Sorting Pen: The California Cattleman Podcast

On this episode we hear about the California Beef Council's Pasture to Plate Beef Tour, which is an in-depth experience that immerses participants in the beef lifecycle production process and engages foodservice, retail, and nutrition professionals. CBC Director of Retail and Foodservice Marketing Christie Van Egmond and CBC Manager, of Producer Education and Engagement Makenzie Coveau explain the history of the tour and its success over the years. Grimmius Cattle Company's Chief Operating Officer Austin Flores also shares why their ranch has participated as a stop in this tour for many years and the details the value he sees in this program. Episode Resources:Connect with Christie about participating in future Pasture to Plate tours by clicking here.Request to join the California Beef Farmers and Ranchers Facebook page to stay up to date with the California Beef Council.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Early on Thursday morning, the One, Big Beautiful Bill progressed out of the House. Just hours later, Sorting Pen host Katie Roberti got to sit down with Ethan Lane, head of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association's office in Washington, D.C, to discuss what's in the bill, NCBA's success on it, and what's ahead for this legislation. On this episode, Katie and Ethan also discuss New World Screwworm and the border, tariffs, and NCBA's years of work to get beef into the United Kingdom.Episode Resources:NCBA Priorities Approved in House Reconciliation BillText us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

It is our 100th episode of Sorting Pen! To celebrate, we are launching our first episode in a new series on this podcast focused on “Sorting Through Stories with California Ranching Legends.” Starting with this interview, a couple of times a year, Sorting Pen host Katie Roberti will sit down with some of the great cattlemen and women in the West to hear their ranching stories, lessons, and more.Our first legend is Mr. Ellington Peek. Ellington sat in his favorite seat in the stands outside the auction ring at Shasta Livestock Auction as Katie recorded a conversation full of stories about the auction yard, the beginning of the Western Video Market, and Ellington's life. Hear what Ellington loves about buying and selling cattle and much more on this can't miss episode. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

On May 15, the California Fish and Game Wildlife Resources Committee will meet in Sacramento and consider changing a rule to restrict the ability to take any number of coyotes at any time. CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur joins this episode to share how this conversation started back in January at a Fish and Game committee hearing, detail what has happened since that hearing, and outline why CCA needs you to be part of opposing any changes to how coyotes are managed in California at this meeting on May 15.CCA will file detailed comments with the Committee prior to that hearing strongly opposing any change and will be on-hand at the meeting to defend ranchers' ability to manage coyote populations. Additionally, CCA encourages members to appear virtually or in person on May 15 to convey to Commissioners the continued need for allowing coyotes to “be taken at any time of the year and in any number.”Episode resources:To submit an opposition letter to the Fish and Game Commission, email it to fgc@fgc.ca.gov by Friday, May 2. Letters submitted by this deadline will be given to the Commissioners ahead of the committee meeting. If you miss this deadline, you can still send opposition letters up until May 12 to be given to Commissioners at the May 15th hearing.Look for more details in an upcoming edition of California Cattleman Weekly on how to attend or appear virtually at the May 15th meeting to voice your opposition. To call in to the meeting dial (877) 336-1831 and use the conference code number: 481000.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Two board members from the Livestock Marketing Association join this Sorting Pen episode to share why they, LMA and their members are working hard to help create opportunities for their customers, ranchers and farmers, through their producer profitability initiative. Back on the show is LMA's Western Director Jake Parnell—who is also a California cattle producer and owner of Cattlemen's Livestock Market in Galt.Joe Goggins, vice president of LMA and owner of Public Auction Yards in Billings, Montana, is also a featured guest on this episode.Learn more about this initiative for producer profitability and all LMA does at lmaweb.com/Policy/producer-profitability.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

In this episode, Steve Lambert, a rancher from Butte County, shares his journey and insights as one of CCA's Second Vice Presidents. Tune in to learn more about Steve's dedication to serving agriculture at local, state, and national levels, and hear why he continues to stay involved in these organizations.Katie and Steve also dive into the value of CCA, with a special focus on the important role seedstock producers play in the Association.Listen until the end to discover how Steve went from resisting being on social media over a decade ago to Lambert Ranch Herefords now thriving on Instagram!Episode Resources:https://www.instagram.com/lambertranchherefords/Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Representing California's 34 Assembly District, we visited Assemblymember Tom Lackey in his office. On this episode, he shares with us about issues that are top of mind right now for California legislators. We also talk about how Asm. Lackey has partnered with CCA throughout his time in office. Hear about the bill he is helping CCA run this year, and why he believes ranchers are important voices to have in Sacramento. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

