JBS opts out of NCBA membership

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JBS opts out of NCBA membership

One of the so-called “big four” beef packers has dropped its membership from the nation’s largest beef industry trade group.  A spokesperson from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association confirmed that JBS has left the organization.

The news was first reported by Politico.

In a statement to Brownfield, Cameron Bruett with JBS said the company suspended its membership in NCBA about a year ago, but maintained productive communication.  As part of their annual review process, JBS suspended its dues to determine the benefit and effectiveness of its trade association investments.  He says JBS remains involved in many NCBA activities and meets with them often at varying levels of their organization. 

The move comes as cattle industry stakeholders continue their work addressing the price imbalance in the cattle industry, including efforts to increase competition and break up the stranglehold in processing.  There are currently just four companies that account for 80 to 85 percent of capacity. 

In a recent interview with Brownfield (prior to the JBS announcement being made public), Colin Woodall, CEO of NCBA says the action items outlined in a recent meeting of several ag and cattle industry groups aren’t a silver bullet to fix the challenges facing cattle producers, but they will help.“We’re not going to have to have any membership approval of this because the membership has already given us their approval through previous actions on our policy positions,” he says.  “Right now it’s just up to us to continue our efforts working with Congress, working with the administration, working with the packers and other stakeholders in order to get some action here.”

JBS is no longer listed on NCBA’s online list of Product Council Members.  However, the other three “big four”, Tyson, Cargill, and National Beef are among the 15 organizations listed.

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