December 16, 2016
CapitalPress.com
Washington lawmakers torn over beef industry rift
‘An awful lot
of pros and cons’
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
A Washington lawmaker
vetting a proposal to raise the
beef checkoff by $1 says he’s
not sure what to do about the
contentious issue.
Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses
Lake, has been meeting with
segments of the beef industry
for seven months on wheth-
er to hike the per head tax
on cattle sales to $2.50 from
$1.50.
He said Tuesday that the
industry remains divided. “I
don’t know if I’m taking a
position at this time,” Dent
said.
The
beef
checkoff
emerged as an issue in the
2016 Legislature. At $1.50,
the fee raises about $500,000
annually for the national Cat-
tlemen’s Beef Board and $1
million for the Washington
Beef Commission, a state
agency funded entirely by the
Don Jenkins/Capital Press
Beef cooks April 19, 2015, on the Capitol Campus in Olympia
during Beef Day hosted by the Washington Cattlemen’s Associa-
tion. A debate over whether to raise the beef checkoff to $2.50 from
$1.50 continues to sizzle.
checkoff.
The Washington Cattle-
men’s Association and the
Washington Cattle Feeders
Association supported rais-
ing the fee, doubling the state
commission’s yearly budget
to about $2 million.
The Cattle Producers of
Washington, however, ral-
lied enough opposition from
ranchers to stop the proposal.
Dent volunteered to exam-
ine the intra-industry rift and
report to fellow lawmakers in
time for the 2017 session.
“It’s been an interest-
ing ride for the last seven
months,” he said. “These
meetings could sometimes
be contentious, but they were
passionate, and I love that. It’s
what makes America great.”
Sen. Judy Warnick, also a
Moses Lake Republican, has
joined Dent in meeting with
beef industry representatives.
Warnick said she too is un-
sure what to do. “There are an
awful lot of pros and cons,”
said Warnick, chairwoman of
the Senate agriculture com-
mittee. “Maybe we’ll have to
throw out a compromise posi-
tion.”
A compromise could in-
clude scaling back the fee
increase, or fine-turning com-
mission plans.
The commission’s execu-
tive director, Patti Brumbach,
said much of the new revenue
would be used to expand the
commission’s “image and
trust campaign.”
“We need to get the infor-
mation out to a broader audi-
ence,” she said.
Cattle Feeders Executive
Director Ed Field said the or-
ganization remains firmly be-
hind raising the fee.
“Some don’t see the val-
ue, but we do,” he said. “We
understand the value the Beef
Commission brings in beef
promotion and safety.”
Likewise, the Cattlemen’s
Association has reaffirmed its
support.
“I’m certainly crossing my
fingers and hope we can get
there. I think it’s definitely
needed and merited,” Execu-
tive Vice President Jack Field
said. “I think it’s to the point
where the ball is with Rep.
Dent and Sen. Warnick.”
Cattle Producers Vice
President Nate Hair said he
believes that most ranchers
would vote against the fee
hike if given the chance.
“I think it’d be an over-
whelming ‘no’ on the in-
crease,” he said Tuesday.
Cattle producers pay the
tax, but don’t reap the bene-
fits, he said.
Increased beef consump-
tion doesn’t help producers if
meat packers import cattle to
meet the demand, he said.
“There’s obviously a big
struggle over this,” Hair said.
“We can’t get on board on this
because there’s no upside to
this.”
Survey shows hard cider industry maturing in supply, price
By ERIC MORTENSON
Capital Press
The largest Pacific North-
west hard cider makers report
average annual sales of nearly
$1.9 million and attract more
than 22,000 taproom visitors
a year, according to a 2016 in-
dustry survey.
An online poll of Northwest
Cider Association producers
showed the newest member of
what Oregon economic ana-
lysts call the “alcohol cluster”
is following the path worn by
the region’s successful wine,
beer and spirits makers.
