Sandhusker
Well-known member
Almost 200 Ranchers from 5 States
Gather to Hear Industry Leaders
Bismarck, N.D. – Almost 200 cattle producers from five states recently gathered here for R-CALF USA’s second Region III meeting, hosted in conjunction with the first convention of the Independent Beef Association of North Dakota (I-BAND). I-BAND is an R-CALF USA affiliate organization.
R-CALF USA Animal ID Committee Chair Richard Bowman – a North Dakota veterinarian – participated on I-BAND’s Animal ID panel and described R-CALF USA’s involvement since 2002 in influencing the Animal ID issue.
“R-CALF continues to be engaged on a regular basis with USDA and other industry groups, as well as state and local animal-health officials across the country, to keep the program voluntary and to fully utilize existing programs such as the brucellosis program and state brand programs,” Bowman said. “We are trying to keep the focus on animal health and not marketing.”
R-CALF USA Region III Director Johnny Smith, part owner of Fort Pierre Livestock Auction in Fort Pierre, S.D., spoke to producers about the importance gaining competitive, fair and honest markets by preventing concentration and market manipulation.
Smith was a plaintiff in the Pickett v IBP (Tyson Foods) case, a federal class-action lawsuit in which the jury reached a unanimous verdict that ruled against three out of four of the nation’s largest multinational meat packers for ignoring – at the expense of U.S. cattle producers – incorrect boxed-beef price reports issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a six-week period in the spring of 2001.
“We have four big packing plants controlling over 85 percent of our cattle industry,” Smith noted. “The more players we have in the cattle industry, the better prices we have. The more packing plants we can get, the more competitive the markets. We support all these up-and-coming packing plants that are coming into the niche markets – for example the drug-free and implant-free.”
R-CALF USA Director of Government Relations Jess Peterson, a fifth-generation Montana cattle rancher, spoke about the organization’s work to increase independent producers’ national recognition in Washington, D.C., by working with the Administration, foreign embassies, and Congress on issues important to U.S. cattle producers.
“R-CALF is bipartisan, so no matter which party is in control, R-CALF is successful because of our ability to maintain relationships with folks on both sides of the aisle,” Peterson said. “R-CALF hired former USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Bill Hawks and former APHIS Assistant Deputy Administrator Valerie Ragan to help strengthen R-CALF’s relationship with the Department of Agriculture.”
Peterson also spoke about R-CALF USA’s successful Washington ‘Stampede’ in February, when 50-plus members visited their Congressional delegations on Capitol Hill. He also remarked that immediately following the Stampede, the first bill – in more than 80 years – to strengthen the Packers and Stockyards Act was introduced by Senators Tom Harkin, D-Iowa; Michael Enzi, R-Wyo., Craig Thomas, R-Wyo.; and, Charles Grassley, R-Iowa.
On a final note, Peterson asked that all cattle producers who can make the trip come to Washington, D.C., for R-CALF USA’s next Stampede, scheduled for Feb. 12 - 15, 2007, to make certain Mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling (M-COOL) and competition reform are included in next Farm Bill.
R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard, a former cow/calf rancher from Perkins County S.D., explained to producers the current framework of the U.S. cattle industry that has been developed over the past 20 years – primarily under the guidance of the meat-packing industry – and how this evolution has given meat packers an advantage because, until R-CALF USA was formed, cattle producers did not have exclusive, national representation for their unique interests.
“Producers can either sit quiet and assume someone else is looking out for the industry and allow meat packers to replace domestic production with imported products, or defend the value of open and competitive markets by positioning our segment of the industry to gain a greater share of the market,” Bullard emphasized. “R-CALF is working on a plan: put tools into the hands of producers to maximize producer profits, minimize producers’ risks and enhance producer competitiveness.
“We need to change the role of the independent cattle producer,” he continued. “No longer can producers assume the role that has been defined by other segments of the industry. The single most important question U.S. cattle producers can answer is ‘How do we create demand for beef derived exclusively from U.S. cattle?’”
R-CALF USA Co-Founder and Past Region III Director Herman Schumacher told producers that the organization was created so that independent U.S. cattle producers could be profitable and remain in the industry. He also spoke about the importance of maintaining open and competitive cattle markets so cattle producers can maintain their independence and their profitability.
