the meat of the matter

The Meat of the MatterCommon Sense is not so Common

Don NikodimExecutive Director, MO Pork Association

A Brewing Storm !

THE ACTIVIST COMPLEX

Animal RightsAnimal Welfare

SocialEngineering

Environmentalist

Vegetarianism

VegetarianOld Native American term

for

Poor Hunter

HSUS / Pacelle• Fear• Emotion• Stalin – “Useful Idiots”• “Voice of Reason” Strategy

‒ Attack the weakest opponents ‒ Animal Law

Schools & Universities‒ Ballot initiatives‒ Legislation‒ Extortion‒ Religion

Who is HSUS?• The TRUTH about HSUS

‒ HSUS is a international factory-fundraising nonprofit organization preying on the public’s emotional attachment to companion animals

‒ HSUS is not soliciting $19/month for your local animal shelter

‒ PETA in a suit

Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

• Category Spending: IRS Form 990, Humane Watch‒ Total revenue (2012): $125.7 million ‒ Net assets (2012): $230 million ‒ Investments/securities (2012) - $177.7 million‒ Fundraising expenses (2012): $44.2 million ‒ Salaries/benefits (2012): $44.5 million (35%)‒ Pension contributions (2014): $4 million‒ Lobbying expenses (2014): $4.1 million‒ Grants to pet shelters: ~1% of the total budget

What is the HSUS Agenda?• “My goal is the abolition of all animal agriculture.”

– John “JP” Goodwin, HSUS Grassroots Coordinator • “Our goal is to get sport hunting in the same

category as cock fighting and dog fighting.” – Wayne Pacelle, HSUS President

• “The life of an ant and that of a child should be granted equal consideration.” – Michael W. Fox, HSUS Senior Scholar

• “We have no problem with the extinction of domestic animals.” – Wayne Pacelle, HSUS President

HSUS Leaders in Their Own Words• “I don't want to see another cat or dog born.”

CEO, Wayne Pacelle, Bloodties 1994

• “PETA has really done so much in a short time to...promote animal rights.”

CEO, Wayne Pacelle, Vegetarian Times, October 1989

• “If we could shut down all sport hunting in a moment, we would.”

CEO, Wayne Pacelle, Associated Press, December 1991

• “My goal is the abolition of all animal agriculture.” HSUS Director of Animal Cruelty Policy, John “J.P.” Goodwin

“There’s no rational basis for saying that a human being has special rights. A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy. They’re all animals.”— Ingrid Newkirk

“There is no hidden agenda. Our goal is total animal liberation.”— Ingrid Newkirk

“We don't want "sustainable" animal agriculture. We want it abolished.”

— Ingrid Newkirk

PETA

More Notable Quotes• We are not superior. There are no clear

distinctions between us and animals. -- Michael W. Fox, Vice President, The Humane Society

• It is time we demand an end to the misguided and abusive concept of animal ownership. The first step on this long, but just, road would be ending the concept of pet ownership. -- Elliot Katz, President, In Defense of Animals

Key Animal Rights Enablers

• Cultural Elite

• Financially Blessed

• Scientific Illiterate

• Useful Idiots – Blind Followers

• Compassion• Emotion• Higher Status for Animals - $60 B• Their Science – Pseudo / junk• Social Media• Meat Free or less meat diets• Anti – Technology - 1950’s Ag• Control Over Others

Common Threads

"I think some students would become full-fledged animal rights activists," Barker said. "Some will become lawyers and doctors who will always be interested in animal rights.”

Bob Barker Donates $1 Million For Animal Rights Program at Drury University

Disney / BambiSyndrome

2014 Americans Spent on PetsFood ---$22.62 Billion

Vet Care ---$15.25 BillionSupplies/OTC Medicine--$13.72 Billion

Grooming/Boarding --$4.73 BillionLive Animal Purchase -- $2.19 Billion

– Total – $58,510,000,000

◦ Source: American Pet Products Assoc.

