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Fordyce says timing played role in checkoff failure

Missouri’s Ag director Richard Fordyce tells Brownfield he believes timing contributed to the failure of the proposed state beef checkoff referendum last month. The proposal was for a $1 per head state checkoff on top of the $1 per head collected by the national beef checkoff. Other states have been successful with a 50-cent state checkoff.

“I think when the decision was made by the checkoff entity in Missouri, which is the Missouri Beef Industry Council, I think that they were thinking positively and I think they were thinking toward the future. And, I don’t think at the time, when they made that decision, I don’t think that was too aggressive.”

Shortly after the decision was made last year to pursue the Missouri checkoff, the cattle market took a steep drop.  Opponents named that as one of many reasons they didn’t support the state-specific checkoff.  Fordyce says on the up side, a lot of cattle producers weighed in…

“It was a resounding defeat. You know, I personally was disappointed to see that. But, I was actually kind of reassured when you talk about the number of folks that had registered (for the referendum).”

Fordyce says more than SIX-thousand Missouri cattle producers cast a ballot in the referendum. Fordyce says he does not believe there will be another state beef checkoff attempt in the near future. He defends the process for the referendum but says it will be essential to see how other states have carried theirs out.

Fifty-cents of the national beef checkoff comes back to Missouri – and all states – for state-level beef promotion, education and research.