F&R LivestockResource
Spring 2022 | Volume 5, Issue 3
Your direct source for livestock news and information
Published by Farmers & Ranchers Livestock, Salina, Kansas
In this Issue: 1 Livestock Risk Protection One tool in a beef producer’s risk management toolbox is the government subsidized Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) program. This article discusses the flexibility of LRP and the multiple applications from insuring an unborn calf crop to finished cattle. The next issue will discuss other risk management tools available to protect against market volatility. 13 Sustainability Credit Progressive livestock production has, arguably, moved the needle on sustainability more than any industry. Until now, the systems to quantify our progress has been limited. The opportunity has arrived to document site-specific contributions to greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). 19 Clear Sailing Drought is having a significant impact on a large area of beef production and must be factored into any marketing forecast. However, supply and demand fundamentals point to higher cattle prices for the next few years. Global beef demand and consumer acceptance is at an all time high. 23 Tax Flattener It isn’t often Hooter McCormick “gets the last laugh.” Fortuitously ending up with a new accountant supremely skilled at “fuzzy math” was the solution to Hooter’s tax problems.
Livestock Risk Protection Program Provides Cattlemen with Risk Management Options By Sara Gugelmeyer
Cattle producers are typically tough, independent types who really lean into the idea that they can handle anything coming at them. For generations, ranchers have worn their tenacity proudly, like a badge, refusing any help. However, the cattle market is not the same as it was in our father’s heyday, and certainly not our grandfathers’. Speculating traders, for one, have changed the game as well as outside market pressures like packing plant fires and pandemic-causing viruses. These pressures, which no one, it seems, can control, are why it’s impera-
tive that just as we’ve updated our vaccination and feeding programs, we also need to update or adopt for the first time, true risk management strategies. The first, and maybe most simple risk management strategy now offered is the Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) program, which is run and partly subsidized through the USDA’s Risk Management Agency. In some ways, LRP is similar to traditional crop insurance, and is designed to help ranchers traverse huge market swings without having to file for bankruptcy.
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