Agriculture & Food Policy
Committee addresses immigration, dietary guidelines and beef grading.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Feb. 6, 2015) — The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Agriculture & Food Policy Committee met Feb. 6 in San Antonio, Texas, during the 2015 Cattle industry Convention. Attendees from across the nation heard reports from speakers addressing issues such as immigration and border security, human dietary guidelines and beef carcass grading.
Stephanie Gadbois, senior counsel for the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, explained how that group’s chairman, Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), favors replacing the H-2A program applied to foreign agricultural workers seeking temporary or seasonal work in the United States. According to Gadbois, the Congressman has proposed an “H-2C” program, which would be administered by the Secretary of Agriculture instead of the Secretary of Labor. Gadbois said the new program would involve less red tape while easing access to a supply of labor. She emphasized that the proposed H-2C program is not a pathway to citizenship for guest workers, and Congressman Goodlatte favors the naturalization process for guest workers wanting to become U.S. citizens.
NCBA Washington, D.C., staffer Christina Butz explained how the advisory council responsible for making recommendations for USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans caused concern in cattle country when lean meat was dropped from the list of foods recommended for inclusion in a healthful diet. Butz introduced Purdue University nutrition scientist Wayne Campbell, a member of said advisory committee. Campbell emphasized that the committee report does not constitute a finalized version of new dietary guidelines. He said the omission from the guidelines resulted from a lack of a definition differentiating lean meat from processed meat.
Stating that he spoke only for himself and not the advisory committee, Campbell said, “I’m an omnivore and my diet includes meat. Nothing I have found in my research, in over 20 years, suggests that the inclusion of meat will compromise a healthy diet. That’s my personal opinion.”
Lawrence Yates of the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service addressed the group, explaining how potential changes to the beef grading system are being studied. Yates said some proposed changes would be administrative but it has also been suggested that the formula by which carcass yield grade is calculated is not sufficiently accurate. As a result, some loss of value might occur.
“Extensive industry input is needed since grading system changes could impact markets,” stated Yates. “If changes are adopted, they will be based on strong science and abundant data.”
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