Sorting Pen: The California Cattleman Podcast

At the time of recording, it was the final day of California’s legislative session for Governor Newsom to act on legislation—his final time doing so as California’s governor. Joining us to sort through how several of CCA’s legislative priorities fared this year is CCA Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur. We discuss the outcome of the state budget, plus legislation involving predators, good fire, and other issues CCA has tracked throughout the year, including bills being signed and vetoed right up to the deadline.

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CCA President Rick Roberti shares takeaways from CCA’s recent Fly-In to Washington, D.C., where staff and members were on the ground during the height of Farm Bill discussions. Hear about their meetings with federal agency leaders and a day on Capitol Hill advocating for California cattle ranchers on issues including wildfire, vacant grazing allotments, wolves and other predator issues, the Farm Bill, and more.

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On this episode, we're chatting through some good news and updates for cattle producers with WSR Insurance CEO Jim Vann and agent Matt Griffith. WSR Insurance is the exclusive insurance provider of the California Cattlemen’s Association. We discuss the latest updates and opportunities in Livestock Risk Protection (LRP), including USDA’s newly announced Beef Retention and National Development tool, as well as recent changes to Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage (PRF) insurance and why now is the time to get your policies in place. If PRF hasn’t been a great option for some of your acres in the past, now is the time to have a new conversation about whether these updates make it a better fit. Matt and Jim also share about weather forecasts, California’s fire insurance market, and what else producers should have on their radar.

Episode resouces:

• Get a quote from WSR: https://www.wsrins.com/ag-quote
• Contact Matt: https://www.wsrins.com/insurance-agents/matt-griffith
• Contact Jim: https://www.wsrins.com/insurance-agents/jim-vann
• Subscribe to WSR's Weekly Weather Updates: https://www.wsrins.com/weather

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The first bull sales of California’s fall bull sale run are just days away. World Livestock Auctioneer Champion Col. Rick Machado joins Sorting Pen to chat about this year’s bull offerings, the demand for bulls as U.S. cow numbers sit at a historic low, and what today’s bull purchases could mean for calves hitting the market a couple of years from now. Rick also shares what producers should keep an eye on when flipping through sale catalogs, along with more tips for successful bull buys this fall.

Whether you’re buying a bull this fall or just keeping an eye on where the cattle industry is headed, there’s plenty to consider before making your bull selections.

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On August 24, the U.S. border is set to reopen to cattle from Mexico at the Douglas Port in Arizona, more than a year after the border was closed due to the threat of New World screwworm. What will the reopening mean for cattle feeders in Arizona and California, and what will it take to get cattle moving across the border again?

On this episode, we sort through the history and impact of the border closure, why Douglas was chosen as the first port to reopen, and the animal health safeguards cattle will have to meet before entering the U.S. We also look ahead to what the first few weeks of reopening could look like for cattle feeders, how feeders are preparing for the continued threat of New World screwworm, and what this could mean for the California cattle industry in the years ahead.

CCA Feeder Chair Mike Sulpizio of Superior Cattle Feeders returns to Sorting Pen to help explain. Joining him is Wesley Eade of EMCO Cattle Company, a longtime cattle feeder in Arizona and California whose business has brought cattle across the border for decades.

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Erin Borror, Vice President of Economic Analysis for the U.S. Meat Export Federation, joins Sorting Pen to discuss the global beef market.

Erin, who also raises purebred and commercial cattle with her husband and sons at Tehama Angus Ranch in Northern California, shares the newest export numbers, why international markets remain critical even as U.S. beef production declines, and what the future could hold for U.S. beef in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

Katie and Erin also discuss what the eventual reopening of the Mexico border could mean for U.S. cattle supplies, competition from countries like Brazil and Mexico, beef access to China, opportunities through new trade agreements, and other USMEF efforts.

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What does it take to build a producer-owned beef processing plant from the ground up? On this episode of Sorting Pen, Katie sits down with Trey Wasserburger, owner and operator of TD Angus and co-founder of Sustainable Beef, to discuss the vision behind launching a producer-owned packing plant in Nebraska.

Trey shares how the idea for Sustainable Beef became a reality, the challenges of bringing the project to life, and what the first year of operations has looked like.

Tune in for an inside look at the story behind Sustainable Beef, what it took to get the plant up and running, and how it's operating today.

Episode Resources:

• See the ribbon cutting for Sustainable Beef in March 2025

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Cattle-PAC is CCA's voluntary political action committee, working to support and educate candidates and elected officials whose decisions shape the laws and regulations affecting California ranchers. In a state with a democratic supermajority in the legislature, every pro-livestock, pro-business voice elected to office matters. On this episode, California rancher and CCA Cattle-PAC Chair Jack Lavers joins us to discuss how Cattle-PAC strategically invests its resources, the realities of California's political landscape, and where things stand following the June primary.

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Consumer trust doesn't happen by accident. It’s built through the everyday decisions cattle producers make to care for their animals and produce high-quality beef. In this episode, we sit down with Josh White, Senior Executive Director of Producer Education & Sustainability for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, to discuss the evolution of the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program, how it helps communicate producers’ commitment to doing things the right way, and how its impact is measured among consumers. We also dive into the areas where producers have excelled, opportunities for continued improvement, and how BQA may adapt in the years ahead.

Episode Resource: 

• https://www.bqa.org
• https://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/raising-beef/beef-quality-assurance

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At CCA's Feeder Meeting in San Diego, Overland Stock Yard Co-Manager Jason Glenn provided an update on the West Coast's supply of feeder cattle. On this episode Katie and Jason chat about the market,  cattle feeding in California, and more.

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