Gather to Hear Industry Leaders
Bismarck, N.D. – Almost 200 cattle producers from five states recently gathered here for R-CALF USA’s second Region III meeting, hosted in conjunction with the first convention of the Independent Beef Association of North Dakota (I-BAND). I-BAND is an R-CALF USA affiliate organization.
R-CALF USA Animal ID Committee Chair Richard Bowman – a North Dakota veterinarian – participated on I-BAND’s Animal ID panel and described R-CALF USA’s involvement since 2002 in influencing the Animal ID issue.
“R-CALF continues to be engaged on a regular basis with USDA and other industry groups, as well as state and local animal-health officials across the country, to keep the program voluntary and to fully utilize existing programs such as the brucellosis program and state brand programs,” Bowman said. “We are trying to keep the focus on animal health and not marketing.”
R-CALF USA Region III Director Johnny Smith, part owner of Fort Pierre Livestock Auction in Fort Pierre, S.D., spoke to producers about the importance gaining competitive, fair and honest markets by preventing concentration and market manipulation.
Smith was a plaintiff in the Pickett v IBP (Tyson Foods) case, a federal class-action lawsuit in which the jury reached a unanimous verdict that ruled against three out of four of the nation’s largest multinational meat packers for ignoring – at the expense of U.S. cattle producers – incorrect boxed-beef price reports issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a six-week period in the spring of 2001.
“We have four big packing plants controlling over 85 percent of our cattle industry,” Smith noted. “The more players we have in the cattle industry, the better prices we have. The more packing plants we can get, the more competitive the markets. We support all these up-and-coming packing plants that are coming into the niche markets – for example the drug-free and implant-free.”
R-CALF USA Director of Government Relations Jess Peterson, a fifth-generation Montana cattle rancher, spoke about the organization’s work to increase independent producers’ national recognition in Washington, D.C., by working with the Administration, foreign embassies, and Congress on issues important to U.S. cattle producers.
“R-CALF is bipartisan, so no matter which party is in control, R-CALF is successful because of our ability to maintain relationships with folks on both sides of the aisle,” Peterson said. “R-CALF hired former USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Bill Hawks and former APHIS Assistant Deputy Administrator Valerie Ragan to help strengthen R-CALF’s relationship with the Department of Agriculture.”
Peterson also spoke about R-CALF USA’s successful Washington ‘Stampede’ in February, when 50-plus members visited their Congressional delegations on Capitol Hill. He also remarked that immediately following the Stampede, the first bill – in more than 80 years – to strengthen the Packers and Stockyards Act was introduced by Senators Tom Harkin, D-Iowa; Michael Enzi, R-Wyo., Craig Thomas, R-Wyo.; and, Charles Grassley, R-Iowa.
On a final note, Peterson asked that all cattle producers who can make the trip come to Washington, D.C., for R-CALF USA’s next Stampede, scheduled for Feb. 12 - 15, 2007, to make certain Mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling (M-COOL) and competition reform are included in next Farm Bill.
R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard, a former cow/calf rancher from Perkins County S.D., explained to producers the current framework of the U.S. cattle industry that has been developed over the past 20 years – primarily under the guidance of the meat-packing industry – and how this evolution has given meat packers an advantage because, until R-CALF USA was formed, cattle producers did not have exclusive, national representation for their unique interests.
“Producers can either sit quiet and assume someone else is looking out for the industry and allow meat packers to replace domestic production with imported products, or defend the value of open and competitive markets by positioning our segment of the industry to gain a greater share of the market,” Bullard emphasized. “R-CALF is working on a plan: put tools into the hands of producers to maximize producer profits, minimize producers’ risks and enhance producer competitiveness.
“We need to change the role of the independent cattle producer,” he continued. “No longer can producers assume the role that has been defined by other segments of the industry. The single most important question U.S. cattle producers can answer is ‘How do we create demand for beef derived exclusively from U.S. cattle?’”
R-CALF USA Co-Founder and Past Region III Director Herman Schumacher told producers that the organization was created so that independent U.S. cattle producers could be profitable and remain in the industry. He also spoke about the importance of maintaining open and competitive cattle markets so cattle producers can maintain their independence and their profitability.