A statewide proposal for a new beef checkoff is drawing mixed responses from beef producers and farmers groups as the referendum for the measure draws near.
Missouri beef producers will have the chance to vote for a state beef checkoff — a $1 fee that is charged per head of cattle — in April. Beef producers already pay the same amount for a federal checkoff fee. Supporters said the state proposal will boost market development, research and advertising efforts within the beef industry, strengthening the market as a whole and providing customers with the beef products they liked best. But opponents countered that the checkoff referendum process and rule-making process were not transparent, and they questioned the benefits a new state checkoff would provide in a slipping beef market.
Supporters cite numerous benefits
Ralph Griesbaum, president of the Marion County Farm Bureau, said a new state beef checkoff would help fund research projects to dispel myths about beef being unsafe. He said beef is leaner and healthier than ever before, and additional checkoff funding would help spread that information through new education programs. Checkoff funds — at the federal level and at the proposed state level — can never be used for political gain or lobbying, Griesbaum said.
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