A
Anonymous
Cattle Talk
#S2082742
Subject: NCBA?
Date: 08/07/04
Posted By: HAY MAKER
The fight over the checkoff is really a very tragic story and one of a rogue organization, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. The driving force to end the checkoff is the effort to defund the NCBA. NCBA has been the cattlemen's worst nightmare and wouldn't exist but for the checkoff. Because NCBA doesn't represent cattle producers, their membership and dues income continues to decline, making the checkoff income vital for their survival. Unfortunately in Washington, NCBA has promoted itself as the cattlemen's voice, even though it has opposed every reform that would benefit U.S. producers, including mandatory price reporting, mandatory country of origin labeling, a ban on packer ownership, and NCBA continues to oppose U.S. cattlemen in fighting unfair imports of cattle and beef. Like other corrupted National commodity groups, NCBA is actually a lobby for the highly concentrated, industrialized and vertically integrated production and processing food system - A food system where independent producers, their communities, and their countries go broke as all profits go to NCBA's friends in the meat packer/retailer cartel, a cartel that searches the globe for the cheapest, below cost of production raw materials, and a cartel that then sells into the highest consuming market -- the U.S. Due to the abusive market power of the packer and retailer, never before have consumers paid more for beef and never before has the producer of that beef received so little of the consumer dollar. Last month the cattle owner received 41% ($63.00 finished cattle) of the consumer beef dollar, down from 64% in 1979. This 23% loss, due to reduced competition, equates to over *$380 per head loss in income to the cattle producer. NCBA has been nothing more than a smoke screen of deception for misguided legislators to hide behind in their support for the handful of big packers and retailers that are raping farmers, ranchers, and the American public. No doubt that the checkoff has promoted beef, but the cattlemen who are paying the bill are not benefiting, and due to the NCBA supported big packer/retailer control of the markets, the consumer is getting the lowest quality beef in history at the highest prices. Unregulated capitalism becomes the most ruthless dictator. Meet our newly non-elected government - Tyson/IBP-Wal-Mart! *
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#S2082742
Subject: NCBA?
Date: 08/07/04
Posted By: HAY MAKER
The fight over the checkoff is really a very tragic story and one of a rogue organization, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. The driving force to end the checkoff is the effort to defund the NCBA. NCBA has been the cattlemen's worst nightmare and wouldn't exist but for the checkoff. Because NCBA doesn't represent cattle producers, their membership and dues income continues to decline, making the checkoff income vital for their survival. Unfortunately in Washington, NCBA has promoted itself as the cattlemen's voice, even though it has opposed every reform that would benefit U.S. producers, including mandatory price reporting, mandatory country of origin labeling, a ban on packer ownership, and NCBA continues to oppose U.S. cattlemen in fighting unfair imports of cattle and beef. Like other corrupted National commodity groups, NCBA is actually a lobby for the highly concentrated, industrialized and vertically integrated production and processing food system - A food system where independent producers, their communities, and their countries go broke as all profits go to NCBA's friends in the meat packer/retailer cartel, a cartel that searches the globe for the cheapest, below cost of production raw materials, and a cartel that then sells into the highest consuming market -- the U.S. Due to the abusive market power of the packer and retailer, never before have consumers paid more for beef and never before has the producer of that beef received so little of the consumer dollar. Last month the cattle owner received 41% ($63.00 finished cattle) of the consumer beef dollar, down from 64% in 1979. This 23% loss, due to reduced competition, equates to over *$380 per head loss in income to the cattle producer. NCBA has been nothing more than a smoke screen of deception for misguided legislators to hide behind in their support for the handful of big packers and retailers that are raping farmers, ranchers, and the American public. No doubt that the checkoff has promoted beef, but the cattlemen who are paying the bill are not benefiting, and due to the NCBA supported big packer/retailer control of the markets, the consumer is getting the lowest quality beef in history at the highest prices. Unregulated capitalism becomes the most ruthless dictator. Meet our newly non-elected government - Tyson/IBP-Wal-Mart! *
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