Food Shortage Coming To America - Interview with Nebraska Farms Frontline

American farmers produce
was rotting in the field

and imported produce from Mexico
was actually making its way to

at the same time making its
way to the grocery store.

Is that what I'm understanding.

That's correct.

The American
confidence interval.

We have $15 billion dollars
in gold and our treasury.

We don't own an
ounce and want to.

You don't have to go
to places because it's

called the American
dream because you have

to be asleep to believe it.

The American Confidant OK.

Welcome to the
American Confidence.

Today we've got a special
guest Mr. bill price

and he's an agriculture
small agricultural farmer

in Nebraska.

He's also a client
of GSI Exchange.

And bill welcome to the show.

Thanks for having me today.

It's a pleasure bill.

Bill's got over 18 years of
warehouse freezer industry

experience.

He's also got over 20 years
in purebred cattle industry

and for the last 12 years.

He's been raising lamb and
fill some of the things

that you and I were talking
about as the American consumers

food awareness and how
they're most Americans are not

even aware of what goes into
bringing food to market you

know putting it on the table.

When I was in a
freezer warehouse

we'd have different
situations come up

and there's certain things
that we grow up with.

We just assume everybody knows.

I was amazed at how
widespread even though,

guys work them
where the product.

Day to day didn't realize
that I have no idea as to what

it really takes to put
good, wholesome products

in the butcher case, or you
know in the protein Giles

but we've become such an
instant gratification society

that it's all about putting
a meal on the table in five

minutes for whatever
reason and not

realizing the preparation
that goes into fixing

what I call a real thing.

Bill this this brings us to the
topic here of what's going on.

And we have a real food
crisis that's brewing.

Perhaps you can
talk a little bit

about that and how the
coronavirus is actually

impacted the food supply.

You think it first.

OK The restaurant industry
basically shut down.

Coast to coast border
to border, which

caused massive backlogs
of especially fresh

produce in Florida.

And I'm sure California as well.

You know the rational
thought there would be that.

OK That's going to flood
into the grocery stores.

The price of produce
for the consumer

will drop dramatically.

But in reality, what we got was
the distribution chain where

this stuff's processed well.

They package it different to
go to restaurants than they

do to the groceries
and then those workers

weren't going to
work or were ill.

So instead, you have all this
produce shit not in the field.

And of course, the
workers that pick it.

They work.

Come into work.

So these producers
had vast quantities

of produce sitting
out in the field.

They filled up their
local food banks.

But you can't ship it anywhere.

And like in Florida
this one guy had

millions of pounds of
blueberries sitting out

in the field going
to waste eating

the price of that
production to produce them.

Yet in Chicago, there
was Mexican blueberry

shipping on grocery
shelves at $2 a pound.

I understand those contracts
were drawn up years in advance.

I contacted Jeff Fortenberry
our congressman here

in the first district in
Nebraska in his Washington

office called me
back in two hours,

and he said, you know
they were like, well,

what's up with this.

Now I'll give our
local grocery credit

because everything I
saw on his shelves here

and wines and brass
said product USA bill.

But the problem's bigger
than that isn't it

because it's not
just blueberries.

I mean, this is widespread
from what I understand,

it's affecting
green beans tomatoes

cute cucumbers cabbage.

I saw one of the ag reports
that you had sent me.

And apparently there
are millions millions

of pounds that are
of food and produce

that is being plowed under.

Farmers are literally emptying
coolers and terminating fields.

Maybe I could talk a
little bit about that.

Yeah, that was a
report that my brother

sent me that is actually from
the director of agriculture

for south Florida believe
his name is Bob McEvoy.

Moment he put that out
publicly the millions of pounds

of produce that were
haven't been plowed

under because you know it's
a hazard to the next crop

you raised.

Joe, you've got a plow under.

You can't just let it rot.

So you have an expense
there and the growing season

in that part of the
country now is over

because it's getting
too hot down there.

So those guys are left basically
with a tremendous amount

of expense and
virtually no income

plus the emotional
stress of a living thing

that you cultivated
for a period of time

and just having to destroy it.

And it's not just in
the produce industry.

