Betty Jo Gigot, Editor and Publisher

It was a revolutionary idea for its day. Frustrated with increased consolidation of fed-cattle buying that was occurring in the late 1990s, industry leaders felt they had lost control of their weekly marketing. After a great deal of consideration Consolidate Beef Producers, Inc. (CBP) was born. The non-profit agricultural marketing cooperative was incorporated in April 2000. Guided by a 12-member board of directors, CBP is alive and flourishing seven years later.

Complicated business
Today, CBP markets over 1.4 million cattle each year for over 215 member feedyards and their customers. A seven-man cattle marketing team from Texas to the Midwest interacts with buyers across the country, negotiating prices for member cattle. The territory is divided into three main geographic regions: Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico; Kansas and eastern Colorado; and western Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming. Depending on the region, CBP represents 20-55 percent of the weekly negotiated cattle. Cattle are sold according to members’ directions, utilizing sale options including cash, in the beef or on the grid.

“Our marketing program is customer focused and we constantly strive to do what is right for the customer’s business,” said CBP general manager Bruce Cobb. Our marketing team is constantly communicating with members regarding pricing and selling.

“CBP offers marketing solutions for fed cattle in a world that is extremely competitive and volatile. Selling fed cattle today requires a unique blend of seasoned experience and extremely in-depth market information.”

Cobb likens CBP’s services to those used by feedyard managers for health and nutrition. By availing themselves of the service, managers are freed up to concentrate on customers and management of their facilities.

Cobb, who comes from an agriculture background, had spent most of his career in the consumer arena, working with the Texas Beef Council and the U.S. Meat Export Federation.

“We are committed to selling value-added cattle as well as commodity cattle,” Cobb said.

Delighted with the business’s growth, Cobb sees a bright future in marketing, not only for conventional commercial cattle, but also for unique, value-added cattle such as natural or age/source-verified. As a three-year CBP veteran, Cobb has two goals at the top of his list: providing good service to the members and being good stewards to the producer.

It works on the ground
Scott Keeling of Keeling Cattle Feeding, a 19,000-head capacity yard near Hereford, Texas, was on the original committee that developed CBP. “I was there from the inception,” Keeling said. “What we originally wanted was to develop a retain connection – something in the branded line – or to form an alliance in some way.”

As CBP Board of Directors vice chairman, Keeling still looks forward to a retail connection, someday, but is very pleased with the benefits the current marketing setup offers.

“We are not there to inflate the market,” Keeling said. “What we do is level the playing field, and this is the ideal way for a yard my size to compete for kill slots.”

Before his involvement with CBP, Keeling had a lot of his eggs in one basket, marketing 85 percent of his cattle to one packer. Now his fed cattle go to three different packers. He also treasures the time he saves by discussing marketing plans with his CBP representative early in the week and not having to sit and wait for that “magic window” when the bids finally come in. “Unless there is a drastic movement, we don’t have to talk again,” Keeling said. “We are still learning, but I have a great deal of confidence in the CBP leadership and I’m looking forward to the future.”

A really good fit
Cattle Empire LLC CEO Roy Brown manages three family-owned feedyards in southwest Kansas with a one-time capacity of 170,000 head. Brown signed on to the CBP program during their first marketing push into Kansas.

“What we had was a courtship,” Brown said. Cattle Empire worked side by side with CBP for a year and a half while CBP sold 100 percent of the cattle from Cattle Empire #2 and the feedyard staff marketed cattle from the other two yards. “Does CBP sell cattle better?” Brown said. “Not necessarily better commercially – it was about even – but the overall negotiation power is the key. I think they have added $1-$1.50 to the market.

“To be honest, turning the marketing over to CBP was one of the greatest stress relievers I have had in the past 12 years. We used to have five or six people involved in marketing. Now we have one who keeps in contact with customers and with Dan Mercer, our CBP representative.”

Brown has served on the CBP Board of Directors for the past year and has a great deal of respect for Cobb. “He thinks outside the box and has a good staff,” Brown said. “I have worked personally with Dan Mercer and trust him. CBP is a really good fit for us.”

Jim Schwertner, owner of Capitol Land and Livestock and a CBP Board member, probably puts it best. “I think CBP is the best thing for independent cattlemen because it enables them to have collective bargaining and to be competitive. You don’t have to look very far to see that this business plan works. Just look at Wal-Mart.” ad.