LMD April 2019

Riding Herd “The greatest homage we can pay to truth is to use it.”

– JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL

April 15, 2019 • www.aaalivestock.com

Volume 61 • No. 4

With Friends Like That

BY LEE PITTS

Y

ou can tell a lot about a person by who their friends are. Like-minded people congregate together wether it be Democrats and Republicans, or Catholics and Methodists. The same can be said about organizations. Who they align themselves with says a lot about who they are.

The raging war between the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and R-CALF has seen many skirmishes and battles over the years, none bigger than who the groups have chosen as friends.

NCBA’s Disinformation Campaign

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t’s no secret that NCBA and R-CALF abhor each other. They’ve been at each other’s throat ever since R-CALF was formed, primarily as a result of the NCBA’s heist of the checkoff. Their war was escalated to nuclear-like levels when Kendal Frazier, NCBA’s CEO, in 2017 dropped a bombshell on R-CALF titled “Unholy Alliances”. In his editorial Frazier accused R-CALF of aligning themselves with the Humane Society of the United States, certainly no friend of cattlemen.

Kendall wrote, “Groups like Humane Society of the United States and Public Justice are attempting to change the way we do business and they’ve banded together with groups like R-CALF and other like-minded organizations to target state beef councils and their work to promote beef. We might disagree on policy matters within the industry, but it’s another thing entirely to target the volunteer-led state beef councils through unholy alliances with animal rights activists and others intent on driving beef pro-

Some cowboys have too much tumbleweed in their blood to settle down ducers out of business.”

Frazier continued, “It’s unfortunate that R-CALF has chosen to become a puppet in the war being waged by animal rights activists and the vegetarians seeking to drive beef producers out of business. These shams must be exposed for what they really are. It’s time to stand together to stop the attacks, misinformation and propaganda.”

We at the Digest couldn’t agree more. And one of the biggest shams perpetrated by the NCBA and the livestock publications that print their press releases without question is that R-CALF has somehow aligned themselves with, or taken money from, the Humane Society of the US. Frazier must have gotten R-CALF mistaken for a different organization, The Organization for Competitive Markets, which did ask the Humane Society for legal help. But R-CALF never did.

But that didn’t stop Greg Henderson writing for the Drover’s Journal from implying that R-CALF is involved with the Humane Society. In one editorial he associated R-CALF with the Humane Society at least four times thus proving how effective NCBA’s disinformation campaign has been.

A Higher Class of Critics Bill Bullard, R-CALF’s CEO is not one to let such lies multiply without defending his group’s honor. Says Bullard, “This implication, of course, is purposefully designed to discredit R-CALF by implying it is somehow associated with HSUS. That is false. R-CALF USA is not affiliated or aligned with HSUS in any way. The HSUS had no role whatsoever in the ongoing checkoff litigation. R-CALF is the sole organization involved with this litigation and it approves every word of every motion, brief, memo-

randum and pleading associated with this checkoff lawsuit.”

Regarding the NCBA Bullard wrote, “We hope to soon attract a higher-class of critics – critics who will publicly debate us on the merits of our initiatives, not on the rumors from their propaganda machines. Meanwhile, if you paid dues to our critics’ groups, you may want to ask for your money back.”

Then it was Bullard’s turn to lob this bombshell: “While R-CALF USA is not working with HSUS or any other animal rights group, there is a real irony here. The NCBA is partnered with the global animal rights group, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), which is an organization that aggressively encourages high income countries, like the United States, to eat less beef. The NCBA and the WWF are partners in the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB) and the beef checkoff logo is used to facilitate that partnership.”

What Bullard is referring to, the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, was begun in 2010 to address the environmental, economic and social impacts of beef production.

The World Wildlife Fund was a founding member of the GRSB, which formally launched in February 2012 calling itself the continued on page two

Anti-Loggers Offer Highest Bid in Bozeman Timber Sale

BY MICHAEL WRIGHT BOZEMAN DAILY CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER

A

group of logging opponents offered the highest bid in the auction of a timber sale southeast of Bozeman, meaning the group will likely get their wish of halting any logging activity there for at least the next 25 years.

Save Our Gallatin Front offered a total bid of roughly $400,000 for a 25-year deferral of the 443-acre Limestone West Timber Sale, according to John Grassy, a spokesman for the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

The group’s bid topped RY Timber, the only other bidder in the sale. Grassy said the company offered the minimum bid, which totals about $376,000.

The results are not yet official. Grassy said DNRC attorneys were still verifying that the group’s bid was correct and complete. He said agency officials would sign a final decision and formally award the bid on Wednesday.

If the state finds no problems with the group’s bid, it will be the first time a group blocked an entire logging project by purchasing a timber conservation license, the rarely used legal option that set up the bidding war between nearby residents and the timber industry.

Tim Tousignant, director of Save Our Gallatin Front, said the group’s leaders are sitting

tight until the results are final, but that they are talking about it among themselves.

“We’re excited that we have the opportunity to protect this last slice of wildlife habitat that connects the Gallatin Valley to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,” Tousignant said.

Ed Regan, of RY Timber, declined to comment until seeing the final results.

DNRC first proposed the Limestone West Timber Sale in 2016, arguing that the trees in the area west of Mount Ellis needed to be turned into cash for the state’s school trust accounts. But residents of nearby subdivisions raised concerns that logging would disturb pristine wildlife habitat in one of the few roadless areas at the north end of the Gallatin Range.

The group became Save Our Gallatin Front, which requested the chance to bid for a conservation license in 2016.

The conservation license option has only been used once before to block a small portion of a sale in northwestern Montana. The license offered for the Limestone project is by far the largest DNRC had ever considered.

In January, the Montana Land Board approved auctioning off the timber sale and the conservation license.

Immediately after the land board approved the project, Save Our Gallatin Front sued, argucontinued on page five

by LEE PITTS

Work Is A Four Letter Word

I

recently read about a 23 year old woman in Spain who sued her parents because they refused to continue to support her.

She was living at her parent’s home, had no money, never finished high school and testified that her parents were putting undue pressure on her to get a job. She had held a couple jobs very briefly but she quit because, and I quote, “It was too much work.”

Which is kinda the whole point.

The lazy young lady may win her case because the average age at which Spaniards leave home is 29 years old, so she should have six more years of mooching left.

Spain is not alone in this outbreak of laziness. Over 20 million Americans between the ages 18 and 31 are still living with their parents.

And I recently read that in the future a good chunk of American males may NEVER have a job during their entire lives! I personally know a 30 year old man who has sired two children, lives with his mother and apparently feels in no rush to get a job. I’ve had another millennial young man tell me at age 25 that he feels burned out and hopes to retire at age 30.

I can’t relate to any of this. In high school I worked every summer. For two summers I picked citrus alongside Hispanic crews who could work rings around me.

These Hispanics must NOT have been related to the Spaniards because where I might pick 30 boxes of lemons per day they’d pick 50. Between my junior and senior years I got the worst job ever. I had to crawl under lemon trees, dig a basin around each tree and paint around its circumference 18 inches high to prevent insects from crawling up the trees. The toxic “paint”, which I’m quite sure contributed to my health problems later in life, was a nasty substance I can still smell now 50 years later. For this work I got paid the princely sum of $1.25 per hour.

As a youngster I also worked at a gas station, mowed lawns, delivered

continued on page eleven

Page 2

Livestock Market Digest

April 15, 2019

FRIENDS U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. According to the WWF, “NCBA forged a partnership with World Wildlife Fund, a non-governmental organization with a strong environmental advocacy reputation, to address misperceptions. Together they hosted sustainable beef workshops to highlight practices, inspire discussion and encourage collaboration.”

In addition to the WWF and NCBA other members of the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef include The Nature Conservancy, Cargill Meat Solutions, JBS USA, National Beef, North American Meat Institute, Tyson Foods, Inc. McDonald’s Corporation, Taco Bell, Wendy’s and Walmart.

The NCBA, big packers and fast food outfits ought to have been a lot more careful in picking their friends as the following news will illustrate.

The Global Spymaster

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According to the Internet news source BuzzFeed, NCBA’s buddy, the WWF, has been allegedly accused of funding guards who tortured and killed people in national parks in Asia and Africa. In the WWF’s efforts to stop poaching, BuzzFeed says, “Indigenous people and villagers have been shot, beaten unconscious, sexually assaulted, and whipped by armed guards in parks in places like Nepal and Cameroon. The World Wide Fund (WWF) funds, equips and works with these guards and turns a blind eye to these abuses.” The BuzzFeed report also links WWF staff “To a deal to buy assault rifles in the Central African Republic in 2009.” It further alleges that WWF acted as a kind of “global spymaster”, funding networks of informants to provide park officials with intelligence, despite publicly denying it did so.”

BuzzFeed said it carried out a year-long investigation in six countries, based on more than 100 interviews and thousands of pages of documents, including confidential memos, internal budgets, and emails discussing weapons purchases.”

The organization Survival International, an indigenous rights group, has made similar accusations against the WWF in the past. Their work claims to have exposed how numerous tribes in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and the Republic of Congo have been abused or killed by WWF-funded anti-poaching squads. “This is the scandal that WWF has been covering up for decades.

Its supporters’ money is spent on funding violent and abusive ecoguards who assault, torture and even kill tribal people with impunity,” Stephen Corry, director of Survival International, said in a statement.

The NCBA has a lot of gall wrongly accusing R-CALF of cavorting with the Humane Society while one of their partners around the Global Roundtable who they are “collaborating with” has been allegedly accused of aiding, abetting and being an accomplice to murder and other atrocities.

An Appetite For Destruction Wanting to learn more about NCBA’s partner, the WWF, I went to Google and typed in WWF. Some of the responses pertained to the former World Wrestling Federation, which,

continued from page one

when you think about it, has a lot in common with the World Wildlife Fund. Both are violent, phony and sneaky. One of the responses on Google about the wildlife group asked, “Is the WWF vegan?”

It sure sounds like it. What business does the NCBA have associating with a group that has an all-meatless agenda?

Don’t believe the NCBA would sit down at the Global Roundtable with a bunch of veg heads?

Then read this.

A report authored by the WWF said “a vegan diet can significantly lower our carbon footprint.” The World Wildlife Fund called itself “the world’s leading conservation organization for wildlife and endangered species” and concluded in one report that food choices are a central factor in global warming.

The report stated a plant-based diet will significantly lower one’s carbon footprint.” And hear this NCBA... The report emphasized that “a vegan diet as being optimal for lower carbon footprints while a diet rich in animal products had the opposite effect.”

According to the WWF, “Globally, 20 percent of direct greenhouse gas emissions are from food and agriculture, so clearly diets have a critical role in supporting the international mission to minimize anthropogenic emissions and limit the most severe effects of climate change.”

In yet another report the WWF suggested a vegan diet could also save animals from extinction. This report, titled “Appetite for Destruction” said, “Through our work on sustainable diets, we know a lot of people are aware of the impact a meat-based diet has on water, land and habitats, and the implications of its associated greenhouse gas emissions. But few know the largest impact comes from the crop-based feed the animals eat.”

The report focused largely on the unsustainable use of land because findings suggest that “producing crops to feed our livestock is putting an enormous strain on our natural resources and is a driving force behind wide-scale biodiversity loss.”