◦ Over 80% of people sleep with a furry animal

Missouri − 2010• Proposition B

• Missouri is a ballot initiative state

• HSUS sponsored signature campaign

• Prop B is approved for November 2 ballot

• Called the “Puppy Mill Act”

www.MoFarmersCare.com@moFarmerscare on twitter

www.facebook.com/mofarmerscare

http://www.mofarmerscare.com/

http://www.facebook.com/mofarmerscare

United Producers, Inc.AMECMO-Ag

MO Dairy AssociationMO Dairy

Growth Assoc.MO Egg Council

MOFEDMO Pet

Breeder’s Assoc.MVMA

MO Sheep ProducersMissouri Farmer Today

MO Livestock Marketing Assoc.

MO Association of Meat Processors

Who is Missouri Farmers Care?40+ organizations working to protect Missouri Ag

Missouri Farmers Care• The Mission

‒ Promote the continued growth of Missouri agriculture and rural communities through coordinated communication, education and advocacy.

• The Vision‒ All Missourians will understand the truth about

modern agriculture, food production and farm life and their connection to Missouri’s food security, economy and social well-being.

The Task• To build an educational and action-oriented

foundation to protect Missouri agriculture.• To understand the threats to ag and how to inform

others.• To learn how to garner support from our friends,

families, and communities.• To tackle radical animal-rights organizations like

HSUS and PETA.• To connect with fellow ag-supporters.

MFC Fundraising Efforts• Ag Groups stepped up - $$$

‒ If hadn’t outspent foes 2 to 1, would have lost the election

• Began fundraising efforts for A-1 before issue made it to the ballot box

• Essentially no corporate ‘Big Ag’ donors aided MFC efforts with significant $

We Need Allies!• Forest Lucas – Protect the Harvest

‒ Prop B: Generous contributions in last 3 weeks‒ Amendment 1: Took on the ‘hard’ attack

Allowed MFC to use contrasting softer image

‒ PTH support allowed MFC to match HSUS’ last minute spending surge

• Conservation/Hunting/Sporting Groups

Amendment 1 Passes by 2,500 Votes!

HSUS Strategic Positioning• That farmers and ranchers:

‒ Don’t care about their animals.‒ Are deliberately cruel to their animals.

• “More regulations will cure whatever ails the animal ag industry, whether perceived or real.”

• In their promotion of a world w/o animals or meat, diets w/o animal products are healthier and more environmentally sensitive.

• Massachusetts ballot initiative: money spent to ban most bacon and eggs from supermarkets

The Press • Underestimated mainstream press’ hostility

toward A-1 & agriculture in general • Needed to engage traditional press early & often

‒ Early on press saw no need for A-1 • Efforts with press may be an uphill battle

‒ Animal Rights threat to ag must be communicated so the press is either on our side or neutral

HSUS Game Changer?• It’s not necessarily about publicity or the ‘big hit’• Science/evidence: ‘cherry picked’ to make the case; • Ultimate argument: ‘what you are doing is wrong’. • Concerted effort over time to build sense of

inevitable momentum, reaching moral tipping point.• Positioning things: telling the public what to think,

making animal welfare concerns ‘front of mind’.• “Using Christianity to forward the cause of animals” -

Christine Gutleban• Watch how the media handles this (enables it?)

Inch by Inch: Religion’s Role• 2011 meeting between Wayne Pacelle and faith

leaders• Engage Christians to mandate a “biblical,

moral/ethical care for animals” • The Goal? Evangelical leaders sign a statement

to develop consensus among Christians on the need for human responsibility towards animals

• End game? Use of religion to marginalize animal agriculture

Amendment 1 Really Taught Us: • Every vote counted

‒ Every street corner conversation‒ Every radio program‒ Every email and social media post ‒ Every civic group meeting

‒ Carried by 2,500 votes Out of 1 million votes cast

“It ain’t that people don’t know –

It’s that much of what people know ain’t so”

Mark Twain

You’re The Expert, not HSUS

Federal Gov-ernmental Agen-

cies; 17%State Governmen-tal Agencies; 13%

University Scien-tists / Re-

searchers, 4%United Egg Pro-

ducers (UEP); 1%U.S. Poultry & Egg

Assoc.; 4%National Pork

Prodcers Council (NPPC); 1%National Cattle-

man's Beef Assoc. (NCBA); 3%

National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF); 2%

The Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS); 21%

People for the Eth-ical Treatment of Animals (PETA);

13%

Other; 21% More than 1/3 of consumers use the HSUS and PETA as their main source of information on animal welfare issues.