That's what we're going through
here in the media industry

in the middle of the country.

Well, that's impacting you
directly isn't it bill.

Well, you and I talked
in one of the things

you mentioned to me is
the appointments just

to get your lamb.

You know to the
processing plant has

been pushed out beyond reason.

I mean, this is not normal.

What are you experiencing
well I raised

some lambs for basically an
exclusive clientele and some

of them have dietary
restrictions, which

is why they like to get
their food here local.

So they know what that critter
eight and more importantly

maybe what it didn't eat just
from a health standpoint.

And I have a processor.

I usually use when we
harvest those lambs.

I've got these lambs first part
of my called for butcher day

and they said they
were already broken

in to April and
May of next year.

And these lambs need
to be harvested.

I mean lambs own
lamb for so long.

Still it matures.

And then you end up
with mutton and it's not

near as desirable a product.

I need to harvest
these lambs in October.

I mean, that's when
they're going to be done.

The thing that's
doing to people now

they're put into a
spot where if you

go to a grocery store or the
butcher shop or anywhere else

to pick up meat that's
already been processed.

Number one, you don't
know where it came from.

You don't know which local
you don't know how it was fed.

So those are all concerned.

And then you're going
to have to pay three

times the normal market
price for a product

that you don't have that
much confidence in when

standing right out in the
backyard is a product you do,

have confidence in that you
could purchase for a third

the money be way more satisfied
and the only things stand

in your way is theirs.

There's no where to process it.

So the backlog in the
processing industry

is bleeding over in your area.

And I think one of the
things you mentioned to me

is normally you would take
these to processing in October.

But your appointment's been
pushed out until early 2021

as well.

That's not going to happen.

They're going to
get processed one

way or another if nothing else
will butcher them ourselves.

I'll just put it
in my own freezer

because that product won't wait.

But what it does do is it
leaves my clients high and dry.

So how about the bigger impact.

I mean, you're
directly impacted.

But I'm sure across
the industry as you

talk to other
farmers and ranchers

how do you see this playing out.

I mean, one of the
things you mentioned

was higher food prices and lower
quality or uncertain quality.

I think at one point.

You mentioned to me there was
over a million head of cattle

in backlog that
can't get process.

What's the impact there.

Well, at some point in
time all of those cattle,

and all those hogs that
are waiting in line.

I mean, if all the meat packing
plants open duck started

running full bore
today there would still

be a massive backlog just
because of the way things

have been the last 30, 40 days.

There's a mass number
of animals regardless

that are going to end up
being euthanized and compost

which is pretty
much a total waste.

And in the process since there
is such a backlog as supply

when these Packers do
get up and running,

they can pretty much go
on any farmer ranchers

place or any feedlot
or finishing facility

and they can dictate
what how many dollars

they will give a certain view
those prices are astronomically

low right now to the producer.

On the flip side of that,
when it comes out to other end

the hang and wait
prices and cut out

prices for beef reached
all time record high.

But I can tell you the
hamburger and our grocery store

is going up almost daily.

It went up like it went
up $1 a pound one day.

And it's up around $8 a pound
right now per pound in Hamburg.

So the Packers are in
spite of all their woes

and I'm not saying they're not
based on some economic stress

because I know they are.

But once again,
the logic would say

if there is just massive supply
out there that should come down

to the consumer and the
consumer should see some

of that at some point in time.

And then in reality
just the opposite.

So are you suggesting that we're
going to see more inflation

inflated prices prices
will continue to rise

and perhaps we could even at
some point see a lack of supply

altogether.

It depends on what
if these producers

if the people supplying the base
products can stay in business.

There might be enough supply
over the next several years

if they can't stay in business.

And many of them are
probably going to fall.

I don't know.

It's too early to make
that prediction yet.

It's going to be hard on.

I mean Sony's operations have
been in business for four,

five, six generations and they
have weathered a lot of stuff.

So I won't put it past
them to find a way

to keep doing what
they're doing.

But what it will do
is it'll weed out

a lot of guys that are
of my situation that

don't have the resources
to be able to continue

to do what they're doing.

Bill it sounds to
me like there's

going to be perhaps a two
headed problem if not three.