“Rarely a week goes by,” said this report, “without a headline about the negative effects of meat on our health or our environment. The reality is that we eat much more animal protein than we need to lead healthy lives. The growing demand for livestock products and the associated intensification and agricultural expansion threaten the biodiversity of these areas and the resource and water security of their inhabitants, as well as the stability of our food supply. Eating less animal protein would also make production systems with lower environmental impact and healthier, more nutritious outputs that much more possible. The growth in intensive industrial farming coupled with an increased need for protein and energy-rich animal feed has had a devastating impact on nature.”

One of the solutions that the WWF came up with to replace feeding grain to cattle was a bit unappetizing. “Using flies, crickets and other insects as food and feed for livestock could also reduce the mounting continued on page five

April 15, 2019

Livestock Market Digest

Page 3

FRIENDS pressure on land and biodiversity. Insects can produce the same amount of edible protein as soy and animal products, with less land, lower greenhouse gas emissions and similar amounts of energy.”

Digest This Why would the NCBA associate and collaborate with a group that believes the following?

“Beef production has several distinct and significant impacts on the environment,” said the WWF. “More agricultural land is used to raise cattle than all other domesticated animals and crops combined. In addition, cattle eat an increasing proportion of grain produced from agriculture, are one of the most significant contributors to water pollution and soil degradation, and are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. Finally, processing cattle into meat, meat by-products and leather

continued from page one

is a major source of pollution in many countries.”

“Researchers estimate that each year an area of rainforest larger than the state of New York is destroyed to create grazing land. Currently, over twothirds of the world’s agricultural land is used for maintaining livestock. One-third of the world’s land is suffering desertification due in large part to deforestation, overgrazing and poor agricultural practices.”

“Disposal of cattle production waste without proper treatment leads to the pollution of water resources. Sediment resulting from poor grazing management contaminates surface water and groundwater.

Beef production also requires a significant amount of water, most of which is used to grow feed for cattle.”

“Livestock farming is one of the main contributors to soil erosion around the world.”

“Beef production has a con-

siderable effect on climate change due to emissions of greenhouse gases such as methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide. Research shows that ruminant livestock account for between 7% and 18% of global methane emissions from human-related activities.”

“Between 1970 and 2014,” says the WWF, “global populations of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and birds declined by 60%. One major reason: where and how we produce food. The loss of wildlife is driven most directly by the loss and degradation of their habitats—such as clearing forests, grasslands, and wetlands to make room for pastures, cropland, and fish farms.”

“The production of meat, poultry, dairy, and seafood contributes significantly to habitat loss as well as greenhouse gas emissions and water use.”

“Beef and soy are the leading contributors to global de-

forestation.”

“25% of global land use, land-use change and forestry emissions are driven by beef production. Beef production requires a lot of land, water and energy, and generates considerable waste.”

“Our goal for 2030 is to reduce the key impacts of animal protein by 50% per gram of protein in the US and by 20% globally.”

And on and on. You get the picture.

If I was NCBA’s CEO Kendal Frazier I’d be a little nervous about another report due this year compiled by the WWF and the Rockefeller Foundation who are “partnering to undertake global research that evaluates the range of environmental and nutritional impacts of each key source of protein, from grass-fed beef to lentils, so that we can make apples-to-apples comparisons. The WWF says the results of this study will be

How to Help Fellow Cattle Raisers in Nebraska N ebraska Cattlemen is working to assist cattle producers affected by a recent blizzard and historic flooding by launching a disaster relief fund to collect monetary donations. If you would like to donate hay, feedstuffs, fencing materials, volunteer help, equipment, or if you are seeking assistance, please call the Nebraska Department of Agriculture at 1-800-831-0550. Read more at nebraskacattlemen.org/disaster-relief-fund.

Governor Issues Two Executive Orders Waiving Certain Requirements for Trip Permits & Deceased Livestock in NE Governor Pete Ricketts has issued two new executive orders to provide relief to

flood impacted communities. Executive Order 19-03 gives farmers and ranchers a reasonable amount of time to dispose of deceased livestock lost due to severe weather and flooding. Executive Order 19-04 temporarily suspends requirements for trip permits and fuel tax permits for

certain vehicles engaged in flood relief.

“In light of the historic flooding and devastation our communities have experienced, the Governor’s Office is working to cut red tape,” said Taylor Gage, Director of Strategic Communications for Governor Ricketts. “These executive orders will help our communities as they work to recover and rebuild after the most widespread natural disaster in state history.”

These orders are in addition to the Governor’s emergency declaration issued on March 12th and another executive order issued last week. The directives are effective immediately until April 15, 2019. Nebraska continues to encourage surrounding states to temporarily ease their restrictions as well.

the cornerstone of WWF and Rockefeller’s work going forward.”

We can hardly wait!

How does it make you feel that your checkoff dollars are being used so the NCBA can sit at some big roundtable to come up with some pie-in-thesky sustainability plan telling you how to raise your cattle with advice from people who are one of beef’s biggest enemies? You can add WWF’s sustainability ideas to Trump’s Russia collusion and global warming/climate change as nothing more than trumped up hoaxes weaponized to alter the political landscape.

Hey Kendal, before you go falsely accusing others of who they pick for their friends you might want to be re-thinking who you’re collaborating with around the Global Roundtable.

Page 4

Livestock Market Digest

More Cattle Placed on Feed in February Than Expected

BY RITA JANE GABBETT / MEATINGPLACE.COM

U

SDA’s latest Cattle on Feed report put cattle placements in feedlots during February at 1.86 million head, two percent above 2018 and greater than analysts had expected. Net placements were 1.79 million head.

During February, placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 340,000 head, 600-699 pounds were 345,000 head, 700-799 pounds were 530,000 head, 800-899 pounds were 442,000 head, 900-999 pounds were 135,000 head, and 1,000 pounds and greater were 65,000 head.

In the Cow Calf Corner newsletter, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist Derrell Peel called UDSA’s placements figures “significantly larger than expected” and the largest for the month since 2000.

The report put cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.8 million head on March 1, 2019. The inventory was 1 percent above March 1, 2018.

February feedlot placements were 102.2 percent of last year, which Peel said were close to analysts’ pre-report estimates.

Marketings of fed cattle during February totaled 1.68 million head, slightly above 2018. Other disappearance totaled 66,000 head during February, 16 percent above 2018.

Bad weather Peel noted that March weather combined with previous winter conditions continues to create uncertainty about cattle market conditions. The long cold winter has been characterized by persistent and deep snow in some places and wet, sloppy conditions in others. Now floods are devastating large regions along the Mississippi and Missouri river basins with additional flooding expected.

“The impacts on crop and livestock markets are likely to be felt for many weeks and months to come,” Peel predicted. “Cattle and beef markets are currently impacted with lower fed cattle weights, lost performance and, no doubt, increased animal morbidity and mortality. The timing of the floods is particularly insidious given that it is calving season for many cow-calf operations. This is likely to result in cattle losses even greater than would be expected during floods. It will take many weeks to fully assess the cattle losses due to winter weather and the floods.”

Lake Erie Just Won Same Legal Rights as People

BY SIGAL SAMUEL / WWW.VOX.COM

T

he rights of nature movement has inspired new legislation around the

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world It started in a pub. A handful of people, hunched over beers in Toledo, Ohio, were talking about a water crisis that had plagued the city in 2014. The pollution of Lake Erie had gotten so bad that it had taken a serious toll on their lives. The government, they felt, wasn’t doing enough to protect the lake. And so they wondered: What if the lake could protect itself?

The idea they hatched that night ultimately resulted in a special election, which had the citizens of Toledo voting on a very unusual question: Should Lake Erie be granted the legal rights normally reserved for a person?

The measure passed easily, which means citizens will be able to sue on behalf of the lake whenever its right to flourish is being contravened — that is, whenever it’s in danger of major environmental harm.

“There’s a lot of nervous energy,” Tish O’Dell, who was at the pub that fateful night, told me while traveling between different polling places in Toledo on Tuesday morning.

She was on tenterhooks as she waited for the election results.

“It’s like torture.”

If the stakes felt almost unbearably high for the activists who pushed for the Lake Erie Bill of Rights, it’s because this was the first rights-based legislation aimed at protecting a whole US ecosystem: the lake, its tributaries, and the many species that live off it.

The law isn’t without precedent, though. It’s part of the nascent rights of nature movement, which has notched several victories in the past dozen years. Rivers and forests have already won legal rights in countries like Ecuador, Colombia, India, and New Zealand.

Activists in the movement often argue that the environment is the next frontier in humanity’s expanding moral circle: over the centuries, we’ve extended rights to more and more beings, so why shouldn’t nature itself be next?

They reject the conventional Western way of relating to nature — as property that is ours for the taking, as an object rather than a subject — but they recognize they’re going to have to work within the existing Western legal system if they want that to change. They’re betting that the best strategy for protecting the environment is to stretch our society’s understanding of what counts as a person. It’s a bold bet, but with climate change decimating the planet at such a ferocious rate, it might be the kind of innovative thinking we need.

Contact

How the rights of nature idea took off

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April 15, 2019

In 1972, the case of Sierra Club v. Morton came before the US Supreme Court, leading to a deliberation over whether nature should have its own rights. The Court decided the

answer was no, but Justice William O. Douglas dissented.

“Contemporary public concern for protecting nature’s ecological equilibrium,” he wrote, “should lead to the conferral of standing upon environmental objects to sue for their own preservation.”

That same year, law professor Christopher Stone made a splash with an article titled “Should trees have standing?”

The first rightsbased legislation aimed at protecting a whole US ecosystem.

It catalyzed other academics to write a slew of articles and books considering whether natural environments ought to have rights enshrined in law.

In 2006, that question left the ether of academia and came to bear directly on toxic sewage sludge, which had been dumped in Tamaqua, Pennsylvania.

Residents fought for — and won — the first-ever rights of nature law in the world. Two years later, Ecuador became the first country to enshrine the rights of nature in its constitution, thanks in large part to the work of indigenous activists.

Since then, the victories have come fast and furious. In 2014, New Zealand recognized the legal rights of the Te Urewera forest. In 2017, Colombia granted rights to the Rio Atrato river and India recognized the Ganges and Yamuna rivers as legal persons. In 2018, the Amazon rainforest got its own rights, and for the first time, so did a specific plant species: the wild rice known as manoomin, one of the Anishinaabe people’s staple crops.

Granting the status of personhood to a natural environment may seem like a bizarre legal fiction, but it’s no more bizarre than the idea that corporations should enjoy that same status, which has been with us since the 1880s.

If we find it strange to view nature the way we view people, that may just be because we’ve grown up in an anthropocentric intellectual tradition that treats the natural world as an object to be examined and exploited for human use, rather than as a subject to be communed with and respected.

“The idea that we can be separate from nature is really a Western reductionist way of looking at the world — we can trace it back to Francis Bacon and the scientific method,”

said Ben Price, the national director for the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, a nonprofit public interest law firm that helps people facing threats to their local environment.

Price told me that just as women’s suffrage or the abolition of slavery were once unthinkable but gradually became accepted and normalized, the rights of nature idea seems wacky now but will eventually gain social currency.

“For the rights of nature to be understood and become something we’re comfortable with is going require a paradigm shift, just like the end of slavery did,” he said.

That paradigm shift may entail nothing less than a total rejection of capitalism, according to Eduardo Gudynas, the executive secretary of the Latin American Center for Social Ecology in Uruguay. He argues that attempts to reduce environmental devastation while staying within a capitalism framework won’t be enough to address the climate crisis.

