2008 MSGA Convention Highlights

This year, despite sub-zero temperatures and terrible road conditions, 644 people attended the Montana Stockgrowers Association’s 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show at the Holiday Inn Grand Montana in Billings, Dec. 11-13. Below, please find some highlights from the convention:

-Tom Hougen of Melstone was elected the 59th President of the Montana Stockgrowers Association.

-Walter “Watty” Taylor of Busby was elected 1st Vice President. He previously served as 2nd Vice President from 2006-2008.

-Tucker Hughes of Stanford was elected 2nd Vice President. He served on the Board of Directors from the South Central District from 2004-2008.

-New Board of Directors:
Northeast District – Jeff Pattison of Glasgow
Southeast District – Dean Wang of Baker
South Central – Larry Berg of Judith Gap

-Wesley Batista president and CEO of JBS Swift, a division of JBS S.A., currently the world’s largest beef producer and exporter, was unable to attend the convention as planned due to a death in his family. Chandler Keys, vice president of government affairs for JBS Swift, filled in as the keynote speaker at the Opening General Session. He discussed the history of the Batista family and how they built up JBS S.A. from humble roots to being a global meatpacking powerhouse. Keys also described JBS’s business model and explained how the company has made inroads in global markets for both Brazilian and U.S. beef. Chandler fielded many questions from the audience and met with the media after his speech.

-Policy to guide MSGA officers and staff through 2009 was set in a process that began with committee meetings, progressed to the second reading and finished at the third reading. Notable new policies address livestock theft awareness, livestock biosecurity education, horse slaughter, the promotion of U.S. beef, bison reintroduction to the Chares M. Russell Wildlife Refuge, carbon sequestration, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks wolf kill projections, and the Clean Air Act.

-Chances to win a 12-inch fully tooled kid’s saddle, sponsored by Nutra Lix, Basin State Bank, Ruby Valley National Bank, and MSGA, were auctioned off at the Grand Finale Banquet to benefit MSGA’s Advocacy Fund. Harrison Land and Livestock was the original winner, and Mark and Patti Harrison donated the saddle back for one last auction. Tucker Hughes was lured into a bidding war with Bill Donald and Gene Curry and ended up with the saddle with a high bid of $4,800. Overall, $27,300 was raised for the Advocacy Fund which goes toward MSGA’s legislative efforts.

-In addition to being elected 2nd Vice President, serving as emcee of the Grand Finale Banquet on Saturday night, Dec. 13, and being the highest bidder for the kid’s saddle, Tucker Hughes was named MSGA’s “Top Hand” for recruiting 15 new members and won an all-expense trip to Mexico sponsored by Valley Bank of Helena.

-The Cattle Directory Priority Page auction raised $42,000.

-Donna Sitz-Arthun of Billings was named “Ranch Woman of the Year” at the Grand Finale Banquet.

-Chelsea Phipps of Brussett won the Nutra Lix saddle giveaway.

-Rochelle Brownlee of Big Timber won the Torgerson’s LLC lawnmower giveaway.

-Rachel Endecott of Miles City won the WALCO Animal Heath and Intervet /Schering-Plough Animal Health Young Stockgrower membership drawing.

-The Trade Show offered 100 booths with various products and services for convention attendees. On Friday night, the “Night around the Campfire” Trade Show Grand Opening offered four beef dinner stations, entertainment by the Ringling 5, and a silk scarf giveaway. Saturday night’s Trade Show Finale featured a poker run that drew a huge crowd.

– Plans are already underway for MSGA’s 125th Anniversary Celebration to be held in conjunction with MSGA’s mid-year meetings in Miles City, June 10-14, 2009. Stay tuned for more information about this exciting milestone event!

Lon and Vicki Reukauf of Cherry Creek Ranch in Terry win brand new truck at MSGA convention

Lon and Vicki Reukauf of Cherry Creek Ranch in Terry were the lucky winners of the 2008 Dodge truck given away at the Montana Stockgrowers Association’s 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show on Saturday, Dec. 13. The Reukauf’s drove away from convention with full ownership of the Dodge Cummins Diesel truck, valued at $40,000, thanks to Lithia Dodge of Billings, First Interstate Bank of Billings, Northern Ag Network, Western Ranch Supply, Pfizer Animal Health, WALCO Animal Health and MSGA. The drawing was open to all MSGA members and required presence at the Grand Finale Banquet to win. The banquet crowd of 450 people roared its approval when Lon’s name was called.