There are two issues that came up at this year's CattleCon that we highlight on this episode of Sorting Pen: trade & taxes. In this conversation hear from past CCA President Tony Toso, who is now chair of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association's (NCBA) International Trade Committee. Later in the episode we hear from NCBA's Associate Director of Government Affairs Kelsea Kemp, who happens to hail from California. Listen as Kelsea shares about NCBA's tax priorities and one specific act NCBA is lobbying on right now.  This episode also explains new updates on The Corporate Transparency Act! Listen to learn more and refer to the resources below.   Episode Resources: Beneficial ownership information can be reported to FinCEN here.A FAQ about reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act is available here.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

On this episode we have three experts joining us to talk about biosecurity. From UC Davis and University of California Ag and Natural Resources, we have Dr. Gaby Maier and Dr. Lais Costa sharing their expertise. We are also fortunate to have Dr. Julia Herman from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association share her national perspectives on the importance of biosecurity.Episode Resources: To watch the Beef Cattle Herd Health UCCE Webinars mentioned by Dr. Maier visit https://ucanr.edu/sites/Rangelands/CattleHealth.Find BQA Resources on biosecurity at: https://www.bqa.org/resources/biosecurity-resources.As Dr. Herman mentions, for more resources check out https://www.securebeef.org.Want to learn more about biosecurity? Attend the Cattle Biosecurity Workshop on Saturday, March 1 at the Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center. The workshop will cover an array of topics including, creating a line of separation, cleaning and disinfecting vehicles and equipment, proper use of personal protective equipment, writing standard operating procedures for personnel and visitors, and much more. To view the flyer with registration instructions click here or contact Dr. Maier. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

What happened in Point Reyes? Why are 11 ranching families leaving early next year? There are many questions you may have about the news that came about a month ago. This story is complex. It can be difficult to track and understand the full picture. To answer some of our questions and share his knowledge of the conflict Kevin Lunny, a rancher who has been in the park his entire life, joins us on this episode. Kevin explains the background of the issue, details the ongoing challenges, and discusses the future opportunities to come for the 11 families who are leaving their Point Reyes ranches behind, as well as the difficulties that could remain in the national park.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

There are many questions following the tragic wildfires in Los Angeles. How did the wildfires in Los Angeles get to this point? Could more have been done prior to prevent this level of catastrophe? Where does CCA and the CCA Fire Subcommittee go from here in advocating for more action on prevention? Those questions and more are answered on this episode by Anthony Stornetta, a San Luis Obispo County cattle rancher, Deputy Fire Chief of Operations for Santa Barbara County Fire Department and the Chair of CCA's Fire Subcommittee. Listen as Anthony gives his insights and knowledge on how the LA wildfires got to be what they did and where we go from here as a state with more wildfires in its future. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Longtime Sierra Valley cattle rancher Rick Roberti has the reins as CCA President for the next two years. On this first episode of 2025, hear about his background, how he joined the officer team, why he is honored to serve in this leadership position and more. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

CCA just wrapped up our 108th Annual Convention full of great speakers. On this episode hear from one of them, as National Cattlemen's Beef Association CEO Colin Woodall is our guest on this final episode of Sorting Pen Season 4.Listen as Colin shares about the status of the Farm Bill, how NCBA feels about some of the nominations that have been made by the incoming Administration, why taxes are a priority for NCBA and much more as we look ahead to a new Congress starting on Jan 3. Episode Resources:Get all the details on CattleCon 2025 at https://convention.ncba.org/.Learn more about NCBA membership at https://www.ncba.org/membership.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

California Beef Council Director of Food & Nutrition Outreach Kori Dover and host, Katie Roberti share about CBC's engagement and efforts to promote beef at the California School Nutrition Conference in the middle of November. Learn what the conference entails, why it is important CBC invests in showing up at this conference annually, and how exhibiting at this event gives CBC the opportunity to share about beef with decision makers who are selecting what's served at schools throughout California.Episode Resources:To see the California Beef in Schools materials Kori shares about visit https://californiabeef.school.Read more about the Grateful Grazing event here.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Los Angeles County cattle rancher and CCA member Mike Williams is the current chair of the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, a national organization with a mission to advance, support and communicate continuous improvement of sustainability across the U.S. beef value chain. On this episode, Mike explains what the purpose of the Roundtable is, how he got involved, who makes up the leadership of the organization and more. Episode resources:Visit https://www.usrsb.org to learn more about the Roundtable and access the resources Mike shares about in this episode.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Dr. Ken Tate, a UC Davis Professor of Extension in Rangeland Management and Dr. Tina Saitone, a UC Davis Professor of Extension in Livestock and Rangeland Economics, share about the wolf research in California they have been working on the last three years.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

