This message may very well spark debate amongst our membership, and I’m okay with that, debate is good. Florida had the great pleasure of hosting the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association annual convention in Orlando. There was much talk leading up to Convention about a pending policy change in the Association, that revolved around electronic animal identification.
I heard from some of you in support of, and from some of you in opposition to this issue. But, I don’t want to talk about electronic animal ID or the policy specifics. What I want to talk about is the narrative that some people push against NCBA by saying it’s not a producer driven organization. That would be a false statement!!
The Florida Cattlemen’s Association is an affiliate of NCBA and we encourage all of our members to join NCBA. I can tell you that each and every policy that was altered, modified or updated at the convention was first debated by the membership. The pros and cons of each and every word in the policies were scrutinized to ensure that it accurately reflected what the membership wanted it to be.
I saw no less than 12 versions of some policies through the week, and in the end, some were voted in and some were not. Debate amongst members, showing up and actively participating in NCBA is critical to the future of our industry. But our conversations and debate must be based in fact. You cannot have a positive impact on our industry by just throwing stones from the sidelines. Outgoing NCBA President Todd Wilkinson, challenged us when he came into office a year ago to “step into the ring, and get in the fight”. I again will again urge you to do the same. Get in the fight! Don’t stand on the sidelines hurling rocks. That’s for the “Talking Heads” that have their own agenda of self promotion. We are promoting not only the industry that produces the tastiest highest quality protein on the planet, but our way of life as well.
NCBA has one of the most impressive lobbying staffs in Washington DC. It’s imperative that we protect our industry not only here in Florida, but across the nation. I urge you to join NCBA, and let’s all work together to defend our industry.
As always, God bless
Pat Durden