ISSUES AND POLICY
Key Priorities
By Bob McCan, president, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, past president of TSCRA
T
HE OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE AS PRESIDENT OF NATIONAL Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) is truly an honor. My family has a long history of leader-
ship in beef industry organizations and I take pride in continuing that tradition. The opportunity to represent each of you and this
great industry is not a responsibility I take lightly, and I am committed to representing your interests in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere in the year ahead. Since we met in Nashville in February, I’ve been
asked frequently what issues I’ll focus on during my terms as president. My answer is we have a list of policy priorities which
are set by our members, and those include items such as working to ensure beef is well represented as the 2015 dietary guidelines are established; working toward a comprehensive Trans-Pacifi c Partnership deal; and ensuring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not gain expanded authority to regulate U.S. wa- ters or create additionally burdensome regulations. Trade is a cornerstone of the work we do at NCBA,
and we remain committed to the effort that is adding $250 to $300 per head to fed cattle prices. The Trans-Pacifi c Partnership (TPP) is our best hope
to continue adding value to our cattle in the near-term. The completion of a comprehensive TPP deal would help reduce or eliminate tariffs on U.S. beef exports and remove unscientifi c trade barriers that prevent fair trade with some of our important overseas markets. The completion of a comprehensive TPP deal and other ongoing trade work will remain a critical focus for me and for NCBA during the year ahead. EPA’s oversight of navigable waters in the U.S. has
been key to improving water quality in this country since the Clean Water Act was passed. However, there are continuing efforts to remove the word “navigable” from the regulation. That would result in an unprec- edented expansion of EPA’s regulatory authority, allow- ing the agency to regulate all waters in this country. If the agency’s authority were expanded in such
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a manner, it would allow the federal government to regulate the water in ditches, ponds and even puddles on private property and drastically impact farmers and ranchers who depend on water to keep their op- erations viable. All of us want clean water, and cattlemen and -wom-
en truly care about the resources they are entrusted with, but allowing EPA the opportunity to increase its oversight authority to all waters is an unreasonable expansion of its power. Equally important are the 2015 dietary guidelines,
stirring a debate that could play a major role in how consumers view beef. The result could have a signifi - cant impact on beef consumption in the U.S. There is extensive research showing beef can be a
healthy part of diets, but that isn’t enough to ensure that beef stays in the center of the plate. Serving sizes have been reduced over time, and now there are efforts to tie the sustainability of products to dietary guidelines. Fortunately for the beef community, the recently
completed Beef Industry Sustainability Assessment, which was funded by the beef checkoff, has given our industry the science-based information necessary to demonstrate beef’s sustainability. This assessment has given us an advantage over other proteins and positioned us in a leadership role in the conversation about how much beef should be included in the diet of Americans. We have a great deal of work to do to defend beef’s
position in these important discussions, but for the fi rst time, we are in a position to show that our products are produced in a manner that has become increasingly sustainable over time. The work that NCBA does is important to our mem-
bers and our industry. I am a longtime NCBA member and I am proud to represent each of you. I would like to encourage all of you to take a mo-
ment to add value to your membership by recruiting a new member or joining NCBA’s Political Action Com- mittee, an important key to our success in advocating in our nation’s capital on your behalf.
May 2014 The Cattleman 81
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