On this final legislative recap episode of the year, hear CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur explain how CCA's priorities in the 2023-2024 Legislative Session shook out now that the Governor's deadline to act on all bills has come and gone. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Dr. J.J. Goicoechea, a Nevada rancher and the Director of the Nevada Department of Agriculture, answers questions ranchers may have about the new USDA traceability rule going into effect on Nov. 5.  Hear why J.J. believes this change to make tags electronically readable, not just visually readable, needed to happen, and more about traceability in this episode.Episode Resources:Visit calcattlemen.org/EID for more information on the rule and how to get EID tags from the state of California. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

California dairyman and CCA Feeder Council Vice Chair Jack Hoekstra talks with Katie about what concerns and opportunities are top of mind for California dairy producers almost three quarters into the year.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

In this episode, California Cattle Council Executive Director Justin Oldfield explains why 10% of the Council's annual budget is put into a response fund, of which dollars are only deployed if an emergency or a potentially significant disruption to California's cattle industry arises.Hear how this response fund is proving to be vital and about the special educational campaign it is currently funding in Sonoma County. To learn more about the campaign visit sonomacows.com.Learn more about the California Cattle Council at calcattlecouncil.org.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

This episode is focused on getting everyone up to speed on a new law called the Corporate Transparency Act. It is a law that was passed in 2021 and is now being enforced, with deadlines quickly approaching—which if you miss could result in  extreme fines. If your farm or ranch has 20 or fewer employees, is structured as a corporation, LLC, or filed registration paperwork with the secretary of state, you may be required to file new paperwork with a division of the U.S. Department of the Treasury. NCBA's Executive Director of Government Affairs Kent Bacus is this episode's guest. Kent explains what the law this is, what this could mean for your ranch (or other business), how the law came about and more.The conversation in this episode is not professional advice. After listening, it would be best to consult with a tax professional or attorney for advice as to whether the Corporate Transparency Act applies to you.   Episode Resources:NCBA Reminds Cattle Producers to Review Corporate Transparency Act and Avoid Costly PenaltiesWhy Join NCBA?Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

This November California voters will see a $10 Billion Climate Bond on their ballots. CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur shares about the win teased in the prior episode—keeping funding for alternative protein research and development out of the Climate Bond. In this part two episode, also hear Kirk share about some of the aspects CCA members may be pleased to see included in this Bond.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur outlines a few of the most important wins CCA has secured in the last few months for California's cattle producers and ranching families. In this part one of two episodes hear about CCA's success in:Stopping two very problematic water rights bills that were introduced at the beginning of this Legislative SessionSecuring dollars in the State Budget, amid an extremely difficult budget deficit, to keep the California's Wolf-Livestock Compensation Program alive Keeping the State Water Resources Control Board from adding additional costs to some producers and users for water quality permitting and enforcementText us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

In 1998, members from the California Cattlemen's Association joined together to form the California Rangeland Trust (CRT). Now over 25 years later, CRT has permanently protected close to 400,000 acres. To discuss CRT's goal's and explain what conservation easements are, CRT Chief Executive Officer Michael Delbar and Vice Chair of CRT's Board of Directors Clayton Koopmann, join Katie on this episode.Hear discussions on how CRT has grown and evolved in the last 25 years, the work CRT is doing, what an easement is, who the partners working with CRT to conserve these rangelands are, common misconceptions about conservation easements and more. Episode resources:https://rangelandtrust.org/podcastCRT Ecosystem Service StudyYou Just Can't See Them From The Road Documentary TrailerText us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