“The debate around the rights of nature is one of the most active frontlines in the fight for a non-market-based point of view,” Gudynas told me. “It’s a reaction against our society’s commodification of everything.”

Will this legal strategy be effective?

The rights of nature movement has inspired new legislation around the world, but because it’s still in its infancy, we don’t yet have evidence about how much of a practical difference those laws will really make.

Ecuador, however, offers one example of concrete change. After the country enshrined the rights of nature in its constitution, locals have brought lawsuits against companies they say are causing serious environmental harm. In one recent case, people sued on behalf of a river that was being polluted in the course of a construction project. The court ruled in the river’s favor.

That outcome is inspiring to people like O’Dell in Toledo.

And now that Lake Erie has joined the ranks of natural environments with legal rights, the activists in the rights of nature movement are buoyed at the prospect of what comes next.

“There are many different effects we hope for,” O’Dell said. “One is education — that you open people’s eyes to this possibility. Two is to give notice to those doing the environmental harm that we’re not going to tolerate this anymore. Three is the hope that other people will follow you on the path you’ve started to clear.”

To Price, that last hope rises to the level of an existential need, given the pace of climate change. “We’re seeing the results of our narrow-mindedness, of our belief that nature is property and property ownership is the highest right,” he said. “The hope is that by beginning somewhere, like Toledo, the conversation enlarges. You never know what’s going to be the tipping point.”

April 15, 2019

Livestock Market Digest

The View FROM THE BACK SIDE

DON’T EAT THAT HAMBURGER!

BY BARRY DENTON

A

ccording to the publication “The New Republic,” which is confusing in itself, since it is a far left organization. What interest could they possibly have in a republic?

Anyway, according to them we Americans raise 33 million head of cattle, 112 million pigs, and 8.5 billion chickens just to eat. I mean, what else are we supposed to do with them, pet them? Do you realize that the “animal rights movement” believes that less meat consumption will lead to a production decrease?

Just think livestock emissions will plummet, the drought in the west would end, waterways would flush out pollution, and you and I could be “saved”! Do we really want to be saved from eating hamburgers, I don’t?

This is just too stupid to make sense of, but really folks; there are people that believe this nonsense with all their heart. These same people want to put an end to human domination over the other species. Does that mean that we should go out to the pasture and ask one of our cows to come for brunch tomorrow?

What would we serve? I guess leafy vegetables. Think of the conversations that you have missed all these years, just waiting to come out of all your bovine friends.

One of the headlines on the People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) website is: “ANIMALS ARE NOT OURS to experiment on, eat, wear, use for entertainment, or abuse in any other way.”

Now, I hate to have to repeat that, but I just want you to know, what’s out there.

Here’s another quote from these extremists, “We must abandon the incorrect boundary of “human,” which we use to justify the ongoing massacre of billions of beings.”

Rest assured that the PETA people who write this fantasy are sitting comfortably in an office with absolutely no threat from animal predators, because “humans” were intelligent enough to eradicate the predators, instead of being extinct themselves.

Remember to smile next time a mosquito is biting your arm and by all means, don’t swat it.

The last quote from the PETA website that I’ll bring to you is this: “We lose nothing in replacing a cheeseburger with a veggie burger or a leather purse with a fabric one.”

Analyzing this statement would just be too absurd. I figure if you want to eat a veggie burger that is just great

for you, but don’t ever try to convince me it’s as good as a cheeseburger. If you applied their logic to all things what constitutes their complete lack of respect for plants? Doesn’t fabric come from plants? Even fabrics made from plastic comes from oil which began with dinosaurs etc. I cannot believe that we are even having this conversation.

Most of us in the ranching and farming industry take great care of our animals for yield and pride of ownership.

The animals live much better lives than they have in the past.

The “United States Farmer” claims that in 1960 one farmer could feed 26 people and today one farmer feeds 155 people. We are making so much progress and animals are better off for it.

We even show many of the animals that we maintain. This is a sharing of ideas, which improves the health and welfare of the animal being shown.

Yes, there are a few that abuse it, but very few.

However, it is radical groups like these that would like to end the exhibition of all animals. I cannot imagine going to the county fair and not seeing animals. If these groups are ever successful and put an end to horse shows and rodeos, it would be a travesty.

Don’t think they can’t be successful, you do not see circuses anymore do you?

They are so far removed from what actually takes place on a ranch, a farm, or at an exhibition that they only see the downside of it. Only the downside is ever portrayed in their propaganda as they want you to think the entire industry consists only of the bad aspects.

One thing that the radical

Page 5 extremists do not understand is how much an animal likes its job. We are horse trainers and in the morning the horses go outside to eat in acre paddocks, then they are brought in and trained on, then turned back out for the rest of the day.

You ought to see these horses on their day off, which is normally Sunday. When you walk out to see them they are hanging over the fence wanting to go to work. They can’t figure out why you are not training that day.

Horses are like humans in that they like a routine and the feeling of accomplishment. No different than an elephant doing a great performance in a circus. The animal knows it’s a star and craves it.

Yes, all animals need time to themselves, but if you give it too them, they love to work as well.

Beware the extreme left animal rights groups. They are well funded, by people that do not know any better.

In my estimation they extort money with propaganda and little fact. P.T. Barnum said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.” He is so right!

ANTI-LOGGING continued from page one

ing that the terms of the license were unfair and shouldn’t have required the group to pay full stumpage value for trees it would ultimately leave standing. But Gallatin County District Judge Rienne McElyea denied an injunction request, forcing the group to compete in an auction based on the stumpage value.

DNRC sale documents show the project was predicted to produce 22,040 tons of saw logs.

The minimum bid was set at $17.06 per ton, which comes to a total price of $376,002.

Grassy said RY Timber offered the exact minimum. Save Our Gallatin Front’s bid was $18.15 per ton.

Tousignant said Save Our Gallatin Front would start a “full-fledged fundraising effort” to gin up the money to cover the license.

The group would be required to pay a performance bond to the state within 30 days of being awarded the sale, according to DNRC documents. A conservation license would be paid for in three annual installments, with the first due the day the license is signed.

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Page 6

Livestock Market Digest

Collectors Corner

by Jim Olson

Antique Firearms Advancements from 1300 to 1898

I

t has been reported, “the oldest surviving firearm is the Heilongjiang ‘hand cannon’ dated to 1288, which was discovered at a site in modern-day China, where recorded battles were fought.”

In the beginning, “firearms” were fired by lighting a wick to spark the powder in the barrel.

Loading and firing it was similar to how one would fire an antique cannon (hence the term “hand cannon”). One hand steadied it while the other lit the fuse. The operator had to brace the gun on something to fire it and accuracy was not that great. Sometimes two men were used to improve accuracy.

Then, in the 1400s, the first device, or “lock,” for mechanically firing a gun came about. It was called the matchlock and the Portuguese are credited with its invention. With the matchlock, powder was held in a “flash pan,”

and ignited by a match (or wick) in a revolving clamp (which the operator had to light first). The lock held the slow burning wick in a clamp at the end of a small curved lever (the serpentine).

When you pulled the trigger, the clamp dropped down, lowering the match into the flash pan and igniting the powder. The powder ignition in the flash pan went through a touchhole, igniting the main charge of powder in the gun barrel, firing the weapon. With this new method, both hands could remain on the gun, vastly improving aim. Authentic matchlocks are a rare find nowa-days.

The next major advancement in firearms came in the early 1500s. It was called the wheellock and it was a German innovation. The wheel-lock generated a spark mechanically. The wheellock works by spinning a steel wheel against a piece of pyrite to generate spark (similar to a Zippo lighter). This ignited the gunpowder in the flash pan, which flashed through a small touchhole to ignite the main charge in

the barrel. With no match to lite, the wheel-lock was more reliable than the matchlock (especially on windy days). However, wheellocks were expensive to produce, so matchlocks remained in common use for a number of years alongside the wheel-lock.

There were a couple improvements to the wheel-lock along the way (such as the snaplock about 1540 and the snaphance about 1560), but these were more or less improvements to the wheel-lock type system and were also predecessors (which paved the way) for the flintlock.

In the early 1600s, the flintlock was invented in France. It was an improvement over the other lock systems which had been in place for over a century.

The flintlock mechanism had a piece of flint which is held between a set of jaws on the end of a short hammer. This hammer was pulled back into the “cocked” position. When released by the trigger, the spring-loaded hammer caused the flint to strike a piece of steel called the “frizzen.”

At the same time, the motion of the flint and hammer pushed the frizzen back, opening a cover on the flash pan which contained the gunpowder. As a flint struck the frizzen, it created a spark which fell into the pan and ignited the powder. Flame burned through a small touchhole in the barrel and ignited the main powder charge, causing the weapon to fire. This greatly improved firearms as powder ignition was now even more reliable (and less susceptible to weather conditions). The flintlock system was in use for almost two centuries, with very little alteration.

In the early 1800s, the percussion firing system was invented in Europe. The percussion cap is a small cylinder of copper or brass with one closed end. Inside the cap is a small amount of

April 15, 2019 explosive material, such as fulminate of mercury. The percussion cap is placed over a hollow metal “nipple” at the rear of the gun barrel. Pulling the trigger releases the hammer that strikes the percussion cap and ignites the primer. A tiny flame travels through the hollow nipple to ignite the main powder charge. It was an improvement over the flintlock system and firearms continued to advance and become more user friendly.

For 50 years or so, the percussion system was king (although there were other inventions tried at various times). However, there were no major changes to firearms until the invention of metallic cartridges in about the 1850s. It was the first time the powder charge and the projectile were all in one handy package.

This was revolutionary! It was faster, easier and more reliable than anything else up to this point.

About 1852, a man named Rollin White, came up with the idea of having a revolver cylinder bored through to accept these new metallic cartridges. Although the very first in the world to use bored-through cylinders was reported to be a Frenchman named Lefaucheux (about 1845). He invented a pepperbox type revolver that loaded from the rear, using bored-through cylinders.

However, White, who worked for Samuel Colt at the time, patented the idea. He tried to sell Colt on it, however, Sam Colt refused the idea. So White left Colt, went to Smith & Wesson and rented them the license for his patent. This is how Smith & Wesson wound up producing the first widely used cartridge revolver. Their patent didn’t expire until 1870 and by then, Sam Colt realized the error he’d made.

So in 1871, the first Colt Single

Baxter BLACK ON THE EDGE OF COMMON SENSE www.baxterblack.com

90% Taxes is Nothing New

T

his year I’m having a déjà foo.

I remember learning in high school social studies that the maximum income tax then was 90%! I was stunned! Over the years I watched President Kennedy reduce the max tax to 62%. In 1989 Reagan reduced the max-tax to 28%. Tax Creep rose then George W. Bush knocked it back to 30% after the 9/11 depression and now, President Trump has used tax relief to lift a chronic economy out of stagnation.

It is an old cycle.

Lately some politicians have proposed Socialism as a future for America whereas max-taxes of 70 and 90% are demanded.

But do you think well-off Americans will pay these exorbitant taxes? OF COURSE NOT! This is America! A good businessman will call his lawyers, accountants and brokers to invest his money back into his own business, donate to charities, buy bonds, etc…all TAX EXEMPT! In the 70’s they bought cattle feed in advance, they bought barges, railroad cars, built apartments, bought farmland, funded construction and invested their money back into the private sector. They preferred to choose how to invest their own money themselves rather than hand it over to politicians. It was good for them but it left the middle class businessman struggling to get ahead.

