The board that oversees the beef check-off program would lose three seats under a reapportionment proposed by USDA in the Federal Register. It would have 100 members, effective with appointments to the board from 2015. USDA says the reapportionment reflects the decline in cattle inventory and in cattle producer numbers in recent years. Each state – 915,000 in 2012 vs 950,000 in 2012. States are allotted seats on the board on the basis of how many head of cattle they hold.
As of July 1, there were 95 million head of cattle in the country, the smallest total since 1973 when USDA began its July inventory report. Cattle numbers dropped 3 percent in two years.
DTN says a three-year attempt to resolve an intramural dispute among cattle groups to allow a revamping of the checkoff program may be trouble. Among the issues is a proposal to double the check-off to $2 per head. One group, R-CALF USA, excluded from the discussions, says it will not support an increase without reforms in the checkoff program. Eleven farm groups have met to hash out an package of recommendations that “some members view as a last attempt at consensus,” says DTN.