It’s no secret that family farms have been suffering in the past few years.
Between flooding, questionable executive decisions by the current Administration involving tariffs, and a virtual standstill on the renegotiation of the trade agreement between Mexico, Canada, and the US, farmers have been hit hard, forcing many to close up shop or declare Chapter 12 bankruptcy.
Recent studies of bankruptcies for farmers showed an increase of 13% in 2019, and while numbers aren’t yet where they were in the early 1980’s, according to Nathan Kauffman of the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City in an April 2019 interview with NPR, the outlook isn’t great.
In order to help mitigate some of this, the South Dakota Farmers Union has been lobbying for a “Beef Integrity Act” since early this year, an act that would help close an important loophole in the “Made in the USA” labeling that US meat producers can use.
“The current labeling laws are misleading. Consumer surveys show they want to be informed about what they are feeding their families and where their food originates. Know that SDFU will use every tool in our toolbox to assist advancing the U.S. Beef Integrity Act into law,” said Doug Sombke, SDFU President and fourth-generation Conde crop and cattle farmer.
Last week, both South Dakota Senators publicly expressed their support for a Beef Integrity Act.
“U.S. cattle producers raise the best beef in the world, bar none. Since the repeal of Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) in 2015, U.S. cattle producers have suffered from declining markets because without proper labeling, there cannot be competitive markets. SDFU has been advocating for policy to protect U.S.-raised beef’s reputation so our cattle producers receive a fair return on their investment. The U.S. Beef Integrity Act does this,” said Sombke.
Introduced October 30, the U.S. Beef Integrity Act would make certain that the “Product of the U.S.A.” label only goes to beef and beef products exclusively derived from one or more animals born, raised and slaughtered in the United States.
Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) does not require that beef be born, raised and slaughtered in the U.S. in order to carry a “Product of the U.S.A.” label. This loophole allows beef from livestock born and raised in foreign countries to be labeled “Product of the U.S.A.” as long as the beef undergoes additional processing in a U.S. processing plant.
The introduced Act would close that loophole and ensure that label only goes to beef and beef products exclusively derived from one or more animals born, raised and slaughtered in the United States, per a statement released by Senator Mike Rounds’ office.
Rounds and Senator John Thune also sent a statement to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue encouraging administrative changes, standing behind the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association’s petition.
