The Iowa Stock Growers Association will be affiliated with R-CALF
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A group of Iowa livestock producers have created a new organization.
Eric Nelson, a cow-calf producer from Moville, Iowa, is the president of the newly formed Iowa Stock Growers Association.
The organization will represent independent producers, he said.
“As livestock production in Iowa has become integrated and controlled by a (handful) of companies, most recently Iowa’s hog industry, non-integrated livestock producers are often left unrepresented in political debate over policy that affects them,” he said in a statement, local media reported.
Nelson created the Iowa Stock Growers Association after congressional delegates refused his entry into a farm bill listening session.
He wanted to attend as an R-CALF rep but was told national organizations weren’t allowed to participate, the Tri State Neighbor reported.
The Iowa Stock Growers Association will be affiliated with R-CALF and use its data, information and other materials.
Nelson is currently the vice president of R-CALF.
The Iowa Stock Growers Association has identified five core issues:
- Reinstating mandatory country-of-origin labelling.
- Requiring packers to purchase more cattle on the cash market.
- Supporting a USDA investigator to enforce the Packers and Stockyards Act.
- Serving local meat in school lunch programs.
- Preventing some lobbyists from receiving checkoff dollars.
The livestock industry needs to experience change it farmers are going to thrive, Nelson says.
“We want to work hard on forcing packers to pay for cattle on the cash market – there aren’t enough hogs traded on a weekly basis to know what the real value of hogs is,” Nelson said. “I think we are already facing that with cattle and it’s why we are losing money even though demand is great.”
Membership is $40 for the year or $100 for local livestock groups wanting to be affiliate members.
Anyone looking for more information on the organization can send an email or contact Nelson at 712-540-5633.