News Update
March 16, 2018
Evaluate Risk, Then Manage It
“Evaluate your risk. Where are you vulnerable?” asked Tony Drake with the CME Group as he addressed attendees at a Learning Lounge educational session during the 2018 Cattle Industry Convention & NCBA Trade Show in Phoenix, Ariz., Feb. 2. “Getting cattle to the retail store, there’s a lot to consider in the chain. Market ups and downs represent a lot of opportunity, but also a lot of risk.”
Noting that all commodity markets are more volatile than they’ve ever been, Drake continued. “What blows up or can go wrong? Is it inputs like feed, energy, transportation or interest rates?”
Based on what you identify as the risk factors for your operation, Drake then advised incorporating risk management across the sectors of the operation to address those factors.
“Get help,” he added. “A broker can work through this with you to develop a big-picture plan.”
Drake defined risk management for his audience as “a structured approach to managing uncertainty with strategies including transferring the risk to another party, avoiding the risk, reducing the negative effect of the risk, and accepting some or all of the consequences of a particular risk.”
Keep reading this Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.
USDA Announces Regionalization Agreement
with South Korea to Protect U.S. Trade
The USDA March 15 announced an agreement with the government of South Korea that significantly reduces negative impacts on trade should another detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) occur in the United States. The agreement will allow for trade restrictions at the state level instead of the country level during any future HPAI detections.
This action bolsters the already strong trade relationship between the United States and South Korea and will prevent a repeat of trade actions taken in 2015 when all U.S. poultry, poultry products and eggs were banned as a result of a detection of HPAI.
“Limiting trade restrictions during future HPAI detections to only those states with positive detections will help keep trade flowing,” said Greg Ibach, USDA under secretary for marketing and regulatory programs. “The new science-based agreement will allow unaffected U.S. producers to keep poultry, poultry products and eggs going to South Korea. This helps us meet Secretary Perdue’s vision of doing right and feeding the world.”
“Trade is critical for the health of American agriculture, and to support vibrant rural economies,” said USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Ted McKinney.
For more information, read the USDA news release online.
Cargill Adds Where Food Comes
From Inc. Canada
as Auditing Body
Where Food Comes From, Inc. (WFCF), the most trusted resource for independent, third-party verification of food production practices in North America, March 15 announced it has been selected by Cargill as an auditing body for Cargill’s Canadian Beef Sustainability Acceleration Pilot program. Cargill is a long-time customer for WFCF in the United States.
Cargill’s pilot was launched to test and validate the audit and traceability systems necessary for the Certified Sustainable Beef Framework established by the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB). The program includes cattle producers that want to demonstrate the sustainability of their operations.
“We are delighted that Where Food Comes From Inc. Canada has been selected as a certification partner,” said Leann Saunders, president of WFCF. “As a company, we verify over 5,000 beef producers in North America with the goal to help supply chains improve processes, bundle certifications and add value. We gained deep expertise as the sole verification partner for the 2014-2016 McDonald’s Verified Sustainable Beef Pilot and look forward to applying this knowledge as a certifier for the CBSA pilot.”
Learn more in the full Cargill news release online.
UK, Stakeholders Break Ground on Grain and
Forage Center of Excellence
University of Kentucky (UK) researchers have a long, storied history of working with farmers and stakeholders to make the state’s agricultural community world leaders in innovation and adaption. On March 15 they joined together to break ground on the Grain and Forage Center of Excellence, a facility that will allow them to continue this rich tradition.
“UK is inextricably linked to the well-being and the economic development of all 120 Kentucky counties,” said UK President Eli Capilouto. “Agriculture is a fundamental component of the Kentucky economy, and the innovation under way at the UK’s Research and Education Center in Princeton advances that work. This new center of excellence expands and enhances our capacity to serve as the University for Kentucky.”
To accommodate the center, UK’s Research and Education Center in Princeton is undergoing a renovation and expansion. The College of Agriculture, Food and Environment facility will serve as the center’s nucleus with faculty and staff based at Princeton and Lexington.
Among the improvements are updated and state-of-the-art meeting facilities, laboratories and offices, and a boost to the center’s high-speed internet capabilities to allow graduate students stationed at the center to remotely participate in classes in Lexington.
Read the full UK news release online.
Administrator Pruitt Addresses More Than 300 Farmers
and State Agriculture Leaders
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt addressed more than 300 members of the Iowa, Missouri, Ohio and Alabama Farm Bureaus on March 14.
“I am committed to providing America’s farmers with the transparency and regulatory certainty they deserve from Washington,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. “EPA is working with our nation’s first environmentalists as partners to preserve and steward our natural resources while supporting local economies.”
In his remarks, Pruitt expounded on the agency’s role in American agriculture, including the decision to begin the process of redefining the “Waters of the U.S.” rule, which will provide regulatory certainty for farmers and ranchers and prioritize keeping America’s water clean. He also discussed EPA’s outreach to states and the continued efforts to engage in cooperative federalism on issues affecting farmers and ranchers. Finally, Pruitt reiterated his continued commitment to the Renewable Fuel Standards and announced the agency is on track to meet the Nov. 30 statutory deadline for issuing the annual Renewable Volume Obligations.
Continue reading this EPA news release online.
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