Tag: Mike Callicrate

Tyson Foods bans using cattle with Zilmax growth hormone

Mike Callicrate

AirTalk with Larry Mantle for August 12, 2013 Listen to interview: [audio:http://media.scpr.org/audio/upload/2013/08/12/beef.mp3] Tyson foods said it will no longer buy cattle fed Zilmax, a growth-inducing drug. What was the company’s motivation for the decision? Last Thursday market traders noticed cattle prices rise sharply. It was in response to news that Tyson Foods – a major meatpacker – quietly had sent letters to cattle feedlots indicating Tyson would no longer buy cows fed Zilmax. That’s a supplement designed to Read More …

NCBA Files Suit to Abolish COOL

Mike Callicrate

PRESS RELEASE Organization for Competitive Markets P.O. Box 6486 Lincoln, NE 68506 www.competitivemarkets.com Contact: Mike Callicrate, OCM President 785-332-8128 callicrate@competitivemarkets.com August 5, 2013 Beef Checkoff dollars undermining producer interests! The Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) today called for the immediate dismissal of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) as a contractor for the Beef Checkoff Program. On July 8th, NCBA and seven other plaintiffs, including the American Meat Institute, American Association of Meat Processors, Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, Canadian Read More …

OCM to plot long overdue market revival at convention

Mike Callicrate

PRESS RELEASE Organization for Competitive Markets P.O. Box 6486 Lincoln, NE 68506 www.competitivemarkets.com Contact: Mike Callicrate, OCM President 785-332-8128 callicrate@competitivemarkets.com July 18, 2013 Expect a somber tribute to lost markets, followed by invigorating plans for a rebirth, at the Organization for Competitive Markets’ annual convention coming up August 9th and 10th in Kansas City. “The free market we all like to talk about is a mirage. We pretend it’s there, but in reality our competitive markets have been Read More …

OCM Challenges Inspector General Refusal to Release Records

Mike Callicrate

PRESS RELEASE Organization for Competitive Markets P.O. Box 6486 Lincoln, NE 68506 www.competitivemarkets.com Contact: Mike Callicrate, OCM President 785-332-8128 callicrate@competitivemarkets.com July 2, 2013 Group Appeals OIG’s Decision to Withhold Records Relating to Questionable Checkoff Audit Report The Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) filed an administrative appeal today challenging the USDA Inspector General’s (OIG) refusal to release more than 3,000 pages of information relating to a questionable audit report. Despite an independent audit that discovered substantial violations of the Read More …

Mike Callicrate featured on The Tim Danahey Show discussing the recent Smithfield Foods sale to China

Mike Callicrate

The Tim Danahey Show recorded on April 13th 2013 When China’s Shuanghui Group purchased America’s Smithfield Foods (the largest pork producer in America) for $7 billion, it only created a minor ripple in the media. It was perceived as a simple and welcome Chinese investment in American free enterprise. However, there is more to the story. Mike Callicrate, a nationally-recognized leader in the local food movement and an ethical rancher, tells of the environmental, economic, and food supply Read More …

OCM Files Demand for Inspector General Records

Mike Callicrate

PRESS RELEASE Organization for Competitive Markets P.O. Box 6486 Lincoln, NE 68506 www.competitivemarkets.com Contact: Mike Callicrate, OCM President 785-332-8128 callicrate@competitivemarkets.com April 11, 2013 Group Wants Answers to Questionable Audit Report The Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) announced today a series of actions in furtherance of its efforts to bring transparency and integrity to the beef checkoff program. OCM has submitted a Freedom of Information Act demand for records relating to a questionable report released last week. In 2010, Read More …

From Berkeley to Boston: Coming Together Around Freedom, Fairness and Food

Mike Callicrate

By Mike Callicrate & Fred Stokes Eating is one thing we all have in common. And, to millions of us, what we eat, how it’s produced, and where it comes from is important. OCM has worked for the last fourteen years to restore competition in the agricultural marketplace. We believe family farmers and ranchers make the best stewards of our land and livestock, and are the most reliable and trustworthy sources of high quality, healthy and safe food. Read More …

“They (BIG Ag) suck the wealth from our rural communities”

Mike Callicrate

In 1980 there were 62,000 hog farmers in Missouri, today in this country there are 67,000 left. Joe Maxwell discusses the power of BIG Ag and market concentration at the Local Foods Summit, on February 11th 2013, hosted by Mile High Business Alliance. Joe Maxwell a fourth generation Hog Farmer from Missouri and Vice President, Outreach and Engagement for The Humane Society of the United States, Maxwell works directly with family farmers, helping them organize into producer groups Read More …