Cattlemen's Capitol Concerns ~ March 8, 2007
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.
Texas Cattleman Testifies on Feed Costs: NCBA member and Texas cattle feeder Ernie Morales testified today before the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry at a hearing on feed costs for the livestock industry. Morales told the committee how livestock producers across the country are struggling to find reliable sources of animal feed amid drought, wildfires, winter storms, transportation challenges, shortage of hay and forage, and soaring corn prices. Morales testified on behalf of NCBA and Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
Of all the challenges currently facing U.S. cattlemen, rising corn prices due to increased demand for corn-based ethanol is top of mind. “The livestock industry remains the largest consumer of corn by utilizing almost 58 percent of the total corn used over the past decade,” says Morales. “In the past year alone, cattle feeders have seen a 92 percent increase in cash corn prices." (January-February 2007 price at $3.68 per bushel, compared to $1.91 per bushel in 2006.)
Morales says in time U.S. corn producers can meet this rapidly expanding additional demand. “However, until the appropriate acreage and yield adjustments can be made during this transition, USDA’s current projection of a 50 percent year-to-year increase in ethanol-based corn demand from 2.15 to 3.2 billion bushels will be felt squarely in the wallets of every feeder and cow-calf producer in this country,” says Morales.
At NCBA’s annual meeting last month, NCBA members adopted policy calling for sunsetting the existing blenders tax credit and the ethanol import tariff as scheduled in 2010 and 2009 respectively. “We believe the U.S. beef industry can and will remain competitive as long as we have the ability to compete on a level playing field with the ethanol industry for that bushel of corn,” says Morales.
66 Members of Congress Renew Fight for Superfund Clarification: U.S. cattle producers are applauding the introduction of bills in both the Senate and House today to clarify that livestock manure is not a hazardous substance under Superfund laws.
In recent years, opponents of animal agriculture have suggested Superfund laws should be applied to manure from animal feeding, farming and ranching operations. (Superfund is the common name for the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, CERCLA of 1980, and Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act, EPCRA of 1986.) Eight Senators and 58 House leaders from both political parties are now saying that Congress never intended for America’s farms and ranches to be slapped with liabilities and penalties under the Superfund law.
“The Superfund laws were created in the 1980s to provide for cleanup of toxic waste dumps and hazardous chemical spills, to force reporting of releases of hazardous chemicals and to enable emergency response,” says NCBA Director of Legislative Affairs Stacey Katseanes.
“Superfund is about toxic waste sites and chemical spills, not livestock manure on farms and ranches. We’re grateful to the members of Congress who are working to clarify this.”
Bills were introduced in the Senate by Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) and Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) along with six additional cosponsors. Representatives Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) and Ralph Hall (R-Texas) led the effort in the House with 56 additional House members signed on.
In the 109th Congress, 228 members of Congress signed on to House and Senate bills to exempt livestock manure from Superfund. But the bills didn’t see passage before the Congressional session ended in December.
NCBA Announces Beef Trade Priorities: In meetings with members of Congress, agency officials and briefings with Congressional staff, NCBA unveiled this week its Beef Export Access Five Point Plan. As part of NCBA’s Long Range Plan, one of NCBA’s top priorities for its cattle producer-members is creating opportunity through global competitiveness.
“Since 96 percent of the world’s population lives outside of the United States, the best way for U.S. cattlemen to grow their businesses is in our foreign markets,” says NCBA Chief Economist Gregg Doud. NCBA’s Beef Export Access Five Point Plan urges:
1. Pass the Peru, Colombia and Panama Free Trade Agreements. These are well-negotiated agreements for U.S. cattlemen and Congress needs to ratify them.
2. Negotiate a workable South Korea Free Trade Agreement. This could be the most significant bilateral trade deal ever for U.S. beef producers, but we need to re-establish meaningful trade for this to work.
3. Fully re-open existing beef export markets. After a case of BSE was discovered in a Canadian cow in the United States in December 2003, many of our export markets closed. We must continue to work towards normalized trade with four of our key export markets, South Korea, Russia, Japan, and China.
4. Complete the WTO negotiations. These multilateral negotiations are the best means toward increasing market access through tariff reduction.
5. Reauthorize Trade Promotion Authority. TPA assures that the United States stays in the game and isn't stuck on the sidelines while our competitors negotiate deals to gain market share from OUR existing and potential customers.
U.S. Officials Not Satisfied with Korean Offer on Beef Trade: South Korea announced this week that it will consider easing restrictions on U.S. beef imports, but U.S. negotiators say the two countries are still a long way from resolving the issue. The government of Korea is reportedly considering a measure to reject only boxes of U.S. beef where bone chips are detected after undergoing a 100 percent inspection (using x-ray machines), while allowing the remainder of the shipment to go through. Korea says exporters could resume shipping as early as this month.
