News Update
April 5, 2010

Cattle Industry Youth Map Global Future at YBIC

Members of the National Junior Angus Association (NJAA) Board of Directors joined fellow young cattle producers March 25-28 in Bloomington, Minn., for the 2010 Youth Beef Industry Congress (YBIC). The biennial event gathered 118 young leaders of junior beef breed and state junior cattlemen’s organizations to interact while exploring their futures.

Themed “Mapping Our Global Future,” the congress featured genetics and the use of DNA technology in the beef industry, as well as the use of social networking to spread positive beef industry messages to consumers worldwide. Read more.

Burning Resolution Urges Congress to Change Existing Law

A condensed window for pasture burning last year caused air quality violations in Kansas City and Wichita that led to the possibility of mandatory regulation. Leadership by the Kansas Legislature, with guidance from the Kansas Livestock Association (KLA), has resulted in the passage of a state resolution urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to exclude emissions generated by the ecologically proven practice of burning the tallgrass prairie when compiling air-monitoring data for cities.

“Protecting the ability of ranchers to burn in the Flint Hills is imperative to preserving the last and largest remaining expanse of tallgrass prairie in the world,” said Sen. Carolyn McGinn of Sedgwick, who chairs the Kansas Senate Natural Resources Committee in which the resolution originated.

The state Legislature began discussions on the issue after EPA recommended Kansas create a smoke management plan to deal with the situation. Legislators held hearings to collect input from all perspectives. KLA Vice President and General Counsel Allie Devine told McGinn and her fellow committee members prescribed burning is an essential management practice for protecting the ecosystem, enhancing grazing land and reducing the chances of destructive wildfires like those experienced in California and other states.

Kansas State University (K-State) presented extensive research to the committee showing the need for yearly planned burning in the Flint Hills. Range Management Specialist Clenton Owensby testified about the value of burning to preserve the tallgrass ecosystem. Without this management tool, he said, undesirable plants, including the red cedar, squeeze out native grasses and threaten the existence of birds and other species dependent upon the tallgrass prairie for habitat. Owensby told state legislators K-State research shows the best management for maintaining the ecological system involves a combination of prescribed burning and livestock grazing.  

After extensive testimony and consideration of the issues involved, legislators drafted Senate Concurrent Resolution 1623. The resolution ultimately was approved by large margins in both the Kansas House and Senate. It calls on Congress to require EPA to exclude air-monitoring data from prairie burning in the Flint Hills when determining exceedances of National Ambient Air Quality Standards.

“By working together, we can make greater advances that will serve the citizens of this great state and preserve some of our most precious natural resources,” McGinn said.

The state senator commended KLA for its work on this very important issue. While the concurrent resolution does not change the federal law, it is serving as a springboard for action. KLA used it as the basis for a request of the Kansas congressional delegation to draft legislation carving out the exemption in the Clean Air Act.

“KLA appreciates the Kansas Legislature boldly stepping forward on behalf of ranchers and landowners through this resolution,” said KLA President Mark Smith, a cattleman from Sharon Springs.

KLA is a trade organization representing the state’s livestock business on legislative, regulatory and industry issues at both the state and federal levels. The association’s work is funded through voluntary dues dollars paid by its members.

— Release by KLA.

2010 Boston Marathon Runners Fueled By Beef

In 2006, the beef checkoff, through the Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative (NEBPI), decided to sponsor a runner in the Boston Marathon to promote beef as an important protein source to fuel active bodies. That runner, a veal producer from Wisconsin, was the beginning of Team BEEF, a concept that’s grown to many states and many races across the country. Today, you’ll find more than 100 Team BEEF runners competing in the annual Boilermaker Race in Utica, N.Y., and 229 Team BEEF members competing in races in Texas, to cite just a few examples. 

At this year’s Boston Marathon scheduled for April 19, 12 marathoners will wear the BEEF jersey, promoting their chosen protein source.

The beef checkoff is also teaming up with the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo, booth #2024 at the John Hynes Convention Center, to inform runners and spectators about the protein power found in lean beef. Research shows incorporating high-quality protein into the diet throughout the day can help in maintaining a healthy weight, building muscle and fueling physical activity. The team will also sample Marinade-On-Demand™ Chimichurri Beef, which features Schwan’s® exclusive packaging that marinades meat all in one package.

Click here for more information about members of Team BEEF at the Boston Marathon, or become a Facebook Fan of this team.

To learn more about your beef checkoff investment, visit MyBeefCheckoff.com.

— Release by My Beef Checkoff.

Bill Will Save Hoosier Farmers $75 Million

Senate Enrolled Act 396, which was signed into law by the governor Friday, March 26, will benefit farmers across Indiana, according to Indiana Farm Bureau (IFB). Indiana farmers will pay about $75 million less in property taxes over the next three years than they would have without this bill.

The new law will significantly reduce both the assessed value of the state’s farmland and the taxes on that land from what they otherwise would have been. It does this, explained IFB tax specialist Katrina Hall, by amending the formula used by the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) to set the base value for an acre of Indiana farmland.

Each year DLGF updates the formula to determine a base value per acre. The formula uses net income from corn and soybean production over a 6-year period. Currently, the six years are averaged to determine a net income per acre, which is then capitalized using interest rates published by the Federal Reserve for farm operating and real estate loans.

However, as a result of SEA 396, the highest of the six years will no longer be considered in determining the average. The elimination of the highest of the six years from the average will remove the influence of a year in which corn or soybean prices spike.

For example, explained Bob Kraft, state government relations director, tax bills for 2011 are based on the years 2002 through 2007. Because 2007 saw high grain prices, without the legislation, the base value would have been $1,400 per acre. But since SEA 396 will allow the 2007 price spike to be disregarded, the rate will be only $1,300 per acre. For taxes to be paid in 2012, the base value per acre will be reduced by $200 because corn and bean prices peaked in 2008.

Over the next three years alone, these reductions in the base value of farmland will save Indiana farm owners about $75 million in property taxes compared to what they otherwise would have paid.

In addition to addressing the farmland formula, key senators also agreed that the subject of farm personal property taxes, including the possible elimination of the 30% floor on the assessed value of farm machinery, will be addressed in a summer study committee this year.

— Release by Indiana Farm Bureau.

— Compiled by Mathew Elliott, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.