The consumer does not care......

[ProFarmer]

I now know for sure that the consumer does not care about the farmer only about his/her pocketbook. When looking at todays calf prices mid 80's for 600 lbs steers. I only got to wonder which country is going to get the consumer dollar when we meat producers are all gone.Rosanne says the consumer wants traceablity, Bullshit all the consumer wants is the cheapest product and they don't care where it comes from. Just as long as their tummy is full and their SUV is full of gas.. Manitoba cattle producer organisation which is in bed with the NDP seems to follow Rosanne's green and consumer driven mandate and has forgot about the broken beef industry. I bet within 2 years we are going to lose over 50% of the provincal cow herd but the consumer will not be short of beef because Wallmart and Coop will just import it from another out side country.....with Rosanne our ag minister's blessing.

[grassfarmer]

Profarmer, I understand your frustration as there are so many injustices in the current system. However I get real tired with producers beating up on consumers and blaming all our ills on their demand for the cheapest product. In most cases this is simply not true. Here is a comment from one of my customers on the pork they got recently - we get the same type of comments time and again on our beef.

".....we think it was the best tasting hog ever!! So far we've eaten pork steaks, bacon, and smokies... and some of the massive beef ribs! Everything is stellar! The bacon is especially great, it is cured just perfect - not too salty, not too smokey flavored, and the smokie sausages are amazing."

Customers like this are beating a path to our door - young couples that are happy to lay out $1500 for a half beef and a hog before they have even tasted the product. They never even mention price - it's all about customer service and delivering the quality product they want. I believe there is a whole world out there for our products - we have just got to connect with the consumer and give them what they want.

Beating up on the consumer is going after the wrong target IMO - they are the one person in this situation who can help us out - not politicians and certainly not packers or packer backer cattle associations.

[ProFarmer]

Grassfarmer you have got the one percent that does care....

[smcgrath76]

I think GF has hit the nail on the head,
or at least right beside it.
For consumers that are only driven by
price, imported beef is the way to go.
That needs to be of price related
quality (and maybe identified - did I
say that?). We will have a tough time
competing with Brazil and Australia on
raw price per pound, but can still be
competitive with our value proposition
to the consumer.
GF has struck a good market through his
own hard work, however I don't believe
the Canadian market is big enough to
support the grazing animal herd we
should maintain in this country, or that
producers all carry the skill set or
desire to do this.
One of the reasons GF's program works is
because he is in contact with the
consumer. Locally this is doable. But
what if you customer is in Germany, or
Egypt or California? The current
processor, wholesaler, retailer process
is a very constricting, price driven
one, but perhaps there is a way to put a
product/project together that reaches
those consumers directly and collects
1. a premium price
2. a wholesaler share of the product
This would rely somewhat on access to
custom or third party, federally
inspected kill capacity, and when
thinking export has to be big enough to
cover the costs of connecting directly
with the end user. Think of CBEF
controlled directly by producers, but
with control over the actual beef and a
real value proposition to sell (not just
- I am Canadian) and the ability to
deliver.

[grassfarmer]

Oh it's more than 1% perfecho. Some figures from the October views magazine- % of Albertans that bought food at a farmers market in 2008 - 60%!! % of Albertans who bought direct from a farm in 2008 - 30%!! The potential is huge!

As for retaining our current national herd size - why do we need to?If the profitability is significantly better per cow we would need less cows to earn our living hence a smaller herd.

[kato]

Profarmer, right now MCPA is having annual local meetings. I would highly recommend attending one. We went to ours last night, and there weren't even enough producers to form a quorum. I realize that we had bad weather yesterday, but I'm not sure it can be completely blamed on that. Have guys given up to the point where they just don't care any more? I'm afraid they have.

The impression I got was that it doesn't seem to matter what the MCPA wants, the NDP government has no interest in listening. I heard a lot of frustration with the provincial government, as well as a lot of frustration with the unwillingness of the feds to implement national programs instead of doing what they are right now, which is sitting back and letting provinces lose patience and set up their own.

The big problem for us with that approach is that our provincial government couldn't give a rat's ass about what happens to us. They drag their feet over every program that requires federal provincial cooperation, and look like they want to regulate us in a way that makes Europe look lax. They want to implement their own traceability program, yet don't want to pay for it. MCPA keeps telling them that traceability must not impede commerce, but it's like talking to a brick wall. And in the meantime, the province drags it's feet on every initiative that the other provinces participate in.