On this episode, Jake Parnell makes his debut on Sorting Pen to discuss Western Video Market's recent restructuring, give an outlook on the July WVM sale and discuss the importance of auction yards. Jake recently became president and chair of the board for Western Video Market. He is also a professional auctioneer, owner and president of Cattlemen's Livestock Market, co-owner of Parnell Dickinson, one of the founders and president of the California Youth Ag Expo and the Livestock Marketing Association's Western Director. Episode resources:Press release: Western Video Market Reorganizes to Better Serve the Livestock IndustryProducer Profitability Initiative Seeks to Spark Conversation, Unite IndustryText us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Tom DeJarnette is a retired Navy SEAL Captain and was recently a guest speaker at CCA's Feeder Meeting a few weeks ago. Before speaking to attendees at the event, Tom sat down with Sorting Pen Host Katie Roberti and CCA's Feeder Council Chair Mike Sulpizio for this episode to share about his presentation and perspectives on leadership. Hear some of the takeaways he shares from his 26-year Naval career and how he connects many of them to the beef industry. More about Tom:Tom DeJarnette graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1993 with a double major in English and Economics. As an All-American swimmer, it was a natural fit to join the Navy and go to Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL (BUDS) training. As a retired Navy SEAL Captain with over 25 years of special operations experience working in high stress/no fail environments, Tom is proud of his military experiences and the lessons he learned about leadership, organizational structure, training, and culture. He built and led high performance teams from 20 to 400 people using these fundamentals and regularly proved they work under the most demanding conditions. Tom's 26-year Naval career included Operational Tours at SEAL Team ONE (ST-1), SEAL Team THREE, Naval Special Warfare Unit TEN (NSWU-10), Special Operations Command CENTRAL (SOCCENT), and Special Boat Team TWENTY (SBT-20). His staff tours included NSWU-10, SOCCENT, SBT-20, USMC Command and Staff College, ST-1, Naval Special Warfare Group ONE, Naval Special Warfare Group THREE, and Naval Special Warfare CENTER. Throughout his time in the SEAL Teams, what Tom enjoyed most was taking care of people and setting the conditions so that his teammates could be the best versions of themselves every day. With Tom's successful transition to the private sector in 2019, he continues to add unique value to like-minded corporate organizations because he implements time-honored Special Operations principles in a way that resonates with high-performance teams focused on authenticity, durability, and achieving a competitive advantage. In 2019, Tom was hired by Volunteer Employee Benefits Association (VEBA) as the Chief Administrative Officer where he established What The Strong Do To Rise LLC in support of VEBA contracting objectives. From 2020 – 2022, Tom established his personal LLC to embark on various leadership and cultural development contracting opportunities. Contracting led to another salary opportunity in 2021 as the Chief People Officer for Symbiont, a Fintech Blockchain company, where he got to focus on quality-of-life issues for a company of proven performers. Tom continues to enjoy working with high performance teams who are focused on selflessness, accountability, and work to solve problems in a way that preserves the long-term health of an organization. Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association's Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane is back on the podcast to discuss what the current focuses are in Washington D.C. At time of recording on Thursday, May 23, the House Agriculture Committee was marking up the Farm Bill, which was passed later that evening. Hear Ethan discuss the Farm Bill process, give insights on what the rest of this Congress will look like and explain some of the confusion NCBA is hearing around the final traceability rule. Episode ResourcesNCBA Press Release: House Farm Bill Includes Top Cattle Industry PrioritiesDetails on the 2024 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meetings happening July 8-10 in San Diego.Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Assemblymember Gregg Hart joined the California Legislature last January. In that time he's gone out of his way to work with CCA's government affairs team and get to know ranchers. On this episode of Sorting Pen, get to know Assemblymember Hart. Hear about the priority issues he is working on in Sacramento, how he shares about rural issues and needs with other legislators from more urban districts, and more. Bonus: There are 63 National Parks in the U.S. Can you guess how many of them Assemblymember Hart has visited? Listen to the full episode to find out!Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!

Text us your comments, feedback and episode ideas!Earlier this week, Central Valley Meat Holding Company announced it has entered an agreement to purchase the Cargill Meat Solutions beef processing facility in Fresno, Calif. Brian Coelho, CEO and President of Central Valley Meat, joins CCA's Katie Roberti to talk through this new acquisition and what it may mean for California's beef industry. Background:Central Valley Meat is a diversified family-owned corporation. Harris Ranch Beef Company and Harris Ranch Feeding are two of the facilities owned by the company, in addition to Central Valley Meat and CLW Foods. Click here to read the company's press release announcing the purchase.

“Today, Sonoma County Family Farmers are under attack," Sonoma County Farm Bureau's website says.  "A ballot measure is being proposed by an animal extremist group from Berkeley, CA, aimed to eliminate Sonoma County's diverse animal agriculture production."This episode of Sorting Pen discusses what the ballot measure is, the potential impacts, and how to support Sonoma County farmers and ranchers amid this attack. Joining Katie on this episode to explain are Dayna Ghirardelli and Jennifer Beretta. Dayna is Sonoma County Farm Bureau's Executive Director. Jennifer is a fourth generation Sonoma County dairy farmer, board member of Sonoma Farm Bureau and dairy representative for the California Cattle Council. Visit https://www.sonomacountyfamilyfarmersalliance.com/ to support the Sonoma County Family Farmers Alliance.

