What does MCOOL mean to this cattle rancher

What does MCOOL (Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling) mean for me or how does MCOOL effect me?

Before I get into MCOOL, I should give you a bit of background about myself. I grew up Texas around cattle, my father had a diary when I was a kid. My Grandparents and their parents raised cattle and I'm still here running the ranch.

I am cow/calf producer what most people think of when you say cattle rancher. Basically I have a herd of moma cows with few bulls and they produce calves. I then sell the calves around 7 to 9 months old. Every year I get new crop of calves from the mommas. 

I sell to cattle to backgrounders or feeders through the use of sale barns. These backgrounders will continue to raise the calves until there ready to be harvested or raised up to be momma cows. Once sold I don't have any control of what happens to them. 

So, how does MCOOL effect me? Maybe I should be asking is how does imported cattle effect me?

First without mandatory labeling, packers are passing off beef from outside the US by tricky labeling. Maybe not tricky more like just dishonest. Why wouldn't that make someone upset? To have a product passed off as yours when it's not. 

It also overall cheapens my product. Bringing in cheap imports, lowers the quality of beef here in our stores. These aren't savings they passing on to the consumer. Not at all.  In the last few years the price of meat at the store has increases while cattle prices  have dropped. 

Lastly, I really dont like the idea of depending on forgein companies to produce our food supply. We have most of pharmaceuticals made outside the US now. This is putting many of our most important items in the hands our countries.

Sign the Petition to Support MCOOL 

Click Here

www.demandusabeef.com 

Does MCOOL have the Hotest Facebook Group Trending

So cattle men and women are scratching their heads asking "Does MCOOL have the hotest Facebook group trending?" (Demand USA Beef)

"What's MCOOL ?" You ask.  It stands for Mandatory Country of Origin labeling, simple really like "Product of the USA"  I bet you thought we already had that. Well on most products we do but not all. 

You might have seen "Processed in the USA"  on beef, so that means it came from America right?

NO. That only means it was cut up here. 

It's hard to believe that some packers would buy cattle from outside the US and try to pass it for America beef. 

Why not when you can buy a cheaper product and pass it off for a better one. Amercia beef leads the world in quality and taste of beef. Why, because here we have the resources and grain supply along the ability to store and transport products in all conditions. Sorry but others just don't have the development or  infrastructure America does.

So how did MCOOL get a Facebook group to grow so fast. Almost 3000 members in less than 10 hours?

Funny thing, I don't think it was intentional. I think it just naturally happened. A few ranchers started a petition last week to support MCOOL then one started a Facebook group and invited some folks and they invited some folks so on and so on.

The pure force behind it, is that people not only want to know where the food is coming from but they also don't want to depend on countries outside the USA to produce it.

I was one of the first people to join and invited many others to join as well. It was amazing how many and how fast people joined up. Thank you. It is an important issue to me and I hope we can get this labeling corrected soon.

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Demand USA Beef Facebook Group

Quite Still of Winter's Day

Today was so still, it was as if time had stopped. I never seen a day where there was no wind. The pond was so clear without a ripple or wave in sight the reflection was stunning. Crystal clear water was dreamlike so much that I had trouble believing what my eyes were seeing.   Hauntingly quite with not a chirp from even a crow. A day like no other.