Corn, Soybean, Wheat Prices Rise.

Dec 28, 2012

Soybeans were higher in the Friday session. South American weather looks mostly fine, and Argentina needs dry weather, which they’re getting. Last week’s export sales cancellations hit the export report that was released Friday. There were additional export sales of 165,000 metric tons of beans to China, and 30,000 metric tons of soybean oil to an unknown destination reported Friday.

Corn was weaker most of the Friday session after a higher overnight trade, but it gained strength through the session, supported by wheat, according to DTN. Demand concerns continue to weigh on corn. Exports are slow, and ethanol production is soft, but livestock margins are improving, and higher energy futures would strengthen ethanol.

Wheat was higher, getting a bounce from oversold contracts. Russian and Argentine wheat prices continue to rise, with European prices holding a sharp premium to U.S. wheat. Export business for wheat remained quiet through the week.

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.