BUSINESS & AG
THURSDAY, MAY 20, 2021
WRIGHT
Continued from Page 1B
EO Media Group/File
FFA and 4-H sheep handlers line up outside the livestock arena during the 2019 Wallowa County Fair. An initiative
petition that seeks to limit exceptions to the state’s animal abuse protections would make artifi cial insemination
an off ense. Opponents say the change would mean anyone assisting a 4-H member with such procedures could
be charged with a felony.
INITIATIVE
Continued from Page 1B
November 2022 ballot.
Michelson did not return
calls for comment.
According to state law,
a person commits animal
abuse if they “intention-
ally, knowingly or reck-
lessly cause physical
injury to an animal,” or
“cruelly cause the death of
an animal,” except when
practicing good animal
husbandry. The peti-
tion seeks to remove that
exemption.
“IP13 doesn’t change
our defi nition of abuse, it
merely changes who is con-
sidered above the law,”
the “Yes on IP13” website
states.
Cooper said the petition
is the biggest threat to Ore-
gon’s livestock industry in
decades.
“I think it would leave
producers in incredibly
uncertain territory,” she
said. “It is very dangerous
territory for folks.”
Perhaps the cruelest
twist, Cooper said, is the
eff ect the initiative would
have on 4-H and FFA pro-
grams. Animal abuse in
Oregon is considered a
Class A a misdemeanor but
is a felony if committed in
the presence of a minor.
“You think of 4-H pro-
grams, and people who
have artifi cial insemina-
tion programs, and all of
a sudden anybody helping
them with their projects
could be considered a
felon,” Cooper said. “That’s
just wild.”
Supporters say the initia-
tive would not ban the sale
of meat, leather and fur in
Oregon.
“It would require that
animals be allowed to truly
live a good life free from
abuse, neglect and sexual
assault,” the campaign
website states. “After an
animal lives a full life, and
exits the world naturally
and humanely, this ini-
tiative does not prohibit a
farmer from processing and
distributing their body for
consumption.”
But Tom Sharp, a
Harney County rancher
and president of the Oregon
Cattlemen’s Association,
said that is not an economi-
cally viable business model
for producers.
“How would a pro-
ducer ever plan on man-
aging a herd of cattle, until
some uncertain date when
that herd has reached their
full and natural lifespan?”
Sharp said. “At that point,
it’s impractical to take
those animals to market for
processing.”
Oregon has 13,000 cattle
ranchers statewide with
1.3 million head of cattle.
In 2019, cattle and calves
ranked as the second-most
valuable agricultural com-
modity, at $652 million.
Sharp said the petition
could put those businesses
at risk.
“I don’t see, from a busi-
ness standpoint, how that
would pencil out for any of
these beef producers,” he
said.
The initiative doesn’t
only target agriculture. It
would also erase animal
cruelty exemptions for
hunting, fi shing, wildlife
management, rodeos and
scientifi c research, among
others.
Amy Patrick, outreach
coordinator for the Oregon
Hunters Association, said
the initiative is ringing
alarm bells and could
potentially make hunting
illegal in the state.
“It’s an attempt to get at
fi shing, trapping, hunting
and additional wildlife
management practices,”
Patrick said. “Removing
the exemptions would
allow them to be classifi ed
as animal abuse. It’s not
animal abuse by any stretch
of the imagination.”
at The Observer,” he said.
“The newspaper and the
crew in La Grande mean
a great deal to me not just
because of the work or the
experience I gained there,
but really because of the
people and what we were
building together. Now I
get to put all this to the test
again.”
When Wright was
hired in November 2019,
The Observer news-
room had been without an
editor since March 2019.
The Observer publisher
Karrine Brogoitti said
Wright helped bring some
much-needed stability to
the newsroom.
“Phil came to us
when we really needed a
leader,” she said. “He hit
BOARD
Continued from Page 1B
clearing up misunderstand-
ings that can lead to bad
policy such as a ballot ini-
tiative that seeks to restrict
animal agriculture.
“I’m trying to edu-
cate Oregonians about the
importance of agriculture
in Oregon,” he said.
Talking with people
about the challenges of
farming creates positive
connections and often
elicits comments such as,
“I didn’t realize that,” or,
“That makes sense now,”
Allen said.
As far as specifi c policy
advice for ODA, Allen said
it’s not possible to “know
what’s around the next
bend” but he expects water
and land use to remain
perennially important
topics for the agency.
Allen said he has a
“personal passion” for pro-
tecting exclusive farm
use zones and the “right
to farm” in Oregon, and
hopes to “bring common
THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD — 3B
the ground running and
hasn’t had the opportu-
nity to take a breather
since that fi rst day. It’s
one thing to take on a
new leadership role, but
it’s a completely diff erent
game to take on that role
and then navigate the
landscape of covering a
pandemic and what that
means for the community
you serve and your staff .
It was a lot for everyone,
but he certainly thrived
under the pressure.”
Andrew Cutler will
fi ll in as editor in La
Grande on an interim
basis. Cutler, who is the
publisher/editor of the
East Oregonian and the
regional editorial director
of EO Media Group’s
eastside publications,
served as editor in La
Grande from 2012 until
2017. He also served as
the paper’s publisher from
2015 until leaving.
“Having Andrew help
out during this interim
period is something that
I’m certainly looking for-
ward to,” Brogoitti said.
“I have a lot of respect for
Andrew as an editor, and
I’m glad he was willing to
step in and help. He’s been
an ‘honorary’ member of
The Observer family and
the entire staff is excited to
have him back.”
Cutler said he’s happy
to be able to help out in
La Grande during the
transition.
“Some of my hap-
piest times profession-
ally have occurred at The
Observer,” he said. “To be
able to come back and help
out — even in some small
minor way — is some-
thing I’m always more
than happy to do.”
sense to the table”
regarding controversies
over the dairy industry.
Conservation proj-
ects are often adjacent to
dairy farms in the Tilla-
mook area and the region
has shown that agriculture
doesn’t need to be elim-
inated to improve water
quality and environmental
conditions, he said.
“I believe we can
accomplish a lot of things
if we work together on it,”
Allen said.
Svaty said that between
growing up on a ranch,
marrying a farmer and
working at an agricultural
bank, “ag is just who I am,
it’s all I know.”
By serving on the Board
of Agriculture, Svaty
hopes to inform the state’s
farm regulators about
how regulatory policies
will aff ect growers on the
ground.
“The ODA has a lot to
do with how we farm and
raise our animals,” she
said.
Irrigation availability
and other water issues are
likely to remain a key issue
for the agency, she said.
“It’s a topic that’s always
been there but it needs
to be on our radar all the
time.”
In light of Oregon’s
higher tax and regulatory
burden, the state’s farmers
must also seek ways to add
value to their crops and
livestock to remain com-
petitive, Svaty said.
“You’ve got to add
value to keep that family
farm going,” she said.
R&R Seed Farms has
found a unique niche pro-
ducing vegetable and
forage seeds, starting with
an alfalfa seed contract
inherited from a previous
landowner over a decade
ago.
The family’s land and
irrigation setup have
proven conducive to such
crops as carrot and turnip
seeds, among others, Svaty
said.
“We got a name for
being able to raise those
kinds of crops and we’ve
stuck with it and it’s served
us well.”
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