“I didn’t even know they were giving a truck away until the gal at registration asked if we had entered the drawing,” Vicki said later. “So I wrote Lon’s name down. I can’t believe it; the only thing we’ve ever won before was a turkey!”

One member remarked later that the truck couldn’t have gone to better people. MSGA hopes the Reukauf’s enjoy their brand new truck!

124th Annual Convention begins today

MSGA’s 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show has gotten off to a great start with business meetings today at the Holiday Inn Grand Montana in Billings. Meetings include the MSGA Board of Directors, MSGA’s Research Education and Endowment Foundation, the Young Stockgrowers Committee, the Grass Conservation Commission, Montana Hereford Association, the Montana Public Lands Council/Montana Association of State Grazing Districts joint board meeting, the Steer of Merit Committee, and the Montana Cattle Feeders. Other events include the Young Stockgrower’s Social, a SimSeminar with the American Simmental Association, the MaPa 200 Club Reception, Young Stockgrowers Dinner, and the “Has Beens” Dinner.

Tomorrow, registration will start at 6:30 a.m. followed by the Billings Chamber of Commerce Pancake Breakfast. At 8 a.m. the Montana Stockgrowers Association and the Montana CattleWomen Opening General Session will kick off. Committee meetings will follow and the Northern Ag Network lunch will begin at noon with a live broadcast. In the afternoon, committee meetings will continue and at 5 p.m. the Night Around the Campfire Trade Show Grand Opening will begin, featuring four beef dinner stations, the Western Ranch Supply Waterhole, entertainment from the Ringling 5 and complimentary silk scarves.

It’s a busy November for MSGA – Convention will be here before you know it

November has already shaped up to be a very busy month here at the MSGA office. With the election come and gone, we are hard at work attending important industry meetings, putting the finishing touches on planning and preparation for our 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show, and looking ahead to the upcoming legislative session.

On November 5 & 6 Errol and I attended the 5th meeting of the Interagency Bison Management Plan partners. They are holding series of meetings, open to the public for observation, to decide on “Adaptive Management” changes to the plan for the upcoming management season. MSGA has been keeping a close eye on these discussions as the partners push to allow for more and more tolerance for bison outside Yellowstone National Park. So far, the partners have agreed to allow untested bison to be outside of the park in various areas of Hebgen basin, near West Yellowstone, during most of the year. On the North side, after the completion of the buyout of the Royal Teton Ranch grazing rights (owned by the Church Universal Triumphant), 25 head of seronegative bison will be allowed to travel north of the park through this corridor. This is explicitly outlined in the IBMP, though partners had earlier discussed allowing an unlimited number of untested bison in this area. Stay tuned as the next and final meeting will be held Dec. 17 & 18.

Many of our local affiliates will be holding their annual meetings this month. The Choteau County Livestock Protection Association meeting will be held Thursday, Nov. 13 at 3:30 p.m. in Big Sandy. The Sheridan County Stockmen’s Association meeting will be on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 1 p.m. in the Sheridan Room of the Montana State Bank in Plentywood. The Southwest Stockmen will meet at 5 p.m. Nov. 18 at the Elk’s Lodge in Dillon. On Nov. 19, the MonDak Area Stockgrowers will hold their meeting at 5:30 p.m. at the Triangle Nite Club in Sidney. The Phillips County Livestock Association will hold their meeting at 2 p.m. at the First State Bank of Malta. On Nov. 21 the Fergus County Livestock Association will meet in Lewistown and the North Central Montana Stockgrowers Association will meet at the Duck Inn in Havre. Nov. 22, the Crazy Mountain Stockgrowers will hold their meeting at 2 p.m. at the Masonic Hall in Big Timber with a Happy Hour at 5 p.m. followed by a prime rib and lamb dinner upstairs at the American Legion. Montana Rose will provide entertainment. Also on Nov. 22, the Musselshell Valley Stockgrowers will hold their meeting along with a dinner and dance beginning at 6 p.m. tentatively located at the Riverside Hall, four miles south of Roundup. The Southeastern Montana Livestock Association will meet on Nov. 28 in Miles City. On Nov. 29 the Big Horn Livestock Association will meet at 12 p.m. at Bud’s Catering in Hardin for a no-host lunch and general membership meeting to follow.

