Cattlemen question why price of beef so high in stores

Ken Johnston
Editor

In preparation for this year’s annual meeting of the Ontario Cattlemen’s Association, the Rainy River Cattlemen’s Association (RRCA) passed several resolutions last Wednesday night to be brought up at the OCA meeting.
The first resolution involved questioning why prices for beef are relatively high at the grocery stores while they are exceptionally low for the farmers. RRCA is hoping that OCA will investigate the discrepancy. It carried.
Concern over the fact that cattlemen are not in control of the rendering of waste parts of animals was raised by Len Kuorikoski. He was concerned that the rules against feeding rendered waste materials to beef is where the line will be drawn. He feels that if that is the case, what is to stop processing plants from sending the rendered waste from beef to a chicken or hog operation where those animals would be fed them and then in turn rendered products from the chickens or hogs could be fed back to beef. Tom Morrish said that he feels the rules on rendered animals should apply to all animal species.
A resolution calling for that was carried.
Two resolutions involving wild life were carried. One calling on the government to provide compensation to farmers for damage done by wildlife to their crops and other assets and one for damage done by hunters.
While no resolution was passed on the next issue, all agreed with Amos Brielmann when he asked for one to be passed calling on the OCA to put a big ad in the Globe and Mail thanking Canadians for stepping up their beef consumption after the Mad Cow discovery closed the border. “The Canadian public has been very supportive of us. I am very thankful.”