Cider makers in Oregon,
Washington, Idaho, Montana
and British Columbia took part
in the poll, with 60 percent re-
porting they began business in
the past five years. The majori-
ty of responses came from Or-
egon and Washington.
More than half the respon-
dents were small producers,
making less than 20,000 gal-
lons. Emily Ritchie, the associ-
ation’s executive director, said
some of the survey data shows
a maturing industry.
The cost of “heirloom” ap-
ple juice used to make cider,
for example, ranged from $5
to $7 a gallon, while the pre-
vious year’s survey revealed a
cost range of $2.50 to $10 per
gallon.
The “honing in” of costs
shows that the bittersweet va-
rieties used to make traditional
hard cider are becoming easier
to find as more orchards come
on line.
Most cider continues to be
made from the juice of repur-
Eric Mortenson/Capital Press
Suzie Hoffman samples a glass of hard cider during the Hard-Pressed Cider Fest in Hood River, Ore., in April. A survey of Northwest cider
makers show they now sell in 20 states and in Canada and some Asian markets. About half of Northwest cider makers grow their own
apples.
posed dessert apples, which
are much cheaper, ranging
from $1.48 to $2.65 per gallon,
according to the survey. Purists
prefer gnarled old English and
French varieties, which often
aren’t the best for fresh eating.
Producers continue plant-
ing the old varieties at a rapid
pace, Ritchie said.
“We’re still seeing that
happening,” she said. “Many
of our cider makers are plant-
ing more acreage as they get
capital.”
Cider has a solid following
on the West Coast. A retired
Cornell University cider ex-
pert, Ian Merwin, once esti-
mated that people in Oregon,
Washington and California
drink 80 percent of the hard
cider consumed in the U.S.
During the U.S. Cider As-
sociation’s annual convention
last February in Portland,
speakers said cider makes up
1.7 percent of alcohol sales
nationally, but about 4 percent
in the Portland and Seattle ar-
eas.
Among the survey high-
lights:
• Cider makers who re-
sponded to the poll sell in 20
states, plus Canada and Asia.
• Of the cider made by
respondents, 57 percent con-
tains only apple juice, 7 per-
cent is “perry,” or made from
pears, and 36 percent is made
from other fruit or berries.
• It takes 12 to 13 pounds
of apples to make one gallon
of cider. A little more than
half of respondents said they
grow their own fruit.
• About 82 percent of the
cider produced has an al-
cohol content of less than 7
percent, which means it was
taxed at a lower rate than ci-
der with a higher alcohol con-
tent. Changes in the way cider
is taxed will raise the per-
centage in the coming year,
Ritchie said, making stron-
ger cider more available. The
tax change will allow more
carbonated cider as well, she
said.
• Outside of a couple pro-
ducers who have more than
1,000 acres of apple trees,
the average cider acreage
under cultivation is 17.5
acres, up from 14.7 in the
2015 survey.
3
Capital Press
publisher
announces
retirement
Mike O’Brien
ends 46-year
newspaper career
SALEM — Capital Press
Publisher Mike O’Brien is
retiring Jan. 3 after a 46-year
newspaper career.
O’Brien joined Capital
Press as general manager in
1997, and was
promoted
to
publisher
in
2007.
“It has been
the high point
of my career to
Mike
serve as pub-
O’Brien
lisher of the
Capital Press.
It has been truly inspiring to
work with such a talented and
dedicated staff. My thanks to
them and the ag community
that supports Capital Press,”
O’Brien said. “I leave know-
ing the paper is in good hands
with owners who are more
concerned with how well
we can do it rather than how
cheap we can do it.”
O’Brien began his newspa-
per career in 1970 as a district
manager at the San Francisco
Chronicle. He was appoint-
ed circulation manager at the
Daily Tidings in Ashland,
Ore., and moved to Albany,
Ore., to be circulation man-
ager at the Democrat-Herald
in 1979. In 1985 he returned
to Ashland as publisher of the
Daily Tidings.
