Cattlemen's Capitol Concerns Archive
Cattlemen's Capitol Concerns
April 17, 2008
The Cattlemen’s Capitol Concerns (CCC) is a weekly report from Washington, D.C., giving an up-to-date summary of top policy initiatives concerning the cattle industry; direct from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). Please feel free to reprint in full or in part. If you’d like to include NCBA’s logo, contact us at 202-347-0228.
Clock Ticking on Farm Bill Debate: At press time, meetings of the Farm Bill conference committee continue as members try to salvage the legislative package before the extension of the 2002 Farm Bill expires. Conferees are still unable to agree on the bill’s spending offsets and provisions within in the Senate tax title.
A proposed one week extension would give Congress additional time to resolve the outstanding issues. The House approved the one-week extension on April 16th by voice vote, and the Senate did the same this afternoon. At issue is whether or not the President will agree to sign another extension. White House sources have indicated that it will be a challenge for Congress to convince the President that any real progress is being made.
If Congress can’t agree on a final package, a one-year to two-year extension will be needed to extend the farm programs outlined in the 2002 Farm Bill. Otherwise, farm programs would revert to terms outlined in the 1949 law. House Ag Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) has said he will not support a long-term extension.
NCBA’s Washington, D.C., staff are on Capitol Hill and are actively monitoring the conference discussions to ensure that issues of concern to cattlemen are addressed in the final language.
Presidents Poised to Announce Korean Trade Breakthrough: South Korean President Lee Myung-bak is scheduled to arrive tomorrow afternoon, April 18th, for a weekend visit with President Bush at Camp David. A joint press conference is planned for Saturday. The Bush Administration is hopeful that an announcement on beef trade will be made at that time. A delegation of U.S. trade negotiators have been in Seoul since last week to work out the deal.
Prior to December 2003, South Korea represented the third-largest market for U.S. beef and beef variety meat exports valued annually at $815 million. In September 2006, Korea finally agreed to accept U.S. boneless beef from cattle less than 30 months of age. But this market reopening was never viable for U.S. beef producers because it excluded bone-in beef products, which are popular with Korean consumers. In October 2007, Korean officials put a ban on all U.S. beef products until a new set of quarantine conditions could be established.
“We are hopeful that this deal will allow for the export of ALL U.S. beef products to Korea in accordance with OIE guidelines,” says NCBA’s Chief Economist Gregg Doud. “Bone-in beef and variety meats historically accounted for roughly half of the total value of U.S. beef exports to South Korea. Today, South Korea represents at least a $1 billion market for us. It’s time for Korea to move past this unscientific trade ban and accept products based on international guidelines.”
A move to normalize beef trade with Korea will restore a very lucrative market for U.S. cattle producers and will also pave the way for consideration of the long-pending U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Signed in June 2007, the FTA has been tabled by U.S. lawmakers until the beef issue is resolved.
Beef Export Update: USDA’s weekly export sales report as of April 10th indicates a fairly significant revision in last week’s export sales report. Total sales were revised downward from 21,661 metric tons (mt) to 12,728 mt, and shipments from 18,050 mt to 9,117 mt. This week’s sales were 8,995 mt, and shipments were 9,415 mt.
Year-to-date sales and shipments to Mexico at 104,200 mt (230 million pounds) are one-third larger than at this time last year; to Canada they’re 25,500 mt (56 million pounds), which is a pace that is 60 percent greater than last year; beef sales and shipments to the EU, Japan, Russia, Taiwan and Vietnam at 48,500 mt (107 million pounds) are more than double last year’s 18,800 mt (41 million pounds).
Even with global food price inflation, the price of beef has remained constant. Suddenly, consumers all around the world are recognizing the value of beef when it is compared with other proteins. This is providing excellent marketing opportunities that we have never witnessed before in history. For example, we are exporting large quantities of rounds to Russia. But even more interesting is the amount of whole muscle cuts suddenly going to the Middle East (Egypt and Dubai) and Peru.
Prospects of Korean trade resumption, considerable recent strength in the price of 50 percent lean trimmings and another slide in the value of the U.S. dollar have also provided a strong underpinning for the cattle market in recent days. Anecdotal industry information also suggests the prospects for more sales to Russia are strong. But with this growth in U.S. beef, pork and poultry exports experienced thus far in 2008, another issue is emerging of considerable concern: a shortage of available refrigerated containers.
House Hearing Debates Clean Water Act Expansion: The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held a hearing on Wednesday, April 16th, on the Clean Water Restoration Act (H.R. 2421). Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), the original sponsor of the bill, chairs the Committee. NCBA submitted written comments for the hearing that outlined cattlemen’s opposition to this bill.
