If you like being cheated, don’t read any further.
I have put off writing about these problems for months, just hoping some more of you farmers, ranchers, and cattle feeders would wake up and see the truth. I cannot believe the majority of you would rather put your heads in the dirt and just ignore what is going on.
I have several friends and customers that are big believers in the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) and Kansas Livestock Association (KLA) and other state organizations that put total belief in what the NCBA puts out for facts. This market or predicament, whichever you want to call it, is the direct result of what the NCBA has accomplished for you. They have ownership of this mess and they need to face up to the fact that you are being totally cheated.
The above-mentioned friends and customers are good, hard-working people. I hate to see them, their children, their grandchildren and their neighbors up and down the road cheated.
I saved the Dec. 30, 2019 copy of the High Plains Journal because of an article on pages 43 and 44 titled “Black Issues Outlook.” The article summarizes some information CattleFax gave to some producers at a KLA convention Dec. 5 in Wichita, KS. These producers are KLA members. I don’t believe much of the fluff or excuses for us being cheated, but when he got to “packer profits” on page 44 he just plain lied to them.
He says and I quote, “Even though the packers are going to make $20, $30 or $40 a head this year on average, even though they’re going to make that, you understand, we don’t have to go find that demand.”
The truth is they have been stealing $200-700 a head all year, and it has only gotten worse during the current disruption. Even Drovers reported that packer margins had risen to over $770 a head by the week ending April 24, 2020 while feeders were wearing $260-a-head losses.
What is being done is totally illegal but the laws are not being enforced. Thanks, Sonny Perdue, and our legislators, who have sold most of us out. My favorite saying is, “You can’t be that stupid for free.”
The cattle people are not the only ones being cheated. The nation’s consumers are being completely ripped off as well. The packers have increased imports and some are reportedly putting meat into cold storage to further increase their margins. Thanks again to the cattle industry establishment and letting this happen. You should be very proud of your work.
However, there is still time to fix this broken system, but we need to act fast. The first place to start is by supporting the bipartisan bill introduced by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Jon Tester (D-MT) on May 12.
That bill would require all larger packers to procure at least 50 percent of their cattle from the cash cattle market. This would be a great first step toward ensuring a competitive cattle market and the livelihood of all those independent producers who depend on it. So pick up the phone of your local representative and voice your support for independent cattle producers.
Richard C. Chambers, Hays, KS
