Alberta Beef / American Beef

[rkaiser]

Have to chuckle at all the chatter at ABP meetings and such about Canadian Beef, and how hard we have to work to sell it. The problem is - Canada does not sell beef. Two American packers sell beef - Alberta Beef Producers - at least those with rural addresses sell cattle.

We set up our usual booth display at the Red Deer Agritrade this week and happened to end up two booths down from the ABP booth. The "Alberta Beef" signs are everywhere - but my booth is truly the only one selling "Alberta Beef".

In fact - I'm two booths down from my "competition". A group selling beef for mainly two American packers.

AND helping to promote and sell (deceptively I might add) cow meat to the Canadian consumer. ---Cow meat stolen from the primary producers of Canada in this ridiculous captive market.

It is only too bad that most of the good producers that man these booths and do their best to support ABP do not perceive the story the same as I.

[coppertop]

randy, I think that anyone manning an ABP booth will have had their marching orders !!!!!!!

[farmers_son]

I betcha that the big retail stores think they are the ones that sell the beef.

I congratulate you on taking the initiative to get a booth at Agri-trade to sell your beef direct to the consumer. If I recall, you are also peddling your live cattle, there would be a few booths advertising their breeding cattle beside yours. Must work or you would not come back year after year.

I am not sure where you think you perceive the story any differently than anyone else, whether they are sitting in the ABP booth or not. I do not think you would get much argument that our cows are being stolen. I certainly would like to have the opportunity to sell beef instead of cattle, the longer you can retain ownership of that product the more value you can add. I think it is going to happen, that opportunities to slaughter our cattle and sell beef are still possible for us. Supposedly there is a lot of slaughter capacity being unused right now but I do not see the two big packers offering to custom slaughter. They restrict access to the beef market and keep the profit to themselves.

About the only marching orders the people at the ABP booth would have would come from their wife and they would be something like meet me at the front doors at six and don't be late.

[grassfarmer]

I would disagree with your comment f_s that "I am not sure where you think you perceive the story any differently than anyone else, whether they are sitting in the ABP booth or not."
The "story" that rkaiser tells of may be believed by a number of producers but it seems not to be believed (or even heard of)by the majority of producers. I assume if most producers had heard, and believed, the "story" they would be up in arms creating a huge fuss over the great injustice that is being done to beef producers. It is clear that ABP/CCA leaders do not believe the story, nor do Government officials hence the situation is allowed to continue.

The current situation with direct beef marketers and overall packing capacity is rather alarming. The processing plant we work with is currently bleeding red ink like every other small plant. Energy and labour costs are killing them. Of course this is due in part to the system set up by the Government and the big packers in terms of regulations designed to favour the mega-plants over the small. The small processing plants can't go to Sudan with government aid and bring in a bunch of virtual slaves either.

[cowman]

I wonder how much these "virtual slaves" from Somalia are getting? Isn't it the same as the "virtual slaves" from Canada are getting?
In fact isn't it probably a wee bit more than the "virtual slaves" working at your small abbatoires are getting???...I mean after all they have a union, right?
Not quite sure how the wee packers are bleeding red ink? I thought the packing industry was supposed to be the land of milk and honey? Maybe you old exploiters in the independent beef marketing field need to pony up some more money? Cut down your "outrageous" profits sort of thing?

[grassfarmer]

I don't know what Somalians would expect to earn but I believe the Sudanese are very poorly paid. Remember they can't step just as easily into the oilpatch jobs as your average guy up here in oil country. Unions? Oh yes I remember how powerful their union was - they were complaining about not getting bathroom breaks and having to work in soiled underwear and their vehicle got run off the road by the CEO of the Tyson plant.

I have never said that small plants doing custom kill were living in the land of milk and honey - you have said that before. I know the reality when I see them working from before 5am to late at night 6 days a week. It's a tough, physical, unpleasant job and they deserve every dollar I pay them.

Unfortunately the free enterprise bs dream you have that this alone will make them profitable doesn't pan out. Sometimes the cards are stacked against you, in this case by Government rules put in place at the behest of the transnationals.

[cowman]

grassfarmer: The Sudanese or Somalians or Canadians or whatever all get the same wage at Cargill or Tysons? You really shouldn't believe everything you hear in the media? Have you ever worked in a packing plant? Take it from someone who did....It is brutal work but the money is very good!
Not just sure where you are going with this anti-free enterprize thing? If you think the small abbatoires didn't get in on the BSE gravy train, just like Cargill or Tyson, then I would really like to know what you have been smoking?

[grassfarmer]

A slightly different gravy train they were on Cowman, sure they could raise their prices a bit due to a shortage of kill capacity. Doing custom kill in a small provincial plant however did not allow them to steal cattle in a captive market and export the beef into the hottest market North America has ever seen. Quite a difference.

[grassfarmer]

A slightly different gravy train they were on Cowman, sure they could raise their prices a bit due to a shortage of kill capacity. Doing custom kill in a small provincial plant however did not allow them to steal cattle in a captive market and export the beef into the hottest market North America has ever seen. Quite a difference.

[cowman]

Now I'm not real sure about the economics of custom kill in the small provincial plants, but the two local ones also buy cattle and retai it also? Their prices are usually at least as high as Safeway, I believe?
And guess what? When an old cow can't attract a bid at the local auction market they send her down to the local yokel, "railgrade"...which usually gets you about $20! I guess she ends up in the hamburger or sausage in the meat case? Just one of the reasons I won't buy there!
I also wonder if America is the hottest beef market around how much cheaper is the beef in the Alberta Safeway meat counter? Is it the same type of quality as Willowcreek might buy at Billings? Or do we get all the holsteins and other off grade stuff? Who supplies the likes of Safeway...isn't it the same guys who supply that hot American market? I'm not sure how they could supply a cheaper market like Safeway with product that is as good as that Hot American market unless the price was as good?