Agricultural News
Livestock and Meat Industry Tell DOJ and USDA- Don't fix something that isn't broken.
Fri, 12 Mar 2010 8:18:37 CST
The Departments of Justice and Agriculture will hold their first joint public workshop today in Ankeny, Iowa, to discuss competition and regulatory issues in agriculture. The workshops are intended to "promote dialogue among interested parties and foster learning with respect to the appropriate legal and economic analyses of these issues."
Organizations representing producers, packers and processors in both the meat and poultry sectors released the following comments:
American Meat Institute- a Statement from J Patrick Boyle, President of AMI
"The continuing success story of American agriculture is testament to the hard work, innovative spirit and collaborative efforts between livestock producers and meat processors. Parties in the food supply chain are increasingly working together to achieve mutually beneficial success and assure our customers' satisfaction. These cooperative arrangements are generally referred to as marketing agreements. Marketing agreements have emerged as one of the most effective ways to enhance product safety, ensure consistent products and manage risks in a still volatile industry."
For a copy of AMI comments submitted on this issue, click here.
William Roenigk, senior vice president and economist, National Chicken Council
"Vertical integration is the preferred structure for the broiler chicken industry, and contracting with individual family farmers to grow broilers is an integral and vital component of that structure."
For a copy of NCC comments submitted on this issue, click here.
Steve Foglesong, president, National Cattlemen's Beef Association
"Cattle producers, like other businesses, support free-market principles in the buying and selling of their cattle. This has led to innovations in our industry such as alternative marketing arrangements that give producers options. Throughout this process, we want to ensure the ability of the producer to market their cattle how and when they want to."
Sam Carney, president, National Pork Producer's Council
"The way hogs are priced is a market-driven solution to the challenges of marketing hogs and pork. There are good reasons we sell hogs the way we do, and government intervention will require pork producers to do something they have found to be ill-advised. Producers have a justified interest in consistent access to the marketplace. Packers have an equally justified interest in a predictable and sufficient supply of high-quality market hogs. Don't fix something that isn't broken."
For a copy of NPPC comments submitted on this issue, click here.
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