The United States Cattlemen’s Association has sent letters to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission requesting each department to bring together cattle market participants and stakeholders to discuss concerns related to price transparency and true price discovery.
The letters were specifically addressed to USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue and CFTC Chairman Heath Tarbert in response to the market changes following that fire at the Tyson Foods Beef Plant in Holcomb, Kansas. U.S. cattle producers have seen unprecedented disruption in the cattle marketplace over the last several weeks since the fire took place.
According to the letter, U.S. Cattlemen want two separate Cattle Industry Summits that would directly address issues related to the Mandatory Price Reporting Program. Packers and Stockyards Act Violations and definitions, as well as cattle futures contracts. USCA says it looks forward to working with both the USDA and the CFTC to bring together cattle industry stakeholders in the months ahead.