The Montana Board of Livestock will meet in Helena at the Department of Livestock on Monday and Tuesday Nov. 17 and 18. We’re still waiting to hear who Governor Schweitzer will appoint to fill the positions left vacant by the resignations of Meg Smith and George Hammond in September. The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. on Monday and resume at 8 a.m. on Tuesday. Dr. Zaluski will discuss the Brucellosis Action Plan, the IBMP Adaptive Management Plan and other brucellosis-related things on Tuesday morning. To see a full agenda for this meeting, click here.

Convention is just around the corner! If you haven’t signed up yet for our 124th Annual Trade Show and Convention to be held Dec. 11-13 at the Billings Holiday Inn Grand Montana, give us a call today (406) 442-3420. Registration is $150 until Nov. 28 and $175 after. Be sure to reserve your room with the MSGA room block before Nov. 28! To download a registration form, click here.

President and CEO of JBS Swift USA to speak at Montana Stockgrowers’ 124th Annual Convention

Wesley Batista, President and CEO of JBS Swift USA, based in Greeley, Colo., will speak at MSGA’s 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show at the Billings Holiday Inn Grand Montana, Dec. 11-13. Convention attendees will have the opportunity to hear Batista speak and ask him questions at the end of the Opening General Session on Friday, Dec. 12.

JBS Swift USA is a division of Brazil’s JBS S.A., currently the world’s largest beef producer and exporter with a daily slaughtering capacity of 65.2 thousand head of cattle and the largest global exporter of processed beef. The company’s operations include 22 plants located in nine Brazilian states, six plants located in four Argentine provinces, 16 plants in the U.S., 10 in Australia and 10 in Italy. After purchasing Swift & Co. last year, JBS USA became the third-largest beef processor in the U.S., behind top-ranked Tyson Foods and second-ranked Cargill.

“We appreciate Wesley Batista taking the time to travel to Billings and speak to our cattlemen,” said Errol Rice, MSGA’s executive vice president. “MSGA, first and foremost, supports free and fair competition in the marketplace and this is a great opportunity for MSGA members to hear directly from JBS Swift regarding the details of their increased ownership in the U.S. packing and cattle feeding industries.”

Last week, JBS completed its purchase of Smithfield Beef and Five Rivers Cattle Feeding. The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently blocked JBS’s attempt to purchase National Beef Packing Co. of Kansas City, Mo.—a move that would have made JBS the largest beef processor in the U.S. The DOJ and attorneys general for 13 states filed suit against JBS S.A. and National Beef. The suit claimed the deal would put 80 percent of domestic fed cattle packing capacity in the control of the top three packers in the country. The lawsuit said the buyout would hurt packers because it would likely lessen competition. This would result in higher prices for consumers and lower prices paid to ranchers and feedlots, the suit claimed.

“We disagree with the Department of Justice’s decision to try and block this transaction,” Wesley Batista said in a press release. “This transaction is highly pro-competitive and will generate significant efficiencies and synergies that will benefit our cattle suppliers and our beef customers. We believe the government’s case is misplaced and we look forward to defending this matter in court.”

Batista’s speech at MSGA’s convention will set the stage for MSGA’s committee meetings.
“MSGA has long valued the process of due diligence,” said Rice. “Our members will be closely monitoring and evaluating the impacts on the beef industry as a result of JBS’s recent acquisitions. MSGA members will also be closely evaluating the civil antitrust lawsuit filed to prevent JBS from acquiring National Beef Packing Co., LLC.”

MSGA’s 124th Annual Convention will feature committee and business meetings, Cattlemen’s Colleges, the Women of the West Fair, a 95-booth Trade Show, and the Grand Finale Banquet. For more information please visit www.mtbeef.org , or contact Rose at MSGA (406) 442-3420.

