Town Hall Meetings Provide Give and Take for Beef Industry

From behind the podium at the First United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall in Gonzales, Texas, Terry Stokes is taking some heat from a local rancher. The $1-per-head beef checkoff doesn't work, the rancher is telling him.

Stokes, chief executive officer of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), listens intently as if he has never heard that point of view before. He has, of course, along with most other conceivable criticisms, compliments, questions and opinions offered by thousands of cattlemen he has met in his travels across the U.S. conducting town hall meetings on behalf of NCBA.

Stokes knows that a strong majority of U.S. producers support the beef checkoff, an industry self-help program to promote beef. But that doesn't make the Texas rancher's opinion any less valid, and Stokes is truly interested in hearing it.

Since July 2002 he has participated in more than 25 town hall meetings in a dozen states, in addition to state cattlemen conventions. His stated purpose is to "put a stethoscope on the heartbeat of members" and find out what's on the minds of beef producers. The meetings have taken him to such far-flung corners of the country as Indian Valley, Idaho; Pleasant Grove, Ga.; Miles City, Mont.; Zanesville, Ohio and Carthage, Mo.

The open forums serve a dual purpose. "Cattlemen ought to be given a chance to hear first-hand how government - and NCBA's lobbying efforts - are affecting their livelihoods," Stokes says. But more than that, it gives the trade association of America's cattle farmers and ranchers a chance to listen to the concerns of its members and determine where efforts should focus to provide maximum profitability for them.

Stokes empathizes with cattlemen struggling through tough economic times. "There is a great deal of stress in the industry right now," he says. "Producers have questions about what their organization is doing for them and they want to feel confident that it is working to keep them on the land."

Seeking Consensus

"Out in the country, there has been a perception among some that NCBA is detached and not in tune with its members," says Jim McAdams of Lubbock, Texas, vice chairman of NCBA's policy division. "The town hall visits are going a long way towards remedying that."

Stokes, he says, easily connects with cattlemen attending the meetings, and they in turn respond to his honesty and sincerity. "The industry has complex problems and Terry tells them there are no silver bullets to fix them," McAdams says. "He discusses what steps the association is taking to address problems.

"The economic pain being experienced by many in the industry right now is real," says McAdams, "and sometimes the passion bubbles over and there can be animosity. But even ranchers who don't agree with NCBA appreciate [Stokes] listening to them and the fact that NCBA is trying to represent the interests of producers and the beef industry to the best of its ability.

"Our agenda is what producers tell us it is," adds McAdams. "And where we have consensus, we can carry it out effectively. We run into problems when we don't. So this organization is all about trying to find consensus."

"At the meetings in Wyoming, Terry was very direct," says Jim Magagna, executive vice president of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association. "The hard questions came, and his answers were in line with the needs of the industry. They didn't always satisfy those who asked the questions maybe, because he wasn't trying to just give the 'right' answer, but answer what is right for the industry."

Like the volunteer leaders who make NCBA tick, Stokes never tires of talking about the cattle and beef business, and how to make it more viable. His passion for all things beef is rooted in a lifetime in agriculture. A native Texan, Stokes has been, at one time or another, involved in all segments of the cattle and beef industry, including cow-calf, feeding and packing. He currently partners with his brother-in-law in a small stocker operation in southern Texas.

This personal involvement makes him well-grounded in the realities of beef production at the same time that, as chief executive officer at NCBA, he is exposed to endless theories, projections and studies of the industry and its future. It fuels his desire to learn all he can about what cattlemen think and what cattlemen need.

"I think the input that we've had about some of their concerns really shows us where our focus needs to be as we look at our cow-calf producers and the need to reach out to them," he says. "Not all cattlemen can come to our annual meeting and our summer conference, so we're going to have to look at ways in which we can reach out and go to their home territories and listen and understand what their concerns are, and then come back and try to effectively address them."

Profitability is Key

Stokes is troubled by the fact that the biggest concern producers bring to the town hall meetings is how to maintain profitability in their operations. Their profitability is NCBA's sole purpose, he says. It's the reason why the association has worked to help build beef demand, to pass Trade Promotion Authority that enables the government to negotiate world trade agreements favorable to U.S. producers, to increase food safety, to lead the charge in overturning the estate tax, to help secure over $1 billion from the USDA to moderate drought losses, to push for a beneficial Farm Bill, to weigh in on the side of private property rights protection, to represent ranchers affected by environmental regulations, to establish a Price Discovery Think Tank that is exploring ways to capture more value for cattle producers.

According to Stokes, cattlemen are also voicing concerns about meat packer concentration, retail margins on beef products, country-of-origin labeling, biosecurity, public lands access, water rights, irradiated ground beef, and how to have more input into the decision-making process of the beef industry.

"There are a lot of questions about trade," says Stokes. "NCBA's position is, we want access for U.S. beef in the global markets, and we want a level playing field, so it's not just free trade, it's about fair trade as well."

The vast array of environmental regulations are heavy on the minds of producers, says Stokes, including regs recently released addressing concentrated animal feeding operations. The Endangered Species Act, in particular, troubles ranchers in the West, he says. "It's being used by some environmentalists to push our ranchers off the land. The Act needs to be revised to reflect more science-based - rather than emotionally-based -- decision making."

Another huge issue with cattlemen is the estate -- or "death" - tax, which makes it more difficult for some producers to pass their farms and ranches on to the next generation. NCBA has been far out in front on this, says Stokes, playing a crucial role in getting a 10-year moratorium on the tax, and working to get the tax permanently repealed.

Then there is the beef checkoff, which rankles some, like the gentleman in Gonzales, Texas. It is a subject Stokes embraces with enthusiasm. He says it is easy to prove the value of the checkoff and what it's done for the industry, and he is eager to discuss the national vote with which beef producers overwhelmingly approved the Act 16 years ago, the strict compliance NCBA must adhere to in contracting with the Cattlemen's Beef Board (which oversees the checkoff), the firewall that keeps NCBA's policy and federation divisions separate, and the "Beef. It's What's For Dinner ®" type of promotional campaigns that have been funded by checkoff dollars.

Miles to Go

Throughout his travels, Stokes reminds members of their ownership in NCBA. Cattlemen elect the officers and the board, develop and approve the policy and shape all the programs, he tells them. "Our Policy Division board of directors is 63 percent cow-calf producers, 30 percent feedlot operators, 6 percent allied industry, and 1 percent packers," he says. "We are cattlemen-controlled and industry inclusive."

NCBA will never stop trying to build its membership, Stokes says. Not only do more members strengthen the association's numbers and reinforce its considerable lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C., they add to NCBA's reserve of brain power, energy and talent - crucial ingredients for the beef industry's future.

Stokes has many miles to go before he sleeps. Coming up are town hall meetings in Louisiana, South Dakota, Illinois, Indiana, and several southeastern states.

"I think Terry's willingness to get out in the country as extensively as he has, has sent a message that was much needed: that NCBA, as the voice of the cattle industry, has their ear tuned to the voice of the producer," says Magagna.