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Still think it's not a trade barrier?

I talked to a manager of a hog operation North of here. I asked him about retailers not wanting Canadian isoweans because of COOL. He said he had not heard anything about that. He did say that a lot of operations weren't even buying hogs right now because no matter how they figure it, they're losing money. Many are choosing to sit this one out for a while instead of throwing money away.

Looks to me like the big boys have just found an excuse and opportunity to squeeze out any small remaining players.

This is what happens in a consolidated market with a few huge players, MRJ. Send in your NCBA dues..... :roll: :mad:
 
How would a hog man know what Target, Walmart and all the other retailers tell Morrell, Swift and Hormel???? All 3 have told producers, not just big ones, all of us, that they aren't going to accept Canadian sourced pigs. What about Burger King, McDs, etc., do you know what their demands are?
If I was able to market these pigs, I'd still be buying isoweans. Washington is really doing a number on us out here. No good source of US pigs....been trying for years. Have had some OK results, but it's really hard to come up with reliable numbers & good health unless you hook up with an integrator. Makes it pretty tough on us independents. Maybe doing us independents in is really the goal of the COOL advocates. Even if it isn't your goal, you're doing a heck of a job of it.
 
I have a hard time believing that any retailer is saying they don't want Canadian isoweans because of COOL paperwork because the paperwork they are required to have makes no distinction what country the product comes from. There is not a single thing that they would have to do on pork that came from Canadian isoweans that they wouldn't have to do on pork that came from US isoweans - not a single thing.

Those bastards were lying about COOL and lost that battle. Now they're just playing dirty. This could never happen in a competitive market.
 
Bringing up other products again, what should COOL apply to? What about grain fed to livestock, or the seeds to produce the grain? What about fertilizers, etc? I think it's extremely tough to decide where to draw the line.

Maybe way too simple, but, for some of these commodities that travel back and forth across the border, like isoweans, whatever, negotiate a label under provisions of existing agreements, that would say for example, "Product of US and or Canada". It would be coupled with a real, effective traceback system that would actually contribute to food safety for the consumer, and allow a simple system for producers, packers and resellers.
 
I think the retailer is telling the packer that they don't want to deal with multiple labels. If you were running a meat wholesale warehouse, would you want to keep track of every loin seperately? Let's see, this one was born in Canada, fed in MN. This one was born and fed in Manitoba and slaughtered in SD. This one was born and fed in SD. All different labels. Now, Wallyworld wants 10000 loins, to slice into packs of 4 slices each. Remember, this is easy, right?

Nobody has volunteered to have labels on their grain, yet have they?
 
Actually Busboy- If the grain/hay is going to be used for livestock feed it already needs to have records on origin under the FDA rules put in under the Homeland Security Law/Patriot Act- and the feed producers have to be able to produce those records for traceback if requested....
 
Interesting, I've hauled a lot of beans to processors, but I've never had to say where they've come from?????
 
busboy said:
Interesting, I've hauled a lot of beans to processors, but I've never had to say where they've come from?????
Click to expand...

Porker probably has copies of all the laws still- but my understanding is that unless they are going back into your own feed- the feed companies have to keep track of where every lot comes from- and what goes into what- and where it goes to...
 
All they really have to do is take the word "Born" off the lable. I doubt if consumers really care about where an animal is born as much as they care about where it was fed and how it was processed.

Trade in live animals takes place mainly between only the U.S. Canada and Mexico. MCOOL only really affects this trade. It won't hurt anyone else who ships to you. By requiring that animals are "Born" in the U.S., you do not protect anyone from Chinese safety issues, and you don't protect anyone from South American FMD either for that matter. All you do is disrupt trade that has been going on for more than a hundred years between you and your two closest neighbours, and cost a lot of people a lot of money.

To say nothing about the loss of goodwill and respect that is so important between neighbouring countries. Countries that are supposed to be allies, and friends. :!:

The list of things Canada has done for America over the years is a very long list. We've been there to back you up and have covered your backs on a lot of issues. Your country is possibly a little too self absorbed to have noticed it, but we sure notice it here. And we also notice the thanks we get.

Just take Born out of the lable, and we'll back you all the way.
 
Hey Guys , The law was written in 2002 , the new farm bill has only admendments to the 2002 law, The writing in the law will not change, only adjustments will happen that are proposed in the new farm bill if Bush approves it by Friday.
 
busboy said:
I agree that the packer could very easily handle COOL.
Click to expand...
All meat coming out of a packing plant has to have a label.
Most meat going into retail stores comes per packaged by the packer.
End of problem!!!!!!

There is a glut of pork predicted to be coming on to the market.
High grain prices mean high feed prices.
High energy cost.
The smart producer is looking at higher input cost and lower price for his finished product...is he going to start a crop when he knows, more than likely, he will lose money??????

Blaming COOL is ridiculous!
 
So why are these packers saying they will refuse Canadian born pigs? :? :? Please explain that. They are blaming COOL. :shock: To me it makes no sense, since I agree it's labelled when it leaves the plant. In the meantime it's causing havoc up here.

