It’s 2013 State Fair Time
Video cattle sales are in full swing, the hit-and-miss rain, hail and wind storms are out just about every night, the meadows are dotted with hay bales, county fairs have finished up and numerous families are thinking about new school clothes and supplies. It means one thing, its State Fair time. And don’t forget, your Wyoming State Fair Program Guide came last week in the Roundup.
The Roundup staff started working on the State Fair Program Guide soon after the Rocky Mountain Horse Edition landed in your mailbox. We all are really proud of this year’s Program Guide – we think it is one of our best, and we hope you do too.
Speaking of video cattle sales, they have really taken off in the last month or so. Drovers CattleNetwork reports feeder cattle are on a 10-week rally. Everyone is buying – even the independent farmer feeders. Feeder cattle price levels are $20 higher than the same time a year ago, and the CME Feeder Cattle Index value, based on a 750 pound steer, is near $149.50 – its highest point since January, they reported.
Again this year, we will have a tent across from the Beef Show Ring. Joining us in the tent will be Russell Construction, Agribusiness Division of the Wyoming Business Council, Wyoming CattleWomen, Wyoming Beef Council, Wyoming Stock Growers Association, Eagle Talon Enterprises, Wyoming Livestock Board, Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association. If you find yourself hot and thirsty, stop by the Roundup tent for some cool shade, a comfortable chair and a free bottle of water supplied by Wyoming Rural Electric Association. It will be a place to gather lots of information about ag businesses and ag-related organizations and a place just to sit down and visit.
As usual on the afternoon of Aug. 14, the Roundup, along with Farm Credit Services of America, will host the Cattlemen’s Conference at the Douglas Inn starting at 1 p.m. At 11:30 a.m., there will be a no-host lunch at the Douglas Inn. Speakers at the conference will include Jim Logan, Wyoming State veterinarian, and Nephi Cole, policy advisor to Governor Mead, who will speak on the Governor’s Energy Plan and his Emerging Water Strategy.
Other speakers at the conference include Mantha Phillips and Scott Keith on generational transitions of ranch and farm families, William Perry Pendley from Mountain States Legal Foundation on legal issues with environmentalists. Pendley will also have his new book on hand. Dennis Howard, an accountant from Porter, Muirhead, Cornia & Howard accounting in Casper, will speak on current tax issues involving agriculture brought on by high cattle prices and oil and gas activity.
Our congressional delegation has also been invited to stop in and say a few words about issues in Washington, D.C. Thinking about it, they could take up a whole afternoon talking about Washington, D.C. There will be lots of speakers, lots of topics, something for everyone who joins us.
Also, don’t forget the Wyoming Agriculture Hall of Fame Picnic at 5:30 p.m., where our congressional delegation will help us honor Jw and Thea Nuckolls and Dick Loper for their induction into the Wyoming Ag Hall of Fame and the Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year.
See you there.