Action revolver was produced at Colt’s factory. Eventually, this became the most widely known metallic cartridge revolver in history.

From the 1870s thru the 1890s, most firearm inventions conceived of and tried eventually went by the wayside. However, lever action repeating rifles and revolving cylinder pistols (both using metallic cartridges) pulled ahead of all others and reigned top dogs. This is the period where men like John Browning, Samuel Colt and Oliver Winchester became household names—and also a part of history.

The 1800s was an exciting time for firearm innovations.

The era started using flintlocks and ended with the invention of semi-automatics using metallic cartridges. There were numerous inventions tried and produced during this era and firearms advanced more during this 100year period than any other time, before or since. As the end of the century came about, smokeless powder was invented and this change, from black powder to smokeless in late 1890s, marked the end of the antique firearm era. According to statutes, the cutoff for firearms to be considered an antique is 1898. Anything from 1899 or later likely fires modern ammunition and is thereby considered a modern firearm (with a few exceptions).

Modern firearms have gotten lighter and quicker as time went by, but the same basic way they function has been in place since the turn of the last century. The 19th century (last 100 years of the period of antiques) was the most exciting era for firearms in the opinion of this author. Consequently, it is what a large majority of firearms collectors look for and collect to this day.

Jim Olson © 2019 • www.WesternTradingPost.com

I’m a good example. In 1982 I moved from a regular check to entrepreneurism with no “financial expertise or advisors,” so the government took half my money! It was tough.

Sometimes my airline ticket was more than my speaking fee!

I owe two presidents credit for making it possible to convert this “workin’ for wages cow vet” into the self-supporting cowboy poet that I became. In 1978 President Carter deregulated the airlines. Suddenly the airlines had competition and travel became affordable. Then President Reagan dropped the tax rate from 50% in 1983 to 28% in 1987. He let me keep my money to invest in my own business! I took off and never looked back.

This cycle of raising taxes – depression – lower taxes – expansion – tax creep – overspending and raising taxes, repeats over and over and over, like the tide. It is a battle of opposing political mentalities; Group One – liberals, live by words…lawyers. Group Two – conservatives, live by actions…businessmen.

Each group looks at the government’s responsibility differently. One wants to be Cared For, the other Left Alone. I don’t question either one’s motive, I just assume it is money and power. To those who are pushing extremely high taxes on the “rich”, remember they are not stupid. They will invest their money into their business, construction, infrastructure, research, industry, create jobs, erect a wall around their home in San Francisco, donate to Detroit Public Schools Foundation or some worthy cause before the government can take it from them. And finally, sky high taxes will also stifle low and middle class entrepreneurism from succeeding and leave them to join the 44% of Americans that pay no federal taxes at all.

Right or Wrong, I quote: “If you are not generous when you can afford to be, it marks you as a small person.

However, being generous with somebody else’s money simply marks you as cheap.” www.baxterblack.com

April 15, 2019

Livestock Market Digest

Page 7

REAL ESTATE GUIDE For Real Estate and Classified Advertising Please Call 505/243-9515

Bottari Realty Paul Bottari, Broker

775/752-3040 521 West Second St. • Portales, NM 88130

575-226-0671 or 575-226-0672 fax

Buena Vista Realty

Qualifying Broker: A.H. (Jack) Merrick 575-760-7521 www.buenavista-nm.com

Nevada Farms & raNch PrOPerTY

SCOTT MCNALLY

www.bottarirealty.com

Ranch Sales & Appraisals

TEXAS & OKLA. FARMS & RANCHES • 83 acre wood home with barns, meadows and woods. Fronts State Rd. $545,000 • 160 acre Ranger Eastland Co, $560,000 • 270 acre Mitchell County, Texas ranch. Investors dream; excellent cash flow. Rock formation being crushed and sold; wind turbans, On the Plaza some minerals. Irrigation water Donald Brown developed, crop & cattle, modest Qualifying Broker improvements. Just off I-20. Price 505-507-2915 cell Call Buena 505-838-0095 faxVista Realty at 575-226-0671 or the listing agent to $1.25 million.575-825-1291.

Lori Bohm 575-760-9847,reduced or Melody Sandberg 116 Plaza

SOCORRO PLAZA REALTY

PO Box 1903 Many good pictures on MLS or www.buenavista-nm.com Socorro, NM 87801 www.socorroplazarealty.com dbrown@socorroplazarealty.com

AG LOANS AGLAND LAND LOANS AsLow LowAsAs 3% As 4.5% OPWKCAP 2.9% OPWKCAP 2.9%

INTEREST RATESAS AS LOW 3% INTEREST RATES LOW ASAS 4.5% Payments Scheduledon on2525 Years Payments Scheduled Years

Joe Stubblefield & Associates 13830 Western St., Amarillo, TX 806/622-3482 • cell 806/674-2062 joes3@suddenlink.net Michael Perez Associates Nara Visa, NM • 575/403-7970

• 840 Immaculate, Hunt Co, TX. Ranch. Pastures, 40 tanks, and lakes. Beautiful home, barns, and other improvements. Some minerals, game galore. All for $1.35 million.

Joe Priest Real Estate

1-800/671-4548

joepriestre.net • joepriestre@earthlink.com

Bar M Real Estate

Selling residential, farm, ranch, commercial and relocating properties.

COLETTA RAY

Pioneer Realty 1304 Pile Street, Clovis, NM 88101

www.ranchesnm.com 575/622-5867 575/420-1237

575-799-9600 Direct 575.935.9680 Office 575.935.9680 Fax coletta@plateautel.net www.clovisrealestatesales.com

521 West Second St., Portales, NM 88130 www.scottlandcompany.com Ben G. Scott – Broker • Krystal M. Nelson – NM QB 800-933-9698 • 5:00 a.m./10:00 p.m.

RANCH & FARM REAL ESTATE

We need listings on all types of ag properties large or small!

■ TOP OF THE WORLD – Union Co., NM – 5,025.76 +/- ac. of choice grassland w/stateof-the-art working pens, recently remodeled bunk house, barbed wire fences in very good to new condition, well watered, on pvmt.

■ WE CAN NOW DIVIDE – THE PAJARITO RANCH – Guadalupe Co., NM as follows: 3501.12 ac. +/- of grassland w/a commercial water well located adjacent to I40 w/capability of producing large incomes together w/a great set of pens, a 17,000 gal. water storage tank, overhead cake bin, hay barn & other stock wells. 700.89 ac. +/- of grassland can be purchased in addition to the 3501.12 ac. The beautiful, virtually new custom built home w/all amenities and a large virtually new metal barn w/an apartment inside on 40 ac. can be purchased separately or with the ranch.

■ POST, TX – 6,376.92 acre ranch in Kent Co., TX on pvmt. & on all weather roads w/a virtually brand new custom built home, state-of-the-art barns & pens, a complete line of farm & ranch equipment, a registered Red Angus herd of cows, mineral income w/potential for commercial water sales & secluded, beautiful areas w/bluffs & meadows around every turn in the road, an excellent supply of stock water from subs & windmills, deep year round dirt tanks & The North Fork of the Brazos River through the ranch.

575-226-0671 www.buenavista-nm.com

SOLD

1509 Davis Rd, very nice home, lots of garage and barn space - 3 miles east 1242 NM 480, fantastic ranch home on 58 acres overlooking Portales 1809 S Rrd 8, south of town - beautiful 3 bdrm on 10 acres - great home 2344 S Rrd K, 3 bdrm 2 bath farm home with hand house, 7 steel grain bins, corrals, shop bldg - Select what you want and we will adjust price. Good location, on good road - mail route, school bus for Dora See these and other properties at www.buenavista-nm.com

M U R N E Y , ASSOCIATES, REALTORS® 1625 E. Primrose • Springfield, MO 65804 • murney.com • 823-2300

See all my listings at: paulmcgilliard.murney.com Paul McGilliard - Cell: 417/839-5096 • 1-800/743-0336

Missouri Land Sales • MAJOR PRICE REDUCTION! 564 ACRE GASCONADE RIVER FARM. 360 Acres of lush grass/hay/ tillable bottom ground make up this highly productive livestock/hunting property.Well maintained older 4 Bed, 3 Ba home. Only 45 miles east of Springfield, Mo. MLS#60115449 • PRICE REDUCED” DEVELOPMENT, 240 Acres surveyed into small buildable tracts. Hunting retreat (lots of wildlife), recreational (build your dream home overlooking your lake & enjoy!) Then sell surveyed tracts off to finance your retirement/investment. Good roads thru surveyed acreage, only1+ miles from Hwy.60 (4-Lane Hwy). A tract of land this large, surveyed in small acreages rarely ever comes on the market! Owner may divide & sell 160 acres or 80 acres. This property is priced to sell!

MLS 60128270.

• 80 ACRES - 60 Acres hayable, live water only 50 miles east of Springfield, 1/4 mile off of Hwy 60. 3 Bed, 1 1/2 Ba, 1432 sq. ft. home, nestled under the trees. Full basement (partially finished), John Deer Room. MLS#60059808.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA RANCH PROPERTY 31 years in the ranch business - see www.ranch-lands.com for videos & brochures

DUANE & DIXIE McGARVA RANCH: approx. 985 acres Likely, CA. with about 600+ acre gravity flood irrigated pastures PLUS private 542 AU BLM permit. About 425 acres so of the irrigated are level to flood excellent pastures with balance good flood irrigated pastures. NO PUMPING COST! Dryland perfect for expansion to pivot irrigated alfalfa if desired. Corrals & livestock scales. Plus Private BLM permit for 540 AU is fenced into 4 fields on about 18,000 acres only 7 miles away. $3,495,000 Call Bill Wright. 530-941-8100 BEAVER CREEK RANCH: about 82,000 acres - with 2,700 deeded acres plus contiguous USFS & BLM permits for 450 pair; 580+- acres irrigated alfalfa, pasture, and meadow from Beaver Creek water rights and one irrigation well. 3 homes, 2 hay barns, 4 feedlots each w/ 250 ton barns, 2 large reservoirs, can run up to 500-600 cows YEAR ROUND. Reduced Asking Price $5,400,000. 530-941-8100 NORTH FORK RANCH: approx. 2,822 ac - Winter range west of Cottonwood & Red Bluff, CA. Rolling oaks, stock ponds, seasonal drainage’s, good quality. Beautiful views of Mt. Shasta & Mt. Lassen. Good gravel road access with a good system of dirt roads and trails to access the interior of the ranch. Great recreational opportunities with hunting and fishing. Deer, wild pigs, wild turkey, quail and dove hunting! REDUCED ASK PRICE – now $2,965,000 Call Bill Wright 530-941-8100

BILL WRIGHT, SHASTA LAND SERVICES, INC. 530-941-8100 • DRE# 00963490 • www.ranch-lands.com

SULTEMEIER RANCH (First Time Offering) – Located 15 miles southeast of Corona, NM DOUBLE L RANCH – Central NM, 10 miles west of Carrizozo, NM. 12,000 total acres; along and on both sides of State Highway 247. 11,889 deeded acres, 2,215 NM State Lease 175 AUYL, BLM Section 3 grazing permit; Water provided by 3 wells and buried pipeAcres and 1,640 Federal BLM Lease Acres. Grazing capacity is estimated to be approximately line.A.U. Improvements house andbarns, pens. corrals Price Reduced: $1,150,000 320 year-long. include Two residences, and shipping pens. Five wells and pipelines.

