North American Meat Institute President and CEO Barry Carpenter expressed appreciation to the Trump Administration following the announcement delaying by 180 days the effective date of the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration's (GIPSA or the agency) Interim Final Rule (IFR) regarding the scope of the Packers and Stockyards Act. Delaying the IFR, which was set to become effective April 22, allows the new Agriculture Secretary to review the rule and comments submitted in late March. The agency also will publish tomorrow a proposed rule seeking comment regarding whether the IFR should be permanently withdrawn, among other options.

“The delay is imperative to ensure this damaging rule does not take effect without a careful review by the new Administration,” said Carpenter. “We are confident that once the new Secretary of Agriculture takes office, he will recognize what a disaster this rule is for producers, meat packers and processors, retailers and consumers.”

The National Chicken Council also praised the move.

"With this extension notice, it is clear the administration has recognized this is a complicated and controversial issue with deep economic consequences for American poultry and livestock producers," said NCC President Mike Brown. "The comments filed have obviously had an impact, and we thank the department for postponing the effective date to allow for a more thorough and meaningful review. We look forward to working with the administration and Congress to resolve this issue during this 'timeout period' of further review."

In comments filed on March 24, NCC explained in great detail the numerous reasons why the agency's interim final rule and proposed rules are ill-advised, would inflict billions of dollars of economic harm to American agriculture, exceed GIPSA's statutory authority, and represent an arbitrary and capricious abuse of federal regulatory authority. 

Source: NAMI, NCC