One being lack of supply that's
a potential problem that we

still have yet to see unfold.

But certainly it
sounds like we're

going to see an increase
on in pricing and then

as smaller farms start to go
under simply because they can't

afford to carry on with
all these challenges

that they're being
faced with we could

see a tremendous
impact on jobs as well.

And small farms
could be a thing.

Oh, sure.

I mean, there's been a massive
push over the last 10 years

to get back to center
for rural affairs

and some of these other
organizations that really

made a push for eight local
and pushing the farmers

markets local vegetables
local meat products.

There's some farm
to school programs

where school systems
are they actually

incorporated some of
the smaller farmers

in providing some produce
some things for their lunch

programs.

There's been a
big push for that.

This particular
situation does not

bode well for those activities.

There are a number
of states that

have they've shut down
their local farmers

markets for usage and
for those people that

rely on that for their
income and maybe it's

our exclusive source
and think it's

going to be really
hard on those people

because there's still taxes to
pay they're still ready to pay.

And there are still
mortgages that

say there might be some
forbearance with that

for a little while.

Eventually those bills are
going to come due and when

you have no income.

It makes it really
hard to keep that boat.

Oh well, I've got a lot
of respect for farmers.

I think farmers are
resilient are essential

farmers feed the nation
and as you pointed out

at the top of the show.

There's a lot of people
are just unaware of where

their food, even comes from.

We welcome the
opportunity to get

this get this information
out to the public, what

is it bill that Joe public
can do that can perhaps

help the farmer or help the
farming industry as a whole.

I mean, what can we do.

What can be done at
an individual level

or at a community level.

Check your labels when you
go to the grocery store

look for products grown
locally or at least

within the US board.

Support your local
farmers market.

Go buy a bag of apples
you know if you're

going to get some fictions for
a salad for dinner or something,

stop by that local
farmer's market

and support those
guys a little bit.

Call your congressman and
your local representatives

and grease the
wheels a little bit.

Let them know that you're paying
attention to this and that

and you want a local safe,
wholesome food supply

and get them back to
where they need to be.

I just saw some
data the other day

as to where the Food and Drug
Administration has actually

relaxed restrictions on
labeling in regard to meet,

in particular was
one that caught

my eye as to where
meat doesn't even

have to be all meat anymore.

It can be supplemented
with some other protein

supplements like
peas or something

and still try to call it meat.

Are you talking about.

So I'm p for.

I certainly couldn't
do that with a steak.

It would have to be something
that's ground up our sauce.

Yeah It'd be a blended meat or
your ground beef or something.

The FDA evidently has
reached has restricted

some of their labeling while
potentially we could see meat

out at the grocery store that
doesn't have a clear indication

as to what the contents are.

Right and by the same token
Nathan take foreign meat

and blended them with
hamburger and call

in a product in the US, the
country of origin labeling

became very important
right after 2001 never

the mad cow scare
you'll remember.

Yes the chronic
wasting disease that

had a big effect on the
beef industry in particular.

So the country of
origin labeling

became very specific
and restrictive.

I think it was in 2015
that was disbanded as part

of these trade agreements.

And I think that needs to be
revisited so that we actually

know if it says product USA
let's make sure it really

is brought out to USA and not
a blend of something else.

So it's a real pleasure it is
to get firsthand information

from you on the front line
there and we certainly

appreciate what you're doing.

Absolutely Phil this has
been really informative.

I really want to thank
you for taking the time

to talk with our listeners
today and getting the word out

just to elevate the
awareness of what's

taking place in our food
nation's food supply

and how bad the problem is.

I really want to
thank you again.

And in hope that we
can have you come back

on another couple
of weeks here and we

can talk further about some
of the latest developments.

We know that we know this is
still an unfolding situation

and we can only hope it
gets better from here again.

You bet.

All the best.

All right, thanks.

OK, thank you.

Bye bye.

Thank you, Bill.

Our guest today has
been Mr. bill price is

a farmer in Nebraska.

And we thank you,
Bill, for joining us

on the American Confidant
I'm your host real money.

And it's been a pleasure
joining you today.

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