Letter to the editor

Dear Friends,

On July 21, 2017 Judge Morris granted R-CALF a preliminary injunction enjoining USDA from continuing to allow Montana Beef Council (MBC) to receive their half of the $1.00 checkoff per head of cattle sold, which is paid by all producers when selling livestock. Beginning June 21, MBC was directed by USDA to send all checkoff dollars directly to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board (CBB).

As a producer, the only way I can keep my 50 cents in the State of Montana is to complete and sign the Montana Producer Request to Retain Beef Checkoff Assessment form. Forms are available from the Montana Beef Council at (406)656-3336 or email info@montanabeefcouncil.org. Forms can be completed on an annual or monthly basis. Forms can also be found at http://www.NorthernAg.net or http://www.MTBeef.org.

If you sell your livestock out of state you will need to send a copy of the livestock yards check-in slip so that the MBC know how many head you have sold. When we sell livestock in states other than MT, that states beef council just sends a lump sum to the MBC with no names attached.

Speaking as member of Montana CattleWomen, we need to keep our 50 cents in the state so that we have dollars to educate our youth and consumers. No funds means that the 1,600 youth who visit NILE agriculture days in Billings each October will not have any information about beef in there folders. Or for our local beef promotion efforts in eastern Montana, we won’t be serving beef and promoting beef recipes. MBC net to state revenue for 2015-2016 was $924,798. Without Montana producers helping to protect this money, Montana’s 50 cents will all go out of state to the CBB.