News that Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has dropped plans to pursue a second beef checkoff was disappointing to the National Farmers Union, which still would like to see changes in the current program.

“NFU is very appreciative and supportive of the Secretary’s efforts to modernize the current beef checkoff program,” said NFU President Roger Johnson. “The current system is badly broken and has lost the trust of many of the beef producers it purports to represent. Clearly there are major concerns from family farmers and ranchers across the nation about the issue of having two checkoffs operating simultaneously, and we share those concerns.”

Johnson stressed that NFU prefers a single beef checkoff program, as opposed to two separate ones. “NFU will continue to advocate for a new direction for the beef checkoff under the 1996 commodity promotion law, including separation of the lobbying organization from the non-political, promotional checkoff entities, just like the models embraced by the other checkoff programs,” he said. “Additionally, we will work to ensure there is a single checkoff program that expands markets and invests in meaningful research, education and promotion for the good of the entire industry.”