With dairy cattle testing positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza for the first time a few weeks ago, this episode is to give California beef producers an update on the situation. Joining Katie to have this conversation and talk through what producers should know about the virus, current industry concerns, how it is being monitored and more is Dr. Tom Talbot, veterinarian and cattle rancher in Bishop, California. Tom is also a past CCA President and remains an active member of the Association.

Since December, San Diego County cattle rancher John Austel has served as a CCA Second Vice President. In this episode, learn more about John, the unique perspective he brings to the officer team, and his time as a CCA officer so far. John also shares about the experience of running his regenerative, natural Angus herd on the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Ecological Reserve Rancho Jamul—a property that was part of an old Spanish Land Grant with a history of over 250 years of agricultural use. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs joins Katie on this episode. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

Assemblymember Jim Wood was elected to California's Assembly 10 years ago to serve the North Coast. In that time, he has become a good friend of CCA's. In this conversation, hear why Asm. Wood has a kinship for cattle ranching, why he loves CCA's Steak & Eggs Breakfast, about the handful of priorities he's worked on in the legislature that positively impact ranchers and more. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

Have you ever worried about the mental health of someone you love or know in a rural area? You're not alone. On this episode, Vice President of Communications for Rural Minds Julie Lux, shares about the mental health emergency America's rural communities are facing and provides resources to help be part of the solution to this crisis. Learn about the Rural Mental Health Resilience Program, the goal of the program and how you can access materials for free.Episode Resources: Rural Minds: How to start a conversation about mental health factsheetVisit ruralminds.org/resilience for all the factsheets, materials and information we talked about on this episode.Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

NCBA's Director of Animal Health and Food Safety Policy Rebecca Barnett joins Katie at the 2024 CattleCon in Orlando. Rebecca grew up in Adin, Calif. and attended UC Davis. Hear about her journey to Washington D.C. and what issues she is tackling with NCBA, including traceability. Episode Resources:NCBA Backs FAIR Labels Act to End Deceptive Fake Meat Labeling Practices2024 NCBA Legislative ConferenceRSVP for CCA's Steak & Eggs Legislative BreakfastThanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

If you're heading to Red Bluff don't miss this episode. If you're not going, listen to this update anyways! CCA's Membership and Events Coordinator Gracie LeCheminant along with Jack Rice and Noah Lopez of the Rancher Technical Assistance Program join Katie to talk about the new "Ag Hub" that will be in the tradeshow at the Red Bluff Bull & Gelding Sale. At the end of this episode, hear what's in the Loading Chute for CCA. This will be a rundown of quick updates from other CCA staff including a quick leg update, previews of what's to come on this podcast and more. Episode resources:https://www.calcattlemenfoundation.org/redbluffThanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

Welcome to Season 4! On this first episode, CCA President Steve Arnold and CCA 1st Vice President Rick Roberti join host Katie Roberti to talk through priorities for the year, officer goals and why California cattle ranchers can be optimistic about the year ahead .Episode resources:Get to know each of CCA's officers  at calcattlemen.org/cca-officers.Learn more about RTAP at calcattlemenfoundation.org/RTAP. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

CattleFax Analyst Patrick Linnell recently provided a cattle and beef market outlook in Thursday morning's general session at the 107th CCA and CCW Convention. Following the session, Patrick sat down with Katie to talk about some of the highlights and key points for California cattle producers, including what CattleFax predicts cattle prices will look like in 2024. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

On this episode we talk about the impact the California Beef Council is making on school nutrition in California and how they are keeping beef on school lunch menus. To have that conversation,  registered dietician and CBC's Director, Food & Nutrition Outreach Kori Dover is us on the podcast for the first time. Episode resources:Click here to see the photo of the school lunch Kori worked with San Diego Unified School District on to create the recipe for Biarria tacos, which we discuss in the episode.To stay up to date with this work, subscribe to the California Beef Council's monthly e-newsletter by clicking here or visiting https://www.calbeef.org/beef-producers.Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

CCA Feeder Chair Joe Dan Cameron and Vice Chair Mike Sulpizio provide an update on the feeder sector of California's beef industry. Learn about Imperial Valley, what it is like feeding cattle in that community and more on this episode.Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur provides an update on this year's legislative session, 30x30 and more. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

Jimmy Maxey and Mike Smith, two California cattlemen and past members of the board that runs the Beef Checkoff, known as the Cattlemen's Beef Board, join Katie to explain how the Cattlemen's Beef Board operates, including who is on the board and how decisions of what gets funded are made. Episode Resources:Producer Communications Article from current CBB board memberVisit DrivingBeefDemand.com to keep up with the CBB board. Thanks for listening to Sorting Pen! We want to hear your suggestions for improvement and ideas for topics and future guests to be interviewed. Please fill out this form or contact Katie in the CCA office with any other comments.

