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Dennis Murphy

For the students, by the students

Farm Forum Hits on Key Issues in Animal Agriculture
Megan Cooper, Corner Post Staff

February 23, 2004 - Consumer confidence in beef has never been higher, despite BSE. Meanwhile, officials are working feverishly to swiftly implement a national animal identification system. All this is happening as the popularity of low-carbohydrate diets is literally changing the eating habits of consumers, perhaps permanently.

Those were some of the key conclusions reached at Thursday's third annual Collegiate Farm Bureau Farm Forum. A crowd of nearly a hundred people gathered in Eckles Hall to hear five distinguished panelists discuss key issues facing animal agriculture during the event titled, "Dinner Plate Issues: From the Barnyard to D.C." Farm Forum was yet another success this year for Collegiate Farm Bureau.

"I think events like this are necessary for both students and community members," Erica Coble, President of Collegiate Farm Bureau at MU said. "Events like this really connect the industry and the outside world to college students and community members by helping them to see the real issues going on and hear from the people that are working in it every day."

"The forum allows students in the agricultural community to interact with those people that are in policy or some other leadership role in agriculture and get their input on issues that are concerning students and will continue to concern students in the future," Brad Detring, Farm Forum committee member, said.

The Forum's panelists included Dan Cassidy, Chief Administrative Officer of the Missouri Farm Bureau, John Kleiboeker, Missouri Beef Industry Council member and director of field services for the Missouri Soybean Association, Dr. Ron Plain, professor of Agriculture Economics at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Dr. Taylor Woods, Missouri State Veterinarian, and Aaron Washburn, staff member for Senator Jim Talent.

Tom Brand, farm broadcaster for KFEQ radio in St. Joseph, Missouri, moderated the event. Brand speaks daily with officials in the agriculture industry, as well as producers, and has perspective of all sides of the issues.

"Consumers eating habits are changing," Dan Cassidy said to begin the discussion.

Cassidy pointed to "the low-carb craze" which he called "huge."

In 2003, consumers spent over $15 billion alone on low-carb foods and Cassidy said that number is expected to rise to $30 billion in 2004. The Atkin's diet book has been on the bestseller list for 350 weeks. But according to Cassidy, obesity in America has never been higher. He cited USDS statistics showing 31 percent of Americans are obese, while 65 percent are overweight.

Even after the finding of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) on December 23rd, 2003, "The U.S. consumer remains confident in the U.S. beef supply," Cassidy said. He stated recent polls show 76 percent of Americans are eating the same amount of beef, 15 percent are eating less and 14 percent are actually eating more beef.

Even though consumer confidence in America's meat supply remains high, "A national animal ID system is needed for animal tracking to cut down on disease," Dr. Taylor Woods said. But Woods made it very clear that while he supports a national animal ID system, he opposes mandatory country of origin labeling (COOL) for meat. Woods said COOL is unnecessary because there is no beef that comes into the country that isn't already labeled. According to Woods, it is very simple to keep that label on if need be, with the exception of hamburger, which, Woods pointed out, COOL doesn't even cover.

Woods said officials are working very hard to implement a national animal ID system. "It is something that we've been working on for 15 years," he said, but it won't be implemented within the next 90 days. Woods said their goal is to get animals tagged between the years 2005 and 2006.

The national ID system will come in the form of a button tag in the left ear using radio frequency to track the animal, according to Woods, who said the tags will be species specific and mandatory for all animals entering commerce. One unresolved issue is who will control the tags. Woods said officials still don't know where producers will go to get the tags, or who will keep track of all the data.

"Producers have some mixed opinions about the national ID system," said Brand.

Liability is a huge concern for producers, and Brand said some are afraid that if something goes awry, it will reflect negatively on their farm. They want to maintain some confidentiality, Brand said.

Cost is another concern to many producers. The price per tag for cattle will increase by about a dollar.

"It is a price most producers are willing to pay," said Woods.

Aaron Washburn, meanwhile, said Senator Jim Talent will be holding hearings on the National Animal ID system in two weeks to try to reach consensus on these issues.

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