Ongoing lawsuits against the producer-funded beef checkoff are part of a drive by activists “to end beef promotion and, ultimately, the production of beef in the United States,” says the chief executive of the largest U.S. cattle group. “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 producers out of business,” wrote Kendal Frazier of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association in an essay on Drovers.
A federal judge ruled last month that the Montana Beef Council must get permission from producers to collect money from the cattle producers. The Billings Gazette said the injunction was part of a lawsuit by R-CALF USA, mostly representing producers in the northern Plains, against the way the Montana council spends its share of checkoff money — to promote beef in general, rather than Montana or U.S. beef. Cattle industry groups have fought for years over division of the funds and smaller groups have argued the NCBA unfairly gets the lion’s share of the money and favors large-scale operators.
Checkoff programs have come under challenge in recent years. Legislation has been filed in Congress to make participation in the checkoffs voluntary rather than mandatory. Some two dozen commodities, from beef, milk and cotton to mangoes and popcorn have USDA-regulated research and promotion checkoffs.
In the essay, Frazier linked R-CALF with the Humane Society of the United States and the activist group Public Justice as foes of the beef industry. “Every member of the beef community that collaborates with this group, for any reason, is helping them achieve that goal [stopping production and consumption of beef].”