News Update
Dec. 15, 2010

NCBA Relieved by Last-Minute Death Tax Relief 

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) President Steve Foglesong says he is relieved the U.S. Senate today, Dec. 15, voted to extend all expiring tax rates for two years. The Senate-passed bill would reduce the top rate of the estate tax, commonly known as the death tax, to 35%; increase the exemption level to $5 million; index exemptions to inflation; and include a stepped-up basis. Foglesong said NCBA has been at the forefront of estate tax reform because of the devastating impact it has on America’s farm and ranch families. 

“The estate tax is a government-approved, signed, sealed and delivered ticking time bomb for U.S. farmers, ranchers and small business owners,” said Foglesong, who is in Washington, D.C., this week addressing critical issues affecting U.S. cattlemen and women. “This is an outdated tax that is inaccurately framed as a tax on the rich. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) even names the death tax as one of the top contributors to the breakup of multigenerational farming and ranching operations. The Senate’s vote to extend the current tax rates and bring the estate tax down to more reasonable levels offers a great deal of relief to U.S. cattlemen and women right before the New Year.” 

On Jan. 1, 2011, the tax would have escalated to pre-2001 levels at 55% and an exemption level of $1 million. According to Foglesong, this would have caused many family-owned operations to sell off portions or all of their assets to pay for the tax. For example, Scott Bennett, a junior at Virginia Tech University and an active participant in his family’s Virginia cattle operation, Knoll Crest Farm, said the uncertainty of the death tax has made it nearly impossible for his grandfather to make plans for their farm’s future. 

“With a $1 million exemption and a 55% tax, we would need to sell most of our assets just to keep part of the operation in the family,” Bennett said. “This would be a death sentence to family farms, ranches and small businesses. Thank goodness the Senate passed some relief for family farms and ranches like Knoll Crest Farm. Now, I just hope the House follows suit and passes the Senate’s bill.” 

The Senate passed the amendment with an 81-19 vote. It will now move to the House for consideration before being sent to President Obama to be signed into law. Foglesong said the “ball is in their court” referring to the House. He said a “speedy” vote is necessary to prevent an undeserved death sentence to many family-owned farms and ranches.

— Release by NCBA.

South Dakota Stockgrowers Report on Washington, D.C., Trip

Stockgrower President Kenny Fox, Belvidere; Marketing Chairman Vaughn Meyer, Reva, S.D.; and Region III Vice President Bob Fortune returned Friday from a trip to Washington, D.C., where they participated in the final Department of Justice/U.S. Department of Agriculture (DOJ/USDA) GIPSA (Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration) workshop.

The D.C. workshop was fifth in a series of workshops throughout the country in 2010. In March a workshop was held in Ankeny, Iowa, to address concerns from grain/seed and hog producers. In May, Normal, Ala., conducted a poultry workshop; in June it was a dairy workshop in Madison, Wis.; and Fort Collins, Colo., hosted a beef workshop in August 2010. The main theme of the fifth workshop was the disparity between producer prices and consumer prices.

Fox spoke from the floor in support of the proposed GIPSA rule and stated that they had huge support from the consumers at this workshop.

Fox, Bob Fortune and Meyer were included in a meeting with Food & Water Watch, which is a nonprofit organization that advocates for commonsense policies that will result in healthy, safe food and water, and is a strong supporter of the GIPSA rule.
He said they “met with staff members from Senator Johnson and Senator Thune’s offices and also met with Kathleen Merrigan, Deputy Secretary Department of Agriculture and John Ferrell, Deputy Undersecretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, U.S. Department of Agriculture.”

“In these meetings several issues were discussed, including the Over 30 Months Rule, which allows cows over 30 months of age to be imported into the United States,” he continued. “This, of course, is the age most likely to be infected with BSE. Another issue brought forward in these side meetings was the problem of regionalization of Santa Catarina, Brazil, from which USDA plans to import cattle, beef, hogs and pork products. Stockgrowers have long opposed this due to the fact that the entire surrounding area is not free of FMD (foot-and-mouth disease) even though the Santa Catarina area reportedly is an FMD-free state.”

— Adapted from South Dakota Stockgrowers Association release.

Know Basics Before Putting Beef in Freezer

According to Eldon Cole, University of Missouri (MU) Extension livestock specialist, interest in putting large quantities of beef in the freezer seems to pick up this time of year. Additionally, as more home-raised beef appears along with all-natural, forage or grass-fed beef, questions arise about the yield of packaged beef you’ll take to the freezer out of a 1,000- to 1,200-pound (lb.) animal.

There is considerable variation in the amount of beef the animal produces depending on sex, age, condition and class of cattle. Perhaps the greatest variable is the locker plant procedure itself. How much bone, fat and variety meats like the liver, heart, tongue and even the tail are prepared for you?

Another factor can be the amount of lean you want in your ground beef. A rather fat burger might run 70% lean to 30% fat while a lean burger could run 90% lean and 10% fat. Most households prefer an 80:20 blend for burgers. All of these influence the amount you take home from the locker.

Research and practical experience indicate that an 1,100-lb. steer that’s been fed a concentrate feed for 90 or 100 days should yield roughly 670 lb. of hanging beef. The typical yield or dressing percentage is 60% to 62%. Thinner and older animals, especially cows, will have a lower dressing percentage.

The typical beef carcass that is processed into closely trimmed cuts — some boneless, some bone-in — with regular ground beef yields about 65%-67% of the carcass weight in wrapped beef. Thus, the 670-lb. hanging weight now is broken down to about 442 lb. (670 lb. x 0.66 = 442 lb.) Remember, the 670-lb. hot carcass weight shrinks some during the 10- to 14-day aging period.

First-time buyers of a whole or half beef may anticipate more fancy steaks than they receive. Those top-quality steaks are cut from the rib and short loin, which together comprise approximately 18% of the animal’s carcass weight.

The current beef market is strong and, with the economy the way it is, many consumers are not financially able to buy a whole carcass. Producers who normally market carcass beef are developing smaller packages or bundles of beef cuts to accommodate their customers.

For more information, including details about the 2011 sales, contact any of the MU Extension livestock specialists in southwest Missouri: Eldon Cole in Mount Vernon, 417-466-3102 or Dona Goede in Cedar County, 417-276-3313.

— Release by MU Extension.

Winter Ranch Management Seminar Planned in Four Kansas Locations

Ranch management and cow herd economics will be the focus of the day as K-State Research and Extension hosts the Winter Ranch Management Seminar in four Kansas locations.

The seminar will take place Jan. 11 in Ashland, El Dorado, Phillipsburg and Manhattan. All will start with registration at 4 p.m. (program beginning at 4:30 p.m.) and end at 8:30 p.m. Presentations will be a combination of webinar delivery and local speakers.

Featured speakers include Dale Smith, of Corsino Cattle Co., Amarillo, Texas, who will present “Ranch Management Focus,” and Kevin Good, Cattle-Fax economist, who will give the “Cattle-Fax Update.” Both of these presentations will be delivered via webinar.

Local speakers will be present at each location to give presentations on winter ration development, using a computerized ration-balancing program and cow-calf health management, focusing on vaccination programs.

The cost to attend, which includes an evening meal, is $25 per person. If more than one person attends from any farm, family or business, the price for additional attendees is $15 per person. Online registration is available at www.asi.ksu.edu/rms.

More information about each location is available: Manhattan (Charlotte Bruna 785-532-1280 or cbruna@ksu.edu); Ashland (Taner Gillum 620-635-2811 or tgillum@ksu.edu); El Dorado (David Kehler 316-321-9660 or dkehler@ksu.edu); and Phillipsburg (Rachael Boyle 785-425-6851 or rboyle@ksu.edu).

— Release by K-State Research and Extension.

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