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:
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 Industry
- Producer Profitability Initiative Seeks to Spark Conversation, Unite Industry
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.
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 Resources
- NCBA Press Release: House Farm Bill Includes Top Cattle Industry Priorities
- Details on the 2024 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meetings happening July 8-10 in San Diego.
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!
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.
CCA’s Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur joins Katie for this year's first CCA legislative update on the podcast.
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.
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 factsheet
Visit ruralminds.org/resilience for all the factsheets, materials and information we talked about on this episode.
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 Practices
2024 NCBA Legislative Conference
RSVP for CCA's Steak & Eggs Legislative Breakfast
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/redbluff
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.
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.
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.
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.
CCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur provides an update on this year's legislative session, 30x30 and more.
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 member
- Visit DrivingBeefDemand.com to keep up with the CBB board.
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 high
- What the road to getting a new Farm Bill passed may look like
- Why 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:
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.
S4 E14: Sorting through over 25 years of the California Rangeland Trust
32:39
S4 E13: Sorting through WVM's restructuring, the July video sale and the importance of auction yards with Jake Parnell
21:10
S4 E12: Sorting through a retired Navy SEAL Captain’s perspective on how to build trust in high performance teams
21:18
S4 E11: Sorting through the Farm Bill, election, EID tags and more with NCBA's VP of Gov. Affairs Ethan Lane
29:34
S4 E10: Sorting through Assemblymember Gregg Hart’s efforts to represent ranchers on the Central Coast
25:48
Bonus Episode: Sorting through Central Valley Meat's purchase of the Fresno Cargill Facility w/ CVM's Brian Coelho
19:11
S4 E9: Sorting through the ballot measure attacking Sonoma County farmers and ranchers
19:28
S4 E8: Sorting through what to know about avian influenza in dairy cattle with Dr. Tom Talbot
16:56
S4 E7: Sorting through John Austel's days as a San Diego County rancher and desire to serve as a CCA officer
18:32
S4 E6: Sorting through CCA’s legislative priorities
31:51
S4 E5: Sorting through a 1-on-1 interview w/ Assemblymember Jim Wood
23:15
S4 E4: Sorting through the hope Rural Minds is bringing to the mental health emergency in rural areas
18:47
S4 E3: Sorting through work in D.C. on fake meat, traceability and more
18:21
S4 E2: Sorting out dates, deadlines and details w/ Noah, Jack & Gracie
20:32
S4 E1: Sorting through CCA’s 2024 Priorities w/ Steve Arnold and Rick Roberti
20:40
S3 E25: Sorting through an outlook for 2024 with CattleFax's Patrick Linnell
17:26
S3 E24: Sorting through the California Beef Council’s work on school nutrition
21:42
S3 E23: Sorting through feeding cattle in the Imperial Valley
29:58
S3 E22: Sorting through the wins of this legislative session, 30x30 updates and more
25:11
S3 E21: Sorting out who sits on the Beef Checkoff board and how projects get funded
23:58
S3 E20: Sorting through PAC dollars, potential shutdowns and passing a Farm Bill
18:13
S3 E19: Sorting through California’s wolf-livestock conflict compensation program w/ Dr. Tina Saitone and Dr. Ken Tate
40:43
S3 E18: Sorting through extreme animal rights activism with the help of the Animal Ag Alliance
25:39
S3 E17: Sorting through county Climate Action Plans
25:47
S3 E16: Sorting through the last month of the 2023 legislative session w/ Kirk Wilbur
29:26