The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association claims the American Farm Bureau Federation has taken a position on the side of big government by opposing House language to defund the GIPSA rule from 2012 Ag Appropriations Bill.
NCBA, which has worked to stop USDA’s Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration from moving forward with a proposed rule on livestock and poultry marketing reforms, asked its membership via email this week to turn up the heat on Farm Bureau. Colin Woodall is NCBA’s Vice President of Government Affairs….
[audio:http://www.stjosephpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/NCBA-1.mp3|titles=Colin Woodall]AFBF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a letter that was read aloud during the House Appropriations Committee markup of the ag spending bill, AFBF President Bob Stallman wrote that the nation’s largest farm group strongly opposes any action that would stop work on the proposed GIPSA rule.
Woodall says the letter caught NCBA off-guard….
[audio:http://www.stjosephpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/NCBA-2.mp3|titles=Colin Woodall]Woodall says he doesn’t think the dust-up over GIPSA will damage NCBA’s collaborative working relationship with AFBF on a host of other issues….
[audio:http://www.stjosephpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/NCBA-3.mp3|titles=Colin Woodall]The House plans to debate the ag spending measure next week.