Good deer habitat.

X T RANCH – mule Southeastern NMPrice: cattle$4,400,000.00 ranch 40 miles northwest of Roswell, NM on the Chaves/Lincoln County line. Good grass ranch with grass coveredof SOUTH BROWN LAKE RANCH – Nicely improved cattlegently ranchrolling located northwest hills.

8,000 total acres, 200 AUYL grazing capacity.

Partitioned into four pastures Roswell, NM. 5,735 total acres to include 960 acres deeded. 164 A.U. year-long grazing wateredModern by 2 wells with pipelines.

Callshop for brochure.

Price:Three $1,750,000 capacity. residence, bunkhouse, and feed barn. wells and buried pipeline.

UNDER CONTRACT

Excellent grass country.

Price: $1,300,000.00 SOUTH BROWN LAKE RANCH – Nicely improved cattle ranch located northwest of Roswell, NM. 5,735 total acres to include 960 acres deeded.

164 A.U. yearlong grazing L – X RANCH – Southeastern NM just ten minutes from Roswell, NM with paved gated and capacity.

Modern residence, bunkhouse, shop and feed barn.

Three wells and buried locked access. 3,761 total acres divided into several pastures and traps. Nice improvements pipeline. country.

Price: $1,300,000 to include Excellent a site-builtgrass adobe residence.

One well with extensive pipeline system. Well suited for a registered cattle operation.

Price: $825,000.00.

L-X RANCH – Southeastern NM just ten minutes from Roswell, NM with paved gated and STREET locked access. total divided several pastures andtotal traps.

Nice 19th FARM – 3,761 Located justacres outside the cityinto limits of Roswell, NM. Six acres with improvements to include a site built adobe residence.

One well with extensive pipeline 5.7 acres of senior artesian water rights. Improved with a 2, 200 square foot residence, horse system. for ahay registered cattle Price: $900,000 $825,000 barn withWell stalls,suited enclosed barn with tack operation. room and loafing shed. Price: $400,000.00 Scott McNally, Qualifying Broker Bar M Real Estate, LLC P.O. Box 428, Roswell, NM 88202 Office: 575-622-5867 Cell: 575-420-1237 www.ranchesnm.com

O’NEILL LAND, llc P.O. Box 145, Cimarron, NM 87714 • 575/376-2341 • Fax: 575/376-2347 land@swranches.com • www.swranches.com

WAGONMOUND RANCH, Mora/Harding Counties, NM. 4,927 +/- deeded acres, 1,336.80 +/- state lease acres, 2,617 +/- Kiowa National Grassland Lease Acres.

8,880.80 +/- Total Acres. Substantial holding with good mix of grazing land and broken country off rim onto Canadian River. Fenced into four main pastures with shipping and headquarter pasture and additional four pastures in the Kiowa lease. Modern well, storage tank and piped water system supplementing existing dirt tanks located on deeded. Located approximately 17 miles east of Wagon Mound on pavement then county road.

Nice headquarters and good access to above rim. Wildlife include antelope, mule deer and some elk. $2,710,000 MIAMI HORSE HEAVEN, Colfax County, NM. Very private approx. 4,800 sq ft double walled adobe 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom home with many custom features, 77.50 +/- deeded acres with water rights and large 7 stall barn, insulated metal shop with own septic. Would suit indoor growing operation, large hay barn/equipment shed. $1,375,000.

RATON MILLION DOLLAR VIEW, Colfax County, NM. 97.68 +/- deeded acres, 2 parcels, excellent home, big shop, wildlife, a true million dollar view at end of private road. $489,000.

House & 1 parcel $375,000

SOLD

MIAMI 80 ACRES, Colfax County, NM. 80 +/- deeded acres, 80 water shares, expansive views, house, shop, roping arena, barns and outbuildings. Reduced $485,000 COLD BEER VIEW, Colfax County, NM 83.22 +/- deeded acre, 3,174 sq ft, 5 bedroom, 3 ½ bathrm, 2 car garage home situated on top of the hill with amazing 360 degree views.

Reduced $398,000 $349,000 MIAMI 20 ACRES, Colfax County, NM. 20 +/- deeded acres, 20 water shares, quality 2,715 sq ft adobe home, barn, grounds and trees. Private setting. This is a must see. Reduced to $265,000

FRENCH TRACT 80, Irrigated farm with gated pipe, house, stone shop, many out buildings privacy. Reduced to $292,000 MAXWELL FARM IMPROVED, Colfax County, NM. 280 $350,000 +/- deeded acres, 160 Class A irrigation shares, 2 center pivots, nice sale barn, 100 hd feedlot. Depredation Elk MAXWELL SMALL HOLDING, home with horse improveTags available. Owner financing available to qualified ments, fenced, water rights and 19+/- deeded acres. Handy buyer. Significantly reduced to $550,000 to I25 on quiet country road. $232,000.

Page 8

Livestock Market Digest

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Our turn to serve

April 15, 2019

F

ood industry stakeholders, from farmers, feedlots, and major food companies, to supermarkets and the corner grocery, are re-engineering the supply chain in response to increasingly insistent and ever-changing consumer demand and new technologies.

In one example of major food and ag companies going where the growth is, meat-industry leaders Cargill and Tyson Foods have already shifted operations and new investments toward plant-based meat substitutes and cell-cultured products, produced in labs rather than in feedlots.

Last year, the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) petitioned USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service to limit the definition of “beef” and “meat” to products made “from cattle born, raised, and harvested in the traditional manner.”

Now unsurprisingly, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) calls both plant-based and lab-cultured competitors “fake meat.” Similar to the dairy industry’s lobbying to block plant-based milks like soymilk and almond milk from using “milk” in their labels, NCBA pledges “to make sure that fake meat — both current plant-based products and potential lab-produced products in the future — is properly marketed and regulated.”

At its’ recent 2019 Cattle Industry Convention, NCBA listed its top priority for 2019 as “Fake Meat — Develop regulatory framework that protects health and well-being of consumers, prevents false and deceptive marketing, and ensures a level playing field for real beef products.”

In response, the meat and dairy industries’ labeling or perhaps competition concerns, the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) has urged federal regulators to maintain current label latitude, explaining that “Plantbased food producers offer options that consumers want and recognize.”

States aren’t waiting. On January 1, with about a dozen other states considering similar legislation, Missouri became the first state to ban labeling new meat alternatives as “meat” unless the product is “derived from harvested production livestock or poultry.” Enforcement has been delayed while legal challenges are pending, but the law could limit availability of new meat substitutes in Missouri while the issue remains undecided.

More recently, Arizona lawmakers voted to prohibit sale of “almond milk” because almonds do not lactate. Under the House Bill 2604, it would have to be labeled as “fake milk” or “alternative milk.”

Despite pushback from incumbents like NCBA, dairy interests and some state lawmakers, food industry leaders

and venture capital firms are investing aggressively in new plant-protein and cultured meat ventures, as listed here.

Industry analysts look toward 2040 Rabobank’s annual “We Didn’t See That Coming” survey of food trends from RaboResearch Executive Director Nick Fereday notes that one respondent summed up the general consensus about 2018 well: “From delivering new products, changing business models, adjusting to consumer shifts, investing in innovation in various forms, and facing tough realities, the world of food is markedly different.”

Pointing out “The breakneck advancement of plant-based food and beverages was easily the biggest surprise to our readership,” Fereday highlighted three responses to his question about last year’s biggest surprise: “The continuous growth and enthusiasm behind all things plant-based.”

“The acceleration of plantbased foods — and the growing acceptance of the products by non-vegan, non-vegetarian consumers regardless if their motivation is for health, animal welfare, or environment.”

“The rapid growth in interest, investment, and sales of meat alternatives.”

Predicting that the food industry’s future is “Flexitarian,” Fereday stressed the importance of “Tyson’s game-changing investment in Beyond Meat in October 2016.”

Investor Bill Joy, a principal and chief scientist at Florida-based Water Street Capital, also sees a bright future ahead for new meat alternatives. In an October 2017 Washington Post Op-Ed, he explained that “We funded the startup company Beyond Meat in 2011 to make substitutes for meat from plant sources ... Widespread substitution would bring huge positive impacts in land use and for forests and human health. We can become much more sustainable by switching to these and other innovative products.”

For the overall food sector, Accenture Strategy’s annual Future of Food: New Realities for the Industry report forecasts “more change in the food industry in the next 10 years than in the last 50.” Accenture foresees “seismic changes in the food production system” thanks to new technology available at every stage in the supply chain.

At the consumer end, Accenture expects rapid-fire impacts from new AI (artificial-intelligence) apps that will plan consumers’ increasingly health-focused menus, perhaps following a doctor’s recommendations.

Next, the apps will use new online ordering and delivery services to automatically restock your refrigerator as needed.

At the farm level in the supply chain, the report predicts new technology will create a “reinvented food production system,” have “a tremendous impact on how food is produced,” and “remove uncertainty from growing food, managing the inputs to

maximize yield.” These advances, Accenture concludes, are “essential because productivity gains are projected to account for 80 percent of the crop output increase required to meet an increased demand for food.”

Peter Lane is confident there will be significant output gains.

He says that ever since growing up on a small British farm and deciding “there must be an easier way to make a living,” he’s been “designing systems to make farming easier, and more efficient.” Today he’s Vice Chair of the Association for Vertical Farming (AVF) and CEO of CEA Research & Development, focusing on urban farming and Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA).

Lane expects new technology to transform farming and the agricultural supply chain through extensive automation because “People don’t want to do the backbreaking work anymore. Automation is cheaper, it reduces waste, and can work 24/7. It also reduces risks across the board and increases quality and reliability, making true growing-to-order very efficient.”

Focusing on consumer demand The recent Cargill and Tyson Foods investments in alternative meats signal a dramatic shift with significant impacts not only for meat and dairy. Throughout the food chain, major food companies increasingly focus on satisfying consumer and retailer preferences — and farmers increasingly follow guidance from food companies and major retailers on what today’s consumers want.

Walmart has been a leader in analyzing consumer preferences and advising its suppliers about what consumers want. This major retailer is using its massive buying power to enforce its stringent standards for reducing climate-change impacts, deforestation, water use, and waste by urging its suppliers to comply.

The nonprofit Carbon Disclosure Project recognized Walmart along with 115 other companies with a total $3.3 trillion in procurement spending for collectively reducing their suppliers’ carbon emissions by 633 million tons of carbon dioxide in 2018, saving $19.3 billion for the companies.

Kathleen McLaughlin, Walmart’s chief sustainability officer and Walmart Foundation president, explained that since the company’s own carbon footprint is small, Walmart can only achieve major environmental gains by helping its suppliers reduce their climate impacts.

One example of this strategy is Walmart’s Gigaton Project aimed at creating a deforestation-free supply chain for the products it sells. Walmart’s goal is to have its suppliers, such as Unilever, reduce their carbon emissions by a gigaton (one billion metric tons) by 2030.

Unilever, a major supplier of food and personal care products, sees bottom-line benefits from its own goal of “Halving continued on page nine

April 15, 2019

Livestock Market Digest

Page 9

SUPPLY CHAIN

Cargill & Tyson choices One bellwether indicator of what could be ahead for the food supply chain as a whole in 2040 is that conglomerate giant Cargill, closely aligned with the traditional meat industry, sold its last two cattle feedlots, in Kansas and Colorado, in 2017.