Are cattle next? Or is this just a big scam by the pork packers to screw things up? Are they just being lazy? Or are the beef packers not getting into it because they already sell Canadian beef mostly into areas where the labelling is not applied?

There are so many questions, so much uncertainty, and until it's sorted out, a lot of pain. Now there is talk of delaying the farm bill if it's not set to go within the next few days. Even delaying it a couple of years. So what happens with MCOOL? Do we suddenly hear "Ooops! Sorry guys! We were just fooling." :roll: :roll: :roll: "Now we'll take all those animals we've bought from you at fire sale prices and run them through the system like nothing ever happened." :shock: :shock: "Thanks for the bargains."

As for tough times in the American pork business, check out this link. They sound like a pretty happy bunch to me. To say nothing of the 40% rise in exports to Canada.

http://enews.penton.com/enews/nationalhogfarmer/north_american_preview_0/2008_april_11_north_american/display
 
It shouldn't surprise you that they're blaming COOL. They were outright lying about it a couple of months ago. They don't want it and they'll do anything to stop it.

Knowing that is just about all I need to know to be in favor of it. :lol:
 
U.S. Pork Industry is in a Tough Spot
By Marlys Miller (Monday, April 07, 2008)


Pork producers are losing money on each hog they sell today -- to the tune of $20 to $30 per animal. Following USDA's March Hogs & Pigs Report, which showed the breeding herd unchanged from March 2007 and spring farrowing intentions that also equal last year's levels. Fall production is expected to rise by about 1 percent, followed by a 2 percent decline next winter.

So, it looks like those losses will be hanging around for a while. Just how long depends on producers' commitment to cut back. "That means aggressive liquidation, most likely based on financial attrition," says Chris Hurt, Purdue University agricultural economist. "That is not a pretty solution, but it is the market solution, and markets can be brutal.

"As those producers go down one by one, many of them may lament the crazy times they were caught up in as the biofuels era and the unusual macroeconomic events changed agricultural market relationships in 2008."

While that is true, the industry also is responsible. As a whole, producers may have gotten a bit drunk off of nearly 5 years of profits and a soaring export market. Too much of a good thing tends to produce extreme swings. The question is, "Who is going to bail out the pork industry?" Hurt asks.

He points to the Federal Reserve Bank of the United States which has recently helped assure that an investment bank would remain liquid. Congress also is considering assisting homeowners caught up in sub-prime mortgage problems. But pork producers are on their own.

"Farm-state politicians in the upper Great Plains hope to add billions of dollars for disaster assistance in the next farm bill, even before there is a disaster. Perhaps they need only to look to the pork industry to see a financial disaster in progress," he says. Pork industry-wide losses may total $3.5 billion this year, an amount that nearly equals 25 percent of the total production value.
 
Nice post, Mike.

Looks like it's shake-out time. Seems to me the big boys see this as an opportunity to squeeze out more of the independents and put the blame on a law they don't want. They're trying to hit a big double.
 
Thanks, Mike.

Sandhusker said:
Nice post, Mike.

Looks like it's shake-out time. Seems to me the big boys see this as an opportunity to squeeze out more of the independents and put the blame on a law they don't want. They're trying to hit a big double.
Click to expand...
Exactly, and far too many have bought into the lies!

Kato said:
...a lot of pain.
Click to expand...

Chris Hurt said:
That is not a pretty solution, but it is the market solution, and markets can be brutal.
Click to expand...

Kato said:
Are cattle next? Or is this just a big scam by the pork packers to screw things up?
Click to expand...
The big pork packers and the big beef packers are one in the same!

The solution is owning the product from conception to consumer.
The question is who achieves this...
top down...the packers?
or
bottom up...the producer?

Randy could use your help.
 
I think the big outfits would be much happier with COOL than us independents. Smithfield could simply put a USA sticker on their in house products. Even if they would buy some Canadian sourced pigs for themselves, they can do it in such quantity that they could handle those in complete shifts or complete days or even complete plants.

For us that aren't as big as Smithfield, Christiansen, Wakefield, etc., we have to try to get market access. I can't tell Morrell to hold the door for me next tuesday, and I will fill their kill with my hogs. Those of us left that actually own our own hogs need less hassles to get market access, not more.

Just watch, COOL will lead to more of us independents going toes up. Maybe that's the goal.
 
Another Farm Bill initiative supported by KLA and NCBA would reduce the recordkeeping burden current mandatory country-of-origin labeling language places on producers. Compromise language would permit the use of normal business records, such as calving information, feed receipts, veterinary service documents and tax returns to verify an origin claim.

Will this admendment Happen???
 
Busboy, "I think the big outfits would be much happier with COOL than us independents. Smithfield could simply put a USA sticker on their in house products. Even if they would buy some Canadian sourced pigs for themselves, they can do it in such quantity that they could handle those in complete shifts or complete days or even complete plants"

Yep, which begs the question, "Why are they fighting this so hard"? Why are they creating the hurdles that they blame?
 

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