Having recently been on Capitol Hill, Central Coast cattle rancher Kevin Kester discusses the current situation in Washington, D.C. On this episode hear:How the odds of a government shutdown became highWhat the road to getting a new Farm Bill passed may look likeWhy dollars given to CCA's political action committee are crucial. 

This episode is first time we are talking about the  Wolf-Livestock Compensation Pilot Program through the California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. Joining Katie to have this conversation and explain what is available to ranchers through this pilot program is Dr. Ken Tate, a UC Davis Professor of Extension in Rangeland Management—who many listening may know for his research on water quality. We also have Dr. Tina Saitone,  a UC Davis Professor of Extension in Livestock and Rangeland Economics. Episode resources: CDFW Wolf Livestock Compensation Grants Webpage Contact Dr. Ken Tate at kwtate@ucdavis.eduContact Dr. Tina Saitone at tlsaitone@ucdavis.edu

The Animal Ag Alliance's president and CEO Hannah Thompson-Weeman joins Katie for an update on animal rights activism and the work the Alliance does to keep up on tactics and movements within that community. Hear about trends/topics the Alliance is seeing from the animal rights community, activism movements and news in California and more. Check out https://animalagalliance.org to learn more about the Animal Ag Alliance. 

Do you know what county Climate Action Plans are and why ranchers should be aware of them? If you have no idea, tune in to this episode to hear Noah Lopez with Western Resource Strategies and the California Cattlemen's Foundation's Rancher Technical Assistance Program, along with San Diego County ranchers Allison and Bryce Fender explain what these plans are and why ranchers should be know about them.Episode resources: In the episode we mention a paper put together by Western Resources Strategies called "Range Cattle in California County Climate Action Plans: a rancher's guide to understanding and engaging in climate action planning." Check out that paper here.We also mention the "Climate Issues Update for Ranchers" webinar that was recently held. If you missed that webinar you can watch the recording of it here.

CCA's VP of Gov. Affairs Kirk Wilbur joins to provide an update on all CCA's government affairs team has been working on in Sacramento in the 2023 legislative session.  Hear about CCA's earlier successes and remaining legislative priorities as the race towards the end of session on Sept. 14 begins.

Experts from the California Dept. of Food and Agriculture join Katie to go over the laws of mobile custom livestock slaughtering in California. Hear how a law that went into effect last year impacts mobile custom livestock slaughtering and how it removed limitations for some producers.Visit https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/AHFSS/MPES/  for more information and resources.

In October of 2020, Governor Newsom signed an executive order to conserve 30% of California's land and coastal water by 2030. In this episode Jennifer Norris, Deputy Secretary for Biodiversity and Habitat at the California Natural Resources Agency provides an update for ranchers on this goal and explains the strategy. In this conversation hear how: the 30x30 plan incorporates working with ranchers and livestock producers to reach the 30%; increasing voluntary conservation easements is part of the strategy; to find out of if any of the acres you manage are eligible to be counted in the 30%;and more.Learn more and see the toolkit mentioned in this episode at https://www.californianature.ca.gov/pages/resources.Watch the Pathways to 30x30 Webinar: Pathway 3, Increasing Voluntary Conservation Easements talked about in this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhjhjdPqoxI.Email your 30x30 questions to the Agency: californianature@resources.ca.gov.

Secretary of the California Dept. of Food and Agriculture Karen Ross was one of the many speakers at CCA's Midyear Meeting in Paso Robles last week (June 21-22). In this episode, the Secretary shares the strategic objectives of  Ag Vision, a plan developed by CDFA for the next decade. CDFA says, "The plan—which will guide areas of focus for CDFA and serve as a catalyst for action with farmers and ranchers, and other California agencies and partners—is being hailed as not just a plan for agriculture, but a plan to benefit every Californian."See the full plan: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/agvision/docs/AgVision_2023_Plan.pdf.