Oklahoma's winter wheat outlook brightens

Nov 03, 2023

A silver lining appeared for Oklahoma's wheat farmers as widespread rains brought renewed hope for winter wheat pastures. While most regions received between 1.5 and 6 inches, the northwest and panhandle remained less fortunate.

This rainfall has manifested in diverse wheat growth stages across Oklahoma. Interestingly, reports indicate a 71% planting completion rate for the state's wheat, marginally higher than last year but below the 5-year average. Consequently, farmers are optimistic, albeit expecting a slightly delayed wheat pasture season. This optimism has led some to invest in stocker cattle early, while others play the waiting game.

Contrary to seasonal norms, prices for stocker steers haven't dipped. Especially, the prices for 450–500-pound steers in October exceeded those in September. On the other hand, heavier cattle witnessed a price drop of around 10%.

The futures market for both Live and Feeder cattle experienced a dramatic shift recently. After months of positive trends, a sharp fall was noted in late October, influenced heavily by global events and increased market volatility. Given the current conditions, stocker steers weighing around 475 pounds are expected to offer marginal returns.

Finally, it's crucial to note the evident decline in cattle supply in Oklahoma, as reflected by consecutive drops in auction volumes over ten weeks. This decrease suggests that stocker calf prices might remain steady or even increase, depending on broader market dynamics.

Video: Why Your Food Future Could be Trapped in a Seed Morgue

In a world of PowerPoint overload, Rex Bernardo stands out. No bullet points. No charts. No jargon. Just stories and photographs. At this year’s National Association for Plant Breeding conference on the Big Island of Hawaii, he stood before a room of peers — all experts in the science of seeds — and did something radical: he showed them images. He told them stories. And he asked them to remember not what they saw, but how they felt.

Bernardo, recipient of the 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award, has spent his career searching for the genetic treasures tucked inside what plant breeders call exotic germplasm — ancient, often wild genetic lines that hold secrets to resilience, taste, and traits we've forgotten to value.

But Bernardo didn’t always think this way.

“I worked in private industry for nearly a decade,” he recalls. “I remember one breeder saying, ‘We’re making new hybrids, but they’re basically the same genetics.’ That stuck with me. Where is the new diversity going to come from?”

For Bernardo, part of the answer lies in the world’s gene banks — vast vaults of seed samples collected from every corner of the globe. Yet, he says, many of these vaults have quietly become “seed morgues.” “Something goes in, but it never comes out,” he explains. “We need to start treating these collections like living investments, not museums of dead potential.”

That potential — and the barriers to unlocking it — are deeply personal for Bernardo. He’s wrestled with international policies that prevent access to valuable lines (like North Korean corn) and with the slow, painstaking science of transferring useful traits from wild relatives into elite lines that farmers can actually grow. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. But he’s convinced that success starts not in the lab, but in the way we communicate.

“The fact sheet model isn’t cutting it anymore,” he says. “We hand out a paper about a new variety and think that’s enough. But stories? Plants you can see and touch? That’s what stays with people.”

Bernardo practices what he preaches. At the University of Minnesota, he helped launch a student-led breeding program that’s working to adapt leafy African vegetables for the Twin Cities’ African diaspora. The goal? Culturally relevant crops that mature in Minnesota’s shorter growing season — and can be regrown year after year.

“That’s real impact,” he says. “Helping people grow food that’s meaningful to them, not just what's commercially viable.”

He’s also brewed plant breeding into something more relatable — literally. Coffee and beer have become unexpected tools in his mission to make science accessible. His undergraduate course on coffee, for instance, connects the dots between genetics, geography, and culture. “Everyone drinks coffee,” he says. “It’s a conversation starter. It’s a gateway into plant science.”