Leaders from six South Dakota agriculture groups came together in Pierre June 2, 2021 to unite behind solutions to help South Dakota’s cattle industry.
The groups who met include South Dakota Livestock Auction Markets Association, South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association, South Dakota Farm Bureau, South Dakota Farmers Union, R-Calf and South Dakota Stockgrowers Association.
After discussing challenges facing our state’s cattle producers, leaders from these groups all agreed there is great need for:
- Improved price transparency on cash and contract fed cattle
- Better food security
- Education of consumers and politicians on the challenges facing South Dakota cattle producers and the state’s beef industry as a whole
South Dakota’s cattle industry contributes $5.8 billion to the state’s economy, according to a 2019 South Dakota Agriculture Economic Contribution Study. Leaders will meet again to further define these solutions.
The meeting of South Dakota ag groups, followed a gathering of national organizations in Phoenix last month who met to discuss challenges involved in the marketing of finished cattle. That meeting was comprised of leaders from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, U.S. Cattlemen’s Association, National Farmers Union, R-CALF and the Livestock Marketing Association.
The national groups agreed to push for the continuation of the Department of Justice investigation of beef packers, asking Congress for the reauthorization of Livestock Mandatory Reporting with the inclusion of formula based pricing, and encouraging investment in new independent regional packers.