He has assumed leadership
roles within the newspaper
industry and the Northwest
ag community. He serves on
the board of directors of Or-
egon AgLink. In 1996, while
at the Daily Tidings, he served
as president of the Oregon
Newspaper Publishers As-
sociation. During his tenure,
O’Brien supervised many
large projects, including a
major renovation of the Cap-
ital Press building in 2000. He
also presided over big chang-
es in the way Capital Press
reaches and serves its readers.
“Under Mike’s leadership,
the Capital Press has expanded
its digital presence and elevat-
ed the level of reporting, be-
coming the premier ag publi-
cation in the Northwest,” John
Perry, chief operating officer
of EO Media Group, the parent
company of the Capital Press,
said. “He has accomplished
this in good economic times
and others that tested our met-
tle. We wish Mike all the best
in retirement. He’s earned it.”
Perry will assume the pub-
lisher’s duties on an interim
basis.
Oregon Senate confirms Taylor as head of ODA
New director faces
tough budget, more
decision-making
authority
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
Mateusz Perkowski/Capital Press
Alexis Taylor, the Oregon
Department of Agriculture’s
next director, recently met with
lawmakers and government
officials in Salem. She was con-
firmed by the Oregon Senate
on Dec. 14.
and ranchers?”
At the end of her tenure at
USDA, Taylor oversaw the
Farm Service Agency, the
Risk Management Agency
and the Foreign Agricultural
Grass
Expertise.
Over 40 Years
Experience
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Mateusz Perkowski/Capital Press
Alexis Taylor, the Oregon Department of Agriculture’s next director,
speaks during a recent legislative hearing in Salem. She was
confirmed by the Oregon Senate on Dec. 14.
“I expect the governor is
not going to be giving a lot
of detailed direction to Alex-
is,” Coba said.
The governor has also
shifted her natural resources
advisers into new positions,
shrinking the natural re-
sources team and likely leav-
ing more power in the hands
of ODA, she said.
“Agencies will have to
step up a little more,” Coba
said.
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noting that dealing with
a constrained budget can
prompt agencies to identi-
fy process efficiencies that
save money.
“We can look at how we
do things, why we do them a
certain way,” she said.
The overall state budget
turmoil is also likely to give
Taylor greater decision-mak-
ing power.
Gov. Kate Brown has a
lot on her plate and proba-
bly won’t be inclined to mi-
cro-manage natural resource
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SALEM — The Oregon
Department of Agriculture’s
new director, Alexis Taylor,
got some sound advice at a
recent legislative hearing.
“We very rarely hear
complaints about the De-
partment of Agriculture, so
please don’t screw it up,”
said Sen. Brian Boquist,
R-Dallas.
That sentiment has been
a running theme in meetings
with state government offi-
cials during a recent stop in
Salem, said Taylor, who was
confirmed unanimously as
ODA’s director by the Ore-
gon Senate on Dec. 14.
The 2017 legislative ses-
sion will begin soon after
she takes office on Jan. 23,
but after that, Taylor said her
top priority would be visit-
ing every county in the state
to learn about the diversity
of Oregon farms firsthand.
Taylor also said she’d be
tackling a “core question”
facing the state’s agriculture
industry: “Who will be our
next generation of farmers
Service, working on poli-
cy, budget and management
issues. Overall, the three
agencies have 14,000 em-
ployees worldwide.
“I really enjoy finding
talent, helping to groom
talent,” Taylor told Capital
Press.
In the immediate future,
though, Taylor doesn’t ex-
pect to make staffing chang-
es at ODA.
She will need to rely on
the experience of top staffers
as the agency navigates the
2017 legislative session.
“Consistency is really im-
portant,” Taylor said.
ODA is at a tough junc-
ture, as the agency is facing
a cut to its general fund bud-
get, which pays for programs
such as predator control and
weed biocontrol, among oth-
ers.
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