NPPC Supports Livestock Provisions Of Heroes Act

May 15, 2020

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) expressed strong support for livestock agriculture provisions in the Heroes Act introduced today by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations. These provisions include funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide:

Compensation for euthanized livestock that can’t be processed into the food supply due to COVID-related packing plant capacity reductions. This fact sheet provides an overview of the current challenge faced by U.S. pork producers.
Expanded direct payments to livestock farmers who have suffered severe losses as COVID-related market disruptions have caused the value of their livestock to plummet. In USDA implementation of this program, NPPC continues to seek the removal of payment caps to ensure much-needed aid is extended to those farmers who need it most.
Increased funding for animal health surveillance and laboratories, which have been tapped to perform COVID-19 testing during this human health emergency.

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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.