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Furlough uncertainty has beef industry ‘on edge’

An official of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) says the uncertainty over potential furloughs of federal meat inspectors has the cattle industry “on edge”.

NCBA vice president for governmental affairs Colin Woodall says he was hoping to hear more detail on the furloughs from Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack during Vilsack’s recent appearance on Capitol Hill.

“In fact, during the hearing yesterday with the House Agriculture Committee, he was asked multiple times how this would pan out—and he really did not have a solid answer,” Woodall says. “So that uncertainty really puts our community on edge because we don’t know what will happen with the furloughs—and because of that we don’t know what will happen to both the beef supply and also the potential backup of live cattle waiting to go these processing plants.”

Woodall says talk of furloughs and possible meat processing plant shutdowns has already had a negative effect on cattle futures prices.