“The production of food in our country cannot be taken for granted,” says NCBA’s comments. “American producers face an ever tightening web of regulation, which economically marginalizes an increasing number of operations. While many, if not all, of the environmental regulations are well-intended, it must also be recognized that limiting and ultimately choking the ability of farming and ranching operations to earn a living will come at a considerable cost to the entire nation.”
This bill, along with Senate Bill 1870, propose to strike the word “navigable” from the Clean Water Act’s (CWA) definition of “waters of the United States,” which would expand federal jurisdiction of the CWA into the pastures and backyards of private property owners.
NCBA believes Rep. Oberstar’s attempt to usurp authority over these issues and expand federal jurisdiction must not be allowed. Cattlemen support conservation of our water resources under authority that currently exists. “It is essential that the partnership between the federal and state levels of government be maintained so that states can continue to have the essential flexibility to do their own land and water use planning.”
USDA Issues Animal ID Eartags for Bovine TB Control Effort: USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced April 15th that it is providing National Animal Identification System (NAIS) compliant "840" radio frequency eartags to animal health officials for use in the bovine tuberculosis (TB) control program. The effort is part of USDA’s Business Plan to Advance Animal Disease Traceability.
NAIS-compliant "840" tags provide for individual identification of livestock through a 15-digit number beginning with the U.S. country code. Through the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, the "840" tags allow animal health officials to electronically identify an animal. This increases the efficiency of animal disease investigations. USDA has purchased a total of 1.5 million "840" identification tags to support animal disease control programs, including the bovine TB and brucellosis programs.
Radio frequency tags have been used in beef and dairy operations for management and marketing purposes for several years. Currently, there are five USDA-approved manufacturers that produce eight devices for official NAIS use. Seven of these devices are RFID eartags, while the other device is an injectable transponder to be used in horses and other farm animals not intended to enter the food production chain. For more information, go to www.usda.gov/nais.
NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen Wins National NAMA Award: NCBA's Cattlemen to Cattlemen was the winner of a first place award at the National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA) awards show in Kansas City. The weekly television program featuring cattle industry news, market information, producer education segments and cattle producer profiles won first place in the Broadcast News category.
“Cattlemen to Cattlemen has been very well-received by cattle producers across the nation, who appreciate having a television program they can turn to for the latest cattle industry information,” says NCBA Chief Executive Officer Terry Stokes. “It’s great to see the program recognized by NAMA for its outstanding content and quality.”
Cattlemen to Cattlemen premiered in February 2007 on RFD-TV. It airs every Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time, with repeat episodes on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. and Sundays at midnight (all times Eastern). It is also available online at www.CattlementoCattlemen.org. The program’s sponsors include Purina Mills, Fort Dodge Animal Health, Dow AgroSciences, Bayer Animal Health and McDonald’s.
Don't Miss NCBA’s Award-Winning Cattlemen to Cattlemen: On this week’s episode of NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen airing April 15-20, we’ll hear from several key members of Congress on whether they think a new Farm Bill can still be completed and passed this spring. Dave Juday of World Perspectives talks about the pressure being placed on the grain markets by global demand and renewable fuel mandates, and we’ll spend a day with Chris and Cas Derks – a young Missouri couple working to build a successful cattle operation, and to strengthen their local cattlemen’s association.
On next week’s episode of NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen airing April 22-27, we’ll talk with AllFlex USA CEO Brian Bolton about animal identification. We’ll also learn more about marker-assisted selection from a University of California geneticist. We’ll take a spin in a Caterpillar Skid Steer Loader. And just in time for summer, we’ll cook up an easy, fresh recipe that’s perfect for outdoor grilling! Watch this show promo at: http://www.cattlementocattlemen.com/uDocs/C2C-042208.wmv
Ask the Experts on NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen: Have you ever watched NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen and thought, “I’d love to ask the experts my questions!”? Well now you have the chance! In May, we’ll be bringing you a few special editions of the show, and we’ll be focusing on topics that are important to you and your operation. One of the shows will be sponsored by Dow AgroSciences, and their experts will be on hand to answer your questions about weed and brush control as well as pasture management. A second show will feature experts from Fort Dodge Animal Health, where experts will be taking questions on practical strategies for parasite control.
If you have questions for the experts at Dow AgroSciences or Fort Dodge Animal Health, email us at C2C@beef.org. We’ll do our best to answer your questions on the air!
Media Contact: Karen Batra at kbatra@beef.org or call 202-347-0228.
This publication is funded by cattle producers and other industry supporters through their voluntary membership contributions to NCBA. To join the tens of thousands of cattle producers from across the U.S. in working to preserve our legacy, contact NCBA Member Services at 1-866-BEEF-USA or Membership@beef.org.