It has invested some of the proceeds in cultured meat pioneer Memphis Meats.

Cargill’s 2017 sale of its last feedlots followed Cargill’s 2015 sale of its entire pork business to JBS USA Pork for $1.45 billion. Perhaps tellingly, Cargill in 2016 changed the name of its protein division from Cargill Animal Protein to simply Cargill Protein.

Signaling company strategy, after the 2015 sale of Cargill’s two Texas feedlots, John Keating, president of Cargill’s beef business, said “Anticipating the future direction protein demand is headed, we believe it is wise to redeploy capital away from feed yard and cattle ownership to projects that enhance our capabilities and provide greater value to our customers and consumers, now and in the future.”

Notably, the sold, low-margin feedlots are continuing to supply higher-margin Cargill beef processing plants under multiyear contracts.

Cargill insists that it “remains fully committed to investing in and growing our traditional animal protein business” despite selling off its feedlots and pork business. Cargill Protein group leader Brian Sikes explained that investing in Memphis Meats enables Cargill “to explore the po-

tential in growing the cultured meats segment of the protein market.”

Sikes said Cargill believes “consumers will continue to choose meat as a protein source.” But to meet this demand, he said, “Our traditional proteins, as well as new innovations like cultured meats, are both necessary.”

Cargill is not alone in jumping aboard the alternative foods train before it’s out of sight.

Memphis Meats, launched in 2015, raised $17 million in new funding in 2017 provided by investors that include not only Cargill but Bill Gates, Richard Branson, and venture-capital firms Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Atomico and Kleiner Perkins.

In 2018, Tyson Foods bought its own stake in Memphis Meats.

This means Tyson has hedged its bets by investing in both a labraised meat leader and a top plant-based-meat contender.

The Memphis Meats investment followed what Rabobank’s Nick Fereday calls “Tyson’s game changing investment in Beyond Meat in October 2016.”

Nielsen IDs what consumers want A 2018 Nielsen study for the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) makes it clear why industry leaders like Cargill, Tyson, Unilever, and Walmart are turning their battleships. The consumer research report spotlights what consumers want and why they’re eager to pay a premium to get perceived health and environmental benefits.

That’s exactly what food industry leaders are scrambling to provide: look-alike, taste-alike plant-based or lab-created alternatives to traditional foods.

Nielsen’s numbers explain why the food industry is rushing to respond to the already disrupted market. After 8 percent growth for 2017, total plantbased food sales now top $3.3 billion, catapulting 2018 growth (for a 52-week period ending in June) to an eye-popping 20 percent. The Nielsen report compares that with just 2 percent growth for all retail food sales last year.

The Nielsen report highlighted even more dramatic growth for plant-based meats, a growth of 24 percent in 2018 after a 6 percent surge in 2017.

With accelerating demand for plant-based foods including meat and the full range of dairy products such as cheese and soymilk, Nielsen’s earlier 2016 Global Health and Ingredient-Sentiment Survey drawing from 63 countries explained that not just U.S. but the world’s consumers are increasingly health-focused for four reasons: • “Global graying: The world’s population is aging rapidly ... and living longer.”

• “Chronically ailing: Chronic diseases ... are on the rise globally.”

• “Food as medicine: Consumers are taking a more active role in their health care, which includes following proper nutrition guidelines.”

• “Educated and connected consumers: Technology gives consumers access to a wealth of health information and products they can use to exercise greater control over their health.”

Tyson is eager to be a leader in the race to satisfy consumers’ rapidly growing taste for new alternative foods seen as health-promoting, transparent

and sustainable. Tyson Foods President & CEO Noel White clearly is determined to lead, promising his company’s “Green Street” high-protein alternative meats will be in supermarkets this year. In his Feb. 7 earnings call, White said Tyson is shifting into selling “great tasting protein alternatives that are more accessible for everyone.”

Pointing out “global protein demand has been increasing at a steady rate,” Tyson Corporate Strategy Executive VP Justin Whitmore adds the company will “continue to invest significantly in our traditional meat business, but also believe in exploring additional opportunities for growth that give consumers more choices.”

If White is right, Tyson alternatives will fill consumers’ shopping carts soon, joining forces with the meatless Beyond Burger from Beyond Meat, a 2009 California startup that Tyson bought into in 2016 and 2017, giving Tyson a five percent stake.

To ‘Completely transform the food industry forever’ As part of its strategy of offering consumers more newfood choices, Tyson has followed up on its Beyond Meat and Memphis Meats investments by investing in MycoTechnology, a 2013 startup selling mushroom-based food ingredients that reduce sugar content while promising to enhance taste, nutrition and value.

MycoTechnology, whose stated goal is to “Completely transform the food industry forever,” raised $30 million in January from investors that include food-industry leaders Tyson, Bunge, Continental Grain, and Kellogg’s. This latest $30 million brings a total of $82.6 million that MycoTechnology has raised in its seven funding rounds since 2013.

MycoTechnology’s $82.6 million compares with other leading fundraisers in the alternative meats sector: Impossible Foods’ $387.5 million, Beyond Meats’ $122 million, and Memphis Meats’ $20.1 million.

Alastair Cooper, senior investment director at ADM Capital Cibus Fund, explains the intense food industry interest in MycoTechnology this way: “MycoTechnology’s fungi fermen-

tation platform solves a number of the biggest challenges in the food industry, including: producing a high value, complete protein alternative to animal-based products, increased sustainability, and the ability to drastically reduce sugar content in foods. MycoTechnology is driving the growth of a new and disruptive product range, and we are thrilled to colead this investment round and fund the next stages of development.”

Tyson’s and Beyond Meat’s new foods seem well ahead of lab-grown alternatives from Memphis Meats that has wrestled its production costs down from $18,000 per pound in 2016 to under $2,400 today. That still means lots more research and scaling ahead to bring labgrown, cell-cultured meat down to a realistic price and meet the Memphis Meats goal of launching its retail sales in 2021.

concerns.

Last July, Danone North America CEO Mariano Lozano, Mars Wrigley Confectionery Americas President Tracey Massey, Nestlé USAChairman & CEO Steve Presley, and Unilever North America President Amanda Sourry launched the Sustainable Food Policy Alliance(SFPA). Heading four of the largest U.S. food companies, the four noted that SFPA “was founded on the principle that food companies can and should be doing more to lead and drive positive action for the people who buy and enjoy the foods and beverages we make, the people who supply them, and the planet on which we all rely.”

They added that in their commitment to lead by example, their four companies have already “independently proven a willingness to advocate for the long-term interests of the people who farm and supply our raw materials, and people who make and consume our products.”

SFPA’s plans show that the four companies want to encourage farmers and ranchers to transition to more sustainable practices through a combination of financial incentives and regulatory push through the Farm Bill. Specifically, SFPA intends to “work to advance policies that are impactful for the environment, while accounting for the specific business imperatives of supply chains, including farmers, ranchers, and other producers.”

Diving into farm-level issues in ways that could extend food company involvement across the entire food chain, the SFPA plans include: “Urging U.S. policymakers to ensure that the Farm Bill and other farm policies reflect the pressing need to increase the scale of actions to address water quality and water conservation issues, focus on improving soil health, and expand the deployment of renewable energy, particularly wind and solar.

The Farm Bill should leverage all available tools, including research and public-private partnerships such as the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), to make smart investments in conservation and

New demand driving innovation Memphis Meats co-founder and CEO Uma Valeti, a cardiologist, says Memphis Meats has “a ‘big tent’ philosophy, and collaboratively work with consumers, regulators, mission-oriented groups and major meat companies to help feed a growing planet in a sustainable way.”

Valeti and his fellow co-founder Nicholas Genovese broadened the same point in a Foreign Policy article in January, writing “Memphis Meats was born from the belief that humanity needs creative new ways to sustainably scale food production to feed future generations.”

Valeti and Genovese argue that far from disparaging or wanting to displace traditional meat, they’re introducing alternative meats both to limit environmental impacts and to keep pace with increasing demand. The drivers are global population growth coupled with income growth that’s accelerating global demand-pull for either “real meat” or equally tasty plant-based, high-protein alternatives.

Food industry leaders push for sustainability It’s not just newcomers like Beyond Meat, Memphis Meats and Impossible Foods responding to consumer desires and

ELM

continued on page ten

FARMINGTON

the environmental impact of our products by 2030.” It notes that “The company’s sustainable-living brands are growing 46 percent faster than the rest of the business and delivered 70 percent of the company’s growth in 2017.”

In another example of how the supply chain is responding to consumer preferences, Ken Dallmier, president and COO of Illinois-based Clarkson Grain Company, isn’t surprised that the farmers he buys from are paying increasing attention to what retailers and consumer research say consumers want: sustainability, traceability, and transparency based on knowing who is providing their food, from where, and with what practices and which chemical inputs.

Dallmier welcomes farmers’ increasing focus on fine-tuning their crops and practices to satisfy new generations of consumers willing to pay premium prices for food they consider better.

He also welcomes what he sees as the consequent “shift from a supply-push ag economy into a demand-pull economy.” He said as 2040 moves closer, consumers and, therefore, the supply chain itself increasingly “will demand transparency of production methods for food staples such as grains, vegetables and meat protein.”

Dallmier adds “producers need to be merchants who keenly analyze customer demand and develop markets and logistics to satisfy what the customer wants — not what we think they need because we have a huge pile of product to sell.” What consumers want, Dallmier concludes, are proven health and environmental benefits based on transparent, identity-preserved, traceable and sustainable production.

continued from page eight

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Page 10

Livestock Market Digest

WWF Accused of Funding Guards Who Torture & Kill in Poaching War SOURCE: WWW.BBC.COM

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lobal conservation charity World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and partner of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has been accused of funding and working with anti-poaching guards who allegedly tortured and killed people in national parks in Asia and Africa.

It says it is commissioning an independent review into the allegations made as a result of the investigation by internet news site BuzzFeed.

The probe alleges its “war on poaching” is causing civilian casualties.

WWF has promised to complete the review as soon as possible.

Indigenous people and villagers have been shot, beaten unconscious, sexually assaulted, and whipped by armed guards in parks in places like Nepal and Cameroon, BuzzFeed alleges.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) funds, equips and works with these guards, the report says, accusing some staff of turning a blind eye to abuses.

It also links WWF staff to a deal to buy assault rifles in the Central African Republic in 2009, against its own policies.

It further alleges that WWF acted as a kind of “global spymaster”, funding networks of informants to provide park officials with intelligence, despite publicly denying it did so.

BuzzFeed said it carried out a year-long investigation in six countries, based on more than 100 interviews and thousands of pages of documents, including confidential memos, internal budgets, and emails discussing weapons purchases.

‘Swift action’ WWF, who says it has hired an international law firm to carry out the review, said human rights were at the core of its mission.

“At the heart of WWF’s work are places and the people who live in them. Respect for human rights is at the core of our mission.

“We take any allegation seriously and are commissioning an independent review to look into the cases raised in the story. We have asked BuzzFeed to share all evidence it has obtained to support these claims, to help inform and strengthen this review.

“WWF’s work relies on deep community support, engagement and inclusion. We have stringent policies designed to ensure both we and our partners are safeguarding the rights and well-being of indigenous people and local communities in the places we work.

