By Jennifer Dorsett
Field Editor

Four Texans are among the 28 members set to serve new terms on the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board (CBB).

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced April Bonds of Saginaw, J. Ryan Moorhouse of Amarillo, Mark Brent Sustaire of Winnsboro and Michael White of Vernon were appointed to serve beginning February 2021.

The CBB is the oversight of the beef checkoff, which is the collection of $1 per head on all cattle sold in the U.S. and $1 per head equivalent on imported cattle, beef and beef products.

Bonds is the operations and markets strategist and consultant at Bonds Ranch, a commercial cow-calf, stocker and beef cattle feeding operation. She also co-manages the ranch’s quarter horse program. Bonds Ranch has locations throughout Texas and seven other states.

Moorhouse is a former chairman of the Texas Beef Council and general manager of Five Rivers Cattle Company’s Hartley location. In his role as manager, Moorhouse oversees the daily operations of the 73,000-head Hartley Feeders feedyard. He is a member of Dallam-Hartley County Farm Bureau (CFB).

Sustaire, a dairyman and beef cattle rancher, serves on the Texas Association of Dairymen board of directors. His 450-cow family dairy farm has been in operation since 1969. In addition to dairy and beef cattle, Sustaire offers custom hay baling, no-till planting and hay and cattle hauling. Sustaire is a longtime member of Hopkins-Rains CFB, where he serves on the board of directors and is the committee chair for the County Environment, Youth and Young Farmer & Rancher program committees. He also serves as the Hopkins-Rains CFB Dairy Commodity Advisory Committee chair.

Former Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) District 3 state director White is also immediate past chairman of the Texas Beef Council, where he represented TFB during his appointment. He farms wheat and cotton and raises commercial cattle in Wilbarger County with his brother and family. The White family participates in the Global Animal Partnership (G.A.P.) animal welfare certification program, a third-party verification system, as a way of adding value to their beef cattle operation. White currently serves on the Wilbarger CFB board of directors. He is chairman of the Wilbarger CFB Feed Grains and Oilseed Commodity Advisory Committee and the chair of the county’s National Affairs and Program of Work committees.

“These individuals represent a wide scope of cattle operations and related businesses throughout the state,” Tracy Tomascik, TFB associate director of Commodity and Regulatory Activities, said. “We are proud to have such a diverse and capable showing of leadership to represent Texas, the largest cattle-producing state in the U.S., on the Cattlemen’s Beef Board. We know they’ll be strong representatives of all aspects of the cattle business and can each speak to the challenges and opportunities faced in their sector.”

The full list of newly appointed members includes:

  • Caleb Plyler, Hope, Arkansas
  • Sallie Miller, Briggsdale, Colorado
  • Sarah K. Childs, Lake Placid, Florida
  • Tucker Shaw, Caldwell, Idaho
  • Philip L. Perry, Oskaloosa, Kansas
  • Trista Brown Priest, Satanta, Kansas
  • Andy Bishop, Cox’s Creek, Kentucky
  • Leon James, Hurdland, Missouri
  • Katie Sue Cooper, Willow Creek, Montana
  • Turk Stovall, Billings, Montana
  • Gina M. Hudson, Belvidere, Nebraska
  • Steve Wolfe, Kearney, Nebraska
  • Bill Baldwin, Mitchell, Nebraska
  • Raymond Erbele, Streeter, North Dakota
  • Cheryl DeVuyst, Morrison, Oklahoma
  • Jimmy Taylor, Cheyenne, Oklahoma
  • Daniel M. Kniffen, Spring Mills, Pennsylvania
  • Bill Slovek, Philip, South Dakota
  • April Bonds, Fort Worth, Texas
  • J. Ryan Moorhouse, Amarillo, Texas
  • Mark Brent Sustaire, Winnsboro, Texas
  • Michael White, Vernon, Texas
  • Steve Springer, Linden, Wisconsin
  • Melissa Daniels, Nicasio, California, Southwest Unit
  • Jeffrey Isenmann, Rochester, Michigan, Importer Unit
  • Kimberly A. D’Anella, Wenonah, New Jersey, Importer Unit
  • Rob Williams, Chevy Chase, Maryland, Importer Unit
  • Stephen Sothmann, Washington, D.C., Importer Unit (one-year term)

Each CBB member is appointed by the secretary of agriculture from nominations submitted by certified nominating organizations. The nominating organizations represent beef and dairy producers in each state or region. Forty-two states have individual members serving on the board, while the remainder of states are divided into three regions. Importer appointments are drawn from nominations by importer associations.

The total number of CBB members is established according to the number of cattle in the state or region. The first board member per state is appointed per 500,000 head, with each additional 1 million head of cattle establishing an additional board member. Importer numbers are established in the same manner, according to the CBB’s website.

More information about the board and list of board members is available on the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Cattlemen’s Beef Board web page. Additional information can also be found at www.beefboard.org.

Since 1966, Congress has authorized industry-funded research and promotion boards to provide a framework for agricultural industries to pool resources and combine efforts to develop new markets, strengthen existing markets and conduct important research and promotion activities. AMS provides oversight to 21 boards. The oversight ensures fiscal accountability and program integrity and is paid for by industry assessments.

To learn more about the beef checkoff and its programs, including promotion, research, foreign marketing, industry information, consumer information and safety, visit DrivingDemandForBeef.com.