American ranching problem solved … sell the ranch!

American ranching problem solved … sell the ranch!

While 99.9 % of Americans would question how could they not make money on donated 60,000 acres starting in 1997, I confess I would have to of had a higher paying job to afford any more cows than what I had. That was the time frame that cattle numbers started going down due to loss of profitability.

This was about the same time a seed stock producer shared with me that they made most of their sales to people not wanting to make money, just needed a tax write off, which begs the question, do American consumers feel confident about a lasting food supply to be fed with a tax write off?

At this time I was getting some Letters to the Editor printed in Livestock Weekly countering NCBA baloney, etc. and I am wondering did either University using their existing Economic, English and Ag. Departments ever try to get the word out that policies made in D.C. was not working for those Americans that were feeding Americans?

Could they have taken up where the Pickett vs Tyson trial left off, using some of that sworn testimony as proof of multi-national meat packers driving domestic beef prices down with imported beef and cattle. Maybe exposing their classes to the trial transcript someone have noticed you need the Sweetheart Deal to make money in those years?

All this reminds me of a few years ago at the local Llano County Texas Beef Cattle Field Day in early June a Texas AgriLife Cattle Specialist said “USDA did not change a thing when WTO told them to change the COOL law.” Actually the new USDA COOL rules finally made it where you could tell where beef came from. I called his boss at Texas A&M and got nothing out of it except more packer-NCBA rhetoric. The letter to the editor did not get printed, but I did figured out NCBA employment is their Brass Ring, that is the highest paying job to these profs. and specialists.

Packer money to do a study is always appreciated at these universities, and you get what you pay for. Seems odd to me that none of the faculty at these two universities ever thought of doing a study (not funded by NCBA) of why can’t cattle make money on a gifted ranch? I have heard it said that some Universities have trouble getting staffed with real world problem solving staff.

I feel sorry that the way to solve ranching problems in America is to sell the ranch. When the U.S. Senate bows to WTO and guts the COOL law, American cattle producers will be back to those years, but probably worse with Packer Revenge.

James Stotts, Llano, Texas

TSLN: Letting go — Universities betray donor’s intent — So why are we sending our kids to these places to learn about agriculture?

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Letting go

The Y Cross Ranch, donated to the UW and CSU Foundations in 1997 recently sold, say the two universities. Some faculty look forward to added funding for scholarships but others lament the loss of a unique 60,000 acre teaching facility. Photo courtesy RMA brokers

The Y Cross Ranch, donated to the UW and CSU Foundations in 1997 recently sold, say the two universities. Some faculty look forward to added funding for scholarships but others lament the loss of a unique 60,000 acre teaching facility. Photo courtesy RMA brokers

To many, a 60,000-acre ranch located just outside of Cheyenne, Wyoming would be a dream come true. MORE