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National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Vice President Colin Woodall spells out how sequestration might impact the beef industry.
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That is one fine looking statement with the garlic lemon pepper if you're of beef -- like myself.
You're gonna wanna listen up another possible effect of the impending sequester cuts could be a meat shortage this is -- joke.
We are talking a shortage secretary of agriculture Tom Vilsack said yesterday that the agency would have to furlough workers.
Drastically cutting thousands of food safety inspections and here's what that means to you if there's no inspector.
Meet can't even be processed let alone sold to you local butcher -- restaurants out.
It may be time to although we should not encourage forwarding it may want to start saving up on those Porter houses joining me for more on this.
Holland little vice president of government affairs at the National Cattlemen's Beef Association answer I appreciate your being here I want that people to understand that this is not.
Television hyperbole to try and scare people so that they will watch.
You guys are warning we could have a -- shortage because of the sequestration.
This is a code red situation for our industry plain and simple because if we furlough all of these meat inspectors.
As you said all the meat packing plants this country they shut down.
So what happens is -- said there's no beef coming out of back in for our customers all of you watching.
And there's a big back up on the cattle that are waiting to be -- so this would be disastrous for our industry -- we had Agriculture Secretary Vilsack actually talking about.
That the bad have problems with sequestration you guys agree.
I can think -- nothing.
More iconic for for America then -- nutritious healthy we exported.
We're talking about a ten billion dollar.
Industry taking a hit -- it department -- -- make its cut somewhere else.
We think that there's a lot of nonessential.
People at UST if they could cut from.
We asked the -- staff about that just last week and they say that they don't have a whole lot of flexibility.
But fortunately they weren't able to give us the details as to why they don't have that flexibility.
It all -- to do was look back to the 9596.
Government shutdown and the Clinton administration.
We're meat inspectors were deemed essential so it's been done in the past were -- -- -- the secretary to try to do that again in this situation -- why don't they deem the inspectors essential because I understand it.
You can't send the -- out from a plant and -- an inspector is Baird okay.
You're right by law we cannot -- operate those plans at all without the inspectors in place it's -- food safety issue we want to make sure that we insure the integrity of the beef supply.
You keep all of our customers safe.
But that's a question -- unfortunately the secretary's office was not able to give us a very good answer on so we are still asking.
To be made clear why we cannot.
Deem these -- potential.
Furloughs -- just being essential employees so as a citizen of a country.
That takes pride in our agriculture not only beef but farm products.
What do you do do you call your senator do you call your congressman what -- the people watching due to avoid what seems like a very real potential shortage of being.
Well you definitely need to call the secretary of agriculture and tell him to take a look at this.
Because we need to make sure that we can produce beef not only for our customers here but also our customers abroad and we also need to make sure that congress understands what this will do to devastate.
Not only the supply of beef for your weekend -- but also what it does to all the cattle produces around this country that -- -- have no place to take their cattle.
This is going to hit their bottom line impact of their families.
Colin what all thank you very much from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association we will be following this issue not only of money but it Fox Business all the best to you and -- industries -- Thank you coming up.
