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Group Forms Alliance with Australian Sister Organization July 8, 2010 New South Wales, Australia – R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard recently spoke to members of the group’s sister organization, the Australian Beef Association (ABA) about how independent U.S. and Australian cattle producers – even though they compete against each other in cattle and beef trade – need to form a strategic alliance to stand in opposition to global entities such as the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). “In fact, we need to expand beyond our two countries and reach out to cattle producers in other nations so we can all stand together against policies established by the OIE and the WTO that are causing our respective industries to shrink,” Bullard said. “And it’s our own governments that are eroding our national sovereignty by acquiescing to these global policies that primarily benefit the multinational beef packers, while producers’ concerns about the impact of these policies on their profitability and livelihoods are not even acknowledged.” Bullard told the Australian audience that U.S. cattle producers cannot allow their industry to follow the path of the poultry or hog industries where producers participate only at the invitation of the vertically integrated multinational processors that determine the terms of production, the terms of marketing and the value of the poultry and hogs. “This is not competition; it is industry control,” he said. “The forces working to capture control over the beef supply chain (meaning the live cattle industry) are global, but to effectively address this ‘capture’ of our respective industries by the multinational abattoirs, we must stop them, nation by nation. To begin the process of creating an effective and strategic alliance, we must first have an accurate understanding of how our respective industries function and the particular forces now in play in our respective countries that allow the multinational beef packers to capture control of the live cattle industry away from live cattle producers.” Bullard explained that the direction of the U.S. cattle industry is influenced by three major factors: 1) national policy goals; 2) international trade policy; and, 3) industry structure. National policy goals include: food security, food self sufficiency and food safety; the rural economy and the types of production systems, such as family operations versus corporate-owned entities; and, the U.S.’ goal to double exports over the next five years. “R-CALF USA has asked cattle producers in Nebraska what their long-term visions for their rural communities are and what their long-term goals are to achieve that vision,” Bullard pointed out. “Not a single cattle producer suggested that the U.S. should double exports. Instead, they all want to change the course of their industry to begin providing more opportunities for young people to enter the live cattle industry, and to accomplish this they want to restore competition so there will be more producer-owned cattle operations, as opposed to the growing number of large, corporate-owned cattle enterprises. Our respective industries must begin to articulate our respective visions for our future so policymakers will understand why we are so aggressive at seeking fundamental changes.” Regarding international trade policy, Bullard said producers must ask themselves some tough questions, such as whether these international policies actually protect our national goals, whether producers want to bow to global authorities such as the OIE and WTO, and whether or not we sit silently while our government continues to relax critical health and safety standards by allowing trade with countries with heightened disease risks, thus exposing our respective cattle herds to an increased risk of disease introduction for no other reason than to facilitate international trade. “Also, do we allow international standards to dictate the terms of production,” he asked the crowd. “This is what happened to Australia when the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) was implemented simply to comply with international edicts. When USDA tried to implement the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) here, our friends in the Australian Beef Association told us to fight NAIS ‘to the last cowboy.’ We followed this advice and we succeeded in stopping NAIS, at least temporarily. “On the subject of industry structure, we must grow the strength of our respective organizations so we become strong enough to influence our respective national policy goals and international trade policy so we can reform the structure of our respective industries and reverse the disastrous course of more and more industry concentration, which is causing a severe erosion of competition,” Bullard concluded. “We must do this to preserve and protect for everyone the opportunity to maintain profitable, independent cattle-producing enterprises in Australia, the United States, and in other cattle-producing regions of the world.” # # # R-CALF USA (Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of America) is a national, non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring the continued profitability and viability of the U.S. cattle industry. R-CALF USA represents thousands of U.S. cattle producers on trade and marketing issues. Members are located across 47 states and are primarily cow/calf operators, cattle backgrounders, and/or feedlot owners. R-CALF USA directors and committee chairs are extremely active unpaid volunteers. R-CALF USA has dozens of affiliate organizations and various main-street businesses are associate members. For more information, visit www.r-calfusa.com or, call 406-252-2516. |
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