News Update
June 16, 2011

Spending Measure Puts ‘GIPSA Rule’ on Hold

Livestock and poultry organizations today praised House lawmakers for approving an agriculture funding bill that prevents the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) from finalizing its proposed regulation on livestock and poultry marketing contracts.

The House voted 217-203 to pass legislation that funds USDA, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and related agencies for fiscal 2012, which begins Oct. 1, but denies money for USDA’s Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) to promulgate the livestock and poultry marketing regulation.

Known as the GIPSA rule, the regulation was prompted by the 2008 Farm Bill. But, as 147 House members recently pointed out in a letter to Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack, the proposed rule goes well beyond the intent of Congress and includes provisions specifically rejected during debate on the Farm Bill. Lawmakers also criticized USDA’s failure to conduct an in-depth economic impact study of the proposal before it was published.

The livestock and poultry groups expressed strong support for the House action:

“The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) is grateful that the House is requiring USDA to take a timeout on the GIPSA rule, which as proposed is bad for farmers and ranchers, bad for consumers and bad for rural America,” said NPPC President Doug Wolf. “And contrary to the proclamations from some general farm groups, the vast majority of livestock and poultry producers strongly oppose this regulation, which would cost them millions of dollars and lead to thousands of lost jobs.”

“At a time when cattlemen are wondering why the federal government seems determined to put them out of business, it is encouraging to see the U.S. House of Representatives push back on government overreach into the private marketplace,” National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) President Bill Donald said. “If this rule is implemented, family farmers and ranchers have the most to lose with consumers riding shotgun. This rule will kill jobs and consumer choice and will depopulate rural America. Jobs on the ranch will be lost and trial lawyers will be the only ones to reap rewards. The Senate needs to follow suit by stopping funding for this rule.”

American Meat Institute (AMI) President J. Patrick Boyle said, “We appreciate the House of Representatives’ recognition that the proposed GIPSA rule is a costly and misguided regulation that ignores its congressional mandate and court rulings from across the land. We hope that the Senate will take the same action so that USDA will do what it appears reluctant to do: write a rule that is consistent with congressional intent and that will not force meat and poultry companies and livestock producers across the country to dismantle the model that has made our U.S. meat and poultry production system competitive and the envy of the world.”

“Congress is exactly right to ask that USDA give its proposed rule a reassessment,” said National Meat Association CEO Barry Carpenter. “The negative consequences of not doing so will have an enormous economic impact on the industry and be felt disproportionately by innovative, independent operators who rely on marketing arrangements to create a unique product.”

The organizations consistently have criticized the proposed USDA regulation, pointing out that it would restrict marketing agreements between producers and processors, dictate the terms of production contracts, require additional paperwork, create legal uncertainty and limit producers’ ability to negotiate better prices for the animals they sell.

According to a study conducted by Informa Economics, the GIPSA rule would result in job losses of nearly 23,000, with an annual drop in gross domestic product by as much as $1.56 billion and a yearly loss in tax revenues of $359 million.

The study also found that the regulation would impose on the livestock and poultry industries “ongoing and indirect” costs — eventually borne by producers and consumers — of more than $1.64 billion, including nearly $880 million to the beef industry, more than $400 million to the pork industry and almost $362 million to the poultry industry.

A study by John Dunham and Associates estimated the proposal’s costs to be far higher than USDA initially suggested. Those findings are available at www.MeatFuelsAmerica.com/GIPSA.

— Release by NCBA.

ANCW to Feature Just Ask a Woman Research

The American National CattleWomen (ANCW), in conjunction with Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, is bringing a special guest speaker, Tracy Chapman, Co-Director of Brand Insights from the marketing and strategy company Just Ask A Woman, to address members at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. Women influence 85% of buying decisions and are especially influential in meal choices. Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health commissioned Just Ask A Woman to explore women’s beliefs and behaviors related to beef. Chapman will provide an overview of her findings, and share how the beef industry can communicate with consumers in ways that are meaningful and relevant.

Two additional topics will be offered as part of ANCW’s Education Workshops, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2011. Among Friends ... A New Approach to Selling Beef in the Home shows how CattleWomen can win over the household influencers, one living room at a time and comfortably, among their friends. Building Relationships for Positive Results will teach skills useful to maximize working relationships with partner organizations and state support staffs.

