The proposed GIPSA regulations and the impact of the recent Eastern Livestock bankruptcy case were the top issues on the agenda for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Live Cattle Marketing Committee meeting today.

Allie Devine, VP & General Counsel for the Kansas Livestock Association, gave an update on both at the meeting. While the outcome of GIPSA is still up in the air, Allie says there are lessons cattle producers can learn now from the Eastern Livestock bankruptcy situation.

“I would tell any cattle producer today, there’s nothing wrong with writing contracts, they’re not hard,” she told me. However, she acknowledges that goes against the grain of the people in this business. “The handshake is the hallmark of the cattle industry,” she said. “For the vast majority of them, they’re honest and hardworking and their word is their honor.”

“It’s tough, but when we’re talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars, it’s better to put it in writing,” Allie advises.

Listen or download my interview with Allie here: Interview with Allie Devine
2011 Cattle Industry Convention Photos

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