Thursday, September 29, 2011

Two arrested in connection with cattle theft


Two men have been arrested in connection with the alleged theft of cattle from a Chilton County pasture. Because of the thefts, the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association has sent out a notice that it will pay a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone stealing or destroying cattle belonging to an association member.


To read more in the Clanton Advertiser online, click here.




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Wednesday, September 28, 2011

BQA Meetings & More on the Cattlemen's Calendar

BQA meetings, fundraiser team ropings, and more. That's a short list of what you'll find on the ACA Cattlemen's Calendar. Check it out and plan to attend one of these events aimed at cattlemen in Alabama. Speaking of BQA meetings, below is a video from last night's BQA training session at Montgomery Stockyards:




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Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Cattlemen Call for Presidential Action on FTAs

Today in Montgomery, Alabama Commissioner of Agriculture & Industries John McMillan held a press conference to stress the importance of international trade to agriculture in this state. Alongside Commissioner McMillan were representatives of the Alabama Poultry & Egg Association, the Alabama Forestry Association, the Alabama Farmers Federation, and the five officers of the Alabama Cattlemen's Association. Below are comments distributed by ACA to the media as well as pictures from today's press conference.


Cattlemen in Alabama and around the country are calling for President Obama to send three pending Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) to Congress. The agreements with Columbia, Panama, and South Korea would allow foreign consumers more purchasing power when buying U.S. beef.


“Our industry and our country needs some good news on the economic front. These trade deals would be just that; acting as an economic stimulus by encouraging the shipment of more U.S. goods and products around the globe,” says Leo Hollinger of Camden, President of the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association.


According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, for every $1 billion worth of agricultural goods exported, approximately 8,000 jobs are created. Because these three pending agreements would generate nearly $2.5 billion in additional exports, they also stand to create around 20,000 jobs.


“President Obama is beating the drum for his new jobs package and that’s just what this trio of trade agreements are. This is a real opportunity to create an economic stimulus without burdening U.S. taxpayers,” says Dr. Billy Powell, Executive Vice President of the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association. “The hard working members of the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association have a very simple message for the President, ‘send these agreements to Congress so they can be passed and come back to your desk to be signed’”.


Each year, Alabama produces around 600,000 calves to enter the beef supply chain. These calves are among the 30 million cattle produced annually in this country. Export sales attribute nearly $200 per head to the value of each of these animals.  Already in 2011, the United States’ five largest export markets have increased the value of the U.S. beef they import from 23 to 54%. South Korea, the third largest importer of U.S. beef behind Mexico and Canada, has already imported over 98,000 metric tons of U.S. beef this year, a volume increase of 55% from 2010. This Free Trade Agreement with South Korea alone would mean more than an additional $1 billion to U.S. cattle farmers over the next decade.




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Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Market Reports on Bamabeef.org


ACA's website continues to offer a wealth of information to cattlemen and consumers alike. One of the site's most popular features is the Market Prices page which includes contacts and links for auction markets in Alabama as well as links to cattle price reports. To visit this page, click here.


Also, due to budget constraints, the hard copy of the Alabama Livestock Market News newsletter is no longer being mailed. If you would like to receive this newsletter by e-mail please send your e-mail address to Diana.Drummond@ams.usda.gov or call the office at 334-240-7289 and you will be added to the e-mail list.




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Sunday, September 11, 2011

Beef 101 for Wallace State Culinary Students

On a recent sunny day in Auburn, the Alabama Cattlemen's Association held a BEEF 101 at the AU Meats Lab for Wallace State Culinary Arts students. In one day, instructors covered how cattle are raised, a typical day in the life of a cattlemen, how cattle are harvested, and a carcass breakdown to see where all of the beef cuts come from! It was a successful day that busted a lot of beef myths for these future chefs and helped equip them to go out and share beef's farm to fork story. Below are photos from the event. More details on BEEF 101 are coming up in the next issue of the Alabama Cattleman magazine.










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