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In his State of the Rural Economy testimony before Congress this week, Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue said USDA is working to develop a voluntary label for beef products that will conform to WTO regulations.

Texas congressman Mike Conaway told AgriTalk radio he believes an investigation into packer profits is likely, but encourages cattlemen and processors to continue working to feed Americans during the COVID-19 crisis.

“Every time there is a downswing or times get hard, some people will revert to stealing. If things don’t start picking up, people will start picking things up.”

Cash prices charged higher in feedyard country this week, leaving CME futures in the dust. Feeder cattle recovered most of the previous week’s losses.

The Beef Checkoff and fifteen state beef councils won a major court victory as the U. S. District Court of Montana ruled in favor of USDA and the Montana Beef Council in the matter of R-CALF vs. Sonny Perdue and USDA.

The current cattle market situation creates significant disparities between the current supply and demand situation and expectations for coming supply and demand conditions.

Cattle prices are on a historic ride. Producers are trying to make sense of it all, as well as industry insiders, as the COVID-19 story is far from over.

Officials in Weld County , Colo., and Hall County, Neb., are monitoring cases of COVID-19 that are linked to JBS USA beef packing facilities.

Using unique Japanese Akaushi cattle, the brand partners with producers, who find higher premiums than they would under other business models.

Some American beef packing companies are adding to worker’s hourly pay and sick leave in response to the COVID-19 emergency. Some will earn an additional bonus for working all their shifts through May 3.