A Steak in Ag:

R-CALF USA may be defined as a non-profit producer organization, but our work benefits anyone who eats meat and lives in an economy that includes agriculture. We’re more than a producer organization; we’re your organization!

The meatpacking lobby decided to abandon their anti-COOL lawsuit and the case was dismissed on February 9, 2015. The anti-COOL meatpacker lobby includes the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) and its Canadian and Mexican counterparts, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and its Canadian counterpart, and four national and regional meatpacker trade groups, including the American Meat Institute (AMI) and the North American Meat Association (NAMA).

It is extremely frustrating to know that one of the main reasons the meatpacker lobby has such deep pockets with which to wage a multi-year fight against the economic interests of independent U.S. cattle producers is because several in their group are direct recipients of millions of mandatory checkoff dollars. Further, those members who are not direct recipients are nevertheless indirect beneficiaries of these dollars. As frustrating as this is it is equally disheartening to know that Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack refuses to do anything about it.

The meatpacker lobby first filed their COOL lawsuit in July 2013. R-CALF USA immediately joined forces with consumer group Food & Water Watch, affiliate South Dakota Stockgrowers Association, and the Western Organization of Resource Councils (WORC) to intervene in the lawsuit to defend COOL, and it worked!

On February 13, 2015, Canada confirmed its 20th case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease) in a native-born animal. Although Canada obtained confirmation of this latest case on February 11, it withheld information regarding the age of the cow until February 18, 2015.

At 71 months of age, this beef cow is the sixth youngest BSE-infected cow to be detected in Canada. Also, the cow was born and raised in the province of Alberta, which R-CALF USA refers to as a “BSE hotspot” because 75 percent of Canada’s 20 BSE-positive, native-born cattle originated there. Canada’s confirmation also establishes that the cow was infected with classical BSE, which is the strain many scientists believe is spread via the consumption of contaminated feed. In contrast, the atypical strain of BSE typically affects much older animals and is believed by some scientists to occur randomly or sporadically in nature.

R-CALF USA is encouraging congress and the public to ignore Canada’s pompous posturing against COOL and instead work to demand that Canada be more responsible in its disease eradication efforts, particularly by implementing a mandatory testing program and strengthening its feed ban. We urge everyone to call their congressional members to tell them to continue supporting COOL so every consumer can make an informed choice about where they want their meat produced.

Mark your calendars for this year’s annual convention: Aug. 14-15, 2015 in Denver, Colo.

R-CALF USA is solely funded by donations and membership dues. Please consider becoming a member or giving a donation. For more info or to join, go to http://www.r-calfusa.com, 406-252-2516.