In response, U.S. government officials reportedly won’t oppose the implementation of such measures by Korea. But there is a question as to whether U.S. exporters would actually try to ship beef to Korea under those conditions after the rejection of three previous shipments. “We have said all along that our support for a U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement is dependent on fully normalized beef trade,” says Doud. “We can’t have normalized trade until Korea agrees to adopt a commercially viable import protocol that is based on sound science and OIE guidelines.” Discussions are expected to continue at meetings next week and March 19-21 in Seoul.
NCBA Finalizing Comments on BSE Minimal Risk Region Rule: NCBA is working with its affiliate organizations to finalize comments to USDA on its proposal to amend the BSE minimal risk region importation policy. The USDA proposal seeks to expand the trade of live cattle from Canada, providing for importation of "live cattle and other bovines for any use born on or after March 1, 1999."
NCBA believes that harmonization and equivalency must be achieved in all animal health regulations between the United States, Canada, Mexico, and our other trading partners. “As a matter of principle, science must be the basis for re-establishing trade,” says NCBA’s Chief Veterinarian Elizabeth Parker. The USDA announced the proposal on January 4, and comments are due next week, March 12.
NCBA Comments on Argentina FMD Regionalization: NCBA submitted final comments this week to USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) on its proposed rule “Change in Disease Status of the Patagonia South Region of Argentina with Regard to Rinderpest and Foot-and-Mouth Disease.” In its comments, NCBA says it is not supportive of the proposal at this time “due to the ongoing disease events on the continent and due to the lack of demonstration of control of several of the areas necessary for such regionalization based on OIE guidelines.” NCBA also recommended that USDA update the risk assessment in light of new information.
NCBA is recommending that USDA continue to consult the OIE guidelines for Zoning and Compartmentalization as well as OIE guidelines for FMD and rinderpest as this rule-making proceeds. USDA should also keep in mind that its actions must protect the health of the United States cattle herd as well as protect the economic livelihood of U.S. cattlemen and other affected livestock species as trade is resumed with all international partners.
Canadian BSE Update: The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) says its
comprehensive investigation of Canada's latest case of BSE (announced February 7, 2007) is nearing completion. CFIA said the investigation has indicated the animal was born in 2000 and was at least six and a half years old at the time of its death, based on dental analysis, DNA testing and information provided by the producer. The CFIA also said the animal was born and raised on the farm where it was found.
Hearing on Agriculture Research: The Senate Agriculture Committee hosted a hearing on March 7 on funding for Agricultural Research. "America's investment in agricultural research, extension, and education has fallen behind. Funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's research, education, and extension programs have remained almost flat in inflation-adjusted dollars over the past two decades,” said Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa). “As we look to the new farm bill, we must not forget the vital role agricultural research plays in all of our lives."
ESAP Deadline Next Week!: Nomination forms for the 2007 Environmental Stewardship Awards Program (ESAP) are due on March 17, 2007. Any organization, group, or individual can submit a nomination on behalf of a U.S. cattle producer. Sponsored by NCBA, Dow AgroSciences and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the annual ESAP awards honor cattle producers whose stewardship practices are inventive, cost-effective and contribute to environmental conservation. On February 1, Wyoming-based Thaler Land & Livestock Company was named the 2006 ESAP National Winner. Go to www.beefusa.org/esap for more information and to download an application, or contact NCBA’s Washington, D.C. office at 202-347-0228.
Missouri ALOT Group Hears from NCBA: The Missouri ALOT Group is visiting Washington this week and met with NCBA staff on March 7. Jay Truitt, vice president of government affairs for NCBA, is a Missouri ALOT alumni. Truitt briefed the group on the issues and challenges NCBA is addressing in Washington including farm bill development and trade negotiations.
The Missouri Agricultural Leadership of Tomorrow (ALOT) program is a two-year leadership program, attracting Missouri adults from across the state, representing rural and urban areas, full-time farmers and agribusiness, media, financial representatives and more. For more information, visit www.agebb.missouri.edu/alot.
Don’t Miss NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen: Tune into NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen on RFD-TV at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern time) this Saturday for feature stories on the writing of the 2007 Farm Bill, cattle de-worming, market updates, and much more.
Next week's show, beginning Tuesday March 13, will feature an interview with Dr. Eric Hentges, the executive director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP). Dr. Hentges will discuss beef and its role within the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Food Guidance System. We will also run a special feature on the Lightsey family from Florida, whose Lightsey Cattle Company has won national attention for stewardship on their operation - including NCBA's Environmental Stewardship Award. Phil Seng, CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation, also provides an update on beef exports.
NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen on RFD-TV provides weekly news and features for cattle producers across the country. The show airs Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. and is rebroadcast Wednesdays at 4:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Saturdays at 10 a.m. All times are Eastern. Make sure YOU tune into NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen on channel RFD-TV. For more information, visit www.cattlementocattlemen.org.
Media Contact:
Tanya Augustson Camarra or Karen Batra at 202-347-0228, tacamarra@beef.org or kbatra@beef.org.
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.