Welcome to Mountain State Lamb

Welcome Julie and Brad!

We very fortunate to have two new employees join the Mountain States Lamb Cooperative team in November.

Julie Van Noy joined us in the Douglas office as Staff Accountant. She graduated with honors in May 2007, from the University of Nebraska with a major in Management and a minor in Economics. After graduation, Julie was employed as an accountant with a Denver Real Estate firm. Julie is engaged to be married July 1, to Brandon Gilbreath, who is employed as a loan officer in Douglas. Julie is already proving to be a great addition to our team.

Brad Anderson also joined us in November as Supply Manager. Please contact Brad with marketing questions and to schedule lambs. We are very pleased to have Brad on board. Below is a greeting from Brad. Be sure to watch for his column in upcoming newsletters!

Hello!
I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to all of the Mountain States producers. I am Brad Anderson the new Supply Manager for MSR. I currently live in Hawarden, Iowa with my beautiful wife Lori and our three children: Caitlyn 10, Garrett 7, and Rylee 4. We are honored and excited to be part of the MSR family. I have worked at Iowa Lamb for the past 5 and half years in the production and sales aspect of the plant. Furthermore, I also dealt with the procurement and marketing of the “All Natural Lamb” program. Our family is very active in the sheep industry to this point, we currently run 200 head of Hampshire and Dorset ewes as well as we have fed several feeder lambs every year. I am looking forward to the opportunity to meet all of you and to visit all of your operations. In the next few months, you will be receiving a call from me so that we may discuss your operation and your goals as well as mine. I am extremely excited about this opportunity to help grow MSR and to help make it prosper and be successful for all involved. Please feel free to call me at anytime. I am here for you.

First off, what a great year to be a sheep producer! Hopefully, this market has boosted the energy and motivation of producers in the sheep industry. The market outlook appears to be promising in years to come, so keep those replacement ewes and let’s grow our supply and make this Coop even stronger. Concerning our supply, it does look like we should have plenty of lambs for the January and February demand. Therefore, it is imperative that we keep in contact and have great communication in the following months to allow for proper scheduling so that we may maintain proper weights and allow everyone’s lambs to be harvested in a timely manner.

Thank you,
Brad Anderson
Supply Manager
PH: 712-541-3608
FAX: 712-552-2158
brada@rosenlamb.com

Gitthens

2011 Information

A new year is here and it is time to update our records. Anytime your contact or payment information changes please call the office and we will update your payment information sheet.
We need all our members to read and sign the enclosed Quality Assurance Affidavit and return it to the office. This is required whether you are marketing natural or commodity lambs.
Enclosed you will also find a 2011 Natural Producer Affidavit. If you are marketing natural lambs, you must follow these guidelines for lambs to be accepted as natural and to receive the natural premium:

When purchasing natural feeder lambs you must get a signed affidavit from each producer from which you purchase lambs.
When lambs are placed in natural feedlot present the feedlot with natural lamb affidavits from yourself and any producer that has ever had custody of lambs-also send copies to the Co-op office.
If you are feeding your own lambs, affidavits must be presented to the plant and sent to the Co-op office when lambs are harvested.
Don’t forget to fill in the period of time at the top of the document for which you will be sending lambs. Make this date range broad enough to cover your delivery period for 2011.
If you have any questions please contact Brad Anderson or the office.

Thank you for helping us keep the Mountain States Lamb All-Natural program the most trusted and reliable lamb program in the country!

Colorado Check-Off Reminder

If you plan to apply for a refund on Colorado Check-off dollars be sure to do so within the 30 day deadline. Bonnie Brown of the Colorado Sheep and Wool authority reminds producers that year-end requests received after the 30 day deadline will not be reimbursed. If you have any questions, you can visit their website at www.coloradosheep.org or give Bonnie a call at 303-431-8310.

2010 Delivery

Just another reminder of our 2010 Delivery Policy as we reach year-end. Members that have met at least 85% of their annual delivery obligation to MSLC will not be assessed a non-delivery fee, providing all their lambs were marketed through the Co-op. If lambs were delivered outside the Co-op, a non-delivery fee of $1.00 per undelivered lamb may be assessed, and in addition, a penalty may be assessed.

Members delivering at least 75%, but less than 85%, will be assessed $1.00 per undelivered lamb. For members delivering less than 75%, the undelivered lamb fee is $3.50. If no lambs were delivered the fee is $7.00 per undelivered lamb. In each of these situations, additional penalties are possible if lambs are marketed outside MSLC and a producer’s delivery obligation to the Co-op is not met.

The board will look at each case and will consider waiving the penalty for members facing certain hardships, retaining or selling ewe lambs for replacement, or who have not otherwise acted adversely to the business of the Co-op. It is not the MSLC Board’s desire to take punitive action against any of our members, but they do have the responsibility to protect the Co-op and make sure the Uniform Marketing Agreement is being honored. In addition, the Board has the obligation to insure all members are contributing their share to the operating costs of MSLC.

Lamb supply has been tight throughout the industry in 2010 and consequently demand and prices have been unbelievably strong. A big THANK YOU to each of our members who have met or exceeded their delivery obligation. Because of the commitment of the vast majority of our members, our co-op and our meat company have had a solid year and performed very well despite the challenges with supply and the economy.

MACY AND BALL BROTHERS SHEEP COMPANY MARKET TOP LAMBS IN OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER

The top lambs in October were marketed by Ken and Angela Macy of Pine Bluffs, WY. These natural lambs were 77% YG2’s and 23% YG3’s. Fed by Macy, the lambs returned an average premium of $4.95 per head on the grid and $4.39 in natural premiums for a combined average premium per head of $9.34.
Ball Brothers Sheep Co., Lewisville, ID fed and marketed the top lambs in November. The load was 84% YG2’s and returned an average of $5.19 on the grid,
The average pelt returned $12.44 in October and $13.26 in November.

Our Best Wishes to Bob Harlan!

Bob Harlan’s last day as Procurement Director with Mountain States Lamb is December 31. We want to thank Bob for his years of service to the Co-op and wish him all the best as he focuses on raising quality lambs!

Wreath

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

The Board and Staff of MSLC