AgWired

Within all discussions, the core question always asked is, “How do we get more people to eat more beef?” This question was the center of all the business decisions made during the 2011 Cattle Industry’s Summer Conference, explained National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) CEO Forrest Roberts.

The purpose of the conference, said Roberts, was to come together and make business decisions that drive action over the next six months when the group will reconvene in Nashville for its winter conference. “So as we wrap up our fiscal year in the next few months and head into our new fiscal year on October 1 this is the opportunity to bring all those plans together and where the final business decisions are made. So it’s a very roll-up your sleeves kind of meeting where everyone gets down to work,” said Roberts.

One area they really focused on was the relationship with both the beef industry as well as with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board. Roberts said the industry expects that to be one of a partnership and that is exactly one that he feels has been demonstrated during the week.

I asked him what the most pressing policy discussions were and he noted that the EPA is a big area of discussion as is trade – both free trade agreements that are pending as well as how to gain access to new markets. Another big issue is GIPSA. The last two months certified Angus beef had the highest volume month on record in history, and that particular proposed rule, said Roberts, would have a detrimental impact on what the beef industry has done in adding value back into the beef industry.

You can learn much more about how the Cattle Summer Industry Conference went by listening to my interview with Forrest Roberts here: NCBA's Forrest Roberts Wraps It Up

Photos from the conference are posted to this photo album: 2011 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album.

Kristina Harris Butts is the Executive Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). She sat down with me during the Cattle Industry Summer Conference to give me an update on a policy that hasn’t been so top of mind for policymakers these past few months due to their work on the budget. And that’s the 2012 Farm Bill. I asked her what some of the key points were for the cattle industry that need to be included in this bill.

During the meeting, NCBA put forth a Guidance Document that is the foundation of what the members would like NCBA to pursue in the Farm Bill. The Guidance Document doesn’t replace current policy but rather illustrates those priorities, explained Butts.

One key issue is maintaining the conservation programs that NCBA producers take part in. Like so many other programs, it has been cut. “We’re trying to figure out how we can maximize all these cost share programs where producers put in money and the government matches the dollars,” said Butts.

Another area that has been heavily debated is research. The research, says Butts, includes production research on animal diseases, production measures, genetics, and how we the producers can continue to use natural resources to produce the most amount of meat possible to not only feed our country but a growing world population.

Butts said there is a running joke that the Farm Bill is the nutrition bill since so much focus of the bill is on nutrition. But she says NCBA members support nutrition efforts and understand that beef is a healthy part of a diet and also believe that the USDA is the right agency for the programs being administered.

You can learn much more about the 2012 Farm Bill by listening to my interview with Kristina Harris Butts here: A Farm Bill for the Cattle Industry

Photos from the conference are posted to this photo album: 2011 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album.