Welcome to Mountain State Lamb

2009 Annual Meeting

Our Annual Meeting will be held this year at the Flying Saddle Resort in Alpine, Wyoming, July 15-17. The resort is located about 37 miles southwest of Jackson on the banks of the beautiful Snake River. The resort has just opened a large indoor swimming pool, so this should be a location the whole family can enjoy.

Once again we plan to kick off the event with a welcoming reception on Wednesday night, July 15. The annual business meeting will be on Thursday, the 16th. A sheep tour is planned for Friday, followed by a special meal.

We have reserved the entire resort at the rate of $99 per night plus tax. Based on the attendance the last several years we expect to fill the resort, so book your room early. Any rooms not reserved by July 1 will be released. Meeting registration information will be sent out late May or early June.

You can contact the Flying Saddle at 877/772-4422 or 307/654-4422. Please mention that you are with Mountain States Lamb Cooperative. The website is www.flyingsaddleresort.com

Board Elections

It is time again for board elections. This year the District One seat is up for election. District One covers the state of Wyoming. Any Co-op member holding “A” shares, and living in Wyoming, is eligible for this three year term board seat. The seat is currently held by Brad Boner.

Enclosed is a board nomination form. A nominee must receive at least three nominations to appear on the ballot. Nomination forms should be returned to the office by May 15. Ballots will be mailed to all A share members late in May and will need to be returned by June 15 so the votes can be tabulated.

Return Information

Your feedlot will receive the weight and yield information on your lambs from the office when your return is processed. They will no longer receive any payout information from the Co-op. If you want them to have that information you will need to provide it to them.

Daniel
Daniel

Henry Etcheverry and his herders take a break during shed lambing to share a meal.

February Top Lambs

The top lambs in February were marketed by the Miller Lamb Partnership. With 75% of the load having a yield grade of 2, the lambs returned an average of $7.49 on the marketing grid and $3.32 on the natural grid for a total per head premium of $10.81.

The average lamb marketed through the Co-op in February earned $4.28 in market grid premiums. The average pelt earned $5.26.

WWGA/MSLC RAM SIRE TEST

Applications are now being accepted for the 8th Annual Ram Sire Test, jointly sponsored by the Wyoming Wool Growers Association and the Mountain States Lamb Cooperative. The 60-day test, held in cooperation with the UW Department of Animal Science, will be conducted at the UW Animal Science Research facility located 5 miles west of Laramie.

This years test will feature the use of the newly installed GrowSafeTM system, a revolutionary new program that uses electronic ID with integrated computer system to measure and track INDIVIDUAL animal feed intake data. The GrowSafeTM system is the first of its kind that provides an efficient and accurate method to collect and track feed intake data on an animal basis, which allows for characteristics such as feed conversion to be measured continuously. The UW system is the first specifically designed and installed for sheep. The objective of this test will be to provide a “growth” situation for ram lambs in a controlled environment and measure their genetic capabilities over a 60-day test period, The test will use a growing ration that is higher in protein and roughage than most gain oriented tests in order to more closely simulate the type of production and management systems that most commercial sheep producers utilize.

Rams are scheduled to be delivered on May 11, 2009, to begin a two-week warm-up with test period beginning on May 25th and ending July 24th. The cost for testing rams is $125 per head. A non-refundable enrollment fee of $25 per head is due with the enrollment form no later that May 1. Entry into the test is subject to acceptance by the Ram Test Management. To receive an entry application, or for more information, contact the WWGA office in Casper at 307/265-5350, or go to their website at www.wyowool.org to download the entry form.

Cash Flow Options for Wool Growers

Reprinted from ASI Weekly, March 20, 2009

       Given the troubled world economy, which is affecting consumer buying habits, clothing purchases are not exempt. The wool market, so far this season, is slower; however, if producers decide not to sell their clip at shearing time, there is an option to help with cash flow this spring. Producers can request a marketing assistance loan rather than the loan deficiency payment that most have taken advantage of since the program was created in 2002.

       The loan option provides interim financing for producers after shearing to meet cash flow needs without having to sell the wool. If producers wish to watch the market for awhile yet need revenue for spring bills, contacting your local Farm Service Agency (FSA) office for loan information may be worth considering.

       Marketing assistance loans are 9-month, non-recourse loans in which the wool is pledged as loan collateral. Marketing loans also provide additional risk management for sheep producers as the loan can be repaid with principle and interest at any time allowing the wool to be sold on the market or, if the market falls during the loan period, a buyback formula may allow the loan to be repaid at less than the loan rate received.

"Producers can watch the market and if it rises, sell the wool and pay off the loan, or if the market falls, the buy-back rate that is pegged to the wool market should provide a better payoff than the loan rate," stated Glen Fisher, American Sheep Industry Association (ASI) president. "Producers do have the option of delivering the pledged collateral to the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) as full payment for the loan at maturity."

       Alternatively, loan deficiency payment (LDP) provisions specify that, in lieu of securing a loan, producers may elect to receive an LDP. In the past, nearly all producers have opted for the ungraded LDP.

"If a producer is not planning to sell the wool at shearing time, a loan may be an excellent way to keep the cash flow positive," commented Peter Orwick, executive director for ASI. "A core test showing micron and yield is necessary to determine the loan rate for the wool as well as the pounds to secure the loan. The loan rates, as published by FSA, are expressed on a clean basis."

"If contemplating delivery of wool as settlement for a marketing assistance loan at maturity, producers need to realize they pay the inspection fee and they are subject to discounts if short on any number of quality and preparation factors, so it is important to talk with your FSA office about these topics as well," concluded Fisher. Additional information is available at
www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/newsReleases?area=newsroom&
s ubject=landing&topic=pfs&newstype=prfactsheet&type
=detail&item=pf_20070601_farln_en_nonrecmkt.html or by contacting the local FSA office.