Planning underway for MSGA’s 125th Anniversary Celebration in Miles City

Planning is underway for the Montana Stockgrowers Association’s 125th Anniversary Celebration, June 10-13, 2009, in Miles City. The celebration will cap off the organization’s regular mid-year meeting.

In 1884, a group of seven men, led by Col. Thomas J. Bryan, met at the newly formed Miles City Club and founded the Eastern Montana Stockgrowers Association. Later, across the state in Helena, another group of men, led by Granville Stuart, formed the Montana Stockgrowers Association. The members of the two groups decided to merge into the one Montana Stockgrowers Association that exists today.

MSGA will hold its mid-year meetings Wednesday, June 10 through Friday morning, June 12. Just before noon on Friday, the 125th Anniversary Celebration will begin. So far these events are planned: golf scramble, Solaris Feeders tour, Fort Keogh tour, Frontier Photographers presentation at the Art Center, Western Roundup exhibit at the Art Center, Range Riders Museum visit, Friday Night Dinner & Dance at the fairgrounds, wagon/cattle drive, parade and ranch rodeo. Look for more details and registration information at the trade show during MSGA’s Annual Convention, December 11-13, 2008, or log on to http://www.mtbeef.org/. For more information, please contact Lea Moore by phone (406) 853-0411 or email [email protected].

Montana Stockgrowers Association’s 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show set for Dec. 11-13 in Billings

The Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) will hold its 124th Annual Convention and Trade Show at the Holiday Inn Grand Montana in Billings, Dec. 11-13.

The convention’s highlight will be the Grand Finale Banquet on Saturday night, Dec. 13. This year, Tucker Hughes, who energized and entertained the crowd last year, will return as emcee. Events for the Grand Finale Banquet will include a prime rib dinner, live entertainment, fashion show, auction and drawings for a Nutra Lix saddle, lawn mower and more! For the grand prize, one lucky member will drive away in a 2008 Dodge Cummins Diesel truck sponsored by Lithia Dodge of Billings, First Interstate Bank of Billings, Northern Ag Network, Western Ranch Supply, Pfizer Animal Health, WALCO Animal Health and MSGA!

Other notable events include Friday night’s “Night around the Campfire” Trade Show Grand Opening, beginning at 5 p.m. and featuring music by the Ringling 5. The convention will include meetings, speakers, and great events like the Cattlemen’s Colleges, the Women of the West Fair and the Trade Show featuring agri-businesses with diverse products and services for the livestock industry, including crafts, jewelry and home décor.

The annual meetings of the Montana CattleWomen (MCW), the Montana Hereford Association, the Montana Cattle Feeders, and the joint Montana Public Lands Council and the Montana Association of State Grazing Districts board meeting will be held concurrently with MSGA’s meetings on Thursday. On Friday, MSGA and MCW will kick off the convention with an Opening General Session and committee meetings.
Please visit our website, http://www.mtbeef.org/, or contact Rose at MSGA, (406) 442-3420, to register for the convention, reserve your trade show booth or to learn more about sponsoring an event.

U.S. Department of Justice approves JBS merger with Smithfield and blocks merger with National Beef

by Errol Rice, MSGA Executive Vice President

The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a civil antitrust lawsuit yesterday in U.S. District Court in Chicago to block the proposed merger of JBS Swift and National Beef Packing Company LLC. Montana’s Attorney General Mike McGrath is joining the Department’s lawsuit. The Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) is uncertain as to who requested McGrath to join the case. (more…)

Come see us at the NILE!

MSGA will be at the NILE this week! We have a lot of great things going on:

We will have a booth at the trade show Wednesday through Saturday. Stop by to join, renew your membership or just visit! We will also be selling raffle tickets for a 3 day/3 night package for this year’s NFR. The package includes hotel, tickets to the rodeo and $500 for travel. Tickets are $25 each or five for $100. Proceeds will go to MSGA’s Advocacy Fund for the upcoming Legislative Session. The drawing will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18. If you can’t make it to the NILE but would still like to purchase tickets, please call MSGA at (406) 442-3420. Don’t miss your chance for this great package generously donated by our friends from Fort Dodge Animal Health!

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