South Dakota is a big agriculture state. Ag is our number one industry, and you can really see it driving through the state. There’s almost no place where you can’t look around and see at least one farm or ranch. Indeed, cattle outnumber people here nearly 4 to 1, the highest ratio of any state.
Here’s the thing with ranching, though. The corporate meatpacking monopoly has been screwing over ranchers and consumers alike for decades. They underpay producers for the livestock, and then they overcharge us for the product at the grocery store. For them, it’s profits all the way down.
This monopoly has grown out of control because the government has consistently refused to act against it. Big Ag mega-corporations have PACs, and those PACs give hundreds of thousands of dollars to politicians not to interrupt the gravy train. For one, the Justice Department should have busted up the meatpacking monopoly a long time ago, just as President Theodore Roosevelt first directed in 1902. Back then, the “Big Six” controlled 50% of the U.S. meat market. Now, the “Big Four” control 80%.
On the other hand, the government has tied its own hands. They can’t trust bust because there just aren’t the systems in place for the industry to adapt. A young man in Tea, South Dakota, helped me understand this side of the issue more clearly (if you’re reading this, thank you!).
The large regulatory framework of the Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection Service (USDA FSIS) ensures that the meat we buy in grocery stores is inspected for quality and food safety. We probably all agree that is a good thing. I like buying meat at my local grocery store without worrying about the source, quality, or safety.
A total of six polls show that incumbent Mike Rounds has a terrible approval rating. On the other hand, four polls show that folks across every demographic like my background and my common-sense message. The opportunity is right in front of us, but we have to seize it. With just $25 today, you can help me give South Dakotans a real voice this November. Thank you.
The “problem” (for lack of a better word) is that this large framework is only accessible and affordable to equally large corporations. Sure, local ranchers and producers can pay to have their meat inspected and processed themselves, but that pushes the price up too high for them to truly compete in the open market.
Both of these problems are the direct result of long, sustained government inaction. Congress hasn’t done enough work (do they know what that means anymore?) to make USDA processes more accessible for family farmers or ranchers as the Big Ag monopolies developed. In turn, those Big Ag monopolies were able to buy Congress’s complacency. As a bonus, the organizations signing the checks sound homey, hardworking, and American, so no one bats an eye.
How do we get to a point where local ranchers can sustain their operations without jeopardizing the safety or affordability of meat for regular folks? The first and most obvious is immediate action to break up the Meatpacking Monopoly. If they don’t have the market power to underpay ranchers and overcharge consumers, then that’s a step in the right direction.
After that, we need to reform the FSIS system to be more accessible and affordable for local producers. If we don’t, we’re just kicking the consolidation problem down the road. State inspection services are already held to the “at least equal to USDA FSIS” standard, so partnering with state services through initiatives like the existing Cooperative Interstate Shipping Program could help bring down inspection costs for local and regional processors once the Big Meatpackers are broken up.
I’d also fight for Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL) for beef, and potentially even State of Origin Labeling later down the road. That’ll let consumers decide which beef to buy and where to buy it, harnessing the laws of supply and demand to create beneficial outcomes up the supply chain for ranchers.
It’s about more than just growing and producing the food we eat. Keeping agriculture local helps keep it sustainable, ensuring that individuals making decisions for the sake of the business are more likely to keep the land and the local community in mind as well. Big Ag mega-corporations have no such obligation to the communities where they operate.
I live in a small town in South Dakota. About half of South Dakotans live in small, rural towns, where agriculture is absolutely essential to the regional economy. I want to know where the beef I buy comes from, that it’s safe, and that neither me nor the rancher who produced it were screwed over in the process. On top of all that, I want to know that folks anywhere and everywhere can actually afford it.
Is all of that possible? Absolutely. Will it be easy to achieve? No, but the things worth fighting for rarely are. If the results are a stronger South Dakota, stable agriculture, and safe, affordable food, then I’m all for it. We can do this.
Thank you for reading.
Brian L. Bengs, Lt Col (Ret)
Independent Candidate for U.S. Senate
New polling shows that I’m only four points behind Mike Rounds in a head-to-head race. Once folks learn more about the two of us, I jump in the lead. We have the opportunity to make this the most competitive Senate race South Dakota has seen in years. I need your help to make it happen. If you can give just $25 today, it will help me keep this momentum going all the way to the finish line. Thank you for your support.
The Billionaires continue their take over of all aspects of America. If they are not broken up it will only get worse than it is and it is BAD now! We are in the midst of the Second Gilded Age driven by a Billionaire in the WH and his Billionaire buddies who are feeding each other and scratching each others back - as the rest of America suffers under their tryanny. And too many in rural America have bought into the BS and have not been served by people like Mike Rounds, that has them under the control of the Billionaire monopolies. American farmers are being crushed by the “Farmageddon” created by the monopolies of Big Ag. with help from the likes of Mike Rounds, John Thune, and Dusty Johnson……who put Big Money first ahead of their own constituents.
South Dakota, like the rest of the US, is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the big 4 meat packers. We've all got to fight this Corporate Colonialism, and bust the strangle hold of the Oligarchy.