Karina Jones is a real-life ranch wife in the Nebraska Sandhills and one of the most highly sought-after speakers in the cattle industry nationwide!
Welcome to Fun, Fact Friday right here on Ranch Raised.
I hope you enjoyed your holiday meal with your family and friends. If you are the grocery shopper of your home, there is no doubt that you have noticed that a $100 grocery shopping trip sure doesn’t fill the cart anymore.
I think that it is natural for consumers to automatically think that the farmers and ranchers must be living “high on the hog”, no pun intended. But really that couldn’t be further from the truth.
According to National Farmer’s Union, that turkey that you bought this week only puts 6 cents per pound back in the farmer’s pocket. The average retail price of 16 oz of frozen corn rings up around $2.59, only 44 cents of that will go to the farmer. A 12 oz box of stuffing is around $3.59, but only 13 cents makes it back to the farmer. Geesh, I hope he doesn’t have a hole in that pocket.
While these facts are not very fun, they are the facts none the less that are important for consumers to know.
The farmer’s share of every dollar consumers spend on food has fallen from 50 percent in 1952 to less than 15 percent today. Even though consumers are paying more for food this year, almost none of that is being passed on to America’s family farmers and ranchers. So it wouldn’t hurt to pray for farmers and ranchers because right now, that’s about all we get is your prayers and gratitude.
Have a great weekend.
Follow Karina Jones on Facebook!
Karina ranches with her husband, Marty, and 3 daughters near Broken Bow, NE. She grew up in western NE, with roots also in southwest SD. The cattle industry and raising kids is her passion.
Watching the cattle industry go the path that it has gone, she could no longer sit quietly at home checking cows, fixing fence, and doing all the everyday tasks wondering when some else was going to make it all better. As she became more active and outspoken on industry issues, she was asked to join the R-CALF USA staff in September 2020 as the Checkoff Petition Campaign manager. That position transcended into her current role as full time Field Director for R-CALF USA.
You can hear her almost every Friday on Your Ag Network’s Hot Barn Report that is broadcast on 60 radio stations with coverage in 9 states, where she deep dives into cattle industry issues and highlights R-CALF’s work on industry reforms. Listen to Ranch Raised on a Your Ag Network hometown station or www.youragnetwork.com where she talks about her daily life on the ranch.
Cattle producers are her people. She will meet you at the county fair, at the sale barn, or anywhere the dusty trail leads.
karina@youragnetwork.com or visit facebook.com/ranchraisedwithkarinajones
