In a conversation from March, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Director of Sustainability Samantha Werth, spoke about sustainability in the cattle industry.
Launching sustainability goals in November 2021, Werth said NCBA has been defining sustainability for the cattle industry.
“For us, that comes down to the animals, the people, and the planet,” Werth said. “We are really focused on what we can do as a cattle ranching and producing community to advance sustainability initiatives, continuously improve as we have been for decades, and be able to leverage that work we are doing to share across the broader industry.”
Saying profitability is a big concern among producers, Werth stated that NCBA is always looking for ways to enhance sustainability while maintaining profitability for the producer. She added that the cattle industry’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2040 is on track.
Werth said the cattle industry has a great story to tell regarding methane’s climate footprint.
“There is a lot we can be doing on both the cow-calf side and the feedyard side to really help in that conversation, and it really does support that goal towards climate neutrality,” she said.
Werth said that NCBA is creating resources for grazing management planning, assisting producers in their land, livestock and operational goals.
“There are a lot of great USDA-funded programs that are out there,” she said. “We work with an entity called Trust in Beef, and they are doing a lot right now in that space of connecting producers to climate-smart commodity projects that will help producers get paid if they implement new practices.”
Sustainability requires raising awareness and providing producers with opportunities. Regarding regeneration, Werth likes to think of regenerative agriculture as a piece of sustainability.
She said it is important for anti-animal agriculture activists to remember that beef tells a great story regarding land use.
“We use land that cannot be used for any other purpose other than grazing livestock,” she said. “In doing that, we support the ecosystems, we support biodiversity on those lands, and help enhance the quality of those lands.”