“Any breach of these policies is unacceptable to us and, should the review uncover any, we are committed to taking swift action.”

Source for NCBA connection: http://apps.prsa. org/SearchResults/view/6BE-1414C05/0/ An_Unlikely_Partnership_Serves_Up_Sustainable_Beef#.XH7K74hKjZs

Arizonan Elected to Lead Brahman Association

D

uring the 95th Annual Membership Meeting & International Brahman Show in Houston, the American Brahman Breeders Association board of directors gathered to elect their new officer team and Executive Committee. Loren Pratt of Maricopa, Arizona, was elected to serve as ABBA President; Pratt previously served as Vice President and Secretary/Treasurer, as well as 25 years on the Board of Directors. Craig Fontenot of Ville Platte, Lousiana, was elected as ABBA Vice President; Fontenot previously served as a member of the Finance and Executive Committees, Vice Chairman of the Youth Committee, and nine years on the Board. Joe Ward of George West, Texas, was elected to serve as ABBA Secretary/ Treasurer; Ward previously served as a member of the Finance and Executive Committees, Communications Committee Chairman, and 11 years on the Board of Directors.

The new ABBA Executive Committee was also elected at the Annual Membership Meeting. In order to serve on the Executive Committee, the person must have served at least two

full years as a member of the Board of Directors. The 2019 Executive Committee consists of Larry Barthle, Mark Forgason, Dr. Scott Satterfield, Rick Butler, Brandon Cutrer, Randall Tipp, and immediate past president George Kempfer.

Larry Barthle of San Antonio, Florida, previously served as Chairman of the Show Committee as well as nine years on the Board of Directors. Mark Forgason of Hungerford, Texas, has served ten years as a Director, as well as a member of the Marketing Committee.

Dr. Scott Satterfield of Palestine, Texas, previously served as Chairman of the International Committee, member of the Finance Committee and eight years on the Board of Directors. Rick Butler of Mt. Vernon, Texas, has served three years on the Board, as well as a member of the Finance and International Committees. Brandon Cutrer of Wharton, Texas, previously served as a member of the Membership Committee and has served three years as a Director on the Board. Randall Tipp of Sealy, Texas, has served two years on the Board, as well as Vice Chairman of the Show Committee.

April 15, 2019

Disease Being Imported into North America Via Dogs

BY ROB PATERSON / SHOWSCENE.CA

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r. Scott Weese and Dr. Maureen Anderson, of the Ontario Veterinary College’s Centre for Public Health and Zoonoses, published an entry on their blog, Worms & Germs, titled ‘Brucella canis in imported dogs: Ontario‘. This blog entry has alerted readers to a recent positive brucellosis test in Ontario from an imported dog.

What is canine brucellosis?

Canine brucellosis is a contagious bacterial infection caused by the bacterium, Brucella canis (B. canis). This bacterial infection is highly contagious between dogs. Infected dogs usually develop an infection of the reproductive system, or a sexually transmitted disease.Brucella Canis has been reported in many other species.

Brucella canis is a zoonotic bacterium, which means it not only transmits to dogs but to other mammals, including humans. B. Canis antibodies and/or nucleic acids (DNA/ RNA) have been found in: • Foxes • Coyotes • Golden Jackals • Raccoons

• Oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus) • Pumas • Ocelots • Guinea Pigs • Mice • Cattle • Sheep • Swine • Non-Human Primates

What are the signs of brucellosis?

Brucellosis in dogs typically causes reproductive problems such as infertility and abortions, with few other signs of clinical illness. The disease is most common in sexually intact adult dogs.

Male dogs infected with brucellosis develop epididymitis, an infection in part of the testicle. A dog with a newly acquired infection will often have an enlarged scrotum or an enlarged testicle and may have a skin rash on the scrotum. The dog may be infertile. In chronic or long-standing cases, the testicles will atrophy or be-

SUPPLY CHAIN sustainability.”

“Exploring the economics of sustainability, including financial incentives to reduce emissions and transition to low-carbon alternatives, with a particular focus on ways to create value for farmers, ranchers, and others who are implementing leading-edge practices to cut greenhouse gas emissions.”

“Advocating on behalf of smart, comprehensive energy and environmental policies at the state, national, and international levels, including the Paris Climate Agreement, the Clean Power Plan, or other commitments that result in change necessary to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with what evidence-based science says is necessary.”

Committed to making the supply chain sustainable & transparent The SFPA’s four founding members make it clear where they stand on controversial issues and how far they are willing to go to transform the food supply chain to prepare for 2040. Reaching into every part of the supply chain, from farmers’ fields and feedlots to consumer-facing product labels, here are four revealing statements from the companies’ reams of research and reports: Unilever: “Part of our Vision is to grow our business whilst decoupling our environmental impact from our growth. We consider the reduction of our greenhouse gas (GHG), water and waste impacts across our value chain, from sourcing our raw materials to within our own manufacturing and operations and consumer use. We also aim to source our agricultural raw materials sustainably.”

Nestlé: “In addition to our own employees, we work with

come shrunken.

Female dogs infected with brucellosis develop an infection of the uterus; causing her to be infertile, have difficulty getting pregnant, or she may abort in the late stages of pregnancy. She often has a persistent vaginal discharge. Typically, a pregnant dog with brucellosis will abort at 45-55 days of gestation or will give birth to stillborn or weak puppies that may die a few days after birth.

During the early stages of brucellosis, enlarged lymph nodes are common. Occasionally, B. canis will infect the intervertebral discs, eyes, kidneys, or brain. If the bacteria infects these other tissues, the signs will be related to the bodily system that is infected.

What about other diseases?

This confirmation comes on the heels of another imported rescue dog being diagnosed with rabies. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment sent out a press release on February 27, 2019 alerting the public. The infected dog was part of a shipment of 26 dogs from Egypt at the end of January. All dogs were then adopted. KDHE has instructed new owners to return the dogs for quarantine. continued from page eight

hundreds of partners, thousands of suppliers and millions of farmers around the world.

Our collective aim is to help develop thriving and resilient communities as part of a secure, long-term supply chain.

Our programs and commitments are designed to support rural development, promote and respect human rights, and ensure fair employment and diversity.”

Mars: “Looking beyond our operations, we are also tackling GHG emissions in our extended supply chain. Three-quarters of our full value chain carbon footprint comes from agricultural and land-use-change emissions associated with the ingredients we source to make our products. We are working to transform key supply chains by working with suppliers, farmers, and other partners to prevent deforestation and produce ingredients more efficiently and effectively for a lower carbon footprint. Sustainable agricultural practices, such as efficient irrigation techniques, resistant and resilient crop varietals, and increased soil health, will not only improve environmental impacts, but can help farmers thrive.”

Danone: “Danone North America requests the EPA to preserve the Clean Power Plan to combat climate change ...

Danone North America requests that Congressional Farm Bill leaders support the National Organic Program and National Organic Standards Board to maintain strong organic standards and integrity ... Danone North America supports Congress passing legislation to combat climate change.”

Those statements point to a growing determination among major food companies to lead the entire food sector into com-

bating climate change. To do the job, the companies propose increasing conservation efforts, expanding renewable energy, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from not only their own processing plants but from the entire supply chain, including farmers’ fields and feedlots.

Brett Sciotto, president & CEO of global marketing research firm Aimpoint Research, expects food companies and retailers to exert increasing pressure on the farm sector.

He tells Agri-Pulse that “As we look ahead to 2040 through our Farmer of the Future study and consider the escalation of supply chain competition for the attention of the consumer, it is not unreasonable to believe that the management practices prescribed to growers by food companies and retailers will be far more stringent than those necessary to comply with state or federal regulations.”

Kansas wheat farmer Tim Raile, as quoted in part two of this series, sees benefits from this new trend of food companies and retailers advising production agriculture about consumer demand. For Raile, the choice for producers increasingly will be between watching their grain pile up under tarps at the local elevator — or preselling their crops at a premium price by providing the sustainability, traceability and transparency that consumers and the supply chain increasingly seek out.

(Editor’s note: This is the fifth installment in our seven-part indepth editorial series where we look ahead at “Farm & Food 2040.”

This story focuses on the changing consumer expectations for food and how that’s impacting many aspects of the value chain of the present and future.)

For more news, go to www.Agri-Pulse.com.

April 15, 2019

Livestock Market Digest

Heinrich Maneuver Senator Heinrich, legal rights for nature and inflatable dancers

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resident Trump has signed into law S. 47, the “John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act”, now Public Law No: 116-9. Tucked within this massive, 640-page, 105,634-word bill, you will find Section 1201 containing 3, 338 words that designate 10 Wilderness areas in Dona Ana County, NM and in Section 1202 there are 820 words designating 2 Wilderness areas in northern NM. Both of these sections were a result of legislation introduced by members of the NM Congressional Delegation. Were any of these legislative initiatives as stand-alone bills passed by the House of Representatives? No. Were they subject to debate on the Senate floor and passed by the Senate? No. Instead, they were rolled into this huge federal lands package.

If these are such wonderful bills that benefit the public, why are they unable to pass them as stand-alone bills? If they have such broad public support, why are they afraid to subject them to the scrutiny and debate of the regular, traditional legislative process?

What we are witnessing is a particular legislative tactic by Senator Heinrich. He introduces a bill, gets a committee hearing held and sometimes gets the committee to pass the bill. But rather than taking the bill to the Senate floor, he holds back and does nothing until an Omnibus bill of some type comes along, and then attaches his legislation to the larger packet of bills.

Remember the Columbine-Hondo Wilderness legislation? Remember the bill to transfer the Valles Caldera from a public trust to the Park Service? Those were attached to the National Defense Au-

thorization Act in 2014, just like these Wilderness bills were attached to this federal lands package.

Let’s call it the Heinrich maneuver, and I’m confident he will choke us with it again in the future.

What I have raised questions about is process. The most important thing, though, is how this will affect people on the ground.

Wes Eaton, one of the younger ranchers affected by these wilderness designations puts it this way: “It is a shame how our senators continue to stack multiple designations on these lands, we now have a Wilderness on top of a Monument, on top of an ACEC, on top of a WSA, on top of Multiple Use. They claim they are opening up access to the public, if that was the case they would have left it as Multiple Use lands only.”

According to Eaton, the only things these designations accomplish, is to“… limit and restrict. Limit and restrict public recreation, the hunter’s access, the outdoorsman’s ability to go out and enjoy these lands.”

For ranchers like himself, Eaton says, “a wilderness designation will all but end the ability to maintain water wells for wildlife and cattle, maintain fences for grazing rest, and provide much needed brush control for the dominating invasive species that have taken away the grass lands this once was.”

Dudley Williams, who ranches south of Las Cruces, explains he now has four Wilderness areas on his place: Potrillo Mountain Wilderness of 105,000 acres, Aden Lava Flow Wilderness, of 27,000 acres, plus Cinder Cone Wilderness, of 17,000 acres and the Whitethorn Wilderness, of 9,600 acres, with the Potrillo just five miles from the Mexican border. “The last two were

RIDING HERD newspapers, raised show steers and ran a rabbit business that multiplied rapidly. In the summers between my three collegiate years I worked in the oil fields and during Christmas and Spring breaks, when everyone else went home, I worked at the university livestock facilities. Through it all I gained a work ethic that has served me well.

