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Optimism for A-PLUS Act as it’s reintroduced into the US House

A bipartisan group of legislators has reintroduced the Amplifying Processing of Livestock in the United States (A-PLUS) Act in the US House.  The bill would remove outdated regulatory barriers and allow livestock auction market owners to own or invest in small and regional meatpackers. 

Chelsea Good with the Livestock Marketing Association says she’s optimistic the bill will find success in the 118th Congress.  “It really is a hot topic at the moment,” she says.  “The robustness of the supply chains, the desire to have more competition in the packing space.  This is something that there is a lot of agreement on and there is the potential to move.”

Good says this bill is an opportunity to increase packer competition and processing capacity.  “Under a certain threshold, it would keep the 10 largest packers off the table,” she says.  “But if the market wanted to invest in a regional-type facility that’s taking a pooled-fund approach, or even open a local locker in their hometown, they’d have the ability to do that.”

Good says the bill was re-introduced with bipartisan support and it has strong industry support.  Now that the bill has been re-introduced the next step is moving it through the House Ag Committee.

Congressmen Mark Alford (R-MO), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), and Dusty Johnson (R-SD) introduced the bill.

Brownfield interviewed Good during the 2023 Cattle Industry Convention in New Orleans, LA.

AUDIO: Chelsea Good, Livestock Marketing Association