Agricultural News
Retiring NCBA President Tracy Brunner Reflects on His Experience Serving America's Cattlemen
Wed, 01 Feb 2017 17:55:17 CST
As the Cattle Industry and National Cattlemen's Beef Association Convention comes to an end on Saturday of this week in Nashville, so does the term of NCBA's president, Tracy Brunner. He reflected over the past year serving cattlemen across the country with Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Farm Director Ron Hays before officially retiring from his post. His takeaway from the experience is a sense of awe and encouragement at the resilience and durability of the American beef producer and the industry as a whole.
"The past year has been very challenging for the American beef industry," Brunner recalls. "But as I've travelled the United States and talked with beef cattlemen, the one thing that I find everywhere is an overwhelming optimism that we continue to have a strong and efficient American beef industry."
Brunner insists that despite a volatile and unpredictable marketplace in current months, there is still tremendous opportunity for those involved in the beef industry. This confidence bolstered by a new administration in Washington with sights set on rolling back regulations that for too long have hindered not just agriculture but the business community as a whole, such as the Waters of the US rule, the GIPSA rules and the Death Tax. Trade though, he says, will be the key to continued success for an industry that needs access to new growing markets to absorb an ever growing supply of product.
"The best way to increase market demand for our product at the wholesale level is increasing market access and so we're going to continue to make that point with the new administration and emphasize the benefits of trade to the financial health of our industry," Brunner asserted. "If (TPP) is behind us, then we would encourage a new day in bilateral agreements or whatever it takes to expand that market access into Japan and lower our tariff rate access and give the American beef industry the level playing field that it needs to succeed in that market."
Listen to more of Brunner's thoughts as he prepares to leave his post at the helm of NCBA, in his full conversation with Hays, by clicking or tapping the LISTEN BAR below.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI
Top Agricultural News
More Headlines...