I’m 67 now and plan on working until I take THE LONG NAP. The unwillingness to work entry level jobs by young people today has created a shortage of workers in agriculture. Farmers have had to plow under entire crops because they couldn’t find anyone to pick them and many farmers are now switching to crops that can be picked by machines. Ranchers tell me it’s getting harder to find good cowboys and many have switched to hiring cowgirls. Even illegals are passing up farm and ranch work for higher paying jobs in big cities.

The shortage of milkers is forcing many dairies to switch to robotic milking machines and it’s predicted that by next year the agricultural robot industry will be a 16 billion dollar industry!

But inventors can never build a robot to replace the cowboy, can they?

never approved as WSA’s”, says Williams, “but were snuck in as 2 of the first sneaky land grab actions of the Wilderness Alliance.”

Williams continued, “we are going to lose nearly all access to fence repairs and dirt tank maintenance and most likely have roads closed to some of our other watering improvements. The bill says cattle grazing will continue as before.

How is that possible if our improvements deteriorate or disappear”?

“We cannot trust our politicians who are driven by special interest groups that preach untruths and twisted truths to get what they want”, says Williams.

“In this case, the elimination of public land grazing. Not by stating it as such but by making it impossible to continue with all the road closures and restrictions.”

It’s not just process, it is people too, and many are being hurt by this radical, progressive, environmental agenda.

Should trees have standing?

In a 1972 Supreme Court case, the court ruled the Sierra Club did not have standing to sue the Forest Service over a particular Disney project, because the club itself did not receive injury over the Forest Service’s decision. In his dissent, Justice William O. Douglas raised the issue of nature having the right to sue. Douglas pointed out that, “A teaspoon of living earth contains 5 million bacteria, 20 million fungi, one million protozoa, and 200,000 algae. No living human can predict what vital miracles may be locked in this dab of life, this stupendous reservoir of genetic materials that have evolved continuously since the dawn of the earth.”

Douglas went on to write, “Contemporary public concern for protecting nature’s ecological equilibrium should lead to the conferral of standing upon environmental objects to sue for their own preservation.”

Believe it or not, this has actually been happening. In 2014 New Zealand gave legal rights to a forest, in 2017 Columbia granted rights to a river and India recognized two rivers as legal persons. Last year the Amazon rainforest received it’s own rights. Most recently, the citizens of Toledo passed a Lake Erie Bill of Rights, which recognizes the lake as a person

Page 11 with all the rights that pertain thereto. Sigal Samuel writes, “…this was the first rightsbased legislation aimed at protecting a whole US ecosystem: the lake, its tributaries, and the many species that live off it.”

While our own rights are being diminished, those for animals and objects of nature are being expanded.

Dancing with wolves An Oregon rancher, Ted Birdseye, has lost five cows, a calf and a dog to wolves. To protect his remaining animals, Birdseye has employed a limegreen inflatable dancer, such as those seen in used-car lots. The inflatable dancer, along with a generator, were donated by the Defenders of Wildlife. The early results have been promising, although the rancher isn’t sure how effective it will be over the long term. Birdseye had previously tried electric fences, lights, flags, noisemakers and guard dogs in attempts to protect his livestock.

This victimized rancher is put in this position by those inflatable politicians who dance to the tune of the environmentalists.

Till next time, be a nuisance to the devil and don’t forget to check that cinch.

Frank DuBois was the NM Secretary of Agriculture from 1988 to 2003, is the author of a blog: The Westerner (www.thewesterner. blogspot.com) and is the founder of The DuBois Rodeo Scholarship and The DuBois Western Heritage Foundation

2018 HK Memorial Presented to V8 Ranch

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nnually during the Annual ABBA Membership Meeting, the ranch or individual who accumulated the most points at the previous year’s International Brahman Show in Houston is awarded the HK Memorial Trophy. The HK Memorial Trophy is presented each year in memory of Mr. Henry Clay Koontz.

This award was first presented in 1986 after the tragic death of Mr. Koontz, who was a long-time breeder and promoter of Brahman cattle. The trophy is a bronze casting of the National Champion Bull, HK Mr. America 61/9, better known as “Millionaire”, who had one of the biggest impacts on the Brahman breed of any bull in history.

The 2018 HK Memorial Trophy was awarded to V8 Ranch. Congratulations to V8 Ranch on achieving this prestigious award.

continued from page one

Helicopters are already being used in Texas to gather cattle and drones could be used for the same purpose by ranchers who can’t afford copters. I can envision squeeze chutes that automatically squeeze and release on the their own and sensors are already available that turn a bright red when an animal has a high temperature. Perhaps a drone will fire a bullet that contains antibiotics at a sick feedlot animal, thereby replacing pen riders.

As robots proliferate, Americans will live much easier lives but that doesn’t mean it will be any less dangerous. I have a lazy 35 year old friend who tripped over the round robotic orb that was automatically vacuuming his carpet and he broke his ankle. His unemployment benefits will soon end but he likes not working so much that he’d like to turn it into a permanent position. I told him that if he was looking for opportunities in the non-employment sector that Spain is nice this time of year.

Last I heard he was looking for a nice, wealthy Spanish family to adopt him. www.LeePittsbooks.com

P.O. Box 7458 Albuquerque, NM 87194 505/243-9515 Fax 505/998-6236 www.aaalivestock.com

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Page 12

Livestock Market Digest

April 15, 2019

Judge Rejects Anti-Grazing Lawsuit

BY KATY NESBITT / CAPITAL PRESS

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federal judge has ruled that grazing should be allowed to continue on four allotments in the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area.

Magistrate Judge Patricia Sullivan on March 22, 2019 released her findings on a lawsuit brought by the Greater Hells Canyon Council of La Grande claiming cattle grazing on the Hells Canyon allotments were imperiling the Spalding’s catchfly, a rare wildflower found only in the inland Northwest.

Sullivan granted a motion for summary judgment to the Forest Service and the interveners in the case, the McClaran family, which holds permits to the allotments, and Wallowa County.

“We are really pleased the magistrate supported our National Environmental Policy Act planning efforts, and we feel it is a good decision,” said District Ranger Kris Stein.

In her findings, Sullivan disagreed with the plaintiff’s assertions that the Forest Service lacked sufficient baseline monitoring data for the catchfly and that the agency was required to consider an alternative that would eliminate grazing in all areas where catchfly grow.

Sullivan’s findings also denied the plaintiff’s claim that the Forest Service violated the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area Act for not having strict enough measures in place to protect catchfly, listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. “The U.S. Forest Service sought to balance the conservation of catchfly with the responsible use of the area’s rangeland resources to support livestock grazing,” the judge wrote.

The suit, filed in January 2018, claimed the agency didn’t provide enough protection for catchfly across the 44,000 acres used for cattle grazing by the McClaran family and a Nez Perce tribal member exercising his trea-

ty rights to graze livestock on ceded territory.

The Nez Perce Tribe has traditionally grazed livestock in Hells Canyon for a few hundred years and the McClarans have wintered livestock in the canyon since the 1920s.

“The McClaran family has demonstrated a commitment to stewardship of the land on which they graze,” Sullivan stated. “For example, since 2005, McClaran Ranch has engaged in a system of rotation of cattle in the pastures within the allotments to tailor livestock utilization to on-the-ground conditions.”

Wallowa County Commissioner Todd Nash said he was pleased with the decision and credited Caroline Lobdell of the Western Resources Legal Center of Lewis and Clark School of Law for representing the McClarans and the county as interveners in the case.

“I can’t express enough how appreciative we are for that program,” Nash

said.

The McClarans are preparing for the 100th anniversary of their ranch in June. Scott McClaran said one of the provisions of the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area designation was to allow continued cattle grazing in the canyon to comply with local custom.

“The court’s findings noted the ranching operation’s essential role as stewards — not just of the land, but of the culture and tradition in the area,” McClaran said.

Veronica Warnock, conservation director for the Council, said her group remains convinced about the merits of the case and the importance of managing the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area and Wilderness as Congress intended.

“Under the management plan for the area, when livestock grazing happens at the expense of a threatened species, grazing must yield,” Warnock said in an email.

Int’l Brangus Breeders Hire New Executive VP

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ddy Roberts, president of the International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA), announced that Dr. Darrell Wilkes will assume the role of executive vice president of the 70-year-old Brangus cattle breed registry. Dr. Wilkes comes with an extensive list of

credentials and experience over a career that spans stints with National Cattleman’s Association (now NCBA), ABS Global and most recently running the family registered cattle operation in Wyoming, while also teaching at Eastern Wyoming College and serving on their

board of trustees.

“We as a board have been searching diligently for a new leader; a person of character, familiar with all aspects of beef production from pasture to plate”, said Roberts, adding, “Our executive vice president sets the tone for the Brangus

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breed from the office, to active engagement of the membership and spanning all aspects of the Industry from the commercial cow calf segment all the way to creating a great eating experience with the consumer.”

Roberts also noted, “Dr. Wilkes’ considerable experience and contacts across the breadth of the beef industry will serve us well, as we set a path for growth in the coming years.”

Dr. Wilkes says, “I am very excited to be involved with a breed of cattle that I believe brings enormous value to the beef industry, and has a great opportunity to grow its market share. I have dedicated my career to improving the beef industry, and look forward to continuing this quest at IBBA. The association is on the leading edge of genetic evaluation and is populated with down-to-earth genuine cattlemen and women who are truly dedicated to the same goals that I have embraced my entire career.”

Dr. Wilkes earned B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Wyoming in Zoology/Biochemistry and Animal Breeding, respectively. He then became a Buckeye, earning a Ph.D. in quantitative genetics from The Ohio State University. He was recognized as a Distinguished Alumni of Ohio State for his work at the (then) National Cat-

tlemen’s Association, including such initiatives as the National Consumer Retail Beef Study, the Beef Quality Assurance Program, the National Beef Quality Audit and the Strategic Alliance Field Study, to name a few. As founder and president of the consulting firm Integrated Beef Technologies, he helped launch the use of Electronic ID (EID) and developed systems to seamlessly transfer ID from cattle-to-carcass in packing plants, thus allowing explosive growth in the amount of carcass data available to cattle breeders. He spent over a decade with ABS Global, advising breeders on genetic improvement and reproductive management.

The search committee had a three-month intense search for their new executive vice president. The committee stated, “The applicants for the position were from across the nation and from four different countries.

The qualities of the candidates interviewed were outstanding.

We and the Board of Directors ultimately decided on Dr. Darrell Wilkes. His experience in beef association organizations, private industry, and as a seed stock producer give him a unique skill set. We as a committee felt his qualifications, experience, and personality would make him a great addition to the IBBA organization.”

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ow’s the time to apply for the 2019 National Lamb Feeders Association Howard Wyman Sheep Industry Leadership School. Harrisburg, Penn., will host the school on July 7-10, and applications are due by April 30.

According to the NLFA website (https://www.lambfeedersusa.org), the school is held annually at various locations throughout the United States.

The objective is to educate the lamb industry about various production and processing programs, industry trade organizations, government issues as well as sales,

marketing and consumer information, forming new leaders for the industry. As the lamb industry continues to face new challenges with competition from foreign markets, other proteins, new food innovations and regulations, the NFLA believes that it is imperative to solidify a new generation of lamb industry leaders to keep the industry viable for generations to come.

Visit http://appdevserver.com/wp/national-lamb/ howard-wyman-sheep-industry-leadership-school-application to apply online for the 2019 NLFA Leadership School.