Dallas City Wire

WASHINGTON – Last week, U.S. Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30) signed on to bipartisan legislation introduced by Reps. Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Mark Alford (MO-04), and Dusty Johnson (SD-AL) called the Amplifying Processing of Livestock in the United States (A-PLUS) Act to increase meat processing capacity and competition by allowing livestock auction market owners to invest in small and regional packing facilities. Outdated prohibitions from nearly a century ago currently restrict the ability of the livestock industry to meet increasing demand. The A-PLUS Act corrects this issue by opening up competition and modernizing regulations.

"Even as price inflation begins to fall in the U.S., the cost of meat is still startlingly high - hiking grocery bills for American families and hurting local restaurants and food producers. 85% of American meat packing is controlled by four companies - this market consolidation cuts out competition from smaller, regional packing facilities and keeps prices artificially high for everyone," said Rep. Crockett. "I'm supporting the A-Plus Act to allow livestock auctioneers to own small regional packing facilities and evening the playing field for Texas ranchers. More competition improves food quality and brings down prices - everybody wins!"

This A-PLUS Act directs the Secretary of Agriculture to amend 9 CFR 201.67, the Packers and Stockyards Act, to allow livestock auction market owners to hold ownership in, finance, or participate in the management or operation of a meat packer with a cumulative slaughter capacity of less than 2,000 animals per day or 700,000 animals per year for cattle and sheep and 10,000 animals per day or 3,000,000 animals per year for hogs. This cap would exclude investment in the top 10 meat Background packers for both cattle and hogs.

Congresswoman Crockett serves as a member of the House Committee on Agriculture.

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Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett represents portions of Dallas and Tarrant Counties, with the cities of Dallas, Grand Prairie, DeSoto, Cedar Hill, Lancaster, Duncanville, Glenn Heights, Hutchins, Wilmer, Arlington, Ovilla, and Seagoville.

 

Original source can be found here.