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| Farm World reader disputes column about beef checkoff |
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Having read over and over the article by Andy Vance (State of the beef industry is strong at annual convention, Feb. 11 issue of Farm World) and his reasoning that we need to double the take out to $2 per animal leaves me to wonder just what we have got for our first $1. I read what they say we got, but I don’t find any support for what they claim have been the benefits.
As Harry Truman once said, “You could put all the economists end to end and they would point in all directions.” Just saying it is so doesn’t make it so. I don’t doubt they need more money, but so do we. I am going to attempt to show that we aren’t getting any more or not much more money.
Using information obtained from charts quoting pricing indices from the period 1991 to 2000 and using the month of January and using the average as I figured it to be from the six states they listed compared to the current feeder steer price, 450-pounds, average weight, (Farm World, Feb. 18) I came up with approximately +$3.
That leaves cattle producers hardly enough to pay the raise selling charge compared to 10 years ago, let alone anything else. On the surface it looks like we would be better off to keep the first $1 and let you people find another line of work. I did my best to find information and it took about five hours to find what I am using. It came from the University of Arizona. The website is www.ag.Arizona.edu
I personally think cattlemen would be better served by taking their cattlemen organization dues and adding the difference between that R-Calf USA dues and joining them. Their focus is more on the enforcement of laws now on the books and getting laws enacted that would benefit cattle producers.
Twenty years ago when you took your cattle to the stockyards, there were agencies that would sell them for you. If you were not satisfied, you could change agencies. This tended to pressure them to look out for your interest. We do not have any recourse now.
You can get mad and jump and down, roll on the floor, cuss, whatever else you may want to do, but it will do you no good and probably do you harm because there’s no where else to go. Also there is little completion of ownership of these yards any more.
This does not bode well for individual cattlemen.
This organization has worked in the courts and the legislatures to protect our interest. While I am not saying they are present in the yards now to do this, it seems conceivable this is something they could be doing if enough people felt it necessary.
It takes members and money and if you win, then you have to spend to protect what you won and fight on for further gain, but the only other option is to do what we are doing now, just taking a beating. If you are interested their website is www.r-calfusa.com
Stewart E. Kopp
Corydon Ind. |
| 3/4/2009 |
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