Summary Points• Ballot issue language- key • HSUS will find ways to put a farmer face on an

anti-farmer message• AR’s: distort the facts, confuse the issue, lie• Active online presence multiplies messages• Getting farmer/rancher buy-in:

‒ Willing to be face/voice of the campaign? • People won’t buy what you do

‒ They buy why you do it.• AR’s can be beat if we stand together

Lessons Learned from the Battles• It’s an endless war.

‒ Work remains to be done. ‒ Need to help other states with or without

ballot initiatives• Reaching urban/suburban audiences

‒ Who are the influencers?

Battles Arise in New Sites• Oklahoma’s Right to Farm (State Question 777) –

on 11/8/16 ballot• Oklahomans have been watching bills

‒ Restricting livestock production and handling methods

‒ Banning the production of GMO crops‒ Increasing the oversight of agriculture‒ Oklahoma: 650k people are food insecure

Bill is a right to protect consumer choice

What Can Ag People do?

• Make a difference in your community• Opportunity comes from the most unusual

sources• Engage early and don’t go it alone

Walk the Walk, Talk the Talk…Daily

Be Engaged Beyond Your Business & Your Borders• Don’t wait-

‒ Someone else will tell your story ‒ It may not be one you like!

‒ Chamber of Commerce and Civic Clubs ‒ Engage legislators and state officials

• Work with other state groups

New Tools in Our Toolbox

HSUS

EXTORTION

• McDonalds• Burger King• Hardee’s• Wendy’s• Cracker Barrel• Wolfgang Puck• A host of food service suppliers• Smithfield, Cargill, Hormel

New Strategy - Extortion

“Common sense ain’t so common”

Will Rogers Voltaire (1694-1778)

Plant scientists take a desired attribute (insect resistance, herbicide resistance, disease resistance, etc.), trait or gene, from an organism and specifically place it in another plant with a goal of reducing damage to crops and reducing the amount of pesticides used.

WHAT IS A GMO?

EVERYTHINGIS A GMO!

• Since mankind first cultivated plants and domesticated animals for food, the focus has been on altering genetics

• Early efforts were a slow arduous process that could be best described as hit and miss.

• Today we use proven technology to make calculated progress with a great degree of certainty and expedience

• Bottom line, we’re able to feed more people while using less resources than ever before

`

Examples of AGMO?

` • Evidence suggests that cultivated corn arose through crossings, perhaps first with gamagrass to yield teosinte and then possibly with back crossing of teosinte to primitive maize to produce modern races

• There are numerous theories as to the ancestors of modern corn and many scientific articles and books have been written on the subject

• Corn is perhaps the most completely domesticated of all field crops. Its perpetuation for centuries has depended wholly on the care of man. It could not have existed as a wild plant in its present form.

The Origin of Corn

Examples of AGMO?

`Broccoli is a GMO• Broccoli is a result of careful breeding of cultivated leafy cole crops in

the northern Mediterranean starting in about the 6th century BC.

Papaya is a GMO• Genetically enhanced varieties saved the Papaya in Hawaii

Ruby Red Grapefruit is a GMO• Developed by irradiating Grapefruit seeds

The list goes on - - - - -

SO, WHAT IS AGMO?

GMO’S help farmers:• Prevent crop disease• Control insects• Manage weeds• Change nutritional profile

SO, WHAT IS AGMO?

Use of pesticides continues to trend

downward.

SO, WHAT IS AGMO?

87.5%

INCREASE IN

PRODUCTION

37%

69%

27%

37%

30%

Amount of la

nd

to produce one

bushel o

f corn

Soil loss

per

bushel above

a

tolerable l

evel

Irrigati

on water

use per

bushel

Energy u

sed to

produce one

Bushel

Emissions p

er

bushel

SO, WHAT IS AGMO?

From 1980 to 2010, the use of the key crop inputs of nitrogen, phosphorus and

potassium have been cut in half, per bushel of corn grown. This represents an 87.5 percent increase in production with

4 percent fewer nutrients.

SO, WHAT IS AGMO?

In 2009, biotechnology helped farmers reduce CO2 emissions by 39 billion

pounds. That’s the same as removing 7.8 million cars from the road

for the entire year.

SO, WHAT IS AGMO?

