Regulatory Demands Making Agriculture More Difficult

Mar 26, 2015

Doctor Steve Savage had a few things to say about government regulation at this week’s semi-annual Grain Farmers of Ontario meeting in London.

Dr. Savage talked about the concept of social license that he feels is creating an environment in which regulatory demands are making it increasingly difficult for the agriculture industry to function.

“Social license, as I understand it and the way it applies to agriculture, is the ability of an industry to function in an economically viable way without intrusive sort of regulatory limits or societal limits that compromise its ability just to serve its customers.”

Savage went on to say that vested interests and public perception are frequently the determining factors that impact regulation and development.

Throughout the body of his work, Dr. Savage is trying to improve the level of understanding between the agricultural sector and consumers.

He believes that a cooperative effort between environmental groups and farmers would lead to a far more positive result than any which could be achieved otherwise.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.