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Association’s (NCBA’s) use of the Checkoff funds includes “placing REFERENCES
positive stories about how beef is raised, beef safety, quality, nutrition,
[and] sustainability,” including “industry information” about how all beef 1. Gangitano A. Bipartisan pair of senators request antitrust
probe into meatpacking industry. The Hill, April 29,
provides higher quality attributes such as improved animal care. 2020. https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/495197-
The Checkoff messages encourage consumers to perceive all beef hawley-baldwin-request-antitrust-investigation-into-
meatpacking-industry
products sold in the U.S. as equal. For example, all beef is equally sustain- 2. https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/
able because “[t]he beef production system works in harmony to produce bf8cd596-d4f3-4903-b39b-9a8008d72881/5.12.20-
the most sustainable product.” Thus, Checkoff-funded marketing would senate-letter-to-doj-packers-investigation-request-final-
w-all-signatures.pdf
have consumers believe that beef is “the most sustainable product,” 3. Hendrickson M, Howard PH, Constance D. Power, food
whether it comes from an independent rancher in Montana raising 100% and agriculture: implications for farmers, consumers
grass-fed, antibiotic-free cattle, or from a producer in another country who and communities. University of Missouri, College of
Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources, November 1,
regularly feeds antibiotics to his grain-fed cattle on a dirt and manure- 2017. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_
covered feedlot. The Checkoff ads also use terms like “from pasture to id=3066005
plate” that paints a misleading image of all beef being pasture-raised, 4. https://republicans-judiciary.house.gov/wp-content/
uploads/2020/06/2020-06-09-HJC-GOP-to-USDA-re-
undermining those producers who invest the extra time and resources Meat-Processing-Competition.pdf
required to produce truly pasture-raised cattle. While some consumers 5. See R-CALF v. Perdue, 2020 WL 1486051, at *8 (D.
Mont. Mar. 27, 2020).
will not be fooled by this advertising, many more will be – reducing the 6. See generally: Chakravarti A and Janiszewski C. The
potential growth of the grass-fed beef market and creating pressure to influence of generic advertising on brand preferences.
keep the prices closer to conventional beef prices. Journal of Consumer Research. 2004;30(4):487-502.
And then there’s the second problem, namely placing more power 7. Crespi JM. Generic advertising and product differentia-
tion revisited. Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial
in the hands of a few powerful companies. Consider what has happened Organization. 2007;5(1):1153-1153. (At 14-15, citing
since Congress established the major livestock Checkoff programs. Every studies finding correlation between generic advertising
and decrease in product differentiation.)
U.S. livestock sector has become significantly more consolidated. USDA 8. Beef Checkoff, Consumer Education. https://www.beef-
statistics show that between 1987 and 2012, the average number of animals board.org/checkoff/beef-checkoff-programs/consumer-
on feedlot cattle operations has increased by 119 percent, the number of information-program/ (retrieved September 1, 2020).
broiler chickens has increased by 127 percent, the number of milk cows 9. Beef Sustainability: Environmental, Social & Eco-
nomic Impacts. https://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/
by 1,025 percent, and the number of hogs by 3,233 percent. This extreme raising-beef/beef-sustainability (retrieved September 1,
growth by some operations has corresponded with a dramatic loss in small 2020).
and mid-sized independent farms in every sector. “Licensed U.S. dairy 10. See, for example: Texas Beef Council. Texas chefs expe-
rience beef industry from pasture to plate. July 27, 2018.
herds fell by more than half between 2002 and 2019, with an accelerat- https://www.texasbeefcheckoff.com/checkoff-news/
ing rate of decline in 2018 and 2019, even as milk production continued texas-chefs-experience-beef-industry-from-pasture-to-
plate/ (retrieved September 3, 2020).
to grow.” And even with the growth in the local food market, the total 11. MacDonald JM, Law J, Mosheim R. Consolidation in
number of farmers raising cattle has continued to decline, despite total U.S. Dairy Farming. USDA Economic Research Report
sales significantly increasing. No. (ERR-274), July 2020, at i. https://www.ers.usda.
gov/publications/pub-details/?pubid=98900
While the Checkoffs are not the sole cause of this consolidation, their 12. For finding of a 5.2% decrease in the number of farms
generic marketing has certainly played a role. Moreover, the Checkoff and a 24.8% increase in sales from just 2007 to 2012,
funds go into the pockets of entities who push policies that support this see: USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service. 2012
consolidation at the expense of independent farmers and ranchers. Much Census of Agriculture: Highlights. ACH12-20, February
2015. https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/High-
of the money from the Beef Checkoff goes into the pocket of the NCBA, lights/2015/Cattle_Highlights.pdf (retrieved August 28,
an industry trade group that purports to represent cattle ranchers – but 2020).
also represents feedlots and meatpackers. NCBA supports mandatory
electronic animal ID, opposes country of origin labeling, and opposes
the PRIME Act, to name just a few of its problematic policy positions.
The Checkoffs are a government tax taken from farmers to promote
conventional agribusiness and support the trade organizations that have
helped build the fragile, flawed food system we see today. We hope the
initial success in this lawsuit will continue and create the platform for
ultimately ending all of these programs.

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