Beef Labeling

By Andrea Hutchison

Many may say beef labeling is murky, I’d say it’s dark in an evil sort of way. Ag media, “trusted” cattle and agricultural associations, Google, even the latest Ai apps harmonize misinformation abundantly “nothing to see here, buy it, eat it and move along”. Cornering truthful beef origin facts is nearly impossible. Global elites are selling the narrative that bugs are good and eating beef is bad while terms such as “sustainable beef” unleash standards that create an uneven playing field for the American cattle producer. All deployed to market misinformation to consumers, strip cattle producer’s profits and eventually control people.

Trust was never a concern for our ancestors when it came to purchasing beef, they knew the farmer who raised the animal, perhaps the animal was their own, they knew the butcher that slaughtered it and they knew the grocer. They understood the process; where their food came from wasn’t in question.

Today people lack that important piece to the food production puzzle. Most are three to four generations removed from the farm, its origin, making them easy targets to deceive and manipulate.

Food production and the Bible go hand in hand.

In Genesis, God declared cattle good. He charged man with taking care of them and the land. Cattle utilize non productive areas. They are nurtured on this flawed land. It’s God’s design.

Along with not knowing where food originates, many today know very little about God’s design. They no longer rely on scripture and have lost touch with His word. Throughout history, manipulation of food resources has been used to control the masses. The understanding of God’s production and distribution system is pretty important to a free country, it determines its survival.

Harmony exists within the diverse segments of the beef cattle production system.

These functions cannot be isolated as they are necessary to achieve high quality beef for the consumer. An understanding of what takes place in each step of the industry and how the various segments mesh together is important.

Basically, the beef cattle industry comprises six basic segments, some may be combined but this is a snapshot of the process. The purebred breeder maintains seed stock to provide bulls, the commercial producer provides feeder calves and yearlings to the stocker/background operator who in turn furnishes the cattle feeder with finished fat cattle ready for slaughter. The beef packer slaughters the cattle and provides the retailer with a finished carcass. The retailer cuts, trims and packages the product for consumers. Interdependence exists among these segments because each one affects cost of production or desirability of the beef product or both. The profits that each segment experiences depends on the diligence of each to perfect their efficiency in production and increase carcass quality. It is a win-win when each sector succeeds.

All sectors are connected to the land.

Today threats to private property rights are entangled in beef labeling. We have witnessed the purchasing of large swaths of land by global elites and foreign countries who do not have our best interest in mind. Among other problems that face a secure beef/food supply is the recent destruction of food processing plants.

The Stockyards Protection Act of 1921 and the Livestock Slaughter Act of 1958 helped set standards pertaining to humane animal care and slaughtering. While these congressional acts were intended for good, like so many federal policies, they have been used to inject and more regulations within the system.

The U.S. remains the touchstone of a quality safe beef supply.

While the U.S. cattle producer is required to follow strict regulations, countries who do not are allowed to market their beef as if they are under the same guidelines. four remaining global meat packers have been allowed to place “Product of U.S.” labels on imported beef over 23 different countries. Today the American cattle producer is unable to identify his product which is the safest, highest quality in the world, from countries which lack U.S. food safety standards and high quality. This has resulted in a lost competitive market. Identity in the form of a true U.S. beef label is paramount to the survival of our rural communities. Cattle and the meat and by-products they provide spawned America’s rural communities. By eliminating the cattle industry we eliminate local businesses, banks, hospitals and schools. Competition creates capital.

Cattle producers from across the U.S. cannot compete with foreign beef that has been given our stamp of approval by the USDA and FDA.

Consumers are being deceived and America’s cattle producers are incrementally being driven out of business.

Grassroots cattle producers and cattle industry groups that understand this unfair identity theft are working continuously to protect against the threats that not only affect the producer but all humanity . Attempts have been underway for many years to remedy this deception through a MCOOL or Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling law which would force ‘truth of origin’ where beef was born, raised and harvested. Currently efforts for the American Beef Labeling Act are underway.

For more information visit Label Our Beef (https://www.r-calfusa.com/label-our-beef/).

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