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As in the last farm bill, the U.S. House and Senate have put forth
two distinctly different farm bills. As in the past, the House version
very much aligns with the majority views and those of the major cattle
and farm organizations. Meanwhile, the Senate version is much more
populist and activist in its approach.
While nearly every state has a stake in livestock production at some
level, it's no secret the livestock industry's voice has become divided.
With partisanship in Congress devolving into ideological battles such as
fair trade vs. no trade, free market vs. protectionism, heavy
governmental marketplace oversight vs. limited government, and commodity
vs. value-based marketing, the "livestock platform" isn't as clear as it
used to be.
This division has created a sea change in political dynamics. The
Democratic Party has seen this divide as a great political opportunity
to gain some votes from a constituent base that hasn't traditionally
tended to be Republican leaning. With a narrow political majority in the
Senate and a lot of "livestock" states being so closely contested, these
issues have moved into the realm of political football.
In the last farm bill, political gamesmanship ended in conference
committee with everyone being allowed to make his or her point before
arriving at a reasonable piece of legislation from an ag standpoint.
That may not be the case this time around. With the Democrats now in the
majority, they can't afford to offer up just a moral victory if they
hope to widen their majorities. They must deliver.
-- Troy Marshall
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The Senate Ag Committee included language that would place a ban on
packer ownership of livestock in the Senate version of the farm bill.
While it still must be debated in the Senate, if passed it goes to
conference (the House version didn't include a packer ban).
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by
Troy Marshall
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One of this industry's greatest success stories is our
accomplishment in changing the perception of the healthfulness of red
meat after two decades of assault in the 1980s and '90s. But we know it
was a temporary victory -- a battle that would be fought again and again
-- because the anti-meat agenda isn't going away.
The big news this week was the release of the Institute for Cancer
Research report that advised consumers to avoid meat consumption while
recommending individuals limit red meat consumption to 18 oz./week
(cooked), or about 2.6 oz./day. See "Cancer Report Draws Industry
Criticism" in this issue.
With the 2004 Harvard study (the largest of its kind) and other recent
studies finding no link between red meat and colon cancer, these
recommendations appear more dogma than science. The industry's response
has been extremely solid and effective in partially negating the impact
of this report, but the bottom line is that to anyone concerned about
health issues, it remains a fertile area to attack the livestock
industry.
The myriad of scares and scientific studies relative to diet and health
issues that have been debunked has made the consuming people more
skeptical than ever, but fear is always a great motivator.
The fact is that our opposition is putting increasingly more resources
into the fight, at the same time that our industry's economic commitment
is diminishing with each year due to inflationary pressures. The time
is now to address the diminishing power of our checkoff dollars and
ensure that our ability to continue this fight is as strong in the
future as it has been in the past.
-- Troy Marshall
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Four Reasons to Use the Micro Beef Listing
Service
1. Quality Standards: Cattle are EID-tagged and age-verified
through the Micro Beef PVP.
2. Delivery Options: Cattle are available with delivery dates
through March 2008.
3. Variety: Listings include a variety of cattle types,
locations, and ranch programs.
4. Sale Types: Cattle are available from video, and livestock
market sales as well as direct-sale.
View the listings at www.microbeef.com/cattlelisting
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"The stocker and backgrounding segments have always been critical to
the overall success of the beef industry. The structural changes brought
about by higher grain prices and input costs make these segments even
more critical," says Dale Blasi, beef stocker specialist at Kansas State
University (KSU).
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by
Joe Roybal
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Wherever you are in the beef industry, the ethanol revolution is
affecting your operation and the product you produce. Spurred by record
crude oil prices and government mandates, increased production of fuel
ethanol has changed the entire supply, demand and price picture for corn
and other feedgrains. The ripple effect on the price of land is changing
forage and pasture costs. And with this ethanol production comes an
abundance of co-product feeds. How will you adjust your operation and
production to these mega-changes affecting the beef industry?
