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Re: Oprah Eyes Food: TV segment should spur industry to speak up

Cowgirl_Logic — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 08:43:19 -0000

Kevin and Cowboy have articulated what many ranchers feel. Kendra, this is a good place to discuss the issue of why ranchers feel forced to support practices they neither employ in their operations nor condone for any reason.

I see a rough road ahead economically for all of agriculture and this country. "We" are looking at drought management, which means culling cows and possibly weaning sooner than normal
I am not so sure this doesn't apply to our industry as a whole.

Publicly, responding errantly to the framed argument is a losing proposition. Within the cow-calf industry, we need to take another look at where we put our efforts and hard earned dollars.

Many of us spend long hours on environmental issues, trying to solve decades-old issues about our cattle grazing. As urban encroachment brings more "city folk" nearer, we find ourselves heavily involved in land planning and all manner of places we wish we did not need to be.

In California, a large portion of our check-off dollars comes from the dairy industry. Over the years, we have been told by our industry organizations that we are a beef industry, not a ranching industry.

Furthermore, nearly a decade ago, we were told that the only way to survive was vertical integration. I think that the hog and chicken markets have clearly shown us what that future looks like.

I don't want to start World War 3 here, but there is much to be addressed. Many California County Cattlemen's Associations have a large constituency of "backyard ranchers"- people who do not rely on cattle for their sole ( or major) source of income. This brings another facet to our shrinking industry.

We face environmental issues, urban encroachment issues, P.R. issues over our processing on the ranch and each day brings something new. Many ranchers are abrogating part of their property rights in exchange for tax credits ( evidently not working well in Colorado) or infusions of cash to their operations. Some want only to see their ranches stay intact, and some need the money.

I am not sure how salient the argument is to ask ranchers to support something that is not either in their area of expertise, nor acceptable to them on any level. This is going to be a tough call for our industry organizations, since they are first and foremost fueled by dollars.

In your article, Kendra, you state that the beef industry needs to promote the story of beef, featuring producers who raise the cattle. I agree. The problem we face is that the "beef industry" was defined for us to include the dairy industry. The California dairy industry promotes its members with fantastic ads showing dairy cattle on vast acreages of pasture. Certainly not what I have seen- especially in Chino's milk shed.

Consumers are looking for beef that comes from a trusted source. To that end, we need to focus on how to build that trust, rather than to waste our efforts defending the indefensible.

The issues of how other "livestock" is raised HAVE bled over to our industry, as proven by Oprah's show and this blog. If we can change the whole industry to focus on black hided European cattle to answer consumer demand, certainly we can change our focus on this issue before it gets worse.

Re: Oprah Eyes Food: TV segment should spur industry to speak up

Cowgirl_Logic — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:22:19 -0000

Rancher makes a very good point. I had the same problem with the Checkoff. I may sound like a broken record, but somehow our industry organizations need to hear us and step up to the plate to promote ranching even more. I think it is patently foolish that we spend so much "defending" and do not afford the same to promoting. This is a stciky issue, but worth the effort..

Re: Oprah Eyes Food: TV segment should spur industry to speak up

Cowgirl_Logic — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 11:17:59 -0000

I think perhaps, we miss the point. Producers see the chickens, hogs and calves as a commodity. Consumers see them as animals. We walk a pretty fine line when we try to defend this notion. For instance, ranchers can and should pipe up about their operations, but I don’t know any that will say they have scores of baby claves in crates, do you?

This isn’t new. Oprah had that “wing nut” on years ago who claimed cruelty, disease , and wastefulness add nauseum in the feedlots. Do you remember how part of the industry responded? It was the wreck of the century. Here in California, consumers are more aggressive about where their food comes from and vote heavily with their dollars. A walk into the local Raley’s even in a rural northern California town reveals many more free range eggs, vegan, organic, etc, and far less of the “standard” . The prices here- where the eggs come from- are a lot higher than what the previous poster mentioned. I paid $4 for Eggland’s best which are not cag- less.

When thinking about these issues, the cowmen/ women have the upper hand on telling their stories to the consumer, and I agree they should be busy doing it whenever and however they can. Invite the local TV news out to see your ranch. Introduce them to your special dog , horse, kids who enjoy your lifestyle while providing wholesome beef. Show them frisky calves butting heads and running around . Explain to them the unique ability for moms and babies to find each other if baby should get a little lost.

Watch how politicians skirt issues they don’t want to address. You must focus on what you do- not upon defending a practice from another industry. You, as a rancher- will do no good trying to defend a calf in a cage to any consumer.

Responding to consumer demands is costly for sure, but the alternative will put us all in the soup line. It is a difficult issue for me personally considering the dairy industry as part of the beef industry. In California, it is not a choice. The two are melded inextricably and the cattlemen end up being hit with many issues that just do not emanate from the beef cow industry. In addition, the move towards a particular breed for beef- meeting consumer demands- has been costly for people with ranches suited to more drought tolerant genetics. Genetic now lean heavily to palatability and far less to environmental adaptability. And of course, there is the genius behind the marketing which has moved the consumer into believing that “black” and “angus” means “best”. Look at the market, the color alone now weighs heavily on the price.

I do not condone pointing fingers, but I do believe that ranchers can distance themselves from these issues by allowing people to see them. I believe with all my heart that most people are still in awe of the hardworking men and women who operate ranches across the country. So- let them see your calves in their pastures!

You can’t expect any housewife with no ties to agriculture to appreciate a little calf in a crate, a sow in a crate or chickens in little cages, nor should you. You can leave that issue to the folks who do it, and focus on what you do. When you think about it, the cowmen/women can be the most economically and environmentally responsible industry around- converting plant matter on rangelands into high quality protein with no chemical or fossil fuel input. Find what you can share, be open-minded and realize that people like Oprah aren’t trying to hurt an industry- she is trying to put her passions out there for others to follow. She can’t do that if people see us and know better.