100.02 95.79 Slaughter Lambs – $ per cwt. 125–175 lbs. National weekly live sales 85-161 180-223 170-223 Field crops – basis prompt shipment Barley – U.S. No. 2, $ per cwt. Truck, Stockton-Modesto-Oakdale-Turlock No Quote No Quote No Quote Cotton – ¢ per lb., Middling 1 3/32” Fresno spot market 88.81 80.77 79.20 Corn – U.S. No. 2 yellow $ per bu. trucked 9.03 7.81 7.42 Alfalfa Hay – $ per ton, quality*, FOB Region 1, Northern Inter-mountain 350-360 (P/S) 360 (P) 235 (P) Region 2, Sacramento Valley No Quote 240 (P) 17 (P, per bale) Region 3, Northern San Joaquin Valley 245 (P) 380 (S) 325 (P) Region 4, Central San Joaquin Valley 475 (P/S) 350 (P/S) 190 (G) Region 5, Southern California 20-22.50 (per bale) No Quote No Quote Region 6, Southeast Interior 390-400 (P) 260-285 (P) 275 (P) Oat Hay – $ per ton, quality*, FOB Northern California, dairy No Quote No Quote No Quote Oats – U.S. No. 2 white, $ per cwt. Statewide, trucked price No Quote No Quote No Quote As every farmer knows, input costs such as fuel, fertilizer, labor and crop-protection tools don’t respect the laws of gravity. What goes up does not necessarily come down. After the pandemic inspired double-digit inflation for many input products, we have only seen a stabilization of prices—not a decrease that could help our bottom line. While sometimes it may seem as if there are never-ending perils for the California farmer and rancher, our agricultural community’s perseverance and resiliency is in- spiring. To all of those bringing in the cornucopia of California’s bounty, happy 2023 harvest season. In a downside for this harvest season, most of our commodities are still facing lack- luster prices. That’s a hardship for farmers, particularly when combined with high input costs due to inflation. Due to the U.S. dollar remaining strong and other external factors, agricultural export purchases are not where our farmers and ranchers would like to see them. The U.S. agricultural trade imbalance is growing. According to the most recent U.S. Department of Agriculture figures, June imports were $15.96 billion versus exports of $12.8 billion. To date, the calendar-year deficit is approaching $10 billion and is expected to grow. For California crop prices to improve, strengthening purchases by international markets need to occur. based on information available as planting time approaches. With such a significant swing from extreme drought to bountiful water, farmers scrambled to find plants and seeds. With processing tomatoes, many were successful in getting additional plants in the ground. However, with cotton, not as much was planted as one would expect from a water year such as this one. That’s because the cool, wet spring conditions prevented planting and seeds from germinating. Still, increased precipitation dramatically assisted our water and irrigation districts and farmers that attempted to capture as much of the flood flows as possible to recharge underground aquifers. While groundwater recharge is nothing new for many here, significant investments are being made with urgency now that implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act has begun. While a single wet year such as this won’t solve our challenges, it helps—a lot.

Ryan Jacobsen Chief Executive Officer

After one of the latest starts in recent memory, Central California’s harvest season has hit full stride. July through September is traditionally considered the peak months of harvest season in Fresno County, but most crops are anywhere from two to three weeks behind normal schedules this year due to the cool, wet spring experienced throughout California. Following three straight years of drought and seven in the past decade, it is diffi- cult to even know what normal is anymore because those drought years can arrive many weeks early. But farmers here are kicking it into high gear trying to bring in the year’s bounty, hopefully before precipitation can catch up with them on the tail end of the season. Late September and early October storms are not uncommon. Depending on what cloud you happen to be under and where you are in harvest, they can have catastrophic consequences. After the monumental winter and the projection for a strong El Niño system this upcoming year, we know we may be on borrowed time as fall rolls around. While Tropical Storm Hilary has brought us additional rain, our fingers are crossed that conditions now largely stay dry for a few more months. While harvest time is full of excitement, it can be difficult for many families. It is the time of year we may collect that single annual paycheck after a year or years of invest- ment. It also means very long, hard hours—mixed with uncertainty, frustration and potential calamity, given all the external pressures faced by farm operations today. Murphy’s law that “if it can go wrong, it will go wrong” seems synonymous with the defi- nition of harvest most days. However, we are fortunate to have the men and women who show up daily to help us bring in the year’s harvest and help feed this nation and world. After a severe three-year drought, Mother Nature blessed us with an abundance of precipitation not seen in a generation. For many, it became a case of “be careful what you wish for,” and my heart goes out to those who were severely affected by the 2023 storms. We are appreciative of the liquid bounty in our Fresno County region. Most water districts are providing full allocations to farmers, with many having additional flood- water on top of that. Increased water allocations generally equal increased food and fiber production in this region. But the timing of water-supply announcements is critical. Annual crop decisions in Fresno County’s west side are typically made months in advance, FELS webinar series to offer insights for farm employers

Agricultural employers may learn about labor regulation updates and new technology that simplifies payroll and hiring by attending a series of free we- binars offered this month by the Farm Employers Labor Service, an affiliate of the California Farm Bureau. On Sept. 12, at 10 a.m., webinar attendees may learn about a FELS partnership with Harvust, which specializes in cloud-based employee hiring and communications. The Harvust program is designed to work with FieldClock, a web- and cloud-based ser- vice to assist farm employers with gathering time and attendance and production data.

On Sept. 19, at 10 a.m., Catherine Houlihan of Barsamian & Moody, a FELS legal services partner, will unravel the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s new Form I-9. On Sept. 26, at 10 a.m., listeners can hear from FELS Chief Operating Officer Bryan Little and Washington Farm Labor Association Chief Executive Officer Enrique Gastellum about an opportunity to use the H-2A program to stabilize farm and ranch workforces. To register for the free FELS webinars, visit fels.net/webinars and enter promo code “FELS.”

Dry Beans – Grower FOB prices Baby Limas, $ per cwt, (sacked) Large Limas, $ per cwt. (sacked) Blackeye, $ per cwt. (sacked)

No Quote No Quote No Quote

Rice – Milled No. 1 Head, FOB No. Calif. mills Medium grain, $ per cwt. Wheat – U.S. No. 2 or better, winter, $ per cwt. 13% protein, Los Angeles, trucked price

58-62

70-72

No Quote No Quote Provided by the California Farm Bureau as a service to Farm Bureau members. Information supplied by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Market News Branch. * ADF=Acid detergent fiber; (S) = Supreme/<27%ADF; (P) = Premium/27-29; (G) = Good/29-32; (F) = Fair/32-35. No Quote

August 23, 2023 Ag Alert 15