The market development group representing Canada’s beef cattle seedstock sector has formally merged into the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA).

The association on Friday announced the Canadian Beef Breeds Council (CBBC) has officially joined the Beef Cattle Research Council and Canfax among the divisions of the CCA. The move follows a cost-benefit review by an advisory committee.

CCA and CBBC “have worked closely together on a number of initiatives, so the integration made sense from both a logistics and a philosophical perspective as both organizations work to grow the industry,” the CCA said in a release.

“Having CBBC as a division of CCA further unites our industry under one roof, which will return more value to beef producers for their investment,” CCA president Bob Lowe said in the same release.

CBBC incorporated in 1994 as a national not-for-profit body working on behalf of Canada’s beef breeds and 8,000 registered beef cattle breeders, with a mandate to support, promote and represent the Canadian beef cattle seedstock sector.

While the Calgary-area organization doesn’t directly buy or sell genetics or live breeding cattle, it works to connect buyers and sellers and to promote beef breeds’ genetic attributes both within Canada and internationally, crafting international promotional initiatives and developing marketing strategies.

“This is an important time in the Canadian cattle industry and aligning organizations with similar goals will create opportunities that will have long-term benefits for the entire beef industry,” CBBC president Dave Sibbald said in Friday’s release.

The current COVID-19 pandemic has shown the beef sector “needs to work together to address challenges as they arise,” the two groups said.

Having strong organizations, “with the capacity to deal with any situation, is key to building and maintaining resiliency in the Canadian beef industry,” they said. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

Tagged Beef Cattle, breeders, Canadian Beef Breeds Council, Canadian Cattlemen's Association, cattle breeds, CBBC, CCA, genetics, seedstock