GMO foods are nutritionally and chemically identical to food grown from non-biotech crops. And GMO foods are still exhaustively assessed for safety by

groups like the FDA and the USDA.

THEY HAVE ACLEAR AGENDA.

Here’s what they are saying:“We are going to force them to label this food. If we have it labeled, then we can organize people not to buy it.”Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director, Center for Food Safety

CONFUSED ABOUT YOUR FOOD?YOU’RE NOT ALONE.

They’re wrong. A comprehensive review found no difference in the health benefits of organic and conventional food.


Wrong again.98% of the 2.2 million farms in the U.S. are family farms.


Way wrong.Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides. However, there are more than 50 synthetic pesticides that may be used in organic crop production if other substances fail to control the target pest.


Today 312 million people are fed by 2 million farmers. If we used 1950s agriculture today, we could not feed California, Texas, Illinois, Ohio, Florida, Michigan, or New York.

TRUTH:Animal antibiotics make our food supply safer and people healthier. Antibiotics

are a critical tool to prevent, control and treat disease in animals.

TRUTH:One 8-ounce serving of cabbage contains 5,411 nanograms of estrogen, over 1,000 times more estrogen than in the same size steak from a steer given a growth

promoting hormone implant.

TRUTH:Without productivity-enhancing technologies in beef

production, U.S. farmers and ranchers would need to raise 10 million more cattle and harvest 3 million

more to produce the same amount of beef currently available. This would take an additional 81 million

tons of feed, 17 million acres of land and 138 billion gallons of water.

The Truth: Hunger kills more people worldwide

than all forms of cancer combined.

78%

360k

31%13%

16lbs

In 2011, researchers from the University of California Davis studied two groups of cattle in a feedlot setting. One group utilized modern technology while the other did not. The first group generated 31 percent less greenhouse gas emissions than those without hormone implants or feed additives.

In 1959, it took eight pigs—including breeding stock—to produce 1,000 pounds of pork. Today, it takes

just five pigs. And hog farmers today use 78 percent less land and 41 percent less water

than they did 50 years ago.

In the 1940s, a chicken required approximately 16 pounds of feed to

achieve a four-pound weight. Today, that amount of feed has been cut in half, without the use of growth

hormones or steroids.

If all the finishing pigs in the U.S. were fed ractopamine, a feed additive that promotes lean meat growth, at 4.9 grams/ton, the reduction in emissions would be equivalent to removing 360,000 cars off the road for a year.

A Washington State University studyfound that since 1977 livestock productionadvances have resulted in 13percent more beef with 13 percentfewer animals. It also foundthat modern beef production requires20 percent less feed.

WE HAVETHE FACTS.

“The National Academies, the American Medical Association, the World Health Organization, the Royal Society and the European Commission...all agree that there’s no evidence that it’s dangerous to eat genetically modified foods.”The Washington Post, Tamar Haspel, October 15, 2013

WE HAVETHE FACTS.

“The prospect of helping to feed the starving and improve the lives of people across the planet should not be nipped because of the self-indulgent fretting of first-world activists. As with any field, there’s room for reasonable caution and study using real science. But there is nothing reasonable about anti-GMO fundamentalism. Washington Post Editorial Board, June 1, 2014

1902 1959 1980 20140

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

3948

103

181

Bu/Ac

Bushels per Acre

MISSOURI CORN YIELDS

TRUTH:According to EPA data, all of agriculture

contributes 7 percent of America’s greenhouse gas emissions, while

livestock production accounts for just 3 percent.

By the year 2050 the global population will

be 9 billion.We will need 70%

more food and 70% of that food will

have to come from efficiency-enhancing technology.

HUNGER. AN EPIDEMIC:

Hunger isn’t just a problem in third world

countries.In San Diego, 1 in 4 kids get their only

decent meal at school. In Kansas City, it’s 1 in 5. In

Boston, 1 in 8.

In Columbia, 1 in ___ kids get their only decent meal at school.


Every day, nearly 25,000

people die from starvation and malnutrition.That’s like 130 Boeing 727 jets filled with people

falling out of the sky every day.


Agriculture is becoming more

efficient.The carbon footprint

of a gallon of milk has decreased by 63% since 1944.

One cow produces as much milk today as five cows did in

1944.
