Welcome to the Friday edition of the HOT BARN REPORT
Heard ONLY on American radio stations across the nation and online at hotbarnreport.com!
Karina Jones, Field Director for R-Calf USA joins us each Friday from her ranch in the heart of Nebraska covering what’s new and important to the family farm and ranch.
Lights, Camera, Action! It was another busy week of fall run marketing at the best barns in the nation that power this program! High caliber kind of cattle are making their way to Crawford Livestock, Platte Livestock Market, and Lemmon Livestock! The buyers are packing the seats at Bassett Livestock Auction, Mobridge Livestock, and North Platte Stockyards. The gavel is dropping over and over discovering the true value of the consignments at Presho Livestock and Stockman’s Livestock. And of course, there is the added players buying online via CattleUSA! These are price discovery centers where sellers of cattle meet with buyers of cattle to take part in the greatest business transaction in the American economy! It is a cattle producers dream scenario, multiple buyers, a competitive bidding process, and reporting of the transaction in real time on that marquis sign above the sale ring in addition to post sale reporting. And for those that are really lucky you round out the day with that perfect piece of sale barn café pie!
So, let’s throw around some scenarios. What would happen if you sold on a day that only one buyer was bidding. Ouch, that would be a huge buzzkill and possibly the end of your ranching days but you had that big, bright marquis sign to take a picture of and text the wife and say, “here honey, look what they brought!” What if you got lucky and there were two buyers that were secretly texting back and forth, “you got this load buddy. I will pass if you let me get the next string.” And, I will even let you keep that shiny scoreboard above the sale ring in this scenario. Yikes, Karina why is your Hot Barn so gloomy? Well, folks, this is the reality in the fat cattle market. It chills me to the bone to think that this could happen in our feeder calf sector but it is not out of the realm of possibility but it is exactly what independent cattle feeders are facing. There is some proposed legislation that would offer a cattle market library, a scoreboard of sorts, but what good does that do when there is not a competitive game. That kind of seems like handing cattle producers an industry autopsy report when our fat cattle market needs a defibrillator.
Let’s keep telling our elected officials what we need, competition! That capitol switchboard number is 202-224-3121, trust me I dial it in my sleep. The 50/14 Spot Market Bill S. 949 will create competition for fat cattle and S. 2716 The American Beef Labeling Act will create demand for American cattle. By the way, this MCOOL bill pick up 2 more Senate cosponsors this week. We are very thankful for that momentum! But anyway, this is the perfect common-sense combo that doesn’t require a tax payer dime!
Stay safe out there on our roads this fall season. Farmers and Ranchers do not mean to slow you down, but we all want to return home at night safe and sound. So just take a little extra caution this time of year while traveling.
Tune in next week to our Hot Barn Head Honcho, Monte James giving a full run down of everything going on at the best barns in the nation. Never miss an episode on the Your Ag Network app or website.
See more at HOT BARN REPORT
Lemmon Livestock, INC.
Presho Livestock Auction
Mobridge Livestock
Platte Livestock Market
Stockmen’s Livestock
Crawford Livestock Market
North Platte Stockyards
Bassett Livestock Auction
