Producer Profitability Initiative Calls on Cattle Industry to Unify

February 28, 2024

Producer profitability was in the spotlight at the Public Auction Yards in Billings as the Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) kicked off their statewide “Producer Profitability Initiative” listening sessions.

MSGA Second Vice President Turk Stovall says the livestock industry has an opportunity to come together with one another like never before.

"This all came together when a group of ranchers started talking about a lot of the challenges that were going on within the beef industry and just noticing that our next generation is really not coming in to replace us," said Stovall. "We want to entice them to be ranchers and take over these ranches. During the Montana Stock Growers Convention, we had some resolutions introduced that really focus on producer profitability. And a task force was put together. The task force really is focused on how can we look at different topics that we all face in, in everyday life as far as all of us as farmers and ranchers, and how can we improve those to make a bigger difference, to really make producers profitable for the next generation."

Cattle producer and auction market owner Joe Goggins says the industry has a real opportunity to unify and quit destroying itself from within.

"I played a lot of ball and I had a lot of coaches tell me, the only way we're going to win a championship is you got to play defense and really this industry over the last 70 years, folks, now we are good at playing defense," said Goggins. "There's not an industry in America that's better at playing defense than the than the beef industry. We've been forced to. But every once in a while, a win a championship, you've got to put one in the hole. And right now, it's been a long time since this industry has had a true win that will make a real difference for our producers, and it's high time we go on offense. We got to score."

The Montana Stockgrowers Association has really taken a leadership role in this "Producer Profitability Initiative" with other states wanting to do the same.

"It's not only important here in Montana, but we really need to make a difference across our country," said Stovall. And there's other states that we're starting to work with and we can start to see this really, uallied group effort that's going to start to continue to grow. And it's already starting to grow across the United States right now."

To learn more about the Montana Stockgrowers Association "Producer Profitability Initiative", click here.

Source: Western Ag Network