Analyst says cattle markets need fixed sooner rather than later

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Analyst says cattle markets need fixed sooner rather than later

Many stakeholders in the cattle industry are pushing for a fix to the price imbalance in the cattle industry.  And one cattle market analyst says desperate times call for desperate measures. Corbitt Wall with DV Auctions says, “Well it’s embarrassing that we have to go to the government to get help with this,” he says.  “Because it’s something the industry has gotten itself into.”

He says there are a couple of bills that have been proposed in Congress to establish a mandatory minimum for negotiated cash trade. There are two bills in the Senate, one sponsored by Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley and another from Nebraska Senator Deb Fischer.  Fischer’s bill has a companion bill in the House that was recently introduced by Missouri Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler. “I am totally in favor of the end result of what both of those bills are going for,’ he says. 

Wall tells Brownfield at this point, legislation is needed for cattle producers to stay in business. “If we don’t, we’re going to get to the point where we not only don’t have demand and a normal price discovery in our fed cattle,” he says.  “It’s going to trickle down to the calves and the yearlings that your smaller producers provide.”

Wall says while he likes the Grassley legislation for its aggressive push to increase negotiated cash trade, the Fischer bill provides more flexibility.  The Fischer Bill also calls for increased transparency in reporting of the sale information, which would be catalogued in a contract library.

AUDIO: Corbitt Wall, DV Auctions

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