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by
Bill Zimmerman, BQS conference coordinator
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A Canadian firm, Ranchers Beef, Ltd., is the likely source of the
E. coli O157:H7 that's caused 100 reported illnesses in the U.S.
and Canada and led to the closure of Topps Meat Company in the U.S. last
month. That's according to a joint investigation between the Canadian
Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection
Service (FSIS).
CFIA provided FSIS with pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns,
or DNA fingerprints, on Oct. 25, from tests of beef trim from the
Balzac, Alberta firm, which provided product to Topps. Ranchers Beef
ceased operations Aug. 15 but some product remained in storage and was
collected and tested by CFIA as part of the joint investigation of the
Topps recall and as part of CFIA's own investigation into 45 illnesses
in Canada.
The next day, PulseNet provided verification to FSIS that the PFGE
pattern matched those from patients and from positive tests conducted by
the New York Department of Health on recalled product. PulseNet is the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's searchable database of all
PFGE patterns from patients and food products in the U.S.
FSIS delisted Ranchers Beef, Ltd., on Oct. 20, banning any product from
that firm from coming into the U.S.
-- www.promedmail.org
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Fifty ag organizations representing U.S. farmers, ranchers,
processors, food producers and exporters sent a letter to all members of
Congress urging passage of the U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement
(PTPA).
The agreement provides immediate duty-free access to Peru's market for
two-thirds of U.S. ag products, including high-quality beef, wheat,
soybeans, whey, cotton, corn oil, corn gluten feed and meal, apples,
pears, peaches, cherries, almonds, frozen French fries, cookies,
distilled spirits and breakfast cereals. The remainder of U.S. ag
products gains duty-free access over time. The American Farm Bureau
Federation (AFBF) estimates the agreement will increase U.S. farm
exports by $705 million.
Organizations signing the letter included AFBF, American Meat Institute,
American Soybean Association, National Association of Wheat Growers,
National Cattlemen's Beef Association, National Chicken Council,
National Corn Growers Association, National Cotton Council, National
Milk Producers Federation, National Oilseed Processors Association,
National Pork Producers Council, National Turkey Federation, U.S Apple
Association and USA Rice Federation.
The House is expected to vote on PTPA next week.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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Scours weather happens. Are you ready?
A recent survey
of 50 veterinarians and 151 producers in the Great Plains showed:
- A greater incidence of scours last season, mostly due to severe
weather in this hard-hit area
- 97 percent of vets who used Scour Bos reported that it met or
exceeded their expectations despite the weather challenge
- 99 percent of producers said they would use a scours vaccine for
pregnant cows prior to the upcoming calving season
- 47 percent of vets said they would use Scour Bos in 2008 season vs.
37 percent using ScourGuard and 8 percent using Guardian
Click
here for more details. Call your veterinarian to set up your
preg-check appointment and ask for Scour Bos 9.
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The Angus Foundation has joined the National Cattlemen's Foundation
(NCF), the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) and Pfizer in
sponsoring a web-based learning course in cattle reproduction through
the Cattle Learning Center (CLC). The module, titled "Prevention
Programs and Technologies to Improve Reproductive Performance," is the
third in the beef cattle reproductive series offered through the CLC and
is expected to be released in fall 2008.
The reproductive performance course is part of the Web-based curriculum
developed by Pfizer, NCF and NCBA for the CLC. These modules provide
in-depth learning tools for producers to learn at their own pace in
their home or office. Producers who enroll in the courses get Web access
to the curriculum and can request a CD version of the info to keep for
reference. To learn more about the CLC curriculum, visit www.cattlelearningcenter.org.
-- American Angus Foundation release
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Now through early January, in partnership with the beef checkoff,
1,900 Applebee's restaurants nationwide are offering several new cuts of
savory beef. They include a 9-oz. sirloin, a 12-oz. New York Strip and
12-oz. ribeye.
The beef checkoff is investing $150,000 to help extend the reach to
consumers nationwide. Beef checkoff identification will be included on
all advertising, menus, national TV, radio, 1:1 consumer e-mail
marketing, collateral materials and on the Web site.
