Statement by Weldon Wynn Cattlemen’s Beef Board Chairman & Cattle Producer from Star City, Ark.: April 2, 2013
“We are gratified that the Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit of the Beef Checkoff Program for the years 2008-2010 identified no audit issues and reported full compliance by the Beef Board and its contractors.
“In quoting directly from the report: ‘The relationships between the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board and other industry-related organizations including … the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, complied with the (Act and Order)…. Funds were collected, distributed and expended in accordance with the legislation.’
“We are proud to receive this validation of the effectiveness of our systems and processes to safeguard producer and importer investments into the Beef Checkoff Program.
“Even with OIG’s confirmation that the Beef Board’s systems of oversight of funds are robust and effective and that its relationships with checkoff contractors are in compliance, the Beef Board maintains a mission toward continual improvement in our responsibility to producers. Since 2010, for example, CBB has operated under an intensified review and verification process, along with expanded and specific guidelines for contractors. In addition, CBB now requires contractors to provide additional information about implementation costs as they prepare funding requests, thus providing decision-makers with a more detailed understanding of project costs before approving them.
“The bottom line: Producers and importers can be assured by the OIG report and the Beef Board’s mission of continual improvement that our checkoff dollars are being invested appropriately and effectively.”
For a copy of the full report, go to OIG Audit Results