and Field says it is growing. “We have members of our team that work on government affairs issues at all levels,” she notes. “We also do quite a bit of education for producers,so we have an education team. We have a communications team that helps us get the messages out because, as a membership organization, it’s key that we keep and grow the membership.” “We also have a unique and specialized team of staff members who work in the area of cattle marketing, so we have the Market Reporting Service, which gives real-time marketing data so our members can see what the trends are looking like and communicate with their fellow producers, regionally, about what they’re seeing in their areas,” she elaborates. The Nebraska Cattlemen also publishes a monthly magazine, which is sent to nearly 80% of all beef producers in the state. Its features emphasize business management and include topics such as marketing, genetics, nutrition, forage and pasture management, and animal health. It also includes personality profiles, coverage of Nebraska Cattlemen activities, and comments on issues important to the cattlemen of the state and beyond. CURRENT POLICY ISSUES Field asserts that an important focus of the Nebraska Cattlemen is defending its members “against policies that hurt the industry. Right now,” she says, “we’ve been watching very closely what’s happening at the federal level with the U.S. Farm Bill (the current bill expires at the end of September). We need a farm bill to be in place to help producers know what certainties are ahead of them. Also, we work hard to try and make sure that farm bills and other policies like that have funding for risk management and disasters.” “We know it’s not ‘if’ the next thing is going to happen, but ‘when.’ We know there’s going to be drought, floods, blizzards, so our members need to know where to go to apply for those funds, if available. And we’re paying a lot of attention to funding for the National Vaccine Bank. If there’s ever an animal disease outbreak, we want to make sure that we have funding in place so we’re prepared for those disasters before they hit us,”Field adds. Other issues include “making sure that we keep a friendly tax climate for future generations; preserving farms and ranches so people can pass them on to the next generation,” Field adds.“We also want to make sure that we can keep a strong Beef Checkoff in place.” The Beef Checkoff program is a national marketing and research program designed to increase the demand for beef at home and abroad. It supports initiatives such as consumer advertising, marketing partnerships, public relations, education, research, and new-product development. “We want a successful program to keep beef at ‘the center of the plate.’ And we’re always working to make sure that market access remains open; making sure that we have access to get U.S. beef in front of people.” 94 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 10
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