-- Cattlemen's Beef Board release
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While this week's release of the report "Food, Nutrition, Physical
Activity and the Prevention of Cancer: A Global Perspective" drew
praises from anti-beef activists, beef-industry leaders said the report
should be taken with skepticism.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
story by
Burt Rutherford
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"We all went back to school this year," says Don McCasland of
Clovis, NM, outgoing chairman of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
"It feels like we received a Ph.D. in a new area -- food, fiber and
fuel."
And if cattlemen learned anything in their graduate studies this year,
they learned that feed has taken a back seat to fuel. "Corn prices
nearly doubled, causing cost of gains to increase from 50¢ to
80¢/lb. Who would have thought that $1 fed cattle would lose
money?"
But the schooling didn't stop with corn economics, he says.
Cattlemen also studied a second major, this one in export economics.
While the lessons were hard learned, he is optimistic that export
markets will continue to help pay the tuition. "We have restored about
65% of our export markets without Japan and Korea at their true
potential." And with 96% of the world's population living outside the
U.S., export growth seems almost unlimited, he says.
-- Burt Rutherford
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That's the question the Nick Petry Workshop, Nov. 30 at the National
Western Stock Show stadium arena in Denver, will tackle. The daylong
program will feature nationally known experts in beef cow production, as
well as cover the beef industry internationally. Speakers include both
experts from academia as well as cattle producers, including BEEF
contributing editor Troy Marshall. Visit www.wcrim.colostate.edu
for more info.
-- Colorado State University release
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Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY) plans to introduce an amendment to the farm
bill that will restrict the use of contracts that producers have used
and developed to market their livestock. The legislation would limit
swine contracts to 30 head/contract and cattle contracts to 40 head. The
amendment also would require the inclusion of fixed dollar amount base
pricing and public bidding, prohibit formula pricing, and exclude from
the definition of "formula price" futures-based prices and base
adjustments resulting from factors outside packer control. The National
Cattlemen's Beef Association and the National Pork Producers Council
oppose this legislation.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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As of Oct. 29, the U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline
added 4.9¢ for the week to end up at $2.872/gal., 65.4¢ higher
than last year. Meanwhile, the average price for a gallon of diesel
climbed 6.3¢ to $3.157/gal., which equals the record-high price of
Oct. 24, 2005.
All regions reported gasoline increases, with the East Coast posting a
4.5¢ hike to $2.833, the Gulf Coast 3.2¢ to $2.735, and the
Midwest soaring 7.6¢ to $2.864. The Rocky Mountain region added
2.8¢ to settle at $2.873, and the West Coast jumped 2.6¢ to
$3.091 -- 67.7¢/gal. over last year. California posted a
$3.159/gal. price, up 1.6¢ from last week and 72.5¢ over last
year.
Diesel also posted increases in all regions, with the East Coast rising
7¢ to $3.148, the Midwest 5.5¢ to $3.12.2, the Gulf Coast
6.8¢ to $3.062, and the Rocky Mountain region gaining 5.2¢ to
$3.281. The West Coast rose 7.1¢ to $3.394, while California was up
6.8¢ to $3.406, a record for that state.
-- Energy Information Administration
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Premises ID numbers will be required to exhibit livestock at
Illinois state, county, 4-H and FFA fairs beginning in 2008, the
Illinois Department of Ag announced this week.
"Premises registration is the first step toward the establishment of a
National Animal Identification System (NAIS) and will greatly improve
the ability of Illinois animal health professionals to contain disease
outbreaks," a release says.
The application form is posted on the Illinois Department of Ag's Web
site at www.agr.state.il.us/premiseid.
The number must be obtained and included on entry forms before fairs
will allow an animal to compete. The requirement also applies to horses.
Nearly 9,000 Illinois livestock operations already have enrolled in the
NAIS, about 30% of the state's premises.
-- Illinois State Fair news release
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The Minnesota Board of Animal Health (MBAH) this week announced that
a heifer from a farm in Beltrami County tested positive for bovine
tuberculosis (TB), making it the eighth beef herd in Roseau and Beltrami
counties to test positive for the disease.
The herd was quarantined last year after the state's TB investigation
revealed the owner had purchased animals from an infected herd. A
whole-herd test at that time found no reactors, but a follow-up test
this fall discovered the yearling beef heifer.
USDA is coordinating indemnification and depopulation details and state
and federal officials have initiated an investigation to track animal
movement into and out of the herd.
For more info, call MBAH's bovine TB hotline at 1-877-668-2372 or visit
www.bah.state.mn.us.
-- Minnesota Board of Animal Health release
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North Dakota State University (NDSU) Extension is sponsoring an
intensive cow-calf course that focuses on the 2008 calving season Dec.
3, 1:30 p.m., at the Gladstone Inn in Jamestown; and Dec. 5, at 10 a.m.
in the Hettinger Research Extension Center. Themed: "Calving '08 -- Fast
Out of the Gate," it's designed to educate cattle producers in three
primary areas:- Preparing heifers and cows nutritionally for the
calving and rebreeding seasons.
- Recognizing dystocia (difficult calving) and determining if
involving a veterinarian is necessary.
- Understanding how trichomoniasis can affect herds in the upcoming
breeding season.
Registration is $25/person before Nov. 26, and $40
per person after that date. To register, contact Holly Erdmann at
701-231-7513.
For more info on each session, contact: Jamestown -- Tom Olson,
701-252-9030; and Hettinger -- Julie Kramlich, 701-567-2735.
-- NDSU news release
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President Bush has nominated former North Dakota Gov. Ed Schafer to
be the next USDA Secretary. Having served as governor from 1992-2000,
Schafer currently serves as CEO of Extend American, a wireless
communications company.
In his nomination, Bush said, "Ed Schafer is the right choice to fill
this post. He was a leader on agricultural issues during his eight years
as the governor of North Dakota. He worked to open new markets for North
Dakota farmers and ranchers by expanding trade with China. He oversaw
the development of the state's agricultural biofuels industry. He helped
families recover from natural disasters -- including drought, fires and
floods. And he pioneered innovative programs to increase economic
opportunity in rural communities."
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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The centerpiece of the November issue of BEEF is the
announcement of our 2007 Trailblazer Award winner, and you can read all
about Carl Crabtree of Grangeville, ID at www.beefmagazine.com. But
you'll also find advice from marketing guru Harlan Hughes on marketing
2007 calves, part two of Alaina Burt's three-part series on electronic
recordkeeping, and a discussion on the effect of the ethanol surge on
wheat acres and stocker growers. Plus, there's much more. Visit www.beefmagazine.com.
-- Joe Roybal
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The Senate plans to begin consideration of the 2007 farm bill next
week, with the expectation that the debate may carry into the following
week. There will be numerous amendments concerning commodities,
conservation, food safety, agriculture structure, competition, etc.
Sen. Dick Lugar (R-IN) plans to offer an alternative to the farm bill.
Called the "Farm, Ranch, Equity, Stewardship and Health Act," Lugar says
the proposal would save $20 billion from farm programs to fund increases
in nutrition, conservation, specialty crops and renewable energy.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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Interested in new and emerging technologies in the meat industry,
the House Ag Committee held a hearing concerning the development,
implementation and regulation of new technologies to improve safety and
quality.
Concerns about the use of low-oxygen (CO) packaging have been raised by
Kalsec Inc., but Iowa State University's Joseph Sebranek said in his
testimony, "This technology is establishing a track record that has been
free of problems and has not been an issue with consumers. It seems to
me that it is most appropriate to let the marketplace decide the
ultimate success or failure of this technology."
Some members of Congress want the Food and Drug Administration to now
allow CO packaging.
-- P. Scott Shearer, Washington, D.C.
correspondent
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Last December's back-to-back blizzards left people in Colorado, New
Mexico and Kansas stranded in their homes, unable to feed their cattle
or reach emergency services.
-- Click on headline to read the rest of this
Colorado Division of Emergency Management release
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