MCPA is a small enough organization that if we really want to contribute to real change, we can. I found them willing to listen, and willing to take our concerns seriously.

Go to a meeting. If you have missed your local meeting, then come to the annual one in Brandon in December. It is possible to be heard.

[smcgrath76]

GF - I don't think we need to
necessarily maintain our national herd
size, but I do see some real benefits to
maintaining an adequate grazing animal
population to deal with a variety of
things such as:
1. adding value to crop aftermath
2. maintaining and protecting brittle
environments

The other issue is that if beef cattle
become profitable after a massive herd
reduction, we would likely see bigger
herds and rapid consolidation moving
forward(law of supply and demand) as
feedstuffs are more readily available.
We are then back on the treadmill of the
law of diminishing returns. I would
suggest that the only way to prevent
that (or slow it down) is to pull our
product out of the commodity game and
have every producer (interest producer)
tied directly to an end product.
The only barrier to entry in the "cattle
business" is access to capital.
Barrier's to entry in a consumer driven
value chain are much more than just $.

[grassfarmer]

Not too sure what you mean Sean when you say "The only barrier to entry in the "cattle business" is access to capital. Barrier's to entry in a consumer driven
value chain are much more than just $."

Do you mean that the "cattle business" is easy to be successful at with limited skills whereas retailing to customers is an insurmountable challenge for most?

[smcgrath76]

GF - I don't mean that. What I mean is
that anyone can go to an auction market
today with less than $1000 and be in the
cow business in under 30 seconds. They
are not in the food business with that
same type of investment.

[grassfarmer]

Anyone can go to the auction, buy a fine fat cow for $400 and book her into a custom kill plant to cut and wrap - you could still be into the food business for under $1000.

[perfecho]

GF, I think your comment was to ProFarmer…..I am a big believer in local food initiatives and other models. We just held a breakfast through our Economic Development Authority focused on local food and farmer direct. It was well attended, well supported and a number of initiatives are coming out of our Local Food Group. I am actually quite excited about where this may go.
In saying that, it is a small portion of producers it will benefit. But, I have always maintained that success should not be the numbers of animals raised, but the net income of producers….and I think this is where we have been led down the garden path. When we read articles of Japan’s beef industry and how a farmer can make a living on 6-10 animals, albeit intense management, I would like to look at their model instead of the model we have that does not seem to work. Much of our dilemma has been a result of “bigger is better”. If you can’t make a living off of 100 animals, go to 200…….We see the results, and the consumer is (or many of them) skeptical of the produce. In my own business, Gelbvieh seedstock, I am finding the smaller we get, the more profitable and manageable we become.
There is a change in the wind, and I am optimistic about that, but it does mean restructuring our thinking and beating down the “winners” of our current system…..in food production. I think our “World is going to get a whole lot smaller” (Check out the book with that title.). I just hope the industry survives until that point.

[perfecho]

A comment I forgot to include.....My biggest fear for our local food imitative, is farmers won't get on board. Even if we can get a small packing plant.....based on local, not export, my biggest fear is not enough farmers are willing to finish animals. Even thought the system doesn't work, try changing the mindset of farmers. I hope I am wrong.
(Can of worms)
Side note...through some consultation, it appears that a plant of even 50-60 animals a day can be viable....time will tell.

[ado089]

I want to back this up to the start. If you've ever bought beef in the store $1,500/ side is a steal. They're not buying from you because the taste, well maybe, but it still boils down to the fact that they are getting their beef for 50-60% of what it cost to buy it at Safeway. They only difference is the lack of midle man which is fine with me.

[grassfarmer]

Sorry Perfecho, i was confusing my "P's"

On the cost issue - yes we are cheaper than retail by the cut sales - last year we were 75% of Canadian average retail. What's wrong with giving customers a deal? top quality product they want at less than store price and we can still bank $400 more than commodity price. Works for me while we are trying to grow market share.

[smcgrath76]

point taken GF, but that same producer
can also be out of cows in 30 seconds.
It may take longer to get out of the
beef.
Basically what I am saying is that there
are well established and easy to use
methods of trading cattle at ground
level. It is easy to enter/exit at will
as long as you have capital.
There are not so many easy means to
enter/exit the food business. I take
your point about custom kill, and if you
are doing that for family and friends
OK, but what about doing it with 100
family and friends, or 1000 or 10000 .
It is partly a market accessibility and
ease of entry/exit I am talking about.