Agricultural News
Federation of State Beef Councils Send Letter to Secretary Tom Vilsack on the Future Structure of the Federation
Tue, 03 Aug 2010 17:40:11 CDT
The Federation of State Beef Councils have gone on record in their desire to keep their ties with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association while becoming more independent of the NCBA and their policy division. The Federation adopted a resolution at their recent Summer Cattle Industry Conference in Denver. The Federation has also drafted a letter that has been sent to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack that includes a copy of the resolution- and stating that they intend to offer him specifics soon that will detail the Federation plan to seek independence from NCBA without severing ties that could hurt the efforts to execute national and state programs to promote beef in coordination with one another.
The letter to Vilsack also asked that "the voice of the Federation be heard and honored accordingly."
You can click on the PDF file at the bottom of this story to read the full letter and to see the signatures from State Beef Council leaders from 30 states to Secretary Vilsack. Click here for our earlier story from Denver featuring comments from Richard Gebhart of the Oklahoma Beef Council on the need for independence while keeping NCBA ties.
The Resolution that was adopted by the Federation of State Beef Councils reads as follows:
WHEREAS, the nation's declining cow herd means declining checkoff revenue,
WHEREAS, issues impacting consumer beef demand are more complex and ever increasing,
WHEREAS, there has never been a more important time to defend the beef industry on modern beef production practices,
WHEREAS, the nation's beef producers need a strategic plan that is focused solely on increasing demand for beef and,
WHEREAS, the discussions and disagreements over the Federation structure are time consuming and counterproductive;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the Federation should operate in a more independent structure while maintaining the synergies and efficiencies of the current relationship with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association and strongly opposes any effort to sever the relationship.
We talked with Heather Buckmaster, the Executive Director of the Oklahoma Beef Council about this letter and the intentions of the state beef councils to weigh in on where the Federation of Qualified State Beef Councils needs to be housed. Click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear that conversaton with her.
03192_Federation_RESOLUTION_AND_SIGNATURES.pdf
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