Stockmen's, R-CALF ending affiliation

The Associated Press

BISMARCK -- The North Dakota Stockmen's Association is ending its eight-year affiliation with R-CALF USA, citing in part a "lack of communication and respect" from the national trade group.

An R-CALF official says the decision by the association is not a surprise and actually is a good thing because North Dakota ranchers will have a clearer choice when it comes to trade group representation.

Stockmen's Association President Mark Huseth said the decision this month by the group's board of directors to end the affiliation with R-CALF "boiled down to accountability."

The association gave examples of what it said was R-CALF's failure to be straightforward with the North Dakota group, including failure to answer questions about its officers and staff turnover, and failure to inform the Stockmen's Association of a meeting in Bismarck last fall.

"That is not the way to do business or the way to treat members who are seeking the truth," Huseth said Tuesday.

He said the decision not to pay R-CALF dues might be re-evaluated in the future, but that the board this month "felt it was time we made a stand."

R-CALF has been highly critical of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, to which the Stockmen's Association also belongs. R-CALF and the NCBA disagree on such major issues as mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef, international cattle trade and meatpacker reforms.

"It put the North Dakota Stockmen's in a position where they needed to make a choice," said Bill Bullard, R-CALF's chief executive officer.

The Stockmen's Association, which has 2,800 members with about 750,000 cattle, said it was once one of R-CALF's strongest supporters and helped persuade state legislators in 1999 to spend $100,000 to help finance an R-CALF trade complaint.

Bullard said R-CALF still has more than 60 affiliated county and state groups nationwide, and the decision by the North Dakota group will have "no impact whatsoever on R-CALF's ability to achieve its reforms."

"Actually, we view this as a positive step," Bullard said, "because now producers (in North Dakota) clearly see they have a choice of organizations that represent very different goals. While the North Dakota Stockmen's was dual-affiliated, it wasn't clear what membership to that organization was actually supporting."

Ranchers in North Dakota who were unhappy with the Stockmen's Association affiliation with the NCBA in 2005 formed another group, the Independent Beef Association of North Dakota, which is affiliated with R-CALF.

Huseth said the Stockmen's Association agrees with R-CALF on some issues. He does not see the end of the two groups' relationship as forcing ranchers to make a decision between two trade groups.

"If this industry has to start picking and choosing, it's a bad situation," he said. "I think we need more unification."

IBAND and the Stockmen's Association, an 80-year-old organization with about nine times the membership of the newer group, clashed during the Legislature earlier this year over issues such as the nomination of candidates for the state Beef Commission and the Board of Animal Health, and the spending of beef checkoff money paid by North Dakota ranchers to support the industry.

Bullard said he believes the legislative disputes played a role in the Stockmen's Association decision to end its relationship with R-CALF. Huseth and Stockmen's spokeswoman Julie Schaff Ellingson said the board made its decision solely on the problems it encountered with R-CALF.

The legislative issues "never entered into any discussion," Huseth said.

"Stockmen's leaders contemplated this for a long time," Stockmen's Association executive vice president Wade Moser said. By Blake Nicholson

The Associated Press

BISMARCK -- The North Dakota Stockmen's Association is ending its eight-year affiliation with R-CALF USA, citing in part a "lack of communication and respect" from the national trade group.

An R-CALF official says the decision by the association is not a surprise and actually is a good thing because North Dakota ranchers will have a clearer choice when it comes to trade group representation.

Stockmen's Association President Mark Huseth said the decision this month by the group's board of directors to end the affiliation with R-CALF "boiled down to accountability."

The association gave examples of what it said was R-CALF's failure to be straightforward with the North Dakota group, including failure to answer questions about its officers and staff turnover, and failure to inform the Stockmen's Association of a meeting in Bismarck last fall.

"That is not the way to do business or the way to treat members who are seeking the truth," Huseth said Tuesday.

He said the decision not to pay R-CALF dues might be re-evaluated in the future, but that the board this month "felt it was time we made a stand."

R-CALF has been highly critical of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, to which the Stockmen's Association also belongs. R-CALF and the NCBA disagree on such major issues as mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef, international cattle trade and meatpacker reforms.

"It put the North Dakota Stockmen's in a position where they needed to make a choice," said Bill Bullard, R-CALF's chief executive officer.

The Stockmen's Association, which has 2,800 members with about 750,000 cattle, said it was once one of R-CALF's strongest supporters and helped persuade state legislators in 1999 to spend $100,000 to help finance an R-CALF trade complaint.

Bullard said R-CALF still has more than 60 affiliated county and state groups nationwide, and the decision by the North Dakota group will have "no impact whatsoever on R-CALF's ability to achieve its reforms."

"Actually, we view this as a positive step," Bullard said, "because now producers (in North Dakota) clearly see they have a choice of organizations that represent very different goals. While the North Dakota Stockmen's was dual-affiliated, it wasn't clear what membership to that organization was actually supporting."

Ranchers in North Dakota who were unhappy with the Stockmen's Association affiliation with the NCBA in 2005 formed another group, the Independent Beef Association of North Dakota, which is affiliated with R-CALF.

Huseth said the Stockmen's Association agrees with R-CALF on some issues. He does not see the end of the two groups' relationship as forcing ranchers to make a decision between two trade groups.

"If this industry has to start picking and choosing, it's a bad situation," he said. "I think we need more unification."

IBAND and the Stockmen's Association, an 80-year-old organization with about nine times the membership of the newer group, clashed during the Legislature earlier this year over issues such as the nomination of candidates for the state Beef Commission and the Board of Animal Health, and the spending of beef checkoff money paid by North Dakota ranchers to support the industry.

Bullard said he believes the legislative disputes played a role in the Stockmen's Association decision to end its relationship with R-CALF. Huseth and Stockmen's spokeswoman Julie Schaff Ellingson said the board made its decision solely on the problems it encountered with R-CALF.

The legislative issues "never entered into any discussion," Huseth said.

"Stockmen's leaders contemplated this for a long time," Stockmen's Association executive vice president Wade Moser said.