By Betty Jo Gigot, Publisher
Would you believe that, after some 15 years, I finally got to shake hands and have dinner with Will Verboven. Our “Rumblings From the Great White North” columnist from Alberta, Canada, and his wife, Cindy, are on a multi-state U.S. tour. They stopped by Castle Rock, Colo., to have dinner with me at Tribe, my inhouse restaurant. Will, a longtime observer of the ins and outs of the Canadian cattle industry, gives us a no-holds-barred view of our neighbors to the north. Be sure to read his column about how important our national elections are to the Canadian cattle industry.
Speaking of the election, by the time I write my column for our next issue, it will all be over but the shouting and, unless things change, there will be a lot of that. I was painfully reminded a couple of weeks ago about how drastically our business is affected by outside sources, including politics. At the Ag Trade Media Summit held by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) recently, the first presentation was on the evolution of beef. The emphasis was on how the role of beef has drastically changed through the years.
As an old timer, I had to reflect on the world events that dovetailed the advancements. Take President Nixon’s Economic Stabilization Act, which authorized the President to establish price controls in the ‘70s when the entire industry went into the red. Or the injection-site discoveries that put beef safety under the microscope. That issue prompted the initiation of the Beef Quality Assurance program, which has been a major advancement in the industry. None of us will forget the cow that ate Christmas in 2003, or can afford to scoff about moves that try to make beef the cause of climate change. Other countries are already moving toward taxing livestock owners for greenhouse emissions.
What the summit did do was remind me that issues management is one of the keys to our ability to tend to business, produce a safe and tasteful product and continue to be independent business people. NCBA is one of our best stalwarts in the matter. We have to be very vigilant and pay attention every day. Voting is one way to do that. By the way, remember the most important change in the beef we produce is our ability to consistently produce a high-quality product. Our customers demand that.
I hope you are registered to attend CattleCon 2025 the first week of February in San Antonio. That is one of the places you can personally make a difference in the future of the beef industry.
The Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame Banquet will be held Wednesday, Feb. 5, during the convention. Congratulations to Cattle Feeder Hall of Fame honorees Joe Morgan and Dan May, along with Industry Leadership Award winner Tom Jensen and Arturo Armendariz Award recipient George (Frank) Littrell. Get your reservations in as the room fills up fast.
Stories on the evolution of transportation in the cattle industry, long-range plans for biosecurity, and USDA feeder cattle grades are covered in this issue, along with reports on the Spicer Gripp roping and the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association Convention.
We CALF News were shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Greg Henderson, editorial director for Drover’s Journal. He was a star in the industry and a friend to many of us. Our condolences to his family.
Fall is upon us. I got to see cattle coming off of grass this week on their way to the feedyard. And the beat goes on.