The Cattle Industry Summer Conference will be July 31-Aug. 4 at the Gaylord Palms in Orlando, (Kissimmee) Fla. ANCW will have Committee meetings and the President’s Council Aug. 1 with a “Dine Around Downtown Disney” that evening. Tuesday is the Board of Directors meeting, Sponsored by Agrilabs, Education and National Beef Cook-Off State Team Member Workshops.

The annual Silent Auction, sponsored by Y-Tex, will be all day Tuesday and Wednesday. For registration information, go to www.ancw.org.

— Release by ANCW.

Authors Give a Glimpse of What American Agriculture is All About

American agriculture has long been the most productive agricultural center in the world, producing key food and fiber ingredients for the rest of the world. In this book of personal stories and photographs, the authors, Samantha Yates Borgstedt and Darren Hudson, draw attention to the agriculture they see on a daily basis. In particular, they shed light on the fact that agriculture is family-oriented, with families making up the clear preponderance of American agriculture. They capture the diversity of production systems, business strategies, and roles of support industries revealing to the reader a broader world of farming, ranching and agribusiness. Through the personal stories and photos of the families, businesses and communities, the authors hope to create a broader understanding of what all is involved when feeding and clothing the world.

The authors focus on the Texas High Plains because it is a diverse production area, with many crops and livestock operations, organic and conventional farming, conservation techniques, and a broad array of business structures that can serve to inform and educate about the true American agriculture.

“And while we hope you learn something about where your food and fiber come from, we also hope that you can come to feel the love these people have for their way of life and appreciate their struggle,” share the authors.

For more information on this book, interested parties may log on to http://www.Xlibris.com.

— Release by Xlibris Corp.

Make Plans for the 2011 USAHA/AAVLD Annual Meeting

The U.S. Animal Health Association (USAHA) invites all animal health stakeholders to attend its 115th Annual Meeting in Buffalo, N.Y., Sept. 29-Oct. 5. USAHA meets jointly with the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD) each year, making it the premier forum for animal health, disease regulation policy and veterinary laboratory infrastructure discussion in the United States.

“USAHA is at the forefront of a number of livestock, poultry and wildlife disease issues,” says USAHA President Steve Halstead, who is the Michigan State Veterinarian. “At a time when animal health officials are dealing with dwindling resources and there is increased attention on zoonotic diseases and safe food supply, the work of USAHA continues to become more critical.”

USAHA and AAVLD will feature a joint plenary session entitled “Evolving Food Systems for Global Food Security: Can Animal Production and Veterinary Infrastructure Keep Up?” The session will focus on the critical roles that state and federal animal health officials, private practitioners, laboratory and university scientists, and new technology play in food animal production and securing the availability of food for an expanding domestic and world population.

“We often hear a broad range of conversations about how animal protein will increase in demand and contribute to feeding a growing global population,” says David Marshall, USAHA program chair and North Carolina State Veterinarian.  “A very important component of this is the regulatory, surveillance and diagnostic infrastructure — and it is necessary to address the changing food production landscape to ensure that infrastructure is positioned to effectively protect and serve the needs of the U.S., both domestically and internationally.”

The meeting also features a number of other high-interest topics in animal health. AAVLD will host a plenary session focusing specifically on tuberculosis, scheduled for Saturday morning, Oct. 1, at 8 a.m.  It is entitled “Bovine Tuberculosis: Here Today, Here Tomorrow?”

“The U.S. has made great strides in addressing tuberculosis; however, we continue to see challenges and evolving science with the disease,” says Tim Baszler, AAVLD program chair and director of the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory at Washington State University. “We felt it very timely to focus on some of the latest information around the world and new technologies that can assist us in addressing those challenges.”

USAHA anticipates excellent programs from each of its 30 committees that hold sessions during the meeting, ranging from key disease and species-specific-based committees to broad impact issue-based committees such as Food and Feed Safety, and Foreign and Emerging Diseases. USAHA will also feature a special session on rabies Wednesday, Oct. 5.

“There is no shortage of information, topics and productive discussion at the USAHA/AAVLD Annual Meeting,” says Halstead.  “The scientific information, Resolutions and networking opportunities at this meeting are the culmination of the work our members do year-round.”

Learn more about USAHA and its Annual Meeting at www.usaha.org. Additional information about AAVLD can be found at www.aavld.org.

— Release by NIAA.

— Compiled by Katie Gazda, Angus Productions Inc.