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Appeals court upholds R-CALF beef checkoff injunction

A federal appeals court agrees with a lower court ruling about beef checkoff spending.

R-CALF USA’s Bill Bullard says, “The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld our preliminary injunction, and that essentially says that it is unconstitutional for the USDA to compel ranchers in Montana to subsidize the private speech of the private Montana Beef Council corporation.”

Bullard tells Brownfield they challenged the Montana Beef Checkoff for withholding half of the checkoff money and spending it on generic beef messages, while R-CALF producers did not want to promote beef raised outside of the U.S.

Bullard says the preliminary injunction they fought for will stay in place, giving producers a say in how checkoff dollars are spent in Montana.  “Before any money can flow to private Montana State Beef Council, they first have to get the affirmative consent of all of the producers that pay into the checkoff.”

Bullard says the case now returns to the lower court for a final decision.  He’s hopeful the injunction will become permanent and R-CALF can use it to challenge the checkoff spending in other states.

He says this is the first time in more than three decades that cattle producers in Montana can exercise choice in where their beef checkoff dollars go. Beef producers pay one dollar per head when cattle are sold, with half of the money funding state beef councils.

Bullard says the checkoff dollars have previously paid for advertisements promoting Wendy’s hamburgers that use North American beef, meaning beef that can come from anywhere on